BE ZEALOUS FOR THE FEAR OF THE LORD
Key verse: 17
NIV
Saying 7
23 When you sit to dine with a ruler,
note well what[a] is before you,
2 and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to gluttony.
3 Do not crave his delicacies,(A)
for that food is deceptive.
Saying 8
4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich;
do not trust your own cleverness.
5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone,(B)
for they will surely sprout wings
and fly off to the sky like an eagle.(C)
Saying 9
6 Do not eat the food of a begrudging host,
do not crave his delicacies;(D)
7 for he is the kind of person
who is always thinking about the cost.[b]
“Eat and drink,” he says to you,
but his heart is not with you.
8 You will vomit up the little you have eaten
and will have wasted your compliments.
Saying 10
9 Do not speak to fools,
for they will scorn your prudent words.(E)
Saying 11
10 Do not move an ancient boundary stone(F)
or encroach on the fields of the fatherless,
11 for their Defender(G) is strong;(H)
he will take up their case against you.(I)
Saying 12
12 Apply your heart to instruction(J)
and your ears to words of knowledge.
Saying 13
13 Do not withhold discipline from a child;
if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.
14 Punish them with the rod
and save them from death.(K)
Saying 14
15 My son, if your heart is wise,
then my heart will be glad indeed;
16 my inmost being will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right.(L)
Saying 15
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:1 Or who
- Proverbs 23:7 Or for as he thinks within himself, / so he is; or for as he puts on a feast, / so he is
Cross references
- Proverbs 23:3 : ver 6-8; Ps 141:4
- Proverbs 23:5 : S Mt 6:19
- Proverbs 23:5 : Pr 27:24
- Proverbs 23:6 : ver 1-3; Ps 141:4
- Proverbs 23:9 : S Pr 9:7
- Proverbs 23:10 : S Dt 19:14
- Proverbs 23:11 : S Job 19:25
- Proverbs 23:11 : Ps 24:8
- Proverbs 23:11 : Ex 22:22-24; Pr 15:25; 22:22-23
- Proverbs 23:12 : S Pr 2:2
- Proverbs 23:14 : S Pr 13:24; S 19:18
- Proverbs 23:16 : ver 24; Pr 27:11; 29:3
- Proverbs 23:17 : S Ps 37:1; S 73:3
- Proverbs 23:18 : S Ps 9:18; 37:1-4; Pr 24:14, 19-20
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway
ESV
23 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
observe carefully what[a] is before you,
2 and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to appetite.
3 (A)Do not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.
4 (B)Do not toil to acquire wealth;
(C)be discerning enough to desist.
5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone,
(D)for suddenly it sprouts wings,
flying like an eagle toward heaven.
6 (E)Do not eat the bread of a man who is (F)stingy;[b]
(G)do not desire his delicacies,
7 for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.[c]
“Eat and drink!” he says to you,
but his (H)heart is not with you.
8 You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,
and waste your pleasant words.
9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
for he will despise the good sense of your words.
10 (I)Do not move an ancient landmark
or enter the fields of the fatherless,
11 for their (J)Redeemer is strong;
he will (K)plead their cause against you.
12 Apply your heart to instruction
and your ear to words of knowledge.
13 Do not withhold (L)discipline from a child;
(M)if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.
14 If you strike him with the rod,
you will (N)save his soul from Sheol.
15 (O)My son, if your heart is wise,
my heart too will be glad.
16 My (P)inmost being[d] will exult
when your lips speak (Q)what is right.
17 Let not your heart (R)envy sinners,
but continue in (S)the fear of the Lord all the day.
18 Surely (T)there is a future,
and your (U)hope will not be cut off.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:1 Or who
- Proverbs 23:6 Hebrew whose eye is evil
- Proverbs 23:7 Or for as he calculates in his soul, so is he
- Proverbs 23:16 Hebrew My kidneys
Cross references
- Proverbs 23:3 : ver. 6
- Proverbs 23:4 : ch. 15:27; 28:20; Matt. 6:19; 1 Tim. 6:9, 10; Heb. 13:5
- Proverbs 23:4 : [ch. 3:5, 7; 26:12; Isa. 5:21; Rom. 12:16]
- Proverbs 23:5 : ch. 27:24
- Proverbs 23:6 : [Ps. 141:4]
- Proverbs 23:6 : ch. 28:22; Deut. 15:9
- Proverbs 23:6 : ver. 3
- Proverbs 23:7 : [Ps. 12:2]
- Proverbs 23:10 : See ch. 22:28
- Proverbs 23:11 : [Ex. 6:6]; See Job 19:25
- Proverbs 23:11 : See ch. 22:23
- Proverbs 23:13 : See ch. 13:24
- Proverbs 23:13 : [ch. 19:18]
- Proverbs 23:14 : [1 Cor. 5:5]
- Proverbs 23:15 : ver. 24, 25; See ch. 29:3
- Proverbs 23:16 : Ps. 7:9; 73:21
- Proverbs 23:16 : [ch. 8:6]
- Proverbs 23:17 : See Ps. 37:1
- Proverbs 23:17 : [ch. 28:14]
- Proverbs 23:18 : ch. 24:14, 20
- Proverbs 23:18 : Ps. 9:18
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway
Prayer: Lord, thank you for disciplining us as your own children. Let us live according to your wise teachings.
One Word: Fear the Lord