Proverbs 10

Proverbs 10:1-2:
The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
2 Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, But righteousness delivers from death.

Proverbs 10:3:
The Lord will not allow the righteous soul to famish, But He casts away the desire of the wicked.

‘YHWH will not allow the soul (inner life, appetite) of the righteous to go hungry,
But he thrusts away the craving of the wicked.’
Note how speedily YHWH, the covenant God of Israel, is brought into the equation. We learn immediately that the proverbs are valid and true because YHWH ensures their fulfilment, These word amplify Proverbs 10:2. The reason that righteousness delivers from death is because YHWH will not allow the inner life of the righteous to go hungry, to be famished. He will ensure that he enjoys a satisfying and fruitful life (Proverbs 3:16-18). He will satisfy his appetites. And this in contrast with the unrighteous, whose desires and cravings YHWH will ‘thrust away’. He pushes them from Him. He has no time for the cravings of wrongdoers which are for things displeasing to Him. -Study Light

Proverbs 10:4-5:
4 He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the diligent makes rich.
5 He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame.

Many people blame witchcraft for their poverty in life whereas it is “lazycraft” that is responsible for their predicament.
Even if a rich man becomes lazy, he would eventually become poor, because to slack is to lack.
A lazy man may say, “I like this BMW 10 series car. Oh, this car can fly! That is my car!” Yet, he is not working. He just stands by the roadside looking at cars as they pass. He does not even have a tyre. The truth is, he is only left with desires. A wise man said, “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride”. -5DDevotionals

Proverbs 10:4:
4 He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the diligent makes rich.

but the hand of the diligent maketh rich;
that is, with the blessing of God along with it, as in ( Proverbs 10:22 ) ; such who are "sharp" and acute, as the word signifies; who are careful and industrious, mind their business, and do the honest part; these, with a divine blessing, frequently grow rich: or rather who are like those that dig in the earth for gold, who search for it with great eagerness and diligence; for from this root is a word often used for gold, ( Proverbs 3:14 ) ( 8:19 ) ( 16:16 ) . All this is true in a spiritual sense; such who are slothful in attendance on the means of grace, the word and ordinances, are slack and negligent in duty, bring a spiritual poverty upon them; and like the Laodicean church, who, through her lukewarmness and carnal security, became poor and wretched, blind and naked: on the other hand, such who are diligent in the use of means are frequent at the throne of grace, forsake not the assembly of the saints, constantly wait at Wisdom's gates; these grow rich in grace and in all good works. -John Gills Exposition

Proverbs 10:6: Blessings are on the head of the righteous, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked.

Paul had fought the good fight and finished the course, knowing that the victor's crown of righteousness was laid up for him. Yes, Paul knew that he was a winner with Christ as his leader. We, too, can have this same confidence, knowing that the crown of eternal life is ours.

When people compete for the Olympics, they need to prepare for the victory. That moment before finishing, a moment in which the athlete is all charged and can taste the victory, is a time when the hopes and dreams of hard work are so close to becoming reality.

The Olympics will pass and more will come in years ahead for new athletes to work for "The Gold."

Paul tells me that our victory is great because we have the confidence in Christ as being the first to overcome the grave. With confidence, we can draw near to the victory. With faith in Christ we can taste the victory. But, we must finish the course. We must draw near to the cross of Christ that we might receive the crown of righteousness. The Miracle of Heaven! --Reflections

Proverbs 10:7-21:
7 The memory of the righteous is blessed, But the name of the wicked will rot.
8 The wise in heart will receive commands, But a prating fool will fall.
9 He who walks with integrity walks securely, But he who perverts his ways will become known.
10 He who winks with the eye causes trouble, But a prating fool will fall.
11 The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked.
12 Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.
13 Wisdom is found on the lips of him who has understanding, But a rod is for the back of him who is devoid of understanding.
14 Wise people store up knowledge, But the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.
15 The rich man’s wealth is his strong city; The destruction of the poor is their poverty.
16 The labor of the righteous leads to life, The wages of the wicked to sin.
17 He who keeps instruction is in the way of life, But he who refuses correction goes astray.
18 Whoever hides hatred has lying lips, And whoever spreads slander is a fool.
19 In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; The heart of the wicked is worth little.
21 The lips of the righteous feed many, But fools die for lack of wisdom.

I think that Proverbs presents two paths and providing many illustrations of people on those different paths. We have a pathway to wisdom and a pathway that leads to folly. Speech is one of the manifestations of which path you are on. What we see is that the fool speaks a lot. We read, for example, in Proverbs 10:19 (Prov 10:19), “when words are many transgression is not lacking, but whoever restraints, his lips are prudent.” So, we see a manifestation of wisdom in restraining one's lips. Then when that person speaks, they should speak wisdom, that is wisdom that coincides with what we see in the book of Proverbs which we've spoken about to a certain extent. But the biggest point that we can take away concerning the speech issue in the book of Proverbs is that those that do speak in the Book of Proverbs use words to reconcile, to bring peace and they speak less. For example, we see in Proverbs, 15:1 (Prov 15:1), “a soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Elsewhere in Proverbs 26:24 (Prov 26:24), “for a lack of wood the fire goes out and where there is no whisper, quarreling ceases.” We can judge speech based upon these criteria, but I also think that as followers and listeners to other people that are in positions, we could say expertise and authority, we should be judging their speech based upon these principles as well. -Dick Hernandez; Talbot School of Theology

Proverbs 10:22:
22 The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with it.

Sometimes, God multiplies your efforts and gives you a return disproportionate to what you could have hoped or dreamed for. And that’s a good thing. You should be grateful to God for it.
But you should also always bear in mind that this blessing isn’t a guarantee. While God’s grace and his provision in your life will be a constant, he never promised us lifelong financial freedom. We live in a fallen world, and wealth is ultimately fleeting. -Dale Chambers; Church Leaders

Proverbs 10:23-25:
23 To do evil is like sport to a fool, But a man of understanding has wisdom.
24 The fear of the wicked will come upon him, And the desire of the righteous will be granted.
25 When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more, But the righteous has an everlasting foundation.

Proverbs 10:26:
As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, So is the lazy man to those who send him.

In Proverbs 10:26, Solomon describes two sluggards, a messenger and his employer. People known to be lazy generally get hired last, but someone needing to send a message may hire the first available sluggard, thinking, “Delivering a message is easy. Surely he can do that!” But the lazy man will botch even that easy job, taking his time leaving, stopping for a cup of coffee and chatting up the barista, getting lost, forgetting who the message is for, and then forgetting the message. Like vinegar that sets teeth on edge, and smoke that irritates one’s eyes, so is the sluggard to anyone who uses him to do even a simple task, like delivering a message.
Here is the lesson: set a lazy person to do a job and expect exasperation. More generally, set someone to a task he cannot or will not complete, and you will regret it. Neither job titles nor job descriptions guarantee someone can do a job. Managers who mechanically use such guides in assigning work deserve the trouble they get, since they end up playing “let’s pretend” about employees. The first principal I worked for never played that game, so when those above him gave him an assistant principal who screwed up every job he ever got, the principal assigned him to four periods a day of cafeteria duty.
The sluggard who cannot deliver a message reliably will nevertheless be full of himself, and full of excuses. So will the person who set him to be a messenger! “I told him exactly what to do.” “How could anyone be expected to know he would stop for two hours at a coffee shop to shoot the breeze?” “I made him repeat the message three times. How could he forget it?” His employer, you see, matches the sluggard’s laziness with mental laziness of his own. He did not evaluate whether the sluggard could do the job. He deserves the “smoke in the eyes” frustration he gets. -Geneva College

Proverbs 10:27-32:
27 The fear of the Lord prolongs days, But the years of the wicked will be shortened.
28 The hope of the righteous will be gladness, But the expectation of the wicked will perish.
29 The way of the Lord is strength for the upright, But destruction will come to the workers of iniquity.
30 The righteous will never be removed, But the wicked will not inhabit the earth.
31 The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, But the perverse tongue will be cut out.
32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, But the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.

Proverbs 10:30 encourages the believer with these words, “The righteous shall never be removed.” While the froward stand to experience the awful judgment of God, the righteous will shine forever (Dan. 12:3). • Proverbs 11:28 – The righteous shall flourish as a branch. • Proverbs 12:3 – A man shall not be established by wickedness: but the root of the righteous shall not be moved. • Proverbs 12:7 – The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand. The author of the book of Proverbs labors repeatedly to assure the righteous that they are building on the rock. While the froward may build tall and wide, they build on sand and will not stand in the Day of Judgment. When faced by the trials of life, the righteous are able to stand. When adversity surrounds and all things appear hopeless, the righteous are able to stand. Illustration: During initial construction on the Golden Gate Bridge, no safety devices were used and 23 men fell to their deaths. For the final part of the project, however, a large net was used as a safety precaution. At least 10 men fell into it and were saved from certain death. Even more interesting, however, is the fact that 25% more work was accomplished after the net was installed. Why? Because the men had the assurance of their safety, and they were free to wholeheartedly serve the project. God promises that the righteous will stand so that they may confidently serve Him! -Some Real Characters