Proverbs 17

Proverbs 17

1 Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife. 2 A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers. 3 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts. 4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips, and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue. 5 Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker; he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished. 6 Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers. 7 Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a prince. 8 A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of the one who gives it; wherever he turns he prospers. 9 Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends. 10 A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool. 11 An evil man seeks only rebellion, and a cruel messenger will be sent against him. 12 Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly. 13 If anyone returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house. 14 The beginning of strife is like letting out water, so quit before the quarrel breaks out. 15 He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord. 16 Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom when he has no sense? 17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. 18 One who lacks sense gives a pledge and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor. 19 Whoever loves transgression loves strife; he who makes his door high seeks destruction. 20 A man of crooked heart does not discover good, and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity. 21 He who sires a fool gets himself sorrow, and the father of a fool has no joy. 22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. 23 The wicked accepts a bribe in secret to pervert the ways of justice. 24 The discerning sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth. 25 A foolish son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him. 26 To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good, nor to strike the noble for their uprightness. 27 Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. 28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

Devotional

Introduction

Have you ever watched period pieces and noticed that a family's appearances mean a lot? So if someone in your family was to do something considered shameful in society, your family would be shunned. You might consider Lydia from Pride and Prejudice who ran away with a man with no marriage. The family tries desperately to fix the situation by suggesting marriage for the couple, which eventually occurs.

Perhaps more so in those times, it was important to protect the family, their name and there standing in community. It is still the case today. Proverbs 17 actually addresses this idea in multiple verses, honing in on various aspects of the issue. It says: be wise and you will protect the home.

Study

1) Bring honour upon your family (vs.6,25)

"Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers." (vs.6)

"A foolish son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him." (vs.25)

The elderly find joy in their grandchildren, and children find joy in their fathers. This is particularly encapsulated in Genesis 47:7 where Joseph proudly presents his father before Pharaoh and Pharaoh is quite pleased to see it. Verse 6 establishes this idea that family is everything to everyone. People can find immense joy in their relatives.

Families were very important in the Bible. They were keepers of God's covenant (Abraham's line), they were job descriptions (for example, if you were a Levite, you were a priest) and they were companions (Adam wanted a helper).

But notice verse 25. Things are all wrong. It is possible to disgrace the family name. It is possible to offend the home. Parents can become ashamed of their kids. This is a tragedy, which in this case is brought about by the "foolish son". We can purposely harm others (foolish) and in folly always harm ourselves. But this is talking about the kind of harm that comes after folly. It is like a secondary issue. When we are being foolish, are we considering those who could be hurt/disgraced/abused in the aftermath?

2) An evil act could disturb a family's peace (vs.1,13)

"Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife." (vs.1)

"If anyone returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house." (vs.13)

Immediately when you read verse 13, you will probably be reminded of the story of David and Bathsheba. We know David has adultery with her, kills her husband Uriah to cover it up and his first son with Bathsheba dies as part of God's judgement. Uriah had served David faithfully in the army, and David had him killed in the front lines.

Not only did David suffer major guilt and the loss of a baby, but he would forever be known for this sin. It would have brought shame to him and his family.

Perhaps this sort of situation is quite specific, but I think verse 1 helps to familiarise it a bit. It is better to have a humble home of peace, than to have a wealthy splendid home, where people are at odds, or where trouble erupts. For David, he probably fits into the latter, where do you fit? The point is not wealth or poverty, it is where are you putting your value? Do you value personal success, or pride, or your desires met? Or would you rather a household that is secure in its peace as folly does not not disturb the family?

It is better to find yourself in a peaceful home, because that is where a joyful family would lie. Because that is where wisdom would lie.

3) Acting foolishly, could mean a family servant could rule over you (vs.2)

"A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers." (vs.2)

All marxists will rejoice at this verse. Finally, the proletariat rises! But if that is going through your mind, you are entirely missing the point. It is not talking about the oppression of the servant, or his need to be released from his social position.

We already explained above, the point is not about being rich or being poor, or in a high social class or low one, the whole book of Proverbs is about wisdom. The servant, one who is not part of the family, is exulted because he was wise. He has a higher position than the son, the member of the family, because of his character, not because of his social standing.

The servant honours the family more than the child - which says a lot, especially as the servant is not even a relative.

Conclusion

Let's try to wrap this up! Family is very important in the Bible, and in our sin, it is very easy to shame our families and those closest to us. In our sin, we disrupt the peace in our homes. In our sin, we play the fool, meaning that families may honour those who are not relatives.

In our sin, we shame our families.

But hold on a moment, I have committed many sins in my life and each and every one of them is not always worthy of the title "family-shaming"?! I have committed many sins in my life, and they don't always involve my family or disrupt the peace?! I have committed many sins in my life, but it doesn't mean they love our maids more than me?!

You may be right. But there is another family I would like you to consider, that perhaps Proverbs does not explicitly talk about. Your church family - the family of God.

Once again, you may not think you have disrupted or dishonoured your church family much. But remember that God is the head of this family. When we sin, we dishonour God. When we follow foolish ways, we can lead other children of God astray. When we sin, we can cause disunity between brothers and sisters in Christ.

I would love to see Christians looking beyond their families or immediate circumstances and looking more broadly to Christians worldwide. How best can I honour the name of Christ? How best can I help Christians everywhere follow the way of the wise and seek after Christ?

I pray that in whatever you do, you may glorify God. And I know if you do so, you can never truly bring your family - immediate or Christian - to shame.