Daily Meditations on the Bible / We stand with Israel
A troublemaker and a villain…
…who plots evil with deceit in his heart—
he always stirs up conflict.
Summary: Solomon gives us three clues to avoiding troublemakers and villains. The third clue sounds easy to spot but sometimes requires a discerning eye.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:14 — Stirring Up Conflict”
A troublemaker and a villain…
…who winks maliciously with his eye,
signals with his feet
and motions with his fingers,
Summary: Solomon gives us another warning. Keep an eye out for signs, winks, and gestures. They can be valuable clues to what is in a person’s heart.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:13 — Time Will Tell”
A troublemaker and a villain...
who goes about with a corrupt mouth…
Summary: Spotting a corrupt mouth is easy if you know the truth to start with.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:12b — Picking Truth”
A troublemaker and a villain…
Summary: What is Solomon doing here? What is he talking about? This information is intended for older children. These are young adults and adults who have to live in the adult world.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:12a — Bad Guys”
A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest—
and poverty will come on you like a thief
and scarcity like an armed man.
Summary: This passage is similar to the one about ants. The difference is that instead of looking at how the ant stays busy, we look at how hunger and want surprise the sluggard.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:10-11 — The Reliable Guide”
Go to the ant, you sluggard;
consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.
Summary: Being born rich isn’t always a good thing. It can be easy to fall into bad habits. Solomon knows this about his children, and God knows this about us.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:6-8 — Self Sufficiency”
My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor,
if you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger,
you have been trapped by what you said,
ensnared by the words of your mouth.
So do this, my son, to free yourself,
since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands… free yourself!
Summary: Solomon describes a problem we have all faced. It is sometimes difficult to recognize until we feel the trap close around us. Then our whole focus needs to be on getting out of the trap.
Continue reading “Proverbs 6:1-3, 5a — The Trap”
For lack of discipline they [the wicked] will die,
led astray by their own great folly.
Summary: Discipline, paths, and folly are the key elements in this passage. Staying on the path to life is easy if we know the path to life (John 10:9, 14:6).
Continue reading “Proverbs 5:23 — The Map”
For your ways are in full view of the Lord,
and he examines all your paths.
Summary: God knows more than we can ever comprehend. The more we meditate on what God knows, the more we realize how much he knows about you and me.
Continue reading “Proverbs 5:21 — The Watcher”
Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.
Summary: The Bible deals with real life. The topics are not always easy. Satan is skilled at leading us “down to death” but Jesus meets us where we are with a message of life.
Continue reading “Proverbs 5:5 — Contentment”