Year One, October 29

Do Not Boast About Tomorrow1

Proverbs 27:1-18

1 Do not boast about tomorrow,

for you do not know what a day may bring.

Providing for the future is a duty, but to boast about the future is sin. Only an unbeliever would dare to brag about what he will accomplish tomorrow. Eternity is just around the corner. We may find ourselves brought to it before the sun goes down today or rises again tomorrow. The rich man thought he could relax, eat, drink and be merry for many years to come, but that very night, “God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you.’”2 Young people have no guarantee they will live to a ripe old age. There are little graves in the cemetery. Flowers in the bud are cut off from the bush. We are called today to repent and believe. To delay is to be like the rich man who boasted about tomorrow. It may result in our eternal ruin.

2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;

a stranger, and not your own lips.

3 A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,

but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

Because a fool will not forgive, they are pouty and eager for revenge. Their anger crushes their own heart and they will crush the hearts of others if they can.

4 Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,

but who can stand before jealousy?

Adam and Satan both fell because they envied God. If we give in to jealousy, it will certainly take away our happiness. Envy spits its venom on the best of people. It is a horrible and devilish emotion. Those who follow the loving Jesus must fight against resentment and overcome it.

5 Better is open rebuke

than hidden love.

6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend;

profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

7 One who is full loathes honey,

but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet

8 Like a bird that strays from its nest

is a man who strays from his home.

Therefore we should avoid an aimless life that always hopes a change will make things better. If we have not succeeded where we are, let us try again. How can a tree grow if it is always being transplanted?

9 Oil and perfume make the heart glad,

and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.

10 Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend,

Jesus was our father’s best friend; let us not turn our back on him. We will never find a better.

and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity.

Better is a neighbor who is near

than a brother who is far away.

Relatives should be close friends, but unfortunately, selfishness often gets in the way. Jonathan was a better friend to David than Joseph’s brothers were to him.

11 Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad,

that I may answer him who reproaches me.

12 The prudent sees danger and hides himself,

but the simple go on and suffer for it.

13 Take a man’s garment when he has put up security for a stranger,

and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.

Do not trust the immoral person. They are bad at heart and their faults will soon leave them begging for money. If you must do business with them, do it on the strictest terms, or they will rob you.

14 Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,

rising early in the morning,

will be counted as cursing.

Sensible people find excessive praise distasteful. There is good reason to think it is given with a sinister motive in mind. We should wish our friends well, but to loudly sing their praises all the time is not doing them a favor. It is probably just the opposite!

15 A continual dripping on a rainy day

and a quarrelsome wife are alike;

16 to restrain her is to restrain the wind

or to grasp oil in one’s right hand.

Arguing with a neighbor is like a spring shower and soon over. But quarreling with a wife at home is exhausting work and makes life miserable. Even worse, strong disagreements in the home cannot be hidden. The noise and bad temper of a bad woman become obvious to everyone. You might as well try to cover up the wind or hold oil in your hand. Let us never fight, unless it is fighting to make each other happy.

17 Iron sharpens iron,

and one man sharpens another.

Good friendship is great help to growing in grace. Fellowship with the saints helps us in the service of God.

18 Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,

and he who guards his master will be honored.

And if Jesus is that Master, our honor will be great and long lasting; our reward will be sweet indeed.

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¹ Proverbs 27:1

² Luke 12:20