Lessons from Proverbs - Lesson 142 - “A mans pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” Proverbs 29:23 “The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel” Proverbs 1:1 Solomon said, “A mans pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” Proverbs 29:23 “A man’s pride”, in this context, means “1. Inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of ones own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, accomplishments, rank or elevation in office, which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others.... 2. Insolence; rude treatment of others; insolent exultation.” “Inordinate” means, “Irregular; disorderly; excessive; immoderate; not limited to rules prescribed, or to usual bounds; as an inordinate love of the world; inordinate desire of fame.” All of the above definitions are the definitions from the 1611 King James Dictionary. “Insolence”“is the quality or state of being insolent”. And “insolent means, “rude or impolite : having or showing a lack of respect for other people Full Definition of INSOLENT 1 : insultingly contemptuous in speech or conduct : overbearing”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. To be brought “low”, in this context, means “7. In a state of subjection, poverty or disgrace; as, to be brought low by oppression, by want or by vice.” 1611 King James Dictionary To be “humble in spirit” means to be “3. Lowly; modest; meek; submissive; opposed to proud,haughty, arrogant or assuming. In an evangelical sense, having a low opinion of ones self, and a deep sense of unworthiness in the sight of God. God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble. James 4. With these definitions in mind, let us proceed with what Solomon said in Proverbs 29:23. Solomon said, “A man’s “excessive self-esteem, of his own “superiority, which is unreasonable and has “contempt for others, being “rude to to them, shows a “lack of respect” for the LORD, His Law, and His people, shall bring him into a “state of subjection to his own “excessive self-esteem”, which shall bring him to poverty and disgrace: but honor, i.e., “high moral standards of behavior” “shall “uphold” i.e., “support” and “sustain”, “the “meek”, who know they are unworthy in the LORD’S sight, but are “submissive to the “Law of the LORD, because they know that He shall “keep” them from falling or slipping from His “Law”. Therefore honor, i.e., “high moral standards”, shall “sustain” the “meek in spirt, who know and acknowledge to the LORD that they are unworthy in His sight, but are submissive to the His Divine “Law”. Along with what Solomon taught in Proverbs 29:24, he also taught the following; “An angry man” stirs “ up strife, while a furious man increases his transgression; whosoever makes a thief his partner hates his own soul, because he hears cursing and does not “make it visible”; while the fear of man brings with him a trap, trusting in the LORD is safe; while many seek the “ruler’s favour”, it is the LORD who judges every man not the ruler; and an unjust man is hated by the just, and the wicked hates the upright. Let us read our text, Proverbs 29:22-17, and then comment on it in more detail. Proverbs 29:22-27 “22 An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression. 23 A mans pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit. 24 Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not. 25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe. 26 Many seek the rulers favour; but every mans judgment cometh from the LORD. 27 An unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked.” In verse 22, Solomon said, “ An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.” The pot of trouble is stirred up by an angry man and a furious man increases his transgression. Solomon is referring to degrees of anger and hostility. To understand angry, anger has to be defined. “Anger” is, “ 1. A violent passion of the mind excited by a real or supposed injury; usually accompanied with a propensity to take vengeance, or to obtain satisfaction from the offending party. This passion however varies in degrees of violence, and in ingenuous minds, may be attended only with a desire to reprove or chide the offender. Anger is also excited by an injury offered to a relation, friend or party to which one is attached; and some degrees of it may be excited by cruelty, injustice or oppression offered to those with whom one has no immediate connection, or even to the community of which one is a member. Nor is it unusual to see something of this passion roused by gross absurdities in others, especially in controversy or discussion. Anger may be inflamed till it rises to rage and a temporary delirium.” 1611 King James Dictionary The word “angry” means, “2. Showing anger; wearing the marks of anger; caused by anger; as, an angry countenance; angry words. ... 4. Raging; furious; tumultuous.” 1611 King James Dictionary The word “furious” means, “2. Raging; violent; transported with passion; as a furious animal. 3. Mad; phrenetic. 1611 King James Dictionary The word “phrenetic” is the archaic” word “frenetic” which means, “filled with excitement, activity, or confusion : wild or frantic”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Solomon said, a man that shows a “violent passion” in his mind connected with a wrong against him, stirs up strife, and a man that has moved from being angry to “raging and violent as a furious animal, becoming “wild or frantic” “aboundeth” i.e., increases his transgression. “Anger is seen in varying degrees, from mild to raging, while “furious” is anger elevated and with it comes an increase in transgression, i.e., “The act of passing over or beyond any law or rule of moral duty; the violation of a law or known principle of rectitude; breach of command”, according to the 1611 King James Dictionary. In this case, it would be the act of violating the “Law of the LORD. In verse 23, Solomon said, “A mans pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” Solomon said, in Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” But for the “humble in spirit”, Solomon said, “The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.” Proverbs 15:33 In verse 24, Solomon said, “Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not.” The word “cursing” means, “. Execrating; imprecating evil on; denouncing evil; dooming to evil, misery, or vexation.” 1611 King James Dictionary “Execrating” means, “ to dislike and criticize (someone or something) very strongly Full Definition of EXECRATE ... 1: to declare to be evil or detestable : denounce 2: to detest utterly” and “imprecating” means, “to invoke evil on : curse ... to utter curses”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. “Vexation” is “1. To irritate; to make angry by little provocations; a popular use of the word.” 1611 King James Dictionary Solomon said, whosoever is a partner with a thief hates his own soul: because he hears “detestable things” concerning others and “curses” “uttered” against them, “dooming them to evil”, and does “not make it visible, i.e., known. To make partners with a thief comes from walking, standing, and being seated with them. The Psalmist, by the inspiration of God, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, said, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. ... The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” Psalm 1:1,4-6 The ungodly, the sinners, the scornful, shall perish, while the “blessed man”, who does not get entangled with the ungodly, the sinners, and the scornful, is blessed of the LORD and the LORD knows the way of the righteous. In verse 25, Solomon said, “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” “The fear of man” is “1. A painful emotion or passion excited by an expectation of evil, or the apprehension of impending danger. Fear expresses less apprehension than dread, and dread less than terror and fright. The force of this passion, beginning with the most moderate degree, may be thus expressed, fear, dread, terror, fright. Fear is accompanied with a desire to avoid or ward off the expected evil. Fear is an uneasiness of mind, upon the thought of future evil likely to befall us.” 1611 King James Dictionary The “painful emotion” ”fear” that is “excited by the expectation of evil that man can do, is the trap he lays to work his wicked ways: but whosoever puts “his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” The Psalmist, “by the inspiration of God, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, said, “1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.” Psalm 91:1-6 “Under the shadow of the Almighty” we shall not fear man. In the New Testament, Jesus said, “ ‘Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ “ While we are not to fear them that can kill the body, Jesus said, “ Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ “ Jesus referred to the devil, whom Peter , a servant and an apostle Jesus Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit, said, “8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.” 1 Peter 1:8-9 Jesus gave a forewarning to fear the devil, do not let him devour you, as Peter said. We have be serious and ever vigilant in our walk in Christ Jesus, Colossinas 2:6-7, to make sure that devil does not devour us. But thanks be to God who gives us His grace to help us in the fight against the devil. Peter said, “10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. 11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” 1 Peter 1:10-11 In verse 26, Solomon said, “Many seek the rulers favour; but every mans judgment cometh from the LORD.” While many seek the “ruler’s favour”; every man’s judgment comes from the LORD. It is the LORD who has the final say in all matters. It is the LORD who sees everything that we do and we will be judged by what we do. In the New Testament, Peter said, “16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every mans work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: 18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” In verse 27, Solomon said, “An unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked.” The word “abomination” means, “1. Extreme hatred; detestation. 2. The object of detestation, a common signification in scripture. The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord. Prov.xv. 3. Hence, defilement, pollution, in a physical sense, or evil doctrines and practices, which are moral defilements, idols and idolatry, are called abominations. The Jews were an abomination to the Egyptians; and the sacred animals of the Egyptians were an abomination to the Jews. The Roman army is called the abomination of desolation. Mat. 24:13. In short, whatever is an object of extreme hatred, is called an abomination. Solomon said, “An unjust man is hated by the just: and the upright who is in the way, i.e., he walks according to the Law of the LORD”, is hated by the wicked. In the New Testament, Jesus said to the Pharisees, who were a part of the Jewish leaders in the Jewish Sanhedrin, the Council, “ ‘And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.’ “ Luke 16:15 Jesus said that God knew the hearts of the Pharisees and what they justified themselves to men missed the mark with God. Their wicked hearts and works were hated by God, because their heart and deeds were evil. What have we learned from Solomon? 1. (22) “ An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.” Solomon said, a man that shows a “violent passion” in his mind connected with a wrong against him, stirs up strife, and a man that has moved from being angry to “raging and violent as a furious animal, becoming “wild or frantic” “aboundeth” i.e., increases his transgression. “Anger is seen in varying degrees, from mild to raging, while “furious” is anger elevated and with it comes an increase in transgression, i.e., “The act of passing over or beyond any law or rule of moral duty; the violation of a law or known principle of rectitude; breach of command”, according to the 1611 King James Dictionary. In this case, it would be the act of violating the “Law of the LORD. 2. (23) “A mans pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” Solomon said, in Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” But for the “humble in spirit”, Solomon said, “The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.” Proverbs 15:33 3. (24) “Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not.” Solomon said, whosoever is a partner with a thief hates his own soul: because he hears “detestable things” concerning others and “curses” “uttered” against them, “dooming them to evil”, and does “not make it visible, i.e., known. To make partners with a thief comes from walking, standing, and being seated with them. The Psalmist, by the inspiration of God, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, said, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. ... The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” Psalm 1:1,4-6 The ungodly, the sinners, the scornful, shall perish, while the “blessed man”, who does not get entangled with the ungodly, the sinners, and the scornful, is blessed of the LORD and the LORD knows the way of the righteous. 4. (25) The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” The “painful emotion” ”fear” that is “excited by the expectation of evil that man can do, is the trap he lays to work his wicked ways: but whosoever puts “his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” The Psalmist, “by the inspiration of God, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, said, “1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.” Psalm 91:1-6 “Under the shadow of the Almighty” we shall not fear man. In the New Testament, Jesus said, “ ‘Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ “ While we are not to fear them that can kill the body, Jesus said, “ Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ “ Jesus referred to the devil, whom Peter , a servant and an apostle Jesus Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit, said, “8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.” 1 Peter 1:8-9 5. (26) “Many seek the rulers favour; but every mans judgment cometh from the LORD.” While many seek the “ruler’s favour”; every man’s judgment comes from the LORD. It is the LORD who has the final say in all matters. It is the LORD who sees everything that we do and we will be judged by what we do. In the New Testament, Peter said, “16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every mans work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: 18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” 7. (27) “An unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked.” Solomon said, “An unjust man is hated by the just: and the upright who is in the way, i.e., he walks according to the Law of the LORD”, is hated by the wicked. In the New Testament, Jesus said to the Pharisees, who were a part of the Jewish leaders in the Jewish Sanhedrin, the Council, “ ‘And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.’ “ Luke 16:15 Jesus said that God knew the hearts of the Pharisees and what they justified themselves to men missed the mark with God. Their wicked hearts and works were hated by God, because their heart and deeds were evil. In conclusion, let us expand on what Solomon said, “ An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression. Proverbs 29:22 Solomon said, in Proverbs 22:23-25, “24 Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: 25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.” Solomon gives the reason why to not make friends with and an angry man or a furious man, lest you learn his ways. Angry men stir up strife and contentions between others and furious men become even mor enraged and very unpredictable in their actions. To make friends with them would put one’s soul in danger of becoming like them and a “snare”, i.e., a trap for one’s soul. In the New Testament, Jesus set a very high standard against anger, in Matthew 5:21-26. Let us read what Jesus said concerning anger. Matthew 5:21-26 “1 ‘Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. 26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.’ “ Jesus equated anger with killing. Why? Probably because so many people down through the ages have crossed the line of anger, to being furious and with blind passion have killed someone. Anger needs to be controlled, for it can unleash its ugly and destructive acts in an instant. Jesus gave three judgments against the degree in which anger is committed. First, angry with a brother without a cause puts one in danger of the judgment. Second, “Raca” “is a word of utter contempt, signifying ‘empty,’ intellectually rather than morally, ‘empty headed,’ ... it was worse than being angry, inasmuch as an outrageous utterance is worse than a feeling unexpressed or somewhat controlled in expression; it does not indicate such a loss of self-control as the word rendered ‘fool”, a godless, moral reprobate.” Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words Calling someone this derogatory word “Raca put the person in danger of the Jewish Council, who heard and acted on all matters involving the Jewish people, except for matters that involved the death penalty. Rome tried those accused of a crime that carried with it the death penalty. That is why the Jewish leaders and people could not try Jesus in their Council and kill Him. They brought Jesus before Pontius Pilate, Rome’s representative, to try Jesus with their false accusations. Third, to call a person a fool puts the person in danger of the final and everlasting judgment of God, “hell fire”. The word “fool” means, “morally worthless, a scoundrel, a more serious reproach than ‘Raca’; the latter scorns a man’s mind and calls him stupid; moros”, (the Biblical Greek word for fool, “scorns his heart and character; hence the Lord’s more severe condemnation; in 7:26“, according to Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Jesus told them to lay their gift at the altar and reconcile, i.e., bring themselves into the favor of the one offended and then go and offer your gift at the altar. Also agree with your adversary while you are still in his presence, lest he take you before the judge and he delivers you to the officer who puts you in prison and you cannot get out of prison until you have paid the uttermost “farthing”, i.e., “a unit of money. Anger can quickly get out of hand with sever penalties coming from court action. Paul, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit, said, “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:30-32 From what Jesus and Paul said, we are to put anger out of our lives, because anger grieves the Holy Spirit, whereby we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, who abides with us, Acts 2:38, unto the day of our redemption. Paul said, we are to “be” “kind” to one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you.” The ability to be able to forgive someone who has wronged us is the remedy for anger. For you cannot hold anything against someone if you forgive them. Therefore let us “be” “kind” to one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven” us. References: King James Version Bible Gateway - Thank you for public access to Bible verses. By Public Domain 1611 King James Dictionary - Thank you for the definitions of “anger, “angry, furious, “pride, “low, “humble, “bewrayeth, ”vexation” and “abomination. Merriam-Webster Dictionary - Thank you for the definitions of “insolence”, “phrenetic”, “imprecating”, and “execrating“. Vine’s Complete Expository of Old and New Testament Words - Published by Thomas Nelson Publishers - Copyright 1985 - Thank you for the definition of the Biblical Greek words for “Raca”, and “fool”.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 02:59:02 +0000
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