THE THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Let proverbs be your guide through life
“17 Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thine heart unto my knowledge. 18 For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep them within thee; they shall withal be fitted in thy lips. 9 That thy trust may be in the Lord, I have made known to thee this day, even to thee. 20 Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge, 21 That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?”
Proverbs 22:17-21 (KJV)
Ecclesiastes 2
The downfall of a king
Though Solomon was trying to follow the Lord, his heart [the old natured man] convinced him to seek pleasure; this is a battle we have to fight daily
Ecclesiastes 2:1 (KJV), “I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity.”
Ecclesiastes 2:3 (KJV), “I sought in mine heart to give myself unto wine, yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom; and to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was that good for the sons of men, which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life.”
Ephesians 6:11 (KJV), “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
Solomons goal like ours, he who has the most toys, wins
Ecclesiastes 2:9 (KJV), “So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me.”
Be careful of what you ask of the Lord
2 Chronicles 1:11-12 (KJV), “11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king: 12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like.”
With everyone who asks God for favor, in return, God will see how well you handle it
Luke 12:48 (KJV), “But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.”
Ecclesiastes 2:12-13 (KJV), “12 And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done. 13 Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness.”
Lord willing we all can recognize our downfalls before we die
Ecclesiastes 2:15-16 (KJV), “15 Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity. 16 For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.”
God, who punishes the cruel and disables them to do any more hurt, rewards the merciful, and enables them to do so much the more good
Ecclesiastes 2:26 (KJV), “For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.”
Proverbs 28:8 (KJV), “He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.”
Hosea 12
God abhors sinners who think doing an occasional good deed makes up for the sins they do
Hosea 12:11 (KJV), “Is there iniquity in Gilead? surely they are vanity: they sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal; yea, their altars are as heaps in the furrows of the fields.”
Proverbs 15:8 (KJV), “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.”
Jeremiah 46
Though God does protect and preserve His children, do we always reap what we sow?
Jeremiah 46:28 (KJV), “Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the Lord: for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee: but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished.”
It is because of the mercy and compassion of God that we can have a home in heaven, despite our sin. We sowed iniquity and corruption, and Jesus reaped our punishment on the cross. May He be praised forever.
Romans 9:15 (KJV), “For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”
Proverbs 22
Proverbs 22:6 (KJV), “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Note that this verse does not say, “Make sure you had trained [[1]participle passive] a child in the way he should go.”
Strong’s Concordance (2596) – chanak: to train up, dedicate. Part of Speech: Verb.
In this case, this is a continual action not indicating to stop at any particular age
Again indicating that we are born in sin
Proverbs 22:15 (KJV), “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.”
Do not put your life in peril and in the hands of someone else
Proverbs 22:26-27 (KJV), “26 Be not thou one of them that strike hands, or of them that are sureties for debts. 27 If thou hast nothing to pay, why should he take away thy bed from under thee?”
Ezekiel 44
This law was actually shown in the Christian TV series ‘The Chosen’
Ezekiel 44:17 (KJV), “And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.”
[1] A passive perfect participle is formed by using the structure “having been + past participle
Grow in the Word of the Lord 