He
layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous (Prov 2:7)
The Wisdom of The Lord: The Results Of Pride
(2): Proverbs 17:23-26
23) A wicked [man] taketh a
gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.
24) Wisdom [is] before him
that hath understanding; but the eyes of a fool [are] in the ends of the earth.
25) A foolish son [is] a
grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him.
26) Also to punish the just [is]
not good, [nor] to strike princes for
equity.
In
this text, we continue to look at wisdom that reveals to us the results of
pride in our life. This section began in
our prior devotional in verse 19.
EXPOSITION:
23) A wicked [man] taketh a
gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.
Pride
leads a man to lead a selfish life putting his desires ahead of the
Lord’s. One great example of prideful
behavior is the accepting of bribes resulting in the stretching and perversion
of justice for the sake of personal gain.
Pride
causes a man to put personal gain ahead of obedience to the Lord. It harms the
cause of those desiring justice in society.
“Thy princes [are] rebellious, and companions
of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not
the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.” (Isaiah 1:23)
24) Wisdom [is] before him
that hath understanding; but the eyes of a fool [are] in the ends of the earth.
1. Pride perverts the setting of
priorities. Those who see the true
nature of spiritual truth verses the carnal offerings of this world will seek
after divine wisdom.
2. Those who are prideful and foolish place
their attention on the things of this world.
Pride
causes a man to put his physical gain and pleasure ahead of God’s will for his
life. It harms those who are prideful
and those who are seeking to propagate Godly wisdom.
“Love not the world, neither the things [that
are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in
him. For all that [is] in the
world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life,
is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the
will of God abideth for ever.” (1 John 2:15-17)
25) A foolish son [is] a
grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him.
In
the previous section we looked at prides affect in the lives of the
parents. Now we will look at the results
of pride that comes from the heart of a child…
The
prideful son is self-centered and rebellious, foolishly blind to their
responsibility towards their parents. He
chooses to live his life apart from the standards handed down by his parents. This causes:
1. His father to experience anger mixed with
sorrow as he recognizes the purposeful rebellion taking place in the heart of
the child.
2. His
mother to experience sorrow and grief as she sees the child’s suffering and
recognizes the impending judgment awaiting them.
Pride
in a child causes the parents to become angry, sorrowful and grieving. It harms the parents of the follish child
“Yea, I hated all my labour
which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that
shall be after me. And who knoweth whether he
shall be a wise [man] or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour
wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun.
This [is] also vanity. Therefore I went about to
cause my heart to despair of all the labour which I took under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 2:18-20)
26) Also to punish the just [is]
not good, [nor] to strike princes for
equity.
1.
A prideful man will not fear the Lord, nor His protection of His people. The prideful man will actively punish those
who are followers of the Lord, thinking that he will be immune from the
punishment of God.
2.
Pride will lead a man to oppose the just who are in authority over him. This is showing his pride in two ways:
He
is opposing the one who holds the human authority over him
He
is opposing God Himself who has established that authority and blessed that
authority for ruling in a just, lawful way.
Pride
causes a man to disregard and disrespect authority over him. Both divine authority and human authority is
opposed by those how are taken by pride. It harms those who are seeking to
follow the commands of God in their life.
“If now [thou hast]
understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words. Shall even he that hateth
right govern? and wilt thou condemn him that is most just? [Is it fit] to say to a
king, [Thou art] wicked? [and] to princes, [Ye are] ungodly? [How much less to him]
that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the
poor? for they all [are] the work of his hands. In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at
midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand. For his eyes [are] upon
the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings. [There is] no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of
iniquity may hide themselves. For he will not lay upon
man more [than right]; that he should enter into judgment with God.” (Job 34:16-23)
SUMMARY:
Pride
in the life of a person not only harms the prideful, but will cause many others
to be harmed and the revealed will of the Lord to be hindered.
By
God’s grace, let us all study these proverbs diligently, giving them the value
that they deserve.
May the
Lord bless us as we receive this sound wisdom and then “Think On These Things”.
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