Quoted A Lot in the New Testament – Proverbs 24-26

Joy: You’re listening to Season 2 of the Lifting Her Voice podcast.  This is Episode #202 and today we’ll read Proverbs 24-26 together.   Solomon and the Book of Proverbs gets quoted a lot in the New Testament.  

Welcome

Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Season 2!  I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me – from the beginning – simply reading God’s word together.  We built some spiritual muscles in 2020 with just the New Testament.  But this year we’re going all out, cover-to-cover, Old Testament and New.  So, whether with your first cup in the morning, your commute to work, or as the last thing on your mind before sleep, God’s Word will equip you for every good work.  I’m really glad you’re here!

Proverbs 24

Don’t envy the evil

or desire to be with them,

for their hearts plan violence,

and their words stir up trouble.

A house is built by wisdom,

and it is established by understanding;

by knowledge the rooms are filled

with every precious and beautiful treasure.

A wise warrior is better than a strong one,

and a man of knowledge than one of strength;

for you should wage war with sound guidance —

victory comes with many counselors.

Wisdom is inaccessible to a fool;

he does not open his mouth at the city gate.

The one who plots evil

will be called a schemer.

A foolish scheme is sin,

and a mocker is detestable to people.

If you do nothing in a difficult time,

your strength is limited.

Rescue those being taken off to death,

and save those stumbling toward slaughter.

If you say, “But we didn’t know about this,”

won’t he who weighs hearts consider it?

Won’t he who protects your life know?

Won’t he repay a person according to his work?

Eat honey, my son, for it is good,

and the honeycomb is sweet to your palate;

realize that wisdom is the same for you.

If you find it, you will have a future,

and your hope will never fade.

Don’t set an ambush, you wicked one,

at the camp of the righteous man;

don’t destroy his dwelling.

Though a righteous person falls seven times,

he will get up,

but the wicked will stumble into ruin.

Don’t gloat when your enemy falls,

and don’t let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,

or the Lord will see, be displeased,

and turn his wrath away from him.

A Little Sleep, A Little Slumber

Don’t be agitated by evildoers,

and don’t envy the wicked.

For the evil have no future;

the lamp of the wicked will be put out.

My son, fear the Lord, as well as the king,

and don’t associate with rebels,

for destruction will come suddenly from them;

who knows what distress these two can bring?

These sayings also belong to the wise:

It is not good to show partiality in judgment.

Whoever says to the guilty, “You are innocent” —

peoples will curse him, and nations will denounce him;

but it will go well with those who convict the guilty,

and a generous blessing will come to them.

He who gives an honest answer

gives a kiss on the lips.

Complete your outdoor work, and prepare your field;

afterward, build your house.

Don’t testify against your neighbor without cause.

Don’t deceive with your lips.

Don’t say, “I’ll do to him what he did to me;

I’ll repay the man for what he has done.”

I went by the field of a slacker

and by the vineyard of one lacking sense.

Thistles had come up everywhere,

weeds covered the ground,

and the stone wall was ruined.

I saw, and took it to heart;

I looked, and received instruction:

a little sleep, a little slumber,

a little folding of the arms to rest,

and your poverty will come like a robber,

and your need, like a bandit.

Proverbs 25

Hezekiah’s Collection

These too are proverbs of Solomon,

which the men of King Hezekiah of Judah copied.

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter

and the glory of kings to investigate a matter.

As the heavens are high and the earth is deep,

so the hearts of kings cannot be investigated.

Remove impurities from silver,

and material will be produced for a silversmith.

Remove the wicked from the king’s presence,

and his throne will be established in righteousness.

Don’t boast about yourself before the king,

and don’t stand in the place of the great;

for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!”

than to demote you in plain view of a noble.

Don’t take a matter to court hastily.

Otherwise, what will you do afterward

if your opponent humiliates you?

Make your case with your opponent

without revealing another’s secret;

otherwise, the one who hears will disgrace you,

and you’ll never live it down.

A word spoken at the right time

is like gold apples in silver settings.

A wise correction to a receptive ear

is like a gold ring or an ornament of gold.

To those who send him, a trustworthy envoy

is like the coolness of snow on a harvest day;

he refreshes the life of his masters.

Vinegar on Soda

The one who boasts about a gift that does not exist

is like clouds and wind without rain.

A ruler can be persuaded through patience,

and a gentle tongue can break a bone.

If you find honey, eat only what you need;

otherwise, you’ll get sick from it and vomit.

Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house;

otherwise, he’ll get sick of you and hate you.

A person giving false testimony against his neighbor

is like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow.

Trusting an unreliable person in a difficult time

is like a rotten tooth or a faltering foot.

Singing songs to a troubled heart

is like taking off clothing on a cold day

or like pouring vinegar on soda.

If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat,

and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,

for you will heap burning coals on his head,

and the Lord will reward you.

The north wind produces rain,

and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

Better to live on the corner of a roof

than to share a house with a nagging wife.

Good news from a distant land

is like cold water to a parched throat.

A righteous person who yields to the wicked

is like a muddied spring or a polluted well.

It is not good to eat too much honey

or to seek glory after glory.

A person who does not control his temper

is like a city whose wall is broken down.

Proverbs 26

Like snow in summer and rain at harvest,

honor is inappropriate for a fool.

Like a flitting sparrow or a fluttering swallow,

an undeserved curse goes nowhere.

A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

and a rod for the backs of fools.

Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness

or you’ll be like him yourself.

Answer a fool according to his foolishness

or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.

The one who sends a message by a fool’s hand

cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.

A proverb in the mouth of a fool

is like lame legs that hang limp.

Giving honor to a fool

is like binding a stone in a sling.

A proverb in the mouth of a fool

is like a stick with thorns,

brandished by the hand of a drunkard.

The one who hires a fool or who hires those passing by

is like an archer who wounds everyone indiscriminately.

As a dog returns to its vomit,

so also a fool repeats his foolishness.

Do you see a person who is wise in his own eyes?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

Gossip

The slacker says, “There’s a lion in the road —

a lion in the public square!”

A door turns on its hinges,

and a slacker, on his bed.

The slacker buries his hand in the bowl;

he is too weary to bring it to his mouth!

In his own eyes, a slacker is wiser

than seven who can answer sensibly.

A person who is passing by and meddles in a quarrel that’s not his

is like one who grabs a dog by the ears.

Like a madman who throws flaming darts and deadly arrows,

so is the person who deceives his neighbor

and says, “I was only joking!”

Without wood, fire goes out;

without a gossip, conflict dies down.

As charcoal for embers and wood for fire,

so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife.

A gossip’s words are like choice food

that goes down to one’s innermost being.

Smooth lips with an evil heart

are like glaze on an earthen vessel.

A hateful person disguises himself with his speech

and harbors deceit within.

When he speaks graciously, don’t believe him,

for there are seven detestable things in his heart.

Though his hatred is concealed by deception,

his evil will be revealed in the assembly.

The one who digs a pit will fall into it,

and whoever rolls a stone —

it will come back on him.

A lying tongue hates those it crushes,

and a flattering mouth causes ruin.

Close

Have you ever poured vinegar on baking soda in science class?  I put a link in the show notes to a YouTube video showing what happens.  So watch the video and then read Proverbs 25:20 again.  Singing songs to a troubled heart is like taking off clothing on a cold day or like pouring vinegar on soda.  

It may sound familiar to read Proverbs 25, verses 6&7.   Don’t boast about yourself before the king, and don’t stand in the place of the great; for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!” than to demote you in plain view of a noble.  Jesus turns this into a parable for us in Luke 14:7-11.  This is what it says:  

He told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they would choose the best places for themselves:“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, don’t sit in the place of honor, because a more distinguished person than you may have been invited by your host. The one who invited both of you may come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in humiliation, you will proceed to take the lowest place.  But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when the one who invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ You will then be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Paul Quotes Proverbs Too

Then, in Romans 12:20, Paul quotes from Proverbs 25:21&22.  If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.

Did you notice other references to the New Testament?  Point them out at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Thank you for joining me here today.  I pray that by spending time in His Word every day, you will by changed.  Visit me at Lifting Her Voice.com with your comments and questions.  And don’t forget to visit the Blog page while you’re there.  If you like the podcast, it would be great if you’d give it a five-star review and share it with everyone you know.  Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.  See you tomorrow!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.