Proverbs 10 contains some previous wisdom lessons that we have learned , so I will go through some new points that we haven’t yet touched, so let’s look at Proverbs 10 today. I noticed three main categories in reading this chapter. These categories are: the righteous, the diligent, and the mouth of the righteous. I did not cover every verse today, but I did cover the verses with these specific themes.
The Wise and Righteous
The wise and righteous bring joy to their parents, they live with integrity, they demonstrate love instead of hate, they follow instructions instead of rejecting instruction, they follow the way of the Lord, they store up knowledge and they will not be shaken.
A wise son brings joy to his father, but foolish son brings heartache to his mother. Verse 1
The one who lives with integrity lives securely, but whoever perverts his ways will be found out. Verse 9
Hatred stirs up conflicts, but love covers all offenses. Verse 12
The one who follows instruction is on the path to life, but the one who rejects correction goes astray. Verse 17
The way of the Lord is a stronghold for the honorable, but destruction awaits the malicious. Verse 29
The wise store up knowledge. Verse 14
The righteous will never be shaken, but the wicked will not remain on the earth. Verse 30
The Diligent
Diligence is defined as determination and careful effort. In a job, the one who is diligent , does the job efficiently and takes care of the little details. So, when a person is idle, like in the verse below, they are not working, they are not prudent. They are lazy. They sleep and don’t think about their future. A few chapters ago, we looked at what an ant does. An ant works hard now and puts away food for the winter.
Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring riches, son who gathers during the summer is prudent, but the son who sleeps during harvest is disgraceful.(reminds me of the ant who works up and saves so that he will have food in the winter). Verses 4-5
Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so the slacker is to the one who sends him on an errand. Verse 26
This verse speaks of how irritating it is when someone cannot be counted on like for running an errand. It is very irritating! They are not diligent when they cannot be counted on.
The Mouth of the Righteous
When we look at these verses, we will see characteristics of the mouth of the righteous vs the mouth of the wicked. You can see how many verses in this chapter mention the tongue, lips, and mouth. Clearly, we can see that the mouth of the wise and righteous control what the say. The mouth of the wicked hide violence inside. Wisdom is on the lips of the discerning. The wise control their lips. The righteous know what is appropriate to say, whereas the mouth of the wicked only say what is perverse.
Blessings are on the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. remembrance of the righteous is a blessing , but the name of the wicked will rot. Verse 6
A wise heart accepts commands, but foolish lips will be destroyed. Verse 8
Foolish lips will be destroyed. Verse 10
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. Verse 6
Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, Verse 13
But a rod is for the back of the one who lacks sense. Verse 13
The mouth of the fool hastens destruction Verse 14
The one who conceals hatred has lying lips and whoever spreads slander is a fool. Verse 18
When there are many words, sin is unavoidable, but the one who controls his lips is wise. Verse 19
The tongue of the righteous is pure silver; the heart of the wicked is of little value. Verse 20
The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense. Verse 21
The mouth of the righteous produces wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out. Verse 31
The lips of the righteous know what is appropriate, but the mouth of the wicked, only what is perverse. Verse 32
My Personal Application
It sure is easy to sin with our mouth. We may be bitter or angry, we may just not think of what we are saying before we say it. Living with people, especially our spouse, we tend to get carried away and not think before we speak. Verses 19 and 31 really stood out to me. “The one who controls his lips is wise,” (verse 19) and “The mouth of the righteous produces wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out.” (verse 31)
I want the words of my mouth to produce wisdom!
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Psalm 19:14, NLT
I enjoyed this rich morsel. Lord help my tongue to be righteous!
Mine too