When you sit
to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if
you are given to gluttony. Do
not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.
Do not wear
yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are
gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an
eagle.
Do not eat
the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his
delicacies; for he is the kind of person who is always
thinking about the cost. “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is
not with you. You will vomit
up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments.
Do not speak
to fools, for they will scorn your prudent words.
Do not move
an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless, for their Defender is strong; he
will take up their case against you.
Apply your
heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
Do not
withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will
not die. Punish them with the
rod and save them from death.
My son, if
your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad indeed; my inmost being will rejoice when your lips
speak what is right.
Do not let
your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. There is surely a
future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
Proverbs 23:1-18
Some people
tell us that the best things in life are free. The Bible will tell us the best
things in life are not things.
The best
things in life are the eternal riches that come from God’s goodness and grace
in Jesus Christ. We do not hold them in our hands, but in our hearts.
Our greatest riches are the riches we have in Christ.
Our Daily Bread –