Proverbs23

Proverbs 23 offers counsel on self-control and wisdom in various life situations. It warns against gluttony, the pursuit of fleeting riches, and the dangers of associating with insincere individuals and fools. The chapter emphasizes the importance of parental discipline, honoring one's parents, and diligently seeking truth and understanding, while strongly cautioning against the destructive paths of drunkenness and immorality.

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Prudence When Dining with Rulers

¶ When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:

And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.

Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.

The Folly of Chasing Riches

¶ Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.

Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

Avoid the Stingy, Malicious Host

¶ Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words.

Wisdom for Different Audiences

¶ Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.

Respect Boundaries and the Poor

¶ Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.

Commitment to Instruction

¶ Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.

Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.

Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.

My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.

Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.

Do Not Envy Sinners

¶ Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long.

For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.

Avoid Drunkenness and Gluttony

¶ Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.

Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:

For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.

Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.

The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.

Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.

The Danger of Sexual Immorality

My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.

For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.

She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.

The Catalogue of Drunken Misery

¶ Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?

They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.

Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.

At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.

Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.

Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.

They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

Study Notes for Proverbs 23

Verse 1

This section addresses the social etiquette required when interacting with powerful figures, emphasizing self-control to avoid appearing overly greedy or presumptuous.

Verse 2

To 'put a knife to thy throat' is a hyperbolic metaphor emphasizing extreme discipline against gluttony, suggesting that failing to control one's appetite is self-destructive.

Verse 3

The 'deceitful meat' refers not only to the food itself but also to the hidden obligations or expectations that may come with accepting lavish hospitality from a ruler.

Verse 4

The instruction to 'cease from thine own wisdom' means stopping the exhausting, self-reliant schemes often used in the obsessive pursuit of wealth, which is ultimately futile.

Verse 5

Riches are personified as having wings, illustrating their volatility and impermanence; they vanish quickly like an eagle flying away.

Verse 6

The 'evil eye' (Hebrew: *ayin ra’ah*) denotes a stingy, envious, or malicious disposition, where the host resents the cost of the meal even while offering it.

Verse 7

This verse explains that a person's true character is revealed by their inner thoughts, not their polite words. The host’s forced hospitality is insincere because his heart is focused on the cost.

Verse 8

The negative consequence is the regret and shame of having accepted tainted generosity, leading to the loss of one's own good reputation ('sweet words').

Verse 9

The fool lacks the capacity or desire to appreciate wisdom; attempting to teach him is wasteful and likely to result in contempt for the teacher.

Verse 10

Removing the 'old landmark' (boundary stone) was a serious offense, often targeting the properties of vulnerable people like the fatherless, violating ancient property laws.

Verse 11

The 'redeemer' (*go’el*) is God himself, who acts as the mighty kinsman-redeemer for the oppressed (the fatherless), ensuring justice against those who exploit them.

Verse 12

This verse urges the student to actively engage both his heart and his ears in the process of learning wisdom and knowledge.

Verse 13

The rod symbolizes disciplinary correction, emphasizing that timely parental discipline is essential for the child’s moral formation.

Verse 14

The theological claim is that parental discipline saves the child from a destructive path of folly that leads to ruin or death ('hell,' *Sheol*).

Verse 17

Envy of sinners focuses on their apparent temporary prosperity, distracting the believer from the eternal security and blessing found in fearing the Lord.

Verse 18

The 'end' refers to the ultimate outcome or destiny, assuring the righteous that their hope and expectation in God will be realized, unlike the fleeting success of the wicked.

Verse 20

Winebibbers and gluttons are paired because both represent a destructive lack of self-control and an indulgence in bodily appetites that leads to moral and financial ruin.

Verse 21

This verse provides the practical economic consequence of riotous living: poverty and destitution resulting from wasted time and resources.

Verse 22

Honoring parents is a foundational pillar of wisdom literature, linking respect for those who gave life and instruction directly to the path of righteousness.

Verse 23

'Buy the truth, and sell it not' emphasizes that wisdom is costly—requiring effort and sacrifice to acquire—and must never be carelessly abandoned or traded for temporary gain.

Verse 26

The father pleads for the son's complete devotion ('give me thine heart'), recognizing that moral integrity begins internally before translating into external behavior.

Verse 27

The imagery of the deep ditch and narrow pit emphasizes the inescapable danger of the harlot; she traps and consumes those who fall into her snare.

Verse 29

This section uses a series of rhetorical questions to vividly detail the self-inflicted misery (wounds, sorrow, blurred vision) characteristic of chronic alcohol abuse.

Verse 30

The problem lies in habitual excess—those who 'tarry long' and seek out highly intoxicating, 'mixed wine' (wine blended with spices or drugs to increase potency).

Verse 31

The warning is against the initial attraction of wine—its color and smooth appearance—which hides its destructive nature.

Verse 32

This powerful metaphor compares the eventual outcome of wine consumption to the sudden, deadly strike of a venomous snake (serpent/adder).

Verse 33

Intoxication lowers moral barriers, leading to uncontrolled lust ('behold strange women') and senseless, abusive speech ('utter perverse things').

Verse 34

Being 'in the midst of the sea' or 'on the top of a mast' illustrates the drunkard's complete loss of control, equilibrium, and awareness of danger.

Verse 35

The chapter ends with the tragic cycle of addiction: the drunkard suffers violence and injury but, due to his stupor, immediately desires to return to the drink upon waking.

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