We have moved into the third section of the book of Proverbs, the words of various wise men. The style has changed from the short bicolons of Solomon's proverbs. Some of these proverbs also occur in the Teachings of Amenemope (c. 1200 BC) of Egypt and other ancient Near East kingdoms. The remainder of the book of Proverbs will include sayings of various wise men, some identified in the text, some anonymous.
Proverbs 23:1-3, On dining out
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.
There is value in delayed gratification. Watch how you eat in formal settings. Even if you are hungry at the ruler's banquet, hold off and be discreet. It is not the food that is important.
This is similar to an instruction from the Teachings of Amenemope, ch. 23: "Eat not bread in the presence of a ruler, And lunge not forward with thy mouth before a governor. When thou art replenished with that to which thou has no right, It is only a delight to thy spittle. Look upon the dish that is before thee, And let that (alone) supply thy need."
Proverbs 23:4-5, Avoid desire for wealth
Do not wear yourself out to get rich;
have the wisdom to show restraint.
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.
Continuing the guidance about behaviors with the wealthy is a warning about get-rich-quick schemes and caution around appearances of wealth. In chapter 7 of the Teachings of Amenemope is this instruction: "Toil not after riches; If stolen goods are brought to thee, they remain not over night with thee. They have made themselves wings like geese. And have flown into the heavens."
Proverbs 23:6-8, Eating with a stingy man
Do not eat the food of a stingy man,
do not crave his delicacies;
for he is the kind of man 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.
Just like one should not crave the delicacies of a rich ruler, one should also be careful at the table of a stingy man. If a stingy man is offering you some delicacies, there is some hidden motive. Or maybe the delicacies are not as good as they appear.
Proverbs 23:9, Don't waste time talking to a fool
Do not speak to a fool,
for he will scorn the wisdom of your words.
A fool doesn't want to hear you and it is no good arguing with them. (Especially if it is on Facebook, where your comment only raises the ranking of that original stupid post! Modern technology makes this advice even more important.)
In chapter 21 of the Teachings of Amenemope is "Empty not thine inmost soul to everyone, nor spoil (thereby) thine influence."
Proverbs 23:10-11, Boundary stones (again)
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.
See Proverbs 22:28 and Deuteronomy 27:17. Here we add a statement about the fatherless -- it is especially evil to take advantage of a family that has no father to stand up for them. A similar teaching appears in chapter 6 of the Teachings of Amenemope: "Remove not the landmark from the bounds of the field ... and violate not the widows boundary." Boundary stones were a common way of marking off land possession in the ancient Near East.
The word go'el is translated here "Defender" (note the capital letter.) The word is often translated "redeemer" but could be either God or a kinsman who serves as an advocate (as in Ruth 4:1-4,14.)
Proverbs 23:12, Apply
Apply your heart to instruction
and your ears to words of knowledge.
This instruction is a bookend to the sayings which began in 22:17, repeating the instruction there. Emphasized in the first chapters of Proverbs is the concept, To get wisdom, you must seek it, work for it.
Proverbs 23:13-14, Discipline and punish your children
Do not withhold discipline from a child;
if you punish him with the rod, he will not die.
Punish him with the rod
and save his soul from death.
See Proverbs 22:15. Here discipline is given as a way to prevent a child from veering off into dangerous behaviors.
Proverbs 23:15-16, I want you to do well
My son, if your heart is wise,
then my heart will be glad;
my inmost being will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right.
Note the chiasmic ABBA, with wise/right surrounding heart/inmost being is glad/rejoice. The mentor expresses a personal desire for his son (or student) to succeed, based on these teachings.
Proverbs 23: 17-18, Don't envy
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.
Things are not always as they seem. Some people ("sinners") seem to be having all the fun and getting away with everything, but the instruction warns against envying that lot. Look forwards towards a better future.
Proverbs 23:19, Stay on the straight and narrow
Listen, my son, and be wise,
and keep your heart on the right path.
Continuing from verses 15 and 16, the Teacher wants his sons (students) to be successful by following the straight path set by Wisdom.
Proverbs 23:20-21, Too much partying
Do not join those who drink too much wine
or gorge themselves on meat,
for drunkards and gluttons become poor,
and drowsiness clothes them in rags.
Acting wisely, appropriately judging life skills means that one does not dive too deeply into the pleasures of wine or food. A certain moderation is assumed of the wise person.
Proverbs 23:22-25, Buy truth
Listen to your father, who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.
Buy the truth and do not sell it;
get wisdom, discipline and understanding.
The father of a righteous man has great joy;
he who has a wise son delights in him.
May your father and mother be glad;
may she who gave you birth rejoice!
The importance of the family is a major theme of Proverbs. Here the children are to listen to their parents (following the Fourth Commandment, Exodus 20:12) and the children need to know that their righteousness and wisdom makes their parents proud and joyous. (As both a child and a parent, I attest to the truth of this! 😁)
Proverbs 23:26-28, Guard your heart regarding sexual attraction
My son, give me your heart
and let your eyes keep to my ways,
for a prostitute is a deep pit
and a wayward wife
is a narrow well.
Like a bandit she lies in wait,
and multiplies the unfaithful among men.
One should guard their hearts and thoughts, especially when it comes to the powerful realm of sex. Here both the "wayward wife" (the stranger-woman) and the prostitute, two different categories of temptation to a married man, are an invitation to "the pit", both a pit of despair and loss and, possibly, the pit of Sheol. In Proverbs 5:15-20, the opposite of this pit is the pure cistern of intimacy with one's wife.
The Hebrew word bagad is translated "unfaithful" here -- it is a word for "treachery"; as Alter says, here the unfaithful man is also condemned, not just the "wayward wife."
Like the family theme (to which this is related), the temptation for adultery is a major theme of Proverbs, strongly described in Proverbs 7:5-27.
Proverbs 23:29-30, Be careful with wine!
Who has woe?
Who has sorrow?
Who has strife?
Who has complaints?
Who has needless bruises?
Who has bloodshot eyes?
Those who linger over wine,
who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.
A lifestyle of heavy drinking, whether wine or mixed wine, leads to a variety of physical, emotional and social problems, described here in a sequence of questions and riddles.
Proverbs 23:31-34, More on wine
Do not gaze at wine when it is red,
when it sparkles in the cup,
when it goes down smoothly!
In the end it bites like a snake
and poisons like a viper.
Your eyes will see strange sights
and your mind imagine confusing things.
You will be like one sleeping on the high seas,
lying on top of the rigging.
This sounds like the advice of one who has look at cups of wine and had this experience. When sipping wine, one should think about the future -- the sleepless night, the morning vertigo and nausea. The passage ends with two parallel lines, first describing someone staggering around as if on the deck of a ship in heavy seas and then, with a certain comedic hyperbole, having the drunkard lying in the rigging.
Proverbs 23:35, Dull the senses
"They hit me," you will say,
"but I'm not hurt!
They beat me,
but I don't feel it!
When will I wake up so I can find another drink?"
Wine dulls the senses and blocks the pain.
Long ago, one night when Jan and I were out on a date, we were first on the scene of a college girl who had been hit by a car. She was briefly unconscious (and the situation was very scary) but eventually she was sitting up and an EMT was talking to her. She said, "I feel fine." The EMT, aware that the girl and her friends had been drinking, said "You feel fine now, but you will hurt in the morning." They kept her overnight in the hospital for observation -- I think she only had bruises -- but I am sure the next morning was painful in a number of ways!
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