No Plan That Can Succeed Against The Lord

Proverbs 21:23-30 – Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep themselves from calamity. The proud and arrogant person—“Mocker” is his name—behaves with insolent fury. The craving of a sluggard will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work. All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing. The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable—how much more so when brought with evil intent! A false witness will perish, but a careful listener will testify successfully. The wicked put up a bold front, but the upright give thought to their ways. There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord.

Proverbs 13:3 – Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.

Ephesians 4:28 – Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

Isaiah 8:10 – Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted; propose your plan, but it will not stand, for God is with us.

Proverbs 21:1 – In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him.

Proverbs 16:4 – The Lord works out everything to its proper end—even the wicked for a day of disaster.

Application:

• ·         The ability to control the tongue is one of the clearest marks of wisdom.
• ·         It is not enough to cease from sin; one must do good.
• ·         “No plan that can succeed against the Lord” because He is sovereign and controls people and nations.
• ·         Only God’s plans and purposes will last.
• ·         God controls the lives and actions even of kings, such as Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus.
• ·         God is sovereign in every life and in all of history. God displays His power even through the wicked, and all evil will be judged.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Life, Prosperity And Honor

Proverbs 21:21-22 – Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor. One who is wise can go up against the city of the mighty and pull down the stronghold in which they trust.

Matthew 5:6 – Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Proverbs 3:1-2 – My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity.

Application:

• ·         “Hunger and thirst for righteousness” means have a deep longing for both personal righteousness and justice for the oppressed.
• ·         Fear of the Lord brings health to the body and “adds length to life”. When Solomon prayed for wisdom, God promised him riches as well as long life if he obeyed God’s commands. Normally the righteous are prosperous and happy, but sometimes it is the wicked who are strong and prosperous, temporary though that may be.
• ·         Spiritual weapons ‘have divine power to demolish strongholds.”

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Wine And Olive Oil

Proverbs 21:17-20 – Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich. The wicked become a ransom for the righteous, and the unfaithful for the upright. Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and nagging wife. The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.

Proverbs 23:20-21 – 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.

Isaiah 43:3 – For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.

Proverbs 3:9-10 – Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Application:

• ·         Drunkenness is condemned.
• ·         The Persians conquered Egypt, Cush and Seba, and perhaps this was a reward or ransom for Persia’s kindness to Israel.
• ·         For those who bring to the Lord His tithes and offerings, God promises to pour out more blessing than they have room for.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Gift...Bribe

Proverbs 21:14-16 – A gift given in secret soothes anger, and a bribe concealed in the cloak pacifies great wrath. When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers. Whoever strays from the path of prudence comes to rest in the company of the dead.

Proverbs 17:8 – A bribe is seen as a charm by the one who gives it; they think success will come at every turn.

Romans 13:3 – For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended.

Ezekiel 18:24 – “But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.

Proverbs 2:18 – Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead.

Application:

• ·         “A bribe is seen as a charm” is a sad commentary on human behavior.
• ·         When civil rulers overstep their proper function, the Christian is to obey God rather than human authorities.
• ·         There are warnings against those who knowingly and willfully turn from righteousness.
• ·         A life of immorality leads to the destruction and death of all who are involved.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Also Cry Out And Not Be Ashamed

Proverbs 21:4-13 – Haughty eyes and a proud heart—the unplowed field of the wicked—produce sin. The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty. A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare. The violence of the wicked will drag them away, for they refuse to do what is right. The way of the guilty is devious, but the conduct of the innocent is upright. Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife. The wicked crave evil; their neighbors get no mercy from them. When a mocker is punished, the simple gain wisdom; by paying attention to the wise they get knowledge. The Righteous One takes note of the house of the wicked and brings the wicked to ruin. Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered.

Proverbs 10:4 – Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.

Proverbs 14:21 – It is a sin to despise one’s neighbor, but blessed is the one who is kind to the needy.

Proverbs 28:27 – Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.

Luke 16:22-23,30 – “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side…“‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

Matthew 18:35 – “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Application:

• ·         Many proverbs praise diligence and the profit it brings, and they condemn laziness as a cause of hunger and poverty.
• ·         Sharing food, lending money and defending rights are ways one can show kindness. Such a person “honors God” and “will lack nothing”.
• ·         Generosity is the path to blessing.
• ·         “Abraham’s side” refers to the place of blessedness to which the righteous dead go.  Its bliss is the quality of blessedness reserved for people like Abraham.
• ·         “Hades” is here depicted as the place to which the wicked dead go and suffer torment.
• ·         If people’s minds are closed and Scripture is rejected, no evidence—not even a resurrection—will change them.
• ·         God is very forgiving, but He also judges those who refuse to forgive.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

Sacrifice

Proverbs 21:2-3 – A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart. To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

Proverbs 24:12 – If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay everyone according to what they have done?

1 Samuel 15:22 – But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

Micah 6:6,8 – With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?...He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Psalm 119:121 – I have done what is righteous and just; do not leave me to my oppressors.

Application:

• ·         God knows even our thoughts and motives
• ·         Samuel does not suggest that sacrifice is unimportant but that it is acceptable only when brought with an attitude of obedience and devotion to the Lord.
• ·         Micah does not deny the desirability of sacrifices but shows that it does no good to offer them without obedience.
• ·         “Act justly…love mercy” is the kind of obedience God expects from His covenant people.
• ·         “What is righteous and just” was a phrase commonly used to sum up the whole will of God for moral action.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV

In The Lord's Hand The King's Heart

Proverbs 20:28-21:1 – Love and faithfulness keep a king safe; through love his throne is made secure. The glory of young men is their strength, gray hair the splendor of the old. Blows and wounds scrub away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being. In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him.

Isaiah 45:1-2 – “This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.

Romans 13:3 – For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended.

Proverbs 16:4 – The Lord works out everything to its proper end—even the wicked for a day of disaster.

Application:

• ·         Benevolence and kindness endear a king to his people and encourage them to be loyal subjects.
• ·         God controls the lives and actions even of kings, such as Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus.
• ·         Cyrus, a foreign emperor, is called “his anointed” just as he is called “my shepherd”, because God had appointed him to carry out a divine commission in his role as king.
• ·         When civil rulers overstep their proper function, the Christian is to obey God rather than human authorities.
• ·         God is sovereign in every life and in all of history. God displays His power even through the wicked, and all evil will be judged.

All Scripture verses taken from NIV