The Liberal Soul

On this edition, we Take Note of Proverbs 11:18-25. This widely-varied passage reminds us to be generous, understanding that generosity brings blessing.

You can play, download, or read the transcript of this Take Note Podcast below.

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Proverbs 11:18-25

A person could read the Proverbs daily for years and still learn something new
There are words of wisdom from heaven provided sentence after sentence
Each thought, arranged in verse-format in our Old Testament, challenges us
To consider something we have never considered before
Or to remember something we had almost forgotten

It’s another journey through Proverbs today
This time, eight verses in chapter eleven
Many times setting right, just behavior against wrong, sinful behavior
Sometimes describing both the righteous and the evil person and telling us the difference
Always giving us something to think about

Today, “The Liberal Soul”
From Proverbs 11:18-25

I have a standard reminder when we approach Proverbs
That is, it will take us freely from one topic to another, often without pause
Sometimes connecting two successive verses
Usually not

The dictionary defines a proverb as “a brief popular epigram or maxim”
An epigram is “a terse, sage, or witty and often paradoxical saying”
And a maxim is “a general truth, fundamental principle, or rule of conduct”
The Proverbs of scripture fit these descriptions, but come directly from God
Not just from religious tradition

Very likely the written format “proverb,” in today’s thinking, is modeled after this section of scripture
And the definition is likely, in part, a result of the content you’ll find in these Old Testament Proverbs

Let’s begin looking at each of these Proverbs near the end of chapter eleven, individually…

Proverbs 11:18

18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.

The results of wicked works, the wages (you could say) of wicked works, are deceitful
That is, they bring no reward or profit
And whatever reward or profit the evil man hoped to receive, never comes
He was deceived into believing his evil would bring him something good, but it cannot
Wicked works, done for selfish reasons, destroy, rather that create

If someone follows God
And follows after that which is right
Taking actions and performing works consistent with Godliness
There are certain rewards that come
Eternal rewards
Rewards that can never be taken away
Because they are provided by, and preserved for us by, God

This is why it is always best to do right, even if it means temporary discomfort
Because long-term, permanent gain is the result
Doing wrong, while it may get us out of a jam right now, leads to long-term pain

The next proverb has similar thoughts…

Proverbs 11:19

19 As righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.

Performing some evil act today is more likely to endanger life than to enhance life
Wickedness is risky, it complicates things, and it puts us in harm’s way

This is true both in the short and long-term view

A person trusting God, following Him, is on the path to life eternal
A person rejecting God, following their own way, is on the path to eternal death

So, whether your wrong actions today endanger you today or not, the long-term forecast is bleak
It is always bleak
While the lover and follower of God has life to look forward to – here and in eternity

How does the Lord look on our hearts for good or evil?

Proverbs 11:20

20 They that are of a froward heart are abomination to the LORD: but such as are upright in their way are his delight.

The word froward means distorted, crooked, false
And a person with a heart like this is abhorrent
They don’t have faith in God, reject His way, and receive the consequences of that rejection

But it is a joyous thing to know that the upright
And that word means entire (figuratively or morally), a person with integrity, sound
These kind of people are obviously following God, humbly submitting to Him
And living in a way that acknowledges who He is, and what that means for their behavior

The froward person can turn to God
He is merciful and kind
And He has provided a way of salvation through His son
That froward heart can be changed into an upright heart
One delighted in by God
But every distorted, crooked, false heart must turn to Him and be transformed

And there is punishment ahead for the crooked…

Proverbs 11:21

21 Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered.

I think a restatement of this verse may help us
From the ESV…

“Be assured, an evil person will not go unpunished, but the offspring of the righteous will be delivered.”

There is no doubt that the evil will be punished
This is not a theoretical punishment
It means quite real punishment not only in this life, but the life to come
Those who reject Jesus, God’s son, have their part in the lake of fire
Where there is no relief, and no escape

Those who are right with God, through His son Jesus, are delivered
In many ways during this life
But, of course, also in the life to come

Even the children of righteous people have deliverance
Right actions often make this possible, but God also remembers
Now, this does not mean salvation for our offspring, every person trusts Christ individually
But it does often men residual blessing
Because doing right so often means good outcomes for the righteous and many of those connected to the righteous

As we do so often in the Proverbs, changing topics…

Proverbs 11:22

22 As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.

We’re talking about a beautiful woman, who lacks judgement here
And we know with certainty that bad character and bad judgement blemish anyone
But this proverb is focused
It says that lacking discretion in the life of this fair woman, is similar to a gold ring in a pig’s snout

Whatever value we place on beauty is quickly decreased when we consider character
No amount of beauty can overcome a lack of judgement
The beauty is marred by that shortcoming
And this is a wise thing to remember

These proverbs go on…

Proverbs 11:23

23 The desire of the righteous is only good: but the expectation of the wicked is wrath.

That which the righteous person desires, results in only good
We praise the Lord that He changes our desires when He saves us through Christ
And if we are walking closely with Him, His desires for us, become our desires

We know that if we live according to His desires, blessings follow
He has promised us this would be the case
And we can make that claim, often, in this life
But more often, and more importantly, in eternal life after death

We still face all the standard challenges in life
And we still encounter hardships
But we encounter all of them with Him at our side
He grants peace and comfort and all the grace we need
And this is indeed good

But the wicked can have only one expectation and that is wrath
Their challenges and hardships in life come as well
But they come without the benefit of new life in Christ
And the end of a life rejecting Christ is a catastrophic end
One in which the sinner faces the punishment for sin alone and for eternity

Two counter-cultural proverbs to close our time…

Proverbs 11:24

24 There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

There is a good restatement of this verse in the ERV…

“Some people give freely and gain more; others refuse to give and end up with less.”

This goes against nearly all of man’s wisdom on the subject
We think those who give, have less
But often learn from generosity that this is a lie

Holding onto anything, hoping to use it for selfish reasons, ends in poverty
Poverty in the financial arena, perhaps
But poverty of soul as well

We should be what the next verse encourages us to be…

Proverbs 11:25

25 The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.

In this, we are talking about a person who is generous
They give freely
They provide charity liberally

They provide water where water is needed
But they never find themselves lacking water
Or anything else they have ever given
Because good things come back to them

And we can be certain that God has made this the case
For He is generous Himself

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