Proverbs 23

WHen thou sittest to eat with a ruler When thou art invited to a Feast with a great man., consider diligently what is before thee Either 1. What person or persons. Or rather 2. What things, what plenty and variety of meats and drinks, by which thou maist easily be tempted to excess, and by that means induced to use such speeches or carriages, as may be unfit for thee, or many ways hurtful to thee..

And put a knife to thy throat Restrain and moderate thine appetite, as if a knife, or some other thing stuck in thy throat, and hindred thee from swallowing what thou didst desire; or, as if a man stood with a knife at thy Throat ready to kill thee, if thou didst transgress; or, though it be as irksom to thee to do so, as if thou hadst a knife put to thy Throat. So this is to be understood metaphorically, as that Phrase of cutting off the right hand, &c. Mat. 5. 29, 30. Or, For thou dost (or, left thou shouldst, as the Syriack Interpreter renders it; or, otherwise thou wiltst or shouldst) put a knife to thy throat. So the sense is, when thou goest to their Feasts, thou dost expose thy self to great and manifest hazards, to thy own intemperance, and to all its dangerous consequences, and to the ill effects of other mens intemperance., if thou be a man given to appetite Prone to excess in eating and drinking..

Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat Either because they do not yield thee that satisfaction which thou didst expect from them, but rather load thee with ill humors & the seeds of divers diseases; or because they are not provided for thee with sincerity and good Will, but with some evil design upon thee, either to discover and betray thee, or to enslave thee See below v. 6, 7..

Labour not Heb. Do not weary thy self with immoderate cares and labors, as many covetous men do. to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom From that carnal Wisdom which is natural to man in his corrupt estate, which persuades men to believe that it is their interest to use all possible means to get Riches, and that the happiness of their Lives consists in the abundance of their Possessions, directly contrary to the assertion of our blessed Lord, Luke 12 15..

Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that i. e. Look upon it and greedy desire, employing the Eyes of thy and Body about it. which is not Which has no solid and setled being, which is ours to have, but not to hold, which is always upon the wing, and oft times gone in the twinkling of an Eye, so that the owner is frequently at a loss, and cannot tell whether he has his Estate, or whether he has lost it.? for riches certainly make themselves wings, they fly away as... agle Swiftly, strongly, and irrevocably. We quickly lose the sight and possession of them. Their flying away from us is elegantly opposed to our Eyes, being set, or, as it is in the Hebrew, flying upon them in the beginning of the verse. towards heaven.

Eat thou not the bread of him that has an evil eye Of the envious or covetous man, who secretly grudgeth thee the meat which he sets before thee, as this Phrase is used, Prov. 28. 22. Mat. 20. 15. as on the contrary a liberal man is said to have a good Eye, Prov. 22. 9., neither desire thou his dainty meats.

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he You are not to judge of him by his words, for so he prosesseth kindness, as it follows, but by the constant temper of his mind, which he has fully discovered to all that know him by the course of his Life.: Eat and drink, says he to thee, but his heart is not with thee He has no sincere kindness to thee, but inwardly grudgeth thee that which he outwardly offers to thee..

The morsel which thou hast eaten, shalt thou vomit up When thou perceivest his churlish disposition and carriage, his meat will be loathsom to thee, and thou wiltst wish either that thou hadst never eaten it, or that thou couldst vomit it up again., and lose thy sweet words Thy pleasant discourse wherewith thou didst adorn his Table, and design both to delight and profit him, is lost, and of no effect to him, and thou wiltst be ready to repent of it..

Speak not in the ears of a fool Cast not away good Counsels upon obstinate and incorrigible sinners. We have the same advice given Mat. 7. 6.: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words He will scornfully reject thy wise and good admonitions..

Remove not the old land-mark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless Either to take away their goods; or rather to possess their Lands, as this Phrase is used, 2 Sam. 5. 6..

For their redeemer Heb. their near kinsman, to whom it belongs to avenge their wrongs, and to recover and maintain their rights, of which see Lev. 25. 25. Numb. 35. 12. Thus God is pleased to call himself, to show how much he concerns himself for the relief of oppressed and helpless persons. is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.

Apply thine heart unto instruction Content not thy self with outward hearing or reading of it, but affectionately receive it into thine heart, and lay it up there as choice Treasure., and thine ears unto the words of knowledg.

With-hold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with a rod, he shall not die It is a likely mean to prevent their corruption, and the destruction which commonly follows it, as the next verse explains this..

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

My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall... rejoice In the good success of my Counsels, and in thy Piety and Happiness, which is as truly desirable and pleasant to me, as my own., even mine.

Yea, my reins shall rejoice I shall rejoice not only in show and profession, but inwardly, and with all my soul., when thy lips speak right things.

Let not thine heart envy sinners Let not the consideration of their present impunity and prosperity stir thee up, either to envy them, or to approve and imitate their evil courses.: but be thou in the fear of the LORD Reverence the presence of the Divine Majesty, and dread his power and justice, and those judgments which he has prepared for sinners, and thou wil... t see no cause to envy, but rather to them. all the day long Not only when thou art in trouble, but in all times and conditions..

For surely there is an end An expected and happy end for such as fear God, which was required v. 17. Or, a reward, as this Hebrew word is rendred, Prov. 24. 20., and thine expectation shall not be cut off Thou shalt certainly enjoy that good which thou expectest, as the wicked shall lose that Happiness which they enjoy..

Hear thou, my son, and be wise Rest not in hearing, but see that thou growest wiser and better by it., and guide thine heart Order the whole course of thine affections and actions. in the way In Gods way, oft called the way, as has been observed before..

Be not amongst wine-bibbers Avoid their conversation and company, lest thou be either insected or injured by them.; amongst riotous eaters of flesh.

For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness Immoderate sleep, and idleness, which is as ready a way to Poverty, as Gluttony or Drunkenness is. shall cloth a man with rags.

Hearken unto thy father that begat thee And therefore desires and seeks thy good in all his counsels., and despise not thy mother when she is old When the infirmity of age is added to that of her sex, which is apt to breed contempt..

Buy Purchase it upon any terms, spare no pains nor cost to get it. the truth The true and saving knowledg of Gods Mind and Will concerning your Salvation, and the way that leads to it., and sell it not Do not forget it, nor forsake it for any worldly advantages, as ungodly men frequently do.; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding Whereby you may love and practise the truth known and received..

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 He repeateth this again as a powerful Argument to prevail with all Children, that are not void of natural affection to labour to be wise and good, that so they may glad the hearts of their Parents to whom they have such high and indelible obligations., and she that bare thee With so great pain and hazard, and brought thee up with such tender care, whom thou canst not better require. shall rejoice.

My son, give me thine heart Receive my Counsels with thy whole heart. Selomon speaking in Gods Name, and cause, requires the heart to be given to him., and let thine eyes observe Let thy mind seriously and practically consider. my ways Either 1. The ways in which I have walked, my evil practices: take warning by my sad example. Or 2. The ways which I prescribe to you, as the Apostles called the Gospel which they preached, their Gospel, 1 Thes. 1. 5. 2 Tim. 2. 8..

For a whore is a deep ditch In which a man is in evident danger of perdition, and out of which it is exceeding difficult to escape.; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.

She also lieth in wait as for a prey Watching all opportunities of ensnaring young men to their destruction., and increaseth the transgressors among men She is the cause of innumerable sins against God, and against the Marriage Bed, against the Soul and Body too, and by her wicked Example and Arts, involveth many persons in the guilt of her sins..

Who has woe From the of Lust he proceeds to that of drunkenness, which does frequently accompany it.? who has sorrow? who has contentions? who has babling The sin of much and impertinent talking: or, noise or clamour, which is usual among Drunkards. See. 20. 1.? who has wounds without cause Upon every sleight occasion, which men enflamed with Wine are very apt to take.? who has redness of eyes?

They that tarry long at the wine, they that go to seek mixt wine Either mixed with Water, or with other ingredients to make it strong and delicious. Heb. mixture, mixed drinks of several sorts suited to their Palats..

Look not thou upon the wine Earnestly, so as to inflame thine Appetite towards it, in which sense men are forbidden to look upon a Woman, Job 31. 1. Mat. 5. 28. when it is red Which was the colour of the best Wines in that Countrey, which therefore are called Blood, Gen. 49. 11. Deut. 32. 14. and such were used by them in the Passover., when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth it self aright When it sparkleth and frisketh, and seems to smile upon a Man..

At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder It hurts the Body in many respects, impairs the vigor of the Mind, wastes the Estate and Reputation, wounds the Conscience, and without Repentance, will destroy the Soul..

Thine eyes shall behold With evil intent, or lustfully, which is the effect of drinking much Wine, as is noted in Scripture, Gen. 19. 31, 35. Hos. 4. 18. and other Authors. strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things Thine Heart, which when thou hadst the use of thy wit, concealed, will then discover its wickedness, by filthy and perverse speeches..

Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down To sleep, of which that word is frequently used. in the midst of the sea In a Ship in the midst of the Sea, This Phrase notes the temper and condition of the Drunkard, the giddiness of his Brain, the unquietness of his Mind, and especially his extream danger joyned with great security., or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast The worst part of the Ship, both for its perpetual tossings, and for the hazard of him that sleeps in it..

They have stricken me I cannot deny that I exposed my self by my Drunkenness to manifold abuses and injuries.; shalt thou say; and I was not sick I was not then sensible of it, neither do I now find any great hurt by it; it was but the effect of a present frolick, at which I have no cause to be much troubled.; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when I shall awake, I will seek it yet again At present I find some inconvenience, and my condition requires sleep to settle my self, and when I am composed and refreshed, I purpose to return to my former course. But that which Solomon here expresseth, seems rather to be the Language of their Hearts or Lives, than of their actions. Compare Prov. 1. 11..