proverbs 15

Read Proverbs 15 at Bible Gateway.

Hebrew paragraph divisions:

Pro 10:1b-19:9 {p} Contrast between wise/ foolish, righteous/ wicked, rich/ poor

There are many, many overlapping structures in Proverbs. Here is one of them from Pro 15:

Pro 15:1-18 reverse parallelism:

1a) Pro 15:1, A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger;

1b) Pro 15:2-7, Tongue of the wise + mouth of fools/ Eyes of the Lord/ Correction/ Treasure;

2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness;
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good;
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit;
5 A fool despises his father’s instruction, But he who receives correction is prudent;
6 In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, But in the revenue of the wicked is trouble;
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge, But the heart of the fool does not do so;

1c) Pro 15:8, The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is His delight;

2c) Pro 15:9, 9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but He loves him who follows righteousness;

2b) Pro 15:10-17, Correction/ Before the Lord/ Mouth of fools/ Treasure;

10 Harsh discipline is for him who forsakes the way, And he who hates correction will die.
11 Hell and Destruction are before the Lord; so how much more the hearts of the sons of men.
12 A scoffer does not love one who corrects him, Nor will he go to the wise.

Pro 15:13-15, The mouth of fools feeds on foolishness;

1a) Pro 15:13a, A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance;
1b) Pro 15:13b, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken;
central axis) Pro 15:14, The heart the understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness;
2b) Pro 15:15a, All the days of the afflicted are evil;
2a) Pro 15:15b, But he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast;

16 Better is a little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure with trouble;
17 Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a fatted calf with hatred;

2a) Pro 15:18, A wrathful man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger allays contention.

This morning I was meditating on the causes of a broken spirit (vs. 13). One cause is sorrow. This puts me in mind of a Proverb we read recently:

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. Pro 13:12

And there is the mention of a tree of life again. What is the difference between someone who weathers sorrows, and someone who is crushed under the weight of them? It cannot be in the sorrow itself, because I have known people who weathered great and many sorrows, like water rolling off a duck’s back, and others who crumble under the first trouble.

I think Pro 13:12 gives us a clue. Its theme is expectations: what one hopes for and desires. When a hoped- for outcome is delayed, the heart sickens. The enemy loves to take our sense of shock or surprise that something bad has happened (or something good has been delayed) and feed it until it grows into sorrow, by saying things like, It will never happen, You might as well give up, God isn’t going to come through (or help you, or take care of you), Things will never change, yada, yada, yada.

The things the enemy speaks to feed a disappointment into a sorrow, is a perverse tongue (Pro 15:4). Every single one of those statements (which we have all heard playing in our heads) is an untruth easily refuted by the promises of the true word of God. If we listen to the perverse tongue, then our sorrow becomes a crushing weight that breaks the spirit. But if, instead, we listen to the wholesome tongue – the truth of the word of God – it becomes a tree of life. If we feed on the tree of life long enough and consistently enough, we find ourselves weathering storms and sorrows with joy, because we will be assured that the trouble is a temporary state, subject to the authority of God Almighty, who just happens to be our Father who loves us! Our merry heart in the middle of the trials of life provides us with a continual feast!