In the Service of Our King Proverbs 16:10-24

Review In our last lesson, we saw that we have two ways we can proceed through life –God’s way – obeying Him, going to heaven –Man’s way – doing whatever, going to hell The remainder of chapter 16 will discuss in more detail the lives of those following those two paths –In this lesson, the path that follows God and serves Him as our king –In the next lesson, the path of man on the road to hell

King or king Prov 16:10-15 –The first difficulty in understanding this proverb is understanding who is being referred to a “king” in verses 10, 14, and 15 “him” or “his” in verses 10, 11, 13, and 15 “LORD” in verse 11 “kings” in verses 12 and 13 “they” in verse 13 –Most commentators make no distinction between the use of singular and plural But to do so would mean the wisest man who ever lived, Solomon, didn’t use proper grammar

King or king Assuming Solomon did know and use proper grammar, then the distinction between “King” and “kings” becomes important –Let’s first examine what is said about the “king” Prov 16:10 –the king gives a divine sentence –NKJV uses “divination”, but that word is usually associated with witchcraft Interp. If the king is thinking about using witchcraft, he should think again or he will sin

King or king A literal translation is “A godly decision is on the lips of the king, his mouth is not treacherous in judgment” (similar to KJV) –Historically, this passage was used to defend the divine right of kings That is, kings always make the godly decision We know that that was not true even of Solomon –So it could be talking of a hypothetically ideal king who always follows God –Or it could be speaking of the divine King who is ALWAYS right in His judgments This would fit with the preceding verses where he said God had fixed the eternal destinations for man’s actions (vv. 4, 9)

King or king We can test that interp. By looking at verse 11 Speaking of right judgments (v 10) –Prov 16:11 says God uses honest weights and scales The apparent contrast is with man whose judges are not always completely honest God’s weights are His (not “his”) work –That is, we are judged by the standards God has set (Jn 12:48-50) –And no mistakes can or will be made in the judgment So verses work well together understanding God to be the King

Kings Prov 16:12 –Suddenly we switch to “kings” who can commit wickedness Such wickedness is an abomination (implied to the LORD) Because kings will only retain power (granted by God – Rom 13:1) if righteous –God may use wicked kings and nations, but they are overthrown when they have served God’s purpose

Kings Prov 16:13 –In contrast to kings who commit wickedness –Kings whose righteous lips are a delight Not that kings delight in righteous lips (only good kings would) The implication is that they delight God (just as the wicked kings were abominable to God) –Kings with righteous lips (“they”) love him who speaks what is right Either they love other people who are honest (but why use “him” instead of “those”) Or they love God (“Him” the only preceding singular noun) who always speaks what is right (vv10-11)

The King Prov 16:14-15 –Now back to a singular king –To make the king angry is to bring death upon oneself (like the wicked kings in v 12) Which king can send death upon even “the kings” – God, the King of kings A wise person will appease God’s anger, by repenting and obeying God (vv5-7) –When one pleases God, there is life –And God’s favor is like “the latter rain” The rain that falls at the right time to finish the maturity of the crop

Serving the King Now that we know which King we are to be serving, let’s see what that life is like Prov 16:16-17 –Getting and using the wisdom of God is worth more than all earthly wealth –If you want to get on that right way and serve the King, then you have to leave evil behind (Heb 12:1-2) –If you STAY on the right way, then your soul will be saved No ‘once saved, always saved’ (Heb 10:26-31)

Serving the King Prov 16:18-19 –If you wish to serve the King Pride must be discarded –Pride that causes people to think they know what is best for themselves –Pride that refuses to acknowledge a higher authority –Pride will cause you to be destroyed, fall –Pride may get you earthly wealth (“the spoil”) –But it will also set you against God, the King »And in the end you will lose all Be of humble spirit –Won’t get you rich or famous (“the lowly”) –But the outcome is much better

Serving the King Prov 16:20 –The first phrase in v 20 is difficult to understand in Hebrew, but literally has five words... Wise upon word finds good Probably parallel to the second phrase If you become wise on God’s word, you will find a good outcome (in this life and eternally) If you trust God, you will be happy

Serving the King Prov 16:21-24 –Those who are wise (serving God) will be called prudent (Heb bene lit. “separate”) The idea of holiness –Verse 21b can be understood with v. 23 The wise let wisdom control what comes out of his mouth (words of wisdom) –Thereby teaching his lips, which in turn will allow him to increase his learning and other’s learning »If you’re teaching God’s word, then you are teaching yourself and others how to live wisely

Serving the King Verse 22 summarizes –Wisdom brings life to those who will master it But fools won’t learn from it, and therefore warning them seems foolish Verse 24 summarizes –For those who receive those pleasant words of wisdom It is like honeycomb –Enjoyable from the first taste and all the way deep down inside As the words of God enter every part of your life, you will find it all to be enjoyable

Conclusion God is our King –He is fair and honest and incorruptible –Even earthly kings will be judged by Him Therefore we should serve Him –Leaving evil behind –Leaving our pride and becoming humble If we serve Him, then we will be able to spend eternity with Him –And as we serve Him, we should use our words to teach others to serve Him as well