2. How well do you know your Bible?

3. “Spare the rod, spoil the child” Close to Prov. 13:24 and 22:15, but not in the Bible. “He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly” and “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of correction will drive it far from him.” Samuel Butler, 17 th Century British poet included this in his poem, Hudibras.

4. “Salt of the earth” This is from the Sermon on the Mount, Matt. 5:13, “You are the salt of the earth.” Other common phrases from this sermon include, “turn the other cheek” and “ go the extra mile” although the wording does is not exactly that way in the Bible. The “golden rule” is often misquoted as well. Matt. 7:12.

5. “Pride comes before a fall” This is often quoted and is partially in the Bible. Prov. 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

6. “This too shall pass” This sounds like Bible, but it isn’t in the Bible. The origin of this phrase comes from an 10 th Century old English poem, The Lament of Doer. “That passed, so too may this.”

7. “God helps those who help themselves” The Bible actually says that God helps us when we can’t help ourselves. “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” Rom. 5:6 One of the earliest mentions of this comes one of Aesop’s Fables, Hercules and the Wagoneer. The quote was, “The gods help them that help themselves.”

8. “Skin of my teeth” Job 19:20, “My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.” This passage also gives rise to the phrase, “skin and bones.”

9. “To thine own self be true” This is from Hamlet, 3.1.81. Also from Hamlet, 3.1.78, “Neither a borrower or a lender be.” Benjamin Franklin’s almanac contains many phrases that are often mistaken for Bible verses. The truths of these sayings can be found in the Bible many times, but not the wording.

10. “Money is the root of all evil” 1 Tim. 6:10 says, “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” Money alone is neither good nor evil. Some have suggested that the lack of money is the root of all evil.

11. “Sweat of your brow” Gen. 3:19, “In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground.”

12. “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust” Only part of this is in the Bible. Gen. 3:19, “…for out of it you are taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.” The ashes to ashes portion comes from the Book of Common Prayer. “Earth to earth, ashes to ashes…dust to dust.”

13. “Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” This is listed in Exod. 21:23- 27 and Matt. 5:38-39. “But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe” Exod. 21:23-25. Jesus says, turn the other cheek, etc.

14. “Cleanliness is next to godliness” Frances Bacon first said, “Cleanness of body was ever deemed to proceed from a due reverence to God.” John Wesley changed it to this phrase we see today. Some passage do connect our cleanliness of life to God. “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands you sinners and purify your hearts you double- minded” Jas. 4:8.

15. “God moves in mysteriou s ways” The secret things belong to God (Deut. 29:29) but this phrase isn’t in the Bible. William Cowper’s hymn The Lord Works in Mysterious Ways is the source for this. Also Isaiah 55:8, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord.”

16. “At their wits end” Psalm 107:27, “They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits end.” This concept is of a person who is at the end of their wisdom or knowledge in a given area.

17. “A fool and his money are soon parted” This quote originates with Thomas Tusser who in 1573 included this in his work, “Five Hundreth Pointes of Good Husbandrie.”

18. “God won’t give you more than you can handle” This is true with regards to temptation for the Christian, but it is not true with regards to life’s challenges. Christians are told they will be persecuted and will suffer. Many have died holding fast to their faith. 1 Cor. 10:13 and Jas. 1 speak of temptations.

19. Other things not found in the Bible Seven Deadly Sins, not found grouped together or called such although gluttony, greed, sloth, lust, vanity, envy and wrath are in the Bible. Wedding vows. Your preacher hides his notes in the Bible.

20. Read your Bible frequently Know what it says and how it can lead you and others to heaven!