2 Chronicles 7, Proverbs 28

Read 2 Chronicles 7 and Proverbs 28. This devotional is about Proverbs 28:1 & 13.

A number of years ago I read a newspaper story about a man who was arrested in Chicago for a crime he had committed in Boston. I don’t remember all the details—and I haven’t been able to find the article online again—but whatever crime he committed was serious and something like 10 or 20 years had passed between the crime and his arrest.

If my memory is correct, he said he was relieved when they finally arrested him. Though he had managed to build a new life for himself and live undetected for a long time, the witness of his conscience and his fear of being captured weighted on his heart during the entire time. This is what verse 1 of Proverbs 28 means when it says, “The wicked flee though no one pursues….” It is the fear of being caught and the witness of one’s conscience that makes us panic when we’ve done something wrong and “gotten away with it.”

The contrast in verse 1b is, “…but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” This boldness is boldness in daily living, it is the confidence that comes from a clean conscience.

As sinners, we all know how nerve-wracking it is to have sin that you’re trying to cover. So, while “the righteous are as bold as a lion,” we have many moments in our life when we lack that boldness.

What should we do to recover a clean conscience? Verse 13: “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” Only confession and true repentance can restore a clean conscience. It is incredibly hard to voluntarily confess your sins, especially if there are consequences—even criminal penalties—that may result from confessing. But, God is “rich in mercy” (Eph 2:4) and offers us forgiveness in Christ. Often people will be merciful, too, especially when someone voluntarily confesses without getting caught and demonstrates true repentance.

These verses remind us not only to repent of our sins; they give us good reasons to avoid sinning in the first place. There is moral power in living a righteous life and, by the grace of God, we can choose to do what is right and enjoy the freedom of a clear conscience.

Judges 3, Jeremiah 49, Proverbs 17:15-28

Read Judges 3, Jeremiah 49, and Proverbs 17:15-28.

This devotional is about Proverbs 17.

One who has no sense shakes hands in pledge and puts up security for a neighbor.

Proverbs 17:18

When I was in seminary, I was a volunteer assistant pastor at a small church in Lansing. There was a woman who was a member of the church and her brother also attended. The woman was married and had several children; her brother was single. For some reason that I can’t remember, he became unemployed. He didn’t have a lot of expenses except for a $700 a month payment for a new truck he had purchased. It turned out, though, that his sister and her husband had co-signed the loan for that truck so, when he couldn’t pay, they became responsible for those high monthly payments.

My guess is that this couple wanted to do something kind for the woman’s brother. She was older than her brother; maybe she’d always mothered him a little bit. Maybe he really wanted that truck and had enough income to afford the monthly payment but was too much of a credit risk for anyone to extend him an auto loan. Instead of saving the money to buy it, he asked or convinced or guilted his sister and brother-in-law into helping him get the financing he couldn’t get for himself. I don’t really know what the backstory is but I do know that the husband and wife in this situation made a decision to help her brother that they later regretted.

That’s what is going on here in Proverbs 17:18. When verse 18 says, “One who has no sense shakes hands in pledge…” it is describing a third party (like the woman and husband in my story) who promises to guarantee someone else’s loan.

The idea is that Fred the Farmer wants to buy a new plow for his field. After the next harvest, he’ll be able to pay for it but he wants it now for this year’s planting. Peter the Plow Salesman agrees to let him have the plow in May with full payment due sometime in November but Peter insists that he has someone else guarantee payment. Fred the Farmer comes to you and says, “I can totally pay for this myself after the harvest. You’re at no risk. Would you mind putting up your mule as collateral for this loan?”

Proverbs 17:18 says you have “no sense” if you do that. The final phrase in that verse, “and puts up security for a neighbor” makes the same point. If you guarantee someone else’s debt, you are making an unwise decision.

Usually there is a good reason why someone like Pete the Plow Salesman wants a third party to guarantee payment. Maybe Fred the Farmer is already deeply in debt and Pete the Plow Salesman doesn’t want to be the last creditor to be paid. Certainly Fred the Farmer is broke, otherwise he’d have saved the money and paid for the plow in cash. But you and I might not think about those risks when someone asks us to help them, especially if that someone is your mother or father-in-law or sister or son or nephew or close friend from way back in high school. We tend to trust people we love and our love for them makes us want to help. So it is hard to say no when someone asks you to put your finances at risk.

But Solomon warns us here not to let our desire to be liked and to be helpful deceive us into a bad situation. Have you done that? Proverbs 6:1-5 tells you what to do about it. In summary, go and beg to be released from the obligation.

If you’ve made an unwise money decision, the best thing you can do is get out of it as soon as you can. Sell that house you can’t afford, negotiate with your creditors to lessen the amount you owe and pay it off as soon as possible.

God wants you to live a life that is free of the anxieties and risks that come with unsecured debt. Take his word, put it into practice, and learn to be wise in financial matters.

Deuteronomy 27, Jeremiah 19, Proverbs 15:18-33

Read Deuteronomy 27, Jeremiah 19, Proverbs 15:18-33.

This devotional is about Proverbs 15:18-33.

“It’s for your own good” is a phrase people say when they are about to say something you won’t like. Oftentimes, they’re not really saying for your good but as justification for the verbal punishment they are about to let you have.

Every one of us hates criticism. It hurts to receive and often feels unfair. Yet the Bible says that wisdom comes through hearing critical feedback and changing your life accordingly. Verse 31, which we read today says, “Whoever heeds life-giving correction will be at home among the wise.” If you receive criticism–even harsh, punishing criticism–and learn something from it, you will become a wiser person.

By contrast, verse 32 says, “Those who disregard discipline despise themselves….” We do ourselves no favors–and lots of harm, really–when we hit back at our critics and refuse to receive anything they say. The path of wisdom is found through correction; wise is the man who listens carefully to any criticism and tries to learn and get better from it.

Is that who you are? Ask God for the grace to grow through the negative encounters we have with others in our lives.

Exodus 20, Job 38, Proverbs 7

Read Exodus 20, Job 38, and Proverbs 7.

This devotional is about Proverbs 7.

Proverbs 5 was entirely about sexual sin; Proverbs 6:20-35 discussed that subject again, and here we are in Proverbs 7 reading another whole chapter about adultery.

This time the focus is on the person who is unprepared for temptation to adultery. Verse 7 said that he was “among the simple… a youth who had no sense.” Verse 8 told us that he was “going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house.” Those phrases suggest, maybe, that he was curious; so does verse 25: “Do not let your heart turn to her ways or stray into her paths.” He’d seen this woman before and found her attractive so he went near her place to see if he might by chance walk by her and get a better look. The tone of this chapter implies that he did not expect anything to happen.

But she expected something to happen. Verses 10-20 described her approach to this sin. She “seduced him” with “persuasive words” (v. 21).

Although Solomon described the price he paid for his adultery (vv. 22-23, 26-27), the focus of this chapter is on preparing yourself to be tempted without sinning. This is done by fortifying your mind and heart against temptation (vv. 1-5, 24) and being ready to say no when the temptation comes.

Are you flirting with sexual sin? Are you drawn to someone at work, in your neighborhood, or somewhere else? Like the young man in our story, you may be unprepared for temptation. A wise person will understand just how much temptation is available out there and how deceitful our hearts are, so listen to the warnings in this chapter. Learn how to spot the signs of someone who wants to sin with you, then put that person at arm’s length at all times. This will help you resist temptation when it arrives in your life.