Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl Proverbs 28:22-25 Beware of Wicked People, Part 3
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Proverbs 28:22–25
[22] A stingy man hastens after wealth
and does not know that poverty will come upon him.
[23] Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor
than he who flatters with his tongue.
[24] Whoever robs his father or his mother
and says, “That is no transgression,”
is a companion to a man who destroys.
[25] A greedy man stirs up strife,
but the one who trusts in the Lord will be enriched. (ESV)
Beware of Wicked People, Part 3
v.22 Being stingy is often caused by the love of money (see 1 Timothy 6:10; Hebrews 13:5). This person, like the one mentioned in Proverbs 28:20, is in a hurry to get rich. He does not share his good fortune with those who are in need for fear that he may not be as wealthy. Instead, he overlooks the fact that poverty can come upon him (as it does for the person in Proverbs 28:19b) despite his miserly practices since wealth is a gift from God, and he can also withhold or remove it (see Job 1:21; Luke 12:20; & Acts 5:1–10).
v.23 This proverb cautions those who would withhold discipline in order to be their children's "friend" or win favor with those they supervise. One can be tempted to withhold discipline from someone who has a relationship with a person higher up in order to stay in their favor. A tongue that only says good things to make others feel good does not gain respect or God's approval. Discipline that teaches and helps someone out of trouble will eventually be rewarded, possibly by the person he disciplines and certainly by God.
v.24 This proverb is about two combined sins—failure to respect one's parents and theft. This is a great insult to one's parents and brings them both grief and shame, as well as being a misuse of their property. As we have seen in Proverbs, Wise and godly parents are to be held in high esteem. The person in this saying claims that such actions are not sinful. Jesus called out the Pharisees for this type of sin (Mark 7:10-13).
v.25 This proverb states that the self-centered vice of greed begets trouble because it sets one self-centered individual against another. Greed is a false god that puts its trust in and worships wealth (Colossians 3:5). Trust in God, which is faith that saves, leads to the kind of prosperity that will not fail—the assurance of the forgiveness of sins and eternal life (Matthew 6:19-21; Luke 12:33-34).