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Showing posts with label Proverbs 30. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Proverbs 30. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Day 30 of Pastor Chris' Paraphrase of Proverbs Devotional


Day 30  It is wise to know when enough is a enough.  It is even wiser to know your own heart and what scarcity and abundance do to you.  Wisest of all are those who are willing to deny themselves for their own good and the good of others.

Pastor Chris' Paraphrase of Proverbs 30:7-9
7-9 God, I only ask for two things; please give them to me before I die:

First, don’t let me be a liar or dishonest.

Second, please don’t make me too rich or too poor.  Just feed me what I need every day and nothing more. Otherwise, I might get so full of myself I turn away from You saying, “Who is this ‘Jehovah’?” Or if I am too poor, I might insult Your holy reputation by stealing.

The human appetite is a beast that never stops growing.  Our natural tendency is to want more and more.  We are never really satisfied.  People with real wisdom understand the brokenness of their own sin-sick heart and seek a new one from God.  Ask God for a new heart and practice being satisfied with less.  Those who are truly satisfied in life are not those with the most and biggest toys; it is those who have learned to be satisfied with that which God gives them.

Prayer
"Lord, give me a knew heart to replace my broken one.  Help me to practice satisfaction until I learn to be happy with everything You give and want nothing more.  Amen."

Read Proverbs Chapter 30
New American Standard Bible
Pastor Chris’ Paraphrase
Proverbs 30
The Words of Agur

1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the [a]oracle.
The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:

2 Surely I am more stupid than any man,
And I do not have the understanding of a man.

3 Neither have I learned wisdom,
Nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One.

4 Who has ascended into heaven and descended?
Who has gathered the wind in His fists?
Who has wrapped the waters in [b]His garment?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is His name or His son’s name?
Surely you know!

5 Every word of God is tested;
He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

6 Do not add to His words
Or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar.

7 Two things I asked of You,
Do not refuse me before I die:

8 Keep deception and [c]lies far from me,
Give me neither poverty nor riches;
Feed me with the food that is my portion,

9 That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”
Or that I not be in want and steal,
And profane the name of my God.

10 Do not slander a slave to his master,
Or he will curse you and you will be found guilty.

11 There is a [d]kind of man who curses his father
And does not bless his mother.

12 There is a [e]kind who is pure in his own eyes,
Yet is not washed from his filthiness.

13 There is a [f]kind—oh how lofty are his eyes!
And his eyelids are raised in arrogance.

14 There is a [g]kind of man whose teeth are like swords
And his jaw teeth like knives,
To devour the afflicted from the earth
And the needy from among men.

15 The leech has two daughters,
“Give,” “Give.”
There are three things that will not be satisfied,
Four that will not say, “Enough”:

16 [h]Sheol, and the barren womb,
Earth that is never satisfied with water,
And fire that never says, “Enough.”

17 The eye that mocks a father
And [i]scorns a mother,
The ravens of the valley will pick it out,
And the young eagles will eat it.

18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me,
Four which I do not understand:

19 The way of an eagle in the sky,
The way of a serpent on a rock,
The way of a ship in the middle of the sea,
And the way of a man with a maid.

20 This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth,
And says, “I have done no wrong.”

21 Under three things the earth quakes,
And under four, it cannot bear up:

22 Under a slave when he becomes king,
And a fool when he is satisfied with food,

23 Under an unloved woman when she gets a husband,
And a maidservant when she supplants her mistress.

24 Four things are small on the earth,
But they are exceedingly wise:

25 The ants are not a strong people,
But they prepare their food in the summer;

26 The [j]shephanim are not mighty people,
Yet they make their houses in the rocks;

27 The locusts have no king,
Yet all of them go out in ranks;

28 The lizard you may grasp with the hands,
Yet it is in kings’ palaces.

29 There are three things which are stately in their march,
Even four which are stately when they walk:

30 The lion which is mighty among beasts
And does not [k]retreat before any,

31 The [l]strutting rooster, the male goat also,
And a king when his army is with him.

32 If you have been foolish in exalting yourself
Or if you have plotted evil, put your hand on your mouth.

33 For the [m]churning of milk produces butter,
And pressing the nose brings forth blood;
So the [n]churning of anger produces strife.

Footnotes:

  1. Proverbs 30:1 Or burden
  2. Proverbs 30:4 Lit the
  3. Proverbs 30:8 Lit words of falsehood
  4. Proverbs 30:11 Or generation
  5. Proverbs 30:12 Or generation
  6. Proverbs 30:13 Or generation
  7. Proverbs 30:14 Or generation
  8. Proverbs 30:16 I.e. The nether world
  9. Proverbs 30:17 Lit despises to obey
  10. Proverbs 30:26 Small, shy, furry animals (Hyrax syriacus) found in the peninsula of the Sinai, northern Israel, and the region round the Dead Sea; KJV coney, rig NASB badgers
  11. Proverbs 30:30 Lit turn back
  12. Proverbs 30:31 Lit girt in the loins
  13. Proverbs 30:33 Lit pressing
  14. Proverbs 30:33 Lit pressing
Proverbs 30

The Sayings of Agur

1 The sayings of the prophet Agur, Solomon’s son, which he gave to Ithiel and Ucal:

2 I’m the crudest person I know.  I’m an idiot.  

3 I haven’t learned anything and I’m completely unaware of what’s holy.

4 Who’s been up to heaven and back?  Who’s cupped his hands together to hold all the winds?  Who can soak up all the water on earth with the hem of his robe?  Who created everything you find in this world? What’s his name? Who’s his son?  Tell me if you know.

5 Everything God says is pure.  He protects those who trust Him. 

6 Don’t put words in His mouth or He’ll scold you and everyone will know your lie.

7-9 God, I only ask for two things; please give them to me before I die:
First, don’t let me be a liar or dishonest.
Second, please don’t make me too rich or too poor.  Just feed me what I need every day and nothing more. Otherwise, I might get so full of myself I turn away from You saying, “Who is this ‘Jehovah’?” Or if I am too poor, I might insult Your holy reputation by stealing.

10 Don’t badmouth a worker to their employer.  They will curse you and you will pay for what you said.

11-14 A scornful generation disrespects fathers and criticizes mothers. A hypocritical generation thinks they’re perfect but is really filthy with sin. An arrogant generation looks down on others and thinks it’s better than everyone else. A greedy generation wants more and more, even taking advantage of the poor and needy, but they are never satisfied.

15-16 The leech’s two daughters beg constantly, “More! More!”  Three things are never satisfied; four have never even said the word “enough”: the grave, a woman longing for a child, the thirsty dessert, and a burning fire.  These are never fully satisfied.

17 Eyes that roll when their father speaks or stare contemptuously when their mother tells them to do something will get pecked out by ravens in the river valley and eaten by vultures.

18-19 There are three things that are just beyond me; four I’ll never understand: how an eagle soars in the sky, a snake slithers through the rocks, a ship sails on the ocean, and how a man loves a woman.

20 This is what a cheating wife does:  she devours a man and wipes her lips. She looks around innocently and says, “What? I didn't do anything.”

21-23 Three thing make the earth quiver beneath us; four completely exhaust it:  a bondservant who becomes a king, a fool who always has plenty to eat, a hateful woman who somehow gets married, and a servant girl who takes her mistress' place.

24-28 There are four things that are so small, but they are more clever than the wisest people:  tiny little ants aren’t strong at all, but they store up food all summer long, hyraxes are weak and shy, so they make their home high up in the desolate rocks, locusts have no one to lead them, but they still swarm out together like an army to cut everything to pieces, lizards, which are easy to catch, but live everywhere--even in the king’s palace.

29-31 There are three things that walk around full of pride; four full of magnificence: the lion, which is the king of the beasts and doesn’t run from anyone, a rooster strutting his stuff, a male goat ready to butt his opponent, and a king parading before a people who love him.

32-33 If you’re bragging about yourself like an idiot or have a bad attitude, please keep your mouth shut; because if you press curds, it makes cheese and if you punch a nose it bleeds.  Well, if you keep pushing someone who’s angry, it’s going to cause big trouble.



New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Pastor Chris’ Paraphrase of Proverbs (PCP)
Copyright © 2018 by Chris Mullis

Sunday, July 30, 2017

Proverbs Day 30

Read Proverbs 30
It is wise to know when enough is a enough.  It is even wiser to know your own heart and what scarcity and abundance do to you.  Wisest of all are those who are willing to deny themselves for their own good and the good of others.

Pastor Chris' Paraphrase of Proverbs 30:7-9

7-9 God, I only ask for two things; please give them to me before I die:

First, don’t let me be a liar or dishonest.

Second, please don’t make me too rich or too poor. Just feed me what I need every day and nothing more. Otherwise, I might get so full of myself I turn away from You saying, “Who is this ‘Jehovah’?” Or if I'm too poor, I might insult Your holy reputation by stealing.

The human appetite is a beast that never stops growing.  Our natural tendency is to want more and more.  We are never really satisfied.  People with real wisdom understand the brokenness of their own sin-sick heart and seek a new one from God.  Ask God for a new heart and practice being satisfied with less.  Those who are truly satisfied in life are not those with the most and biggest toys; it is those who have learned to be satisfied with that which God gives them.

Prayer
"Lord, give me a knew heart to replace my broken one.  Help me to practice satisfaction until I learn to be happy with everything You give and want nothing more.  Amen."