Proverbs 6: This chapter in Proverbs has very practical advice concerning worldly situations. Proverbs is very practical in terms of work, business, financial situations and relationships as well as in spiritual advice.
(Prov 6:1 NASB) My son, if you have become surety for your neighbor, Have given a pledge for a stranger,
Prov 6:1: This is a warning against becoming liable for a strangers debt. This can occur by being a cosigner or something similar for someone. Young men can do some irresponsible things by trusting the wrong people. It would seem that the best advice is to not get into such a situation. This passage apparently assumes the naivety of the sons and how to best handle that situation.
(Prov 6:2 NASB) If you have been snared with the words of your mouth, Have been caught with the words of your mouth,
(Prov 6:3 NASB) Do this then, my son, and deliver yourself; Since you have come into the hand of your neighbor, Go, humble yourself, and importune your neighbor.
Prov 6:3: The son is snared by his words. He cannot break his word. He is to go to the creditor in a humble fashion and importune (plead, pester) him.
(Prov 6:4 NASB) Do not give sleep to your eyes, Nor slumber to your eyelids;
(Prov 6:5 NASB) Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the hunter’s hand, And like a bird from the hand of the fowler.
Prov 6:5: The advice is plead and pester the creditor right away to escape from your own foolishness. Do not do it the next day, but do it immediately.
(Prov 6:6 NASB) Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise,
Prov 6:6: This is a warning against lazy people or laziness. The “sluggard” is mentioned in thirteen verses in Proverbs. The sluggard is to observe the ant and its ways.
(Prov 6:7 NASB) Which, having no chief, Officer or ruler,
(Prov 6:8 NASB) Prepares her food in the summer, And gathers her provision in the harvest.
Prov 6:8: The sluggard should mimic the ant in many ways. The ant has no real boss or leader, yet it works with initiative, diligence, and foresight.
The ant is always busy in terms of its social habits, foresight, economy and industry. Ants collect their food at the proper seasons, they bite off the ends o the grain to prevent it from germinating, and lay it up in cells till needed.
(Prov 6:9 NASB) How long will you lie down, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
(Prov 6:10 NASB) “A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest”–
(Prov 6:11 NASB) And your poverty will come in like a vagabond, And your need like an armed man.
Prov 6:11: The sluggard has a difficult time getting started because of his laziness. Procrastination will bring unexpected disaster.
(Prov 6:12 NASB) A worthless person, a wicked man, Is the one who walks with a false mouth,
(Prov 6:13 NASB) Who winks with his eyes, who signals with his feet, Who points with his fingers;
(Prov 6:14 NASB) Who with perversity in his heart devises evil continually, Who spreads strife.
Prov 6:14: This is the description of the wicked man. A wicked man cannot be trusted in what he says. He walks with a false mouth.
“He winks with his eyes…” He doesn’t mean what he says. “He signals with his feet…” This is somewhat more difficult to interpret. It appears to mean to look at what the wicked man does instead of listening to what he says. “Who points with his fingers…” He will try to redirect you as to his true intentions.
The evil man devises evil and spreads strife.
(Prov 6:15 NASB) Therefore his calamity will come suddenly; Instantly he will be broken, and there will be no healing.
Prov 6:15: The evil man will be dealt with by the Father
(Prov 6:16 NASB) There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him:
Prov 6:16: There are things that Elohim hates, even though many people erroneously think He is incapable of hate. He hates sin and He lists several specific things that are sinful or that promote and lead to sin. “Six things…, Yes, seven..” This is a form of Hebraic poetry.
(Prov 6:17 NASB) Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood,
Prov 6:17: Haughty eyes are a reference to pride (Psalm 18:27, 101:5). A lying tongue is an abomination to Elohim (Psalm 5:6).
(Prov 6:18 NASB) A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil,
(Prov 6:19 NASB) A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.
Prov 6:19: Those that devise evil plans will follow through with their evil (Micah 2:1). People that are evil have feet that run rapidly to evil (Isa. 59:6-7).
Bearing false witness is more than just casual lying. It brings conviction upon the innocent. The penalty for a false witness is severe and just (Deut. 19:16-20). Sowing discord among brothers only leads to strife and anguish.
(Prov 6:20 NASB) My son, observe the commandment of your father, And do not forsake the teaching of your mother;
(Prov 6:21 NASB) Bind them continually on your heart; Tie them around your neck.
Prov 6:21: The commandments are to be bound continually on our hearts. Since man was unsuccessful in doing so on his own efforts, Elohim made a Covenant with man that He would put His Torah on our hearts (Heb. 10:15-17).
(Prov 6:22 NASB) When you walk about, they will guide you; When you sleep, they will watch over you; And when you awake, they will talk to you.
Prov 6:22: If the commandments are bound in our hearts, we will meditate on them continually (Psalm 119:97-99).
(Prov 6:23 NASB) For the commandment is a lamp, and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life,
Prov 6:23: The commandment is a lamp and a light (Psalm 19:8, 119:105, Isa. 8:20).
(Prov 6:24 NASB) To keep you from the evil woman, From the smooth tongue of the adulteress.
(Prov 6:25 NASB) Do not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her catch you with her eyelids.
(Prov 6:26 NASB) For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life.
Prov 6:26: This is more warnings against the adultress woman. Solomon warns that she hunts for the precious life. The Hebrew word for “life” is nephesh which is also translated as “soul.” The adultress woman will steal the life (or soul) right out of a man.
(Prov 6:27 NASB) Can a man take fire in his bosom, And his clothes not be burned?
(Prov 6:28 NASB) Or can a man walk on hot coals, And his feet not be scorched?
(Prov 6:29 NASB) So is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife; Whoever touches her will not go unpunished.
Prov 6:29: It is impossible to engage in such activities and suffer the consequences.
(Prov 6:30 NASB) Men do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry;
(Prov 6:31 NASB) But when he is found, he must repay sevenfold; He must give all the substance of his house.
Prov 6:31: A thief may have pity if he steals to get his food. But he still must pay sevenfold which could cost him everything he has.
(Prov 6:32 NASB) The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense; He who would destroy himself does it.
(Prov 6:33 NASB) Wounds and disgrace he will find, And his reproach will not be blotted out.
Prov 6:33: The poor thief will only lose his possessions. The one who engages in adultery will destroy his life with disgrace and reproach.
(Prov 6:34 NASB) For jealousy enrages a man, And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
(Prov 6:35 NASB) He will not accept any ransom, Nor will he be content though you give many gifts.
Prov 6:35: The husband of the adultress will be enraged and there is no restitution possible.
Patrick McGuire
Copyright 2014 Patrick McGuire and Beit Yeshua Torah Assembly All rights reserved, no portion of this Lesson may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews. Beit Yeshua Torah Assembly Fort Smith, Arkansas