TEXT : Prv  16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.  16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.  16:7 When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.  16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.  16:25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.  16:31 The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness.  18:8 The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

 

THEME : WISDOM

 

It is intriguing to read that God created the wicked. It is more interesting to note their end. There are similar verses in the Holy Scriptures found in 2nd Peter and Romans that say essentially the same thing.[ 2Pe_2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;/ Rom_9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction].

 

With these statements of God's Word in mind, you will find an indirect and somewhat circuitous comfort in the Providence and Sovereignty of our LORD. Namely, He controls all that is, was, or ever will be, including the wicked who shall be destroyed - forever. Thus, wicked people and wickedness, though abhorrent, serve a purpose in the plan of God. Equally, you can rest in His salvation, knowing you shall be spared from the [i.e. His] wrath that is yet to come.

 

Proverbs 16:4

 

"That God is the first cause. He is the former of all things and all persons, the fountain of being; he gave every creature the being it has and appointed it its place. Even the wicked are his creatures, though they are rebels; he gave them those powers with which they fight against him, which aggravates their wickedness, that they will not let him that made them rule them, and therefore, though he made them, he will not save them. 2. That God is the last end. All is of him and from him, and therefore all is to him and for him. He made all according to his will and for his praise; he designed to serve his own purposes by all his creatures, and he will not fail of his designs; all are his servants. The wicked he is not glorified by, but he will be glorified upon. He makes no man wicked, but he made those who he foresaw would be wicked: yet he made them (Gen_6:6), because he knew how to get himself honour upon them. See Rom_9:22. Or (as some understand it) he made the wicked to be employed by him as the instruments of his wrath in the day of evil, when he brings judgments on the world. He makes some use even of wicked men, as of other things, to be his sword, his hand (Psa_17:13, Psa_17:14), flagellum Dei - the scourge of God. The king of Babylon is called his servant." [Matthew Henry]

 

Mercy and truth. In one sense they do not always go together. Specifically, when the truth of sin is known, and that ALL have sinned, the truth leads you to the thought of justice, and that sin will be punished. That is, when the Laws of God are broken by Man, the crime [of sin] has a penalty. Further, death - eternal separation from God, is the penalty of sin. Yet, mercy is aligned with truth in that Christ came as a "propitiation" [meaning "to appease" and therefore to atone]for your sins. [Rom_3:25  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; /1Jn_2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. /1Jn_4:10  Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.] Here mercy rejoices over the truth of your sin. Christ has paid it ALL!

 

Proverbs 16:6

 

"By mercy and truth iniquity is purged - This may be misunderstood, as if a man, by showing mercy and acting according to truth, could atone for his own iniquity. The Hebrew text is not ambiguous: בחסד ואמת יכפר עון  bechesed veemeth yechapper avon; "By mercy and truth he shall atone for iniquity." He - God, by his mercy, in sending his son Jesus into the world, - "shall make an atonement for iniquity" according to his truth - the word which he declared by his holy prophets since the world began. Or, if we retain the present version, and follow the points in יכפר  yecuppar, reading "iniquity is purged" or "atoned for," the sense is unexceptionable, as we refer the mercy and the truth to God. But what an awful comment is that of Don Calmet, in which he expresses, not only his own opinion, but the staple doctrine of his own Church, the Romish! The reader shall have his own words: "‘L'iniquite se rachete par la misericorde et la verite.' On expie ses pechez par des oeuvres de misericorde envers le prochein; par la clemence, par la douceur, par compassion, par les aumones: et par la verite-par la fidelity, la bonne foi, la droiture, requite dans le commerce. Voyez Pro_3:3, Pro_14:22, Pro_20:28." "‘Iniquity is redeemed by mercy and truth.' We expiate our sins by works of mercy towards our neighbor; by clemency, by kindness, by compassion, and by alms: and by truth - by fidelity, by trustworthiness, by uprightness, by equity in commerce." If this be so, why was Jesus incarnated? Why his agony and bloody sweat, his cross and passion, his death and burial, his resurrection and ascension? Was it only to supply a sufficient portion of merit for those who had neglected to make a fund for themselves? Is the guilt of sin so small in the sight of Divine justice, that a man can atone for it by manifesting good dispositions towards his neighbors, by giving some alms, and not doing those things for which he might be hanged? Why then did God make such a mighty matter of the redemption of the world? Why send his Son at all? An angel would have been more than sufficient; yea, even a sinner who had been converted by his own compassion, alms-deeds, etc., would have been sufficient. And is not this the very doctrine of this most awfully fallen and corrupt Church? Has she not provided a fund of merit in her saints, of what was more than requisite for themselves that it might be given, or sold out, to those who had not enough of their own? Now such is the doctrine of the Romish Church - grossly absurd, and destructively iniquitous! And because men cannot believe this, cannot believe these monstrosities, that Church will burn them to ashes. Ruthless Church! degenerated, fallen, corrupt, and corrupting! once a praise now a curse, in the earth. Thank the blessed God, whose blood alone can expiate sin, that he has a Church upon the earth; and that the Romish is not the Catholic Church; and that it has not that political power by which it would subdue all things to itself." [Adam Clarke]

 

Further, it is a great blessing to know God can put enemies to silence once your life pleases Him. Here, you will find a direct correlation between your behavior and God's [appropriate] response. You know God only disciplines those that are His - who, He loves. Thus, the enemies of the righteous - that is, the wicked, will cease to be a cause of irritation, vexation, and pain as your ways please the LORD. Keep in mind God's loving care. He will never do you any harm. All is for your good. In addition, remember you do not wrestle with flesh and blood but with evil - in all its forms. Again, as mentioned, the wicked serve a purpose in this life, though they will be absent from eternity in the Kingdom of God. For now though, you must set your will to think, speak, and behave in all ways to please God. Once that is in place, God has no need of your enemies to vex you. The lesson is learned. Namely, love God with all the heart, soul, and mind.

 

Proverbs 16:7

 

"God can turn foes into friends when he pleases. He that has all hearts in his hand has access to men's spirits and power over them, working insensibly, but irresistibly upon them, can make a man's enemies to be at peace with him, can change their minds, or force them into a feigned submission. He can slay all enemies, and bring those together that were at the greatest distance from each other. 2. He will do it for us when we please him. If we make it our care to be reconciled to God, and to keep ourselves in his love, he will incline those that have been envious towards us, and vexatious to us, to entertain a good opinion of us and to become our friends. God made Esau to be at peace with Jacob, Abimelech with Isaac, and David's enemies to court his favour and desire a league with Israel. The image of God appearing upon the righteous, and his particular lovingkindness to them, are enough to recommend them to the respect of all, even of those that have been most prejudiced against them." [Matthew Henry]

 

TRUTH FOR TODAY : "GOD HAS EVERYTHING UNDER [HIS] CONTROL!"

 

Those who are wise can see an event before it happens. This is due to examining certain laws of either nature or humanity that lend to a definite conclusion or specific outcome. You can deduct or infer the end of something from the evidence set before your eyes. Therefore, the Bible states before [someone] is destroyed - for a season or forever, pride [that is - arrogance, self-importance, egotism, conceit, smugness, etc.] is seen in their life. Further, a haughty [that is - overconfident, superior, condescending, etc.] spirit is seen as well. It is well you learn to spot these flagrant breeches of character. To do so will keep you from destruction, in this world or the next.

 

Proverbs 16:18

 

Pride goeth before destruction,.... As it did in the angels that sinned, who, through pride, fell into condemnation, not being able to bear the thought that the human nature, in the person of the Son of God, should be advanced above theirs; and as it did in our first parents, who, not content with their present state and circumstances, and ambitious of being as gods, knowing good and evil, ruined themselves and all their posterity; and as it has done in many of their sons, as in Haman, Nebuchadnezzar, and others;

 

and a haughty spirit before a fall; or, "a high spirit", or "height of spirit" (i); a man that carries his head high; looks upwards, and not to his goings, sees not at what he may stumble, and so falls: moreover, the bigger a person or thing is, the greater is the fall; and very often when a man has got to the height of his riches and honour, and is swelling with pride and vanity on account of it, he is on the precipice of ruin, and his fall is immediate; which was the case of Nebuchadnezzar, who while he was expressing himself in the haughtiness of his spirit, being in the height of his glory, his kingdom departed from him, Dan_4:30; and this will be the case of the man of sin, or antichrist, Rev_18:7.  [John Gill]

 

God repeats Himself for the same reason you do - to emphasize or drive home important lessons. Here, the principle of Proverbs 14:12 is stated again. You may think how you live and behave is fine. However, if God says it is not, it is not. Obviously then, you will line yourself up with what God says. To do so keeps you from the ways of death. Death has many forms, not just physical. Your marriage can die, your intellect can die, as well your emotions, ambitions, plans, etc. Death is found in many forms including the loss of one part of the body over another. God has not ordained you to death, though - in any form. Rather, He has created you for life. Therefore, you must continue to seek God's path of life. It will keep you from the ways of death.

 

Proverbs 16:25

 

"This we had before (Pro_14:12), but here it is repeated, as that which is very necessary to be thought of, 1. By way of caution to us all to take heed of deceiving ourselves in the great concerns of our souls by resting in that which seems right and is not really so, and, for the preventing of a self-delusion, to be impartial in self-examination and keep up a jealousy over ourselves. 2. By way of terror to those whose way is not right, is not as it should be, however it may seem to themselves or others; the end of it will certainly be death; to that it has a direct and certain tendency." [Matthew Henry]

 

White hair is a sign of advancing age in average cases were premature fading of the head and face's natural color is not present. In other words, white hair [or gray] is a symbol of older men and women. Here the Bible tells us white hair is a crown "if" you are living as a righteous man or woman. Some think simply getting older makes people more calm, relaxed, and wise. This is not the case. There are many older men and women who are contentious, belligerent, argumentative, complaining, and cantankerous. You have seen them. Thus, you want to depart from this life living in righteousness. You are taught that righteousness has benefits in this life and the next. [1Ti_4:8  For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.]

 

In all things we have the motivation to live godly, since God has everything under [His] control. As you get older - no matter what your age is presently, you want to live godly. In time, you will grow in the knowledge of the LORD, who will continue to guard you and keep - all the days of your life!

 

Proverbs 16:31

 

"It ought to be the great care of old people to be found in the way of righteousness, the way of religion and serious godliness. Both God and man will look for them in that way; it will be expected that those that are old should be good, that the multitude of their years should teach them the best wisdom; let them therefore be found in that way. Death will come; the Judge is coming; the Lord is at hand. That they may be found of him in peace, let them be found in the way of righteousness (2Pe_3:14), found so doing, Mat_24:46. Let old people be old disciples; let them persevere to the end in the way of righteousness, which they long since set out in, that they may then be found in it. 2. If old people be found in the way of righteousness, their age will be their honour. Old age, as such, is honourable, and commands respect (Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, Lev_19:32); but, if it be found in the way of wickedness, its honour is forfeited, its crown profaned and laid in the dust, Isa_65:20. Old people therefore, if they would preserve their honour, must still hold fast their integrity, and then their gray hairs are indeed a crown to them; they are worthy of double honour. Grace is the glory of old age." [Matthew Henry]