A Collection Of Solomon's Proverbs

INTRO

The writings of Solomon, the wisest man of all times, continue into Proverbs 16. Solomon pointed out to the younger generation that—with their speech—they could choose to take the harder, narrow path that is more life giving. Or they could take the easier, wider, but also darker path that included making fun of people, mocking people, and delivering words that aren’t from the Lord.

TEACHING

Proverbs 16:1-2: You can try all you want, but until you give this over to the Lord, it will either be your flesh or the Spirit of God speaking through you (v. 1). John MacArthur said, “Human responsibility is always subject to God’s absolute sovereignty.”¹ In other words, man can plan, dream, and hope, but the final outcome is delivered from the Lord. This image continues to build in verse 2. People may think they’re going through life with everything figured out, but God knows their motives (v. 2). God always knows why people are doing what they are doing. God becomes the ultimate judge in everything that we do. Proverbs 21:2 confirms that God evaluates our motives. Proverbs 24:12 confirms that God knows everything about why we do what we do. First Samuel 16:7 points out that people see what is visible (about another person) but God sees their heart. First Corinthian 4:4 also states that God evaluates us. This includes how we talk; what we say, and how we say it.

Proverbs 16:3: In verses 1–2, when we do things on our own, people don’t even know Whose we are. But when we actually commit our activities to God, He’ll allow our plans to be achieved (v. 3). It’s going from simply being labelled a Christian to surrendering everything to Jesus to follow Him. In the Hebrew, the word “commit” actually means to “‘roll upon’ in the sense of both total trust and submission to the will of God.”² Proverbs 3:5-6 presents this same mentality. Psalm 22:8 says there is a true reliance on God. Psalm 37:5 urges us to commit our way to God, trust Him, and then watch Him act. Nelson’s Commentary says, “Trusting the Lord with our decisions frees us from preoccupation with our problems.”³

Proverbs 16:4: According to this text, God has prepared everything, not just for the righteous and the good, but also for the evil and the wicked. God is in control of everything, even when it doesn’t make sense. Remember, God used Pharaoh to prepare things for His people. All this will bring glory to God on the day of judgment.

Proverbs 16:5: This verse fits when we realize that if we’re not committing our activities to the Lord, then we’re trying to do things by ourselves. Be assured, if you have a proud heart, you “will not go unpunished.” Nelson’s Commentary says, “Pride has everything backwards. It takes credit away from the Giver who gives graciously and awards it to the receiver who takes without thanking.”⁴ Instead of committing your activities to the Lord, you take credit for what you did. God hates when people rob Him of His glory.

Proverbs 16:6: The second half of this verse is easy. When we see the Lord, we fear Him (hold Him in awe) and turn away from evil. Even though there’s wickedness, God has it covered. God’s mercy, love, truth, loyalty, and faithfulness will take care of it. When we realize what God has done for us and have turned away from evil, then our wickedness is covered. But only those with a humble and contrite heart will receive this.

Proverbs 16:7: When our ways please God, He makes even our enemies “be at peace” with us. God can make our enemies like us. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus painted a picture about peacemakers, “The peacemakers are blessed, for they will be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). When you’re intentionally making peace, you are sons of God. When you go out of your way to reflect the love of Christ, people—even your enemies—will be drawn to that.

A note on Proverbs 16:7: Even though this verse states your enemies will be at peace with you, it doesn’t mean you won’t deal with persecution. Second Timothy 3:12 says, “In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

Proverbs 16:8: Solomon loved to talk about money. He emphasized that having a little with righteousness was better than having much that was gained unjustly. Being in right standing with God is better than having great income without God. Nelson’s Commentary reminds us, “Righteousness is the real treasure.”⁵

Proverbs 16:9: This verse compares with verse 2 and 3. We can begin to walk out our path, but it’s the Lord who plans our course. We can write out our “heart plan,” but we have to trust the Lord to show us the path—to determine every one of our steps. But we have to be willing to hear Him, even if He says that’s not a good fit. If we’ve committed ourselves to Him (v. 3) and trust Him completely by allowing Him to determine our steps (v. 9), then all of it could be achieved (v. 3). Here’s the crazy thing—we may not know the timing. In Genesis 50:20, Joseph told his brothers, the ones who had sold him as a slave to the Egyptians when he was a young man: “You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people.” God took all of the wrong that the brothers planned against Joseph and worked out His plan.

Psalm 119:133 says, “Make my steps steady through Your promise; don’t let any sin dominate me.” This leads us to realize that God can make all of our steps steady, but based on Proverbs 16:2, we need God to weigh our motives.

CLOSING

If you’re putting down a heart plan, please allow God to weigh out your motives so you can see if this is of Him or if it’s of you. If it’s of Him, get ready. Buckle up because it’s going to be an adventurous ride. If it’s not, it might last for a season, but not forever. It might be bumpy; it might be smooth. But if it’s not of Him, it will not last.