Proverbs 20

CHAPTER 20We are still in this long section which sets before us the wisdom of Solomon. It is specifically directed to young men but actually applies to every Christian. In fact, the unbelievers can learn a great deal from these proverbs. The reading and study of the Word of God will have a definite effect upon the life of anyone. It will either bring you to God or it will drive you from Him. Your reaction to the Word of God cannot be neutral. This is the first time there is a warning concerning alcohol or boozeI like the word booze because it has all the connotation of the evil that liquor has done down through the ages. I suppose that alcohol has wrecked more nations, more businesses, more homes, more individual lives than any other single factor.

Proverbs 20:1

There has always been a controversy about the “wine” in the New Testament being an intoxicant. It is my firm conviction that the Lord Jesus did not make an intoxicating drink at the wedding in Cana of Galilee (see John 2). Anyone who attempts to make of Him a bootlegger is ridiculous and is doing absolutely an injustice. Folk like to present the argument that in the warm climate of Israel all one had to do was to put grape juice in a wine skin and in time it would ferment. Yes, but in the miracle at Cana, the Lord Jesus started out with water, and in the matter of a few seconds He had “wine.” My friend, it didn’t have a chance to ferment. And we must remember that the wedding in Cana was a religious service, and everything that had to do with leaven (which is fermentation) was forbidden.

This is the reason that at the time of the Passover and the institution of the Lord’s Supper the wine could not have been fermented. Fermentation is the working of leaven, and leaven was strictly forbidden in bread and in everything else. The bread and drink could not have been leavened. Intoxicants are condemned in the Word of God, and here is a verse for it: “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” Today many folk are being trapped by this type of thing. America is becoming a nation of drunkards. I am not impressed when the news media lets us know the tremendous amount of taxes that comes from the liquor industry. What they forget to tell is the cost of the hospitals, the mental institutions and the accidentsthe people who have been maimed for lifeas a result of drinking drivers. That kind of cost is not reported. I understand that any derogatory news is supressed because one of the biggest advertisers is the booze industry. We hear about how bad drug abuse is today; but remember, alcohol is a drug! A law enforcement officer told me that at the beginning of the drug craze the liquor interests helped to fight the drug traffic, because they were afraid it would hurt their business. They would much rather have a kid become a drunkard addicted to alcohol than to have him become a drug addict. That is really generous and big-hearted of the liquor industry, don’t you agree? However, young people began making comparisons. I have had young folk in youth groups tell me they don’t feel they should be reprimanded for smoking marijuana by a crowd that sits around drinking cocktails. And I agree with the young folk.

Let the adults stop drinking liquor before they talk to our young people about the evils of marijuana. The hypocrisy of those outside the church is lots worse than the hypocrisy inside the church! Drunkenness was the undoing of Noah, and it has been a problem from that day to the present hour. Alcohol is valuable for medicinal purposes, but the minute it is used as a beverage it becomes dangerous. The number of alcoholics is increasing every year. It is one of the greatest tax burdens we have to bear. But you don’t learn of that through the news media. In fact, it is dangerous to lift your head against this hydra-headed monster. I predict that it will not be missiles but liquor that will destroy our nation.

Proverbs 20:3

One of the marks of a Christian should be that he does not prolong tension and strife. Someone has said that the only persons we should try to “get even with” are the people who have helped us. In other words, repay good with good. But don’t try to get even with your enemies. Do not respond with evil for evil. Instead, be yielded to God, for God has said, “…Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Rom_12:19). It is on that basis that God tells us not to avenge ourselves. It is actually a departure from the pathway of faith to attempt to take matters into our own hands. God can do it lots better than we can. The child of God should remember what Paul said to the Philippian believers: “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand” (Php_4:5). Matthew Arnold translated moderation as “sweet reasonableness.” “Let your sweet reasonableness be known unto all men.” That is the meaning of the proverb"It is an honour for a man to cease from strife." How important it is!

Proverbs 20:4

Israel has a moderate climate, and winter is the season for preparing the soil for the spring planting. The sluggard, the lazy oaf, would say it was too cold, so he would stay by the fire. He would say he’ll wait until it gets warmer. The problem would be that when it got warmer it was already too late to plow. That would be the time to be doing the planting. There is a note of humor in this verse. It reminds me of the man whose house had a leaky roof. The reason he didn’t fix it was because he didn’t want to work on it when it was raining, and when it wasn’t raining it didn’t need fixing. We come now to a set of proverbs that at first seem totally unrelated. However, there does appear to be a relationship based on words that speak of goodness or moral principles.

Proverbs 20:6

The theme here is “goodness.”

Proverbs 20:7

The word here is “integrity.”

Proverbs 20:8

“Scattering away all evil” is cleaning up his kingdom.

Proverbs 20:9

The words here are “clean” and “pure.”

Proverbs 20:10

Falseness is contrasted to goodness.

Proverbs 20:11

The emphasis here is upon goodness even in children.

Proverbs 20:12

The thought here is to use your head. God has given you ears, and He has given you eyes. Look and listenthat is not only good advice before you cross a railroad track, it is good when you are facing life every day. All the way through this group of proverbs we see two great principles. First of all, “Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?” Well, can you, my friend? I am sure that neither you nor I can say that. No man by his own efforts can claim to be pure. Even the little baby in the crib cannot claim that. Those little ones reveal temper while they are still infants.

At first my little grandson seemed to me to be free from sin. He was so wonderful! Then I found that he had a temperhe would get red in the face and even hold his breath! I had to realize that he was subject to the total depravity of man like the rest of us. Of course I told my wife, “I believe he’s beginning to show some of the characteristics of his grandmother!” No man in his natural state can say, “I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin.” My friend, if you would be heaven bound, you must first be heaven born. “…Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (Joh_3:3). The Lord Jesus said that to a religious man, a good man.

No man can call himself good or pure or right or clean until he has come to Christ for salvation and been clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Then he is accepted in the Beloved. But there is still that old nature that will stay with us until we enter into glory. But notice from the proverbs that goodness does count, integrity does matter to God. Purity is worth something. A child of God should be walking in a way which commends the gospel of the grace of God. Here is a good question which I have heard asked for many years: If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? Suppose you were brought before a court on the accusation, “This fellow is a Christian.” Would there be enough evidence there to convict you? Or would you be able to get off free? Would they look at your life and find you are not living like a Christian should? Would they find you do not walk in integrity? Would they find no goodness, no desire for purity? The second thought in these proverbs is this: God has given you eyes to see and ears to hear. Use them. Stop, look, listen. Don’t go blindly through life, seeing but not seeing. Use your eyes. Open your ears. God has given you a certain amount of common sense, a certain amount of “gumption.” Listen to the news God has for you. You cannot make yourself pure. Only God can make you pure. God can give you a standing before Him that removes all the guilt of your sin and enables you to walk in integrity in this world.

Proverbs 20:13

He is saying, “Go to work.” You will remember this is the same thing that Paul wrote to the Thessalonians. He said that if a man doesn’t want to work, neither should he eat (see 2Th_3:10). Those people were so excited about the possibility of the Lord’s return that they were just waiting for the Lord. It is wonderful to be looking for Him and waiting for Him. But that doesn’t mean that just sitting down and gazing into space is the way to wait for Him. A true anticipation of the coming of the Lord will cause a person to put his nose to the grindstone and work harder than ever before.

Proverbs 20:14

This is a humorous one, and I hope you can see the humor in it. A fellow goes in to buy an automobile, for example. He says to the man who is selling it, “I don’t think this car is worth buying. The tires are almost worn out. The motor doesn’t sound too good. There’s a rattle back there. But I’ll give you so much for it.” The owner says, “All right, I’ll sell it for that.” The buyer says, “Well, I don’t think it’s really worth that, but I’ll take the car.” He gets in the car and drives it home and calls out his wife and the neighbors, “Look what a bargain I got!” That is human nature, isn’t it?

Proverbs 20:15

Our sense of values is all wrong today. Man is measured by material things, rather than by the knowledge he has.

Proverbs 20:16

When you deal with certain people, you had better have them put up a little collateral. If you don’t, you are sure to be taken in.

Proverbs 20:17

A person may think he is getting by with deceit, and it may seem sweet to him. No one gets by with a thingGod will see to that.

Proverbs 20:19

The man who flatters you to your face and then goes off and gossips about you is the man you had better keep your eye oneven if he is a deacon in the church.

Proverbs 20:20

If you have a father and a mother of whom you can boast, then boast of them. If you cannot say something good about themand a lot of folk can’tthen don’t say anything. That is what this proverb is saying. This is where Ham made his mistake. Noah, his father, got drunk, and Ham exposed his father. He should have kept silence. There are certain things that you just don’t run around telling everyone.

Proverbs 20:24

How can a man understand his own way? We have never passed this way beforeonly the Spirit of God can lead us. God told Moses that he needed Him to lead him. And you and I need His leading also.

Proverbs 20:25

Don’t make a vow until you are sure of what you can do. Don’t publicly dedicate your life to God until you have thought it through. God doesn’t want that kind of a sentimental decision. I’m afraid there is too much of that today.

Proverbs 20:27

“The spirit of man is the candle [or lamp] of the LORD [Jehovah].” Notice it is called the candle or lamp of Jehovah, not the light of Jehovah. The spirit of man is only the lamp, the vessel that holds the light. Man is just a lamp, and until we are filled by the Holy Spirit, we don’t become a light. Remember the parable of the ten virgins. Five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They were just lamps. Without the oil, they could not have light.

Proverbs 20:29

This proverb is saying, “Act your age.” The young man is the one to be the athlete. The old man had better not try to act young. He will just make a fool of himself. He had better act his age. He should reveal a little wisdom, because that is what gray hair should indicate.