4<\/strong>. Labour not<\/em> ] Rather, Weary not thyself<\/strong>, R.V., as the same Heb. word is rendered “till his hand was weary<\/em>,” 2Sa 23:10<\/span>; “ be weary<\/em>,” Isa 40:30-31<\/span>. Comp. Joh 6:27<\/span>; 1Ti 6:9-10<\/span>.<\/p>\n cease from thine own wisdom<\/em> ] from the wisdom, namely, of becoming rich. Prudentiae tuae pone modum, set a limit to thy prudence in acquiring wealth. Vulg.<\/p>\n We may, however, render cease of thine own wisdom, “by reason of thine own understanding,”<\/em> R.V. marg. Let thine own sense teach thee better. , LXX.<\/p>\n Cease from thine own wisdom – <\/B>i. e., Cease from the use of what is in itself most excellent, if it only serves to seek after wealth, and so ministers to evil. There is no special contrast between thine own wisdom and that given from above, though it is of course implied that in ceasing from his own prudence the man is on the way to attain a higher wisdom.<\/P> <\/p>\n Pro 23:4<\/span><\/p>\n Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n Mammon<\/strong><\/p>\n All the precepts of Scripture have their origin in the benevolence of God. Man <\/strong>labours to be rich because he is voluntarily ignorant or forgetful of the requirements of his nature.<\/p>\n Verse 4<\/span>. Labour not to be rich<\/B><\/I>] Let not this be thy object. Labour to provide things honest<\/I> in the sight of God and all men; and if thou get wealth, do not forget the poor<\/I>, else God’s curse will be a canker even in thy gold<\/I>.<\/P> <\/P> Cease from thine own wisdom.<\/B><\/I>] binathecha<\/I>, thy own understanding<\/I> or prudence<\/I>. The world says, “Get rich if<\/I> thou canst, and how<\/I> thou canst.” Rem, si possis, recte; si non, quocunque modo rem; “Get a fortune honestly<\/I> if thou canst; but if not, get one at all events.” This is the devil’s counsel, and well it is followed; but Solomon says, and God says, “Cease from thine own counsel.” Thou hast an immortal soul, and shalt shortly appear before God. Lay up treasure for heaven, and be rich towards God.<\/P> <\/p>\n Labour not, <\/B>Heb. Do not weary thyself with immoderate cares and labours<\/I>, as many covetous men do. <\/P> From thine own wisdom; <\/B>from that carnal wisdom which is natural to man in his corrupt estate, which persuades men to believe that it is their interest to use all possible means to get riches, and that the happiness of their lives consists in the abundance of their possessions, directly contrary to the assertion of our blessed Lord, Luk 12:15<\/span>. <\/P> <\/p>\n 4, 5.<\/B> (Compare 1Ti 6:9<\/span>;1Ti 6:10<\/span>). <\/P> thine own wisdom<\/B>whichregards riches intrinsically as a blessing.<\/P><\/p>\n Labour not to be rich<\/strong>,…. In an immoderate over anxious way and manner, to a weariness, as the word u signifies, and even as to gape for breath men ought to labour, that they may have wherewith to support themselves and families, and give to others and: if they can, lay up for their children; but then persons should not toil and weary themselves to heap up riches when they know not who shall gather them and much less make use of indirect and illicit methods to obtain them; resolving to be rich at any rate: rather men should labour for durable riches, lay up treasure in heaven, seek those things which are above, and labour to be accepted of God both here and hereafter; which only is in Christ. The Targum is,<\/p>\n “do not draw nigh to a rich man;”<\/p>\n and so the Syriac version; to which agree the Septuagint and Arabic versions;<\/p>\n cease from thine own wisdom<\/strong>; worldly wisdom in getting; riches, as if this was the highest point of wisdom; do not be always laying schemes, forming projects, inventing new things in order to get money; or do not depend upon thine own wisdom and understanding and expect to be rich by means thereof; for bread is not always to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, Ec 9:11<\/span>. The Targum is,<\/p>\n “but by thine understanding depart from him;”<\/p>\n the rich man; and to the same purpose the Syriac and Arabic versions.<\/p>\n u “ne fatiges”, Mercerus, Junius Tremellius “ne hiascas”, Schultens.<\/p>\n All the forms of proverbs run through these appended proverbs. There now follows a pentastich:<\/p>\n 4 Do not trouble thyself to become rich;<\/p>\n Cease from such thine own wisdom.<\/p>\n 5 Wilt thou let thine eyes fly after it, and it is gone?<\/p>\n For it maketh itself, assuredly it maketh itself wings,<\/p>\n Like an eagle which fleeth toward the heavens.<\/p>\n The middle state, according to Pro 30:8<\/span>, is the best: he who troubleth himself (cf. Pro 28:20<\/span>, hasteth) to become rich, placeth before himself a false, deceitful aim. is essentially one with (Arab.) waji’a , to experience sorrow, dolere <\/em>, and then signifies, like and , to become or to be wearied, to weary or trouble oneself, to toil and moil (Fleischer). The (cf. Pro 3:5<\/span>) is just wisdom, prudence directed towards becoming rich; for striving of itself alone does not accomplish it, unless wisdom is connected with it, which is not very particular in finding out means in their moral relations; but is so much the more crafty, and, as we say, speculative. Rightly Aquila, the Venet<\/em>., Jerome, and Luther: take not pains to become rich. On the contrary, the lxx reads , stretch not thyself (if thou art poor) after a rich man; and the Syr. and Targ. , draw not near to the rich man; but, apart from the uncertainty of the expression and the construction in both cases, poetry, and proverbial poetry too, does not prefer the article; it never uses it without emphasis, especially as here must be the case with it not elided. These translators thought that ‘ , Pro 23:5<\/span>, presupposed a subject expressed in Pro 23:4<\/span>; but the subject is not , but the [riches] contained in . The self-intelligible it in “it maketh wings,” etc. is that about which trouble has been taken, about which there has been speculation. That is a deceitful possession; for what has been gained by many years of labour and search, often passes away suddenly, is lost in a moment. To let the eyes fly after anything, is equivalent to, to direct a (flying) look toward it: wilt thou let thine eyes rove toward the same, and it is gone? i.e.<\/em>, wilt thou expose thyself to the fate of seeing that which was gained with trouble and craft torn suddenly away from thee? Otherwise Luther, after Jerome: Let not thine eyes fly after that which thou cast not have; but apart from the circumstance that cannot possibly be understood in the sense of ad opes quas non potes habere <\/em> (that would have required ), in this sense after the analogy of ( ) , the end aimed at would have been denoted by and not by . Better Immanuel, after Rashi: if thou doublest, i.e.<\/em>, shuttest (by means of the two eyelids) thine eyes upon it, it is gone, i.e.<\/em>, has vanished during the night; but , duplicare <\/em>, is Aram. and not Heb. Rather the explanation is with Chajg, after Isa 8:22<\/span>.: if thou veilest (darkenest) thine eyes, i.e.<\/em>, yieldest thyself over to carelessness; but the noun shows that , spoken of the eyes, is intended to signify to fly (to rove, flutter). Hitzig too artificially (altering the expression to ): if thou faintest, art weary with the eyes toward him (the rich patron), he is gone – which cannot be adopted, because the form of a question does not accord with it. Nor would it accord if were thought of as a conclusion: “dost thou let thy look fly toward it? It is gone;” for what can this question imply? The of shows that this word is a component part of the question; it is a question lla nakar<\/em>, i.e.<\/em>, in rejection of the subject of the question: wilt thou cast thy look upon it, and it is gone? i.e.<\/em>, wilt thou experience instant loss of that which is gained by labour and acquired by artifice? On , cf. Job 7:8<\/span>. ‘ , “thou directest thine eyes to me: I am no more.” We had in Pro 12:19<\/span> another mode of designating viz. till I wink again an instant. The Chethb ‘ is syntactically correct (cf. Pro 15:22<\/span>; Pro 20:30<\/span>), and might remain. The Ker is mostly falsely accentuated , doubly incorrectly; for (1) the tone never retreats from a shut syllable terminating in <\/em>, e.g.<\/em>, , Isa 40:20<\/span>; , 1Ch 1:4<\/span>; , Job 23:8<\/span>; and (2) there is, moreover, wanting here any legitimate occasion for the retrogression of the tone; thus much rather the form (with Mehuppach<\/em> of the last, and Zinnorith<\/em> of the preceding open syllable) is to be adopted, as it is given by Opitz, Jablonsky, Michaelis, and Reineccius.<\/p>\n The subject of 5b is, as of 5a, riches. That riches take wings and flee away, is a more natural expression than that the rich patron flees away – a quaint figure, appropriate however at Nah 3:16<\/span>, where the multitude of craftsmen flee out of Nineveh like a swarm of locusts. has frequently the sense of acquirere <\/em>, Gen 12:5<\/span>, with , sibi acquirere <\/em>, 1Sa 15:1<\/span>; 1Ki 1:15<\/span>; Hitzig compares Silius Ital<\/em>. xvi. 351: sed tum sibi fecerat alas <\/em>. The inf<\/em>. intensivus<\/em> strengthens the assertion: it will certainly thus happen.<\/p>\n In 5c all unnecessary discussion regarding the Chethb is to be avoided, for this Chethb does not exist; the Masora here knows only of a simple Chethb and Ker , viz., (read ), not of a double one ( ), and the word is not among those which have in the middle a , which is to be read like . The manuscripts ( e.g.<\/em>, also the Bragadin. 1615) have , and the Ker ; it is one of the ten words registered in the Masora, at the beginning of which a is to be read instead of the written . Most of the ancients translate with the amalgamation of the Ker and the Chethb : and he (the rich man, or better: the riches) flees heavenwards (Syr., Aquila, Symmachus, Theodotion, Jerome, and Luther). After the Ker the Venet<\/em>. renders: (viz., ). Rightly the Targ.: like an eagle which flies to heaven (according to which also it is accentuated), only it is not to be translated “ am Himmel <\/em> ” [to heaven], but “ gen Himmel <\/em> ” [towards heaven]: is the accusative of direction – the eagle flies heavenward. Bochart, in the Hierozocon<\/em>, has collected many parallels to this comparison, among which is the figure in Lucian’s Timon<\/em>, where Pluto, the god of wealth, comes to one limping and with difficulty; but going away, outstrips in speed the flight of all birds. The lxx translates . Hitzig accordingly reads , and he (the rich patron) withdraws from thee to his own steep residence. But ought not to be heaven, as the residence of Him who administers wealth, i.e.<\/em>, who gives and again takes it away according to His free-will?<\/p>\n 4 Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. 5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches<\/I> certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.<\/P> As some are given to appetite (v.<\/I><\/span> 2<\/span>) so others to covetousness, and those Solomon here takes to task. Men cheat themselves as much by setting their hearts on money (though it seems most substantial) as by setting them on dainties. Observe,<\/P> I. How he dissuades the covetous man from toiling and tormenting himself (v.<\/I><\/span> 4<\/span>). “Do not aim to be rich,<\/I> to raise an estate, and to make what thou hast in abundance more than it is.” We must endeavor to live comfortably, and provide for our children and families, according as our rank and condition are, but we must not seek great things. Be not of those that will be rich, that desire it as their chief good and design it as their highest end, 1 Tim. vi. 9<\/span>. Covetous men think it is their wisdom, imagining that if they be rich to such a degree they shall be completely happy. Cease from that wisdom,<\/I> for it is a mistake; a man’s life consists not in the abundance of the things which he possesses,<\/I> Luke xii. 15<\/I><\/span>. 1. Those that aim at great things fill their hands with business more than they can grasp, so that their life is both a perfect drudgery and a perpetual hurry; but be not thou such a fool; labour not to be rich.<\/I> What thou hast, or doest, be master of it, and not a slave to it as those that rise up early, sit up late,<\/I> and eat the bread of carefulness,<\/I> and all to be rich. Moderate labour, that we may have to give,<\/I> is our wisdom and duty, Eph. iv. 28<\/span>. Immoderate labour, that we may have to hoard, is our sin and folly. 2. They fill their heads with projects more than they understand, so that their life is a constant toss of care and fear; but do not thou thus vex thyself: Cease from thy own wisdom;<\/I> go on quietly in the way of thy business, not contriving new ways and setting thy wits to work to find out new inventions. Acquiesce in God’s wisdom, and cease from thy own, Pro 3:5<\/span>; Pro 3:6<\/span>.<\/P> II. How he dissuades the covetous man from cheating and deceiving himself by an inordinate love and pursuit of that which is vanity and vexation of spirit; for,<\/P> 1. It is not substantial and satisfying: “Wilt thou<\/I> be such a fool as to set thy eyes,<\/I> to cause thy eyes to fly with eagerness and violence, upon that which is not?<\/I>” Note, (1.) The things of this world are things that are not. They have a real existence in nature and are the real gifts of Providence, but in the kingdom of grace they are things that are not; they are not a happiness and portion for a soul, are not what they promise to be nor what we expect them to be; they are a show, a shadow, a sham upon the soul that trusts to them. They are not, for in a little while they will not be, they will not be ours; they perish in the using; the fashion of them passes away. (2.) It is therefore folly for us to set our eyes upon them, to admire them as the best things, to appropriate them to ourselves as our good things, and to aim at them as our mark at which all our actions are levelled, to fly upon them as the eagle upon her prey. “Wilt thou do a thing so absurd in itself? What thou, a reasonable creature, wilt thou dote upon shadows? The eyes are put for rational and intellectual powers; wilt thou throw those away upon such undeserving objects? To set the hands and feet upon the world is well enough, but not the eyes, the eyes of the mind; those were made to contemplate better things. Wilt thou, my son, that professest religion, put such an affront upon God (towards whom the eyes should ever be) and such an abuse upon thy soul?”<\/P> 2. It is not durable and abiding. Riches are very uncertain things; certainly they are so: They make themselves wings, and fly away.<\/I> The more we cause our eyes to fly upon them the more likely they are to fly away from us. (1.) Riches will leave us. Those that hold them ever so fast cannot hold them long; either they must be taken from us or we must be taken from them. The goods are said to flow away as a stream (Job xx. 28<\/span>), here to flee as a bird. (2.) Perhaps they may leave us suddenly, when we have taken a great deal of pains for them and begin to take a great deal of pride and pleasure in them. The covetous man sits hatching upon his wealth, and brooding over it, till it is fledged, as the young ones under the hen, and then it is gone. Or, as if a man should be fond of a flight of wild-fowl that light in his field, and call them his own because they are upon his ground, whereas, if he offers to come near them, they take wing immediately and are gone to another man’s field. (3.) The wings they fly away upon are of their own making. They have in themselves the principles of their own corruption, their own moth and rust. They are wasting in their own nature, and like a handful of dust, which, if it be grasped, slips through the fingers. Snow will last awhile, and look pretty, if it be left to lie on the ground where it fell, but, if gathered up and laid in the bosom, it is dissolved and gone immediately. (4.) They go irresistibly and irrecoverably, as an eagle toward heaven,<\/I> that flies strongly (there is no stopping her), and flies out of sight and out of call (there is no bringing her back); thus do riches leave men, and leave them in grief and vexation if they set their hearts upon them.<\/P> <\/p>\n Concentrate Not on Riches<\/strong><\/p>\n Verses 4 and 5 warn against seeking riches as the chief good. Even if attained, wealth may disappear in a moment, Pro 28:20<\/span>; Luk 12:15-21<\/span>; 1Ti 6:7-10<\/span>; Jas 5:1-6<\/span>.<\/p>\n CRITICAL NOTES.<\/p>\n Pro. 23:5<\/span><\/strong>. Wilt thou set thine eyes?<\/strong> etc. Rather Wilt thou look eagerly after it, and it is gone?<\/em> <\/p>\n MAIN HOMILETICS OF <\/em>Pro. 23:4-5<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n THE DECEITFULNESS OF RICHES<\/p>\n In order to get the true meaning of this proverb it is necessary to define what Solomon understands by labouring to be rich. We call the possessor of vast estates or a large account at the bank a rich man, and so he is, if he lives within his income, paying his way and having a surplus to bestow upon the needy. But so is the village smith, who with less than a hundredth part of the income of the nobleman or merchant prince looks the whole world in the face and owes not any man. Riches and poverty are but relative terms, and when we consider how indispensable it is that some men should possess more than a mere sufficiency for their personal needs, we may be sure that the wise man did not mean to discourage all effort to gain even more than enough for our daily needs. But the labour<\/em> which is here forbidden is evidently that all-absorbing pursuit of wealth which engrosses the entire man to the exclusion of higher claims. When men make gold their god instead of their servant it is obvious that the boundary line of lawful pursuit is passed, and that deprecated in the proverb is entered upon. The text<\/p>\n I. Condemns all following after wealth under the inspiration of the natural heart<\/strong>. Mans own wisdom<\/em> is an insufficient and dangerous guide in this matter as in all others. The unrenewed heart of man is selfish and sordid, prone to think only of its own desires and to set up a false standard of happiness. Only the wisdom that cometh from above can show men what is worth striving after, what will really bless the present and afford satisfaction in the future. If a man buys and sells and gets gain with a constant reference to the will of God, and in dependence upon Him, he will not labour<\/em> to be richin other words, he will, with Paul, learn in whatsoever state he is to be content<\/em>, and will know how to fulfil the duties which come with abundance and how to exhibit the graces which can only be manifested in poverty.<\/p>\n II. Teaches that only those who do not trust in riches can really enjoy their possession, or escape bitter sorrow in their loss<\/strong>. Every rich man knows that it is possible that his wealth may leave him, and that it is certain that he must leave his wealth. The uncertainty of retaining them through life, and the certainty of losing them at death, are two thorns which must be found in the pillow of everyone who makes riches the chief good of his existence, and must surely deprive him of any heartfelt satisfaction from their possession. The soul of man is made for something higher and more lasting than any earthly good, and of all that men call good, and esteem precious, there is nothing which has less to satisfy the cravings of the soul than mere material wealth, or that is more easily and quickly lost. The only way, therefore, to get any present satisfaction in it, and to ensure oneself against future disappointment from it, is to follow the Apostolic injunction, and trust not in uncertain riches, but in the living God<\/em>. (1Ti. 6:17<\/span>.)<\/p>\n OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS<\/em><\/p>\n Not like a tame bird, that returns; nor like a hawk, that will show where she is by her bells; but like an eagle, whose wings thou canst neither clip nor pinion. All their certainty is in their uncertainty, and they are only stable in this, that they cannot be stable. Wealth is like a bird; it hops all day from man to man, as that doth from tree to tree; and none can say where it will roost or rest at night. It is like a vagrant fellow, which, because he is big-boned, and able to work, a man taketh in a-doors, and cherisheth; and perhaps for a while he takes pains; but when he spies opportunity the fugitive servant is gone, and takes away more with him than all his service came to.T. Adams<\/em>.<\/p>\n What a startling interdict this! What an immense proportion of the worlds toil, and especially in such a community as our own, does it bring under condemnation and proscription! Were all the labour directed to this forbidden end to cease,How little would be left!what a sudden stagnation would there be of the turmoil of busy activity with which we are daily surrounded! What are the great majority of men about,in our city and in our country? What keeps them all astir? What is the prevailing impulse of all the incessant bustle and eager competition of our teeming population? Are not all,with a wider or a narrower estimate of what riches mean,labouring to be rich?<\/em>The love of fame has been called the universal passion. Is not the love of money quite as much, if not more, entitled to the designation? Yes; and many a time does the wisdom<\/em> of the world set itself to the defence of the worlds toil and the worlds aimalleging many plausible, and some more than plausible, things in its pleadings. Riches, say they, keep a man and his family from dependence. Riches enable a man to enjoy many comforts that are in themselves lawful and desirable. Riches procure a man distinction and influence in society. By this and other means, riches put it in a mans power to do good:why should we not<\/em> labour to be rich? It is all true; and the plea is in part quite legitimate. Yet Solomon, by the Spirit, with the authority, and in the kindness of God, enjoinslabour not<\/em> to be rich.Wardlaw<\/em>.<\/p>\n It were a most strange folly to fall passionately in love with a bird upon the wing. How much better were it, since riches will fly, for thyself to direct their flight towards heaven, by relieving the necessitous servants and members of Jesus Christ.Bishop Hopkins<\/em>.<\/p>\n (4) Cease from thine own wisdom.<\/strong>Cleverness shewn in piling up wealth.<\/p>\n 4<\/strong>. <\/strong> Labour not to be rich <\/strong> Be not over anxious for wealth, nor use improper or dishonourable means to obtain it. Depend less upon thy own sagacity than upon the blessing of God. This applies well to those who stand before kings or occupy high places. 1Ti 6:9-10<\/span>.<\/p>\n Seventh Saying (Pentastitch) Pro 23:4-5<\/span><\/strong> forms a single proverbial thought using five lines, which is called a pentastitch. This proverb warns us against setting our hearts upon material wealth because it is so easy to be deceived by such pursuits. It appears to bring someone to a place of satisfaction and wisdom, but in fact, it can leave one empty and foolish.<\/p>\n Pro 23:4<\/strong><\/span> Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.<\/p>\n Pro 23:4<\/strong><\/span><\/strong> <\/strong> “Labour not to be rich” <\/strong> Scripture References – <\/em><\/strong> Note a similar verse:<\/p>\n 1Ti 6:9-10<\/span>, “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”<\/p>\n Pro 23:4<\/strong><\/span> <\/strong> “cease from thine own wisdom” – <\/strong> Scripture References – <\/em><\/strong> Note similar verse:<\/p>\n Pro 3:5<\/span>, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”<\/p>\n Pro 26:12<\/span>, “Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.”<\/p>\n Isa 5:21<\/span>, “Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!”<\/p>\n Rom 11:25<\/span>, “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.”<\/p>\n Rom 12:16<\/span>, “Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.”<\/p>\n Pro 23:5<\/strong><\/span> Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.<\/p>\n Pro 23:5<\/strong><\/span><\/strong> “Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not?” <\/strong> Comments – <\/em><\/strong> The eye referred to in Pro 23:5<\/span> represents the heart of a man. Thus, a person who sets his heart upon riches will be misled by appearances. <\/p>\n Pro 23:5<\/strong><\/span> Illustration – <\/em><\/strong> Chasing riches is like chasing butterflies. They seem to be just at your finger tips, yet you cannot quite catch them.<\/p>\n Pro 23:5<\/strong><\/span> Illustration – <\/em><\/strong> In college a young student brought to me and my roommates two young baby birds which had been knocked out of their nest. We raised them up inside the apartment. I fed them berries and other foods. One small bird died quickly, but the other grew up healthy. Soon he was able to fly around the apartment. We would take him outside and he would fly back and forth to our hands and we would feed him. One day he flew into a tree. Then latter into another tree farther away and soon he was gone, forever.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n v. 4. Labor not to be rich,<\/strong> the vanity of such an ambition being obvious; cease from thine own wisdom,<\/strong> having enough common sense not to make the acquisition of riches the chief aim in life. <\/p>\n Pro 23:4<\/span><\/em><\/strong>. <\/strong>Labour not to be rich<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> In this admonition against covetousness, the wise man neither forbids all labour, nor a provident care, which he commends in other places; but only represents how vain it is to be over-solicitous, and to leave no thoughts or strength for any thing else: for so the first word is, Do not weary thyself to be rich; <\/em>and in the next part of the verse he bids us desist: from our own understanding: meaning thereby, either that we should not wholly trust to it, though in the use of honest means; or, that we should not follow our own inventions, contrary to divine direction. Houbigant corrects the text, and renders it, nearly after the LXX, thus: “Do not attend, or associate thyself with a rich man, when thou thyself art poor.” Archbishop Tillotson has a very lively and pleasing remark upon the next verse; “wherein (says he) the wise man expresses himself in such a manner, as if he would give us the picture of a rich man, who sits brooding over his estate till it is fledged, and, having gotten wings, flies away. But the whole tenor of the gospel teaches us, that we must die to the riches of this world, and to all things here below, and be alive to God alone.” <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/em><\/p>\n Pro 23:4 Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.<\/p>\n <\/em><\/p>\n Ver. 4. Labour not to be rich.<\/strong> ] The courtier is still at his lesson. Many have gotten into princes’ palaces, into places of profit, fat offices, mind nothing more than the feathering of their own nests, raising of their own houses, filling of their own coffers. Such were Shebna, Haman, Sejanus, of whom Tacitus makes this report: Palam compositus pudor, intus summa adipiscendi libido,<\/em> that he made show of modesty, but was extremely covetous; insomuch, saith Seneca, a<\/em> that he thought all to be lost that he got not for himself. How much better Joseph, Nehemiah, Daniel, &c., who, being wholly for the public, as they had nothing to lose, so they had as little to get, but were above all price or sale. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Cease from thine own wisdom.<\/strong> ] Cast away that carnal policy that would prompt thee to get rem, rem, quocunque modo rem,<\/em> wealth of any fashion. This wisdom is by St James fitly styled “earthly, sensual, devilish.” “Earthly,” managing the lusts of the eye to the ends of gain; “sensual,” managing the lusts of the eye to the ends of pleasure; and “devilish,” managing the pride of life unto ends of power (Jas 3:15<\/span> 1Jn 2:14-15 <\/p>\n<\/p>\n a<\/em> Quicquid non acquiritur damnum est.<\/em> – Sen.<\/p>\n Labour not, &c. Illustrations: Lot (Gen 13:10, Gen 13:13); the rich fool (Luk 12:16-20. Compare Pro 10:16). See Jeremiah’s advice (Jer 45:5). <\/p>\n wisdom. Hebrew. binah. See note on Pro 1:2. Not the same word as in verses: Pro 23:9, Pro 23:23. <\/p>\n Pro 23:4-5<\/p>\n Pro 23:4-5<\/p>\n “Weary not thyself to be rich; Cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings, Like an eagle that flieth toward heaven.”<\/p>\n Paul warned against the desire to be rich; and here we have a warning in the Old Testament. The heart of Paul’s warning (1Ti 6:9 f) centered upon moral and spiritual damage to the seeker; and here the warning stresses the nature of riches. They have the startling ability to leave their possessor `holding the bag.’ Ask any man who has experienced great loss (1) by the death of a trusted partner, a stock market crash, an earthquake, a flood, a tornado, a hurricane, a drought, a revolution, a robbery, embezzlement, fraud, some changing fashion, or any one of a thousand other ways that riches can make themselves wings and fly away. “There is an ancient proverb: `Possessions are like sparrows, or locusts, in flight that can find no place to alight.’<\/p>\n Pro 23:4. By thus associating with a ruler, the guest may have thought that this was his first step toward the life of the rich, Or, having eaten of such pleasant food, the guest may have determined that he too will someday be rich. Here he is warned of the many weary years and hardships accompanying getting and being rich. So he is told to cease from his own wisdom which in the long run will not prove to be truly wise at all. Other warnings against aspiring to be rich: Mat 6:19-20; Joh 6:27; 1Ti 6:7-10. Other warnings against following ones own wisdom: Pro 3:5; Rom 12:16.<\/p>\n Pro 23:5. Riches are here spoken of as that which is not. They are uncertain (1Ti 6:17). They may be here today but gone tomorrow (through economic crashes, bad investments, etc.). Kings often had to empty their treasure houses to satisfy invading kings (1Ki 18:15-16). Consider also Ecc 5:11; Ecc 5:15-16.<\/p>\n Labour: Pro 28:20, Joh 6:27, 1Ti 6:8-10 <\/p>\n cease: Pro 3:5, Pro 26:12, Isa 5:21, Rom 11:25, Rom 12:16 <\/p>\n Reciprocal: Gen 34:23 – General Pro 1:19 – every Pro 20:21 – gotten Pro 28:11 – rich Ecc 1:3 – profit Ecc 7:16 – neither Eze 28:4 – General Luk 12:15 – Take<\/p>\n Pro 23:4-5. Labour not Hebrew, , Do not weary thyself, namely, with immoderate cares and labours, as many covetous men do; to be rich To raise an estate, and make thy property abundantly more than it is. Solomon does not forbid all labour, nor a provident care, which he commends in other places; but only represents how vain and foolish it is to be over solicitous, and to carry our cares and labours to such excess as to injure, if not our health of body, yet our peace and serenity of mind, and to endanger or even preclude our everlasting salvation. Cease from thine own wisdom From that carnal wisdom which is natural to man in his corrupt estate, and which persuades men to believe that it is their interest to use all possible means to get riches, and that the happiness of their lives consists in the abundance of their possessions, directly contrary to the assertion of our blessed Lord, Luk 12:15. Wilt thou set thine eyes Wilt thou look with earnestness and eager desire; Hebrew, Wilt thou cause thine eyes to fly; upon that which is not Which has no solid and settled existence; which is thine to have, but not to hold; which is always upon the wing, and ofttimes gone in the twinkling of an eye. For riches certainly make themselves wings The wings on which they fly away are of their own making: like the wings of a fowl, they grow out of themselves. They have in themselves the principles of their own corruption, their own moth and rust. They are wasting in their own nature, and like a handful of sand, which, when griped, slips through the fingers. The covetous man, says Henry, sits hatching and brooding over his wealth till it be fledged, as the chickens under the hen, and then it is gone. Or, as if a man should be enamoured with a flight of wild fowl that light in his field, and call them his own, because they are upon his ground; whereas, if he happen to come near them, they take wing immediately, and are gone to another mans field. They fly away as an eagle Swiftly, strongly, and irrecoverably. We quickly lose the sight and the possession of them. Their flying away from us is elegantly opposed to our eyes being set, or flying upon them, in the beginning of the verse.<\/p>\n 23:4 Labour not to be rich: cease from thy own {d} wisdom.<\/p>\n (d) Bestow not the gifts that God has given you, to get worldly riches.<\/p>\n Wealth is just as illusive as social prestige (cf. Luk 12:20; 1Ti 6:7-10). Therefore, people should not wear themselves out trying to get rich.<\/p>\n Labor not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. 4. Labour not ] Rather, Weary not thyself, R.V., as the same Heb. word is rendered “till his hand was weary,” 2Sa 23:10; “ be weary,” Isa 40:30-31. Comp. Joh 6:27; 1Ti 6:9-10. cease from thine own wisdom ] from the wisdom, namely, of becoming … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 23:4”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17059","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17059","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17059\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
I. <\/strong>Labouring to be rich implies the consecration of our powers to that one object in particular. But this is not the end for which we are endowed with an intellectual faculty and all the susceptibilities of a moral nature. The accumulation of riches as an end is no more worthy the noble powers of man than building a pyramid of sand. Infinitely beneath the dignity and Divine origin of man is the labouring to be rich.<\/p>\n
II. <\/strong>Whatever tends to widen the distance between God and man must be regarded as an aggravation of our fallen and ruined condition. We are so constituted that we cannot be engrossed with the successful pursuit of two objects at once. You cannot be labouring to be rich, and to be wise unto salvation at the same time. By our own wilful act to alienate the heart from God must be the most inconceivable of all misfortunes, since the highest object of mans existence is to hold communion with God. For this his nature was originally framed, and in this alone will his nature ever find contentment or repose.<\/p>\n
III. <\/strong>The ruinous effects that the passion under notice occasions in all the moral powers of its victim. People imagine that riches confer greatness. A man is honoured according to the abundance of his capital. The tendency of this is to inflate the mammon-worshipper with personal vanity. But the greatness which is the exclusive offspring of opulence is a hollow, spurious, and mere visionary greatness. Unsanctified riches tend to render their possessor vain, proud, impatient of restraint, forgetful of the sources of true greatness, and insensible to the wants or respect that is due to others. And the pursuit of riches always ends in disappointment. Godliness with contentment is great gain. The true riches, like an overflowing stream, irrigate the heart, and make it bear fruit for eternity, but avarice of gold rushes like a torrent of scorching lava–it may excite the wonder and attract the common attention of mankind, but it leaves behind its devastating march a solitude, and barrenness, and ruin, and death. (W<\/em>. H<\/em>. Hill, M<\/em>.A<\/em>.)<\/p>\nFuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"