Proverbs 12

• A man’s wife can either crown him or crush him (Proverbs 12:4)
• Mistreating animals indicates an unrighteous soul (Proverbs 12:10)

Proverbs 13

• Sometimes all your hard work is in vain (Proverbs 13:7)
• Not all illness is caused by bacteria (Proverbs 13:12)
• Despise God’s word and be destroyed-that’s a promise (Proverbs 13:13)
• Be careful who your friends are (vs 20)
• What will you bequeath to your children? Will it have any eternal value? (Proverbs 13:22)
• Parents who do not discipline their children evidently hate their children (Proverbs 13:24)

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Some themes appear often among the inspired Proverbs.

Proverbs 10

• Laziness is an embarrassment to one’s family (vs 3-5)
• Some men are famous for their perverted ways (vs 9)
• Physical discipline may be required (vs 13)
• A lot of talking is opportunity for sin (vs 19)
• A wise man avoids practical jokes (vs 23)

Proverbs 11

• God cares how you conduct your business affairs (vs 1)
• Guard your tongue, ye Christian (Proverbs 11:9-13)
• A truly dumb blond (or brunette, or red-head, etc.) is like a pig wearing jewelry (Proverbs 11:22)

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Mother Nature, Lady Luck, and the Grim Reaper. Who hasn’t heard of these personifications?
Today’s reading declares that Wisdom goes about openly declaring man’s need for knowledge of God and God’s ways.

Proverbs 8

• Everything is plain to him that understands (Proverbs 8:9)-even things about God.
• Wisdom (vs 22-31) is as old as God Himself.
• To forsake the quest for wisdom is to put your soul in danger (Proverbs 8:36).

Proverbs 9

• Wisdom invites men to come and learn (vs 1-6)
• Not everyone appreciates being corrected (vs 7-9)
• Evil women are dangerous to men’s souls (vs 13-18)

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Today’s reading adds to our understanding of various sins, including adultery and prostitution

Proverbs 6

• Don’t co-sign loans for your friends (vs 1-5)
• Buy an ant farm; learn not to be lazy (vs 6-11)
• Smooth-talking lawyers, salesmen and preachers are just con-men. Avoid them. (vs 12-15)
• Do you like lists? Here are six things the LORD hates. (Proverbs 6:16-19)
• Adultery is, among other things, stealing (vs 20-35)

Proverbs 7

• Why is so much space devoted to describing the circumstances and psychology of adultery? Can it be that this is not the innocent and indiscrete wandering that modern society would have us believe?
• Blanketing our sin with religious activity does not cover its evil (vs 14).
• What is “the attire of a harlot”? (Proverbs 7:10). Do we allow our daughters to dress so? Do we dress so?
• Those who jump into bed with harlots are “simple ones”, “void of understanding” (Proverbs 7:7), an “ox” and a “fool” (Proverbs 7:22).
• The lust-struck ones deceive themselves into believing that nobody will know (vs 19). God always knows.

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