Proverbs 10:6-10--The Proverbs of Solomon

Proverbs 10:6-10
English Standard Version
​6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
    but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
7 The memory of the righteous is a blessing,
    but the name of the wicked will rot.
8 The wise of heart will receive commandments,
    but a babbling fool will come to ruin.
9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
    but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.
10 Whoever winks the eye causes trouble,
    and a babbling fool will come to ruin.

---

This is my second journal article on the Proverbs of Solomon that are in Proverbs 10.  I've broken them up into smaller pieces as there's so much that can be written on each single verse that I wanted to slow down a bit through this area of Proverbs and give time for each of these pithy sayings.

Let's pick back up now in verse 6 where Solomon tells his son that the LORD pours out blessings on the righteous.  This is a grace of the LORD to help show people the right way to live and is part of the Mosaic Covenant with His people.  There were blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.  The LORD did not let the wicked go unpunished for too long because then people would look at them and say that there was no difference in the here-and-now between being righteous and being wicked (in fact, it may even look preferable to be one of the wicked sometimes if the LORD didn't bring curses on them), but the LORD wanted to show His people and the nations that the best Way was to follow Him--only then could they be saved and have eternal life.  The best blessings are coming in the future for the righteous, and we can be sure of that now even if we don't seem to have to blessings promised by the Law for obedience.  The LORD sees and knows all and give just rewards to the righteous and the wicked when the time for rewards and punishments comes.

Solomon also says that the mouth of the wicked person conceals violence.  That is to say that the wicked not only do violence with their hands, but also with their words.  Wounds that are made by physical attack heal much better than the wounds that are made by a verbal attack.  The wicked also try to lie and cover up and conceal what they are doing (they think in secret), but the LORD knows all about it.  They cannot hide anything from Him.

How do people think about you when they hear your name?  Are you remembered as someone who was a blessing to them, or do they have bad memories of you because you were wicked towards them and those they loved?  I righteous person will bring back good feelings and memories when someone thinks about them, but even mentioning the name of a wicked person will bring up all kinds of bad thoughts and feelings.  Be the kind of person that makes people feel better just by thinking of you and by your name being mentioned.  Don't be the kind of person that is so wicked that your name brings up all the evil you've done to everyone when your name is mentioned.

The wise person receives the instruction of the LORD and those he's put in authority with gladness and obeys the commandments that he is given.  The fool wants no master other than himself and will have no one but himself to blame when his life comes to ruin while singing "I Did It My Way."

"Whoever walks in integrity walks securely."  Those who are what they say they are and live the same way publicly and privately, who do not lie have an easier time knowing what it is they should do.  They do not need to think, "What do I need to do and who do I need to pretend to be in this situation?" because they are genuine in all situations.  Integrity and holiness are two words that I hope exemplify my life and along with them, I hope the word "blameless" will be able to be applied to me like it was to Joseph, Daniel, and Job.  That is not to say that any of these men were perfect but that no one could speak a bad thing about them because they walked with integrity and were upright (righteous) in all they did.

The man whose way is crooked lies and tells different stories to different people and can't remember which lie he told, and their lies will catch up to them.  However, this proverb says more than that.  It may mean that the very people they will become the victim of their own misdeeds should their victims catch up to them or should their "friends" turn on them.  The wicked always have to look over their shoulders to be looking for wicked men that would stab them in the back, the police who are looking for them, and their victims who may be trying to get vigilante justice (the Bible tells us not to do that).  The wicked person's health deteriorates from all this stress and the lack of sleep as their conscience tells them that what they have done is wrong.

Along with this previous thought, the one who "winks the eye" is the one who sees wickedness happening and does nothing to stop it (or it could be the person who is a lookout and gives a signal to those that would commit the actual act).  In either case, the one who stands by and does nothing or passively engages in the evil actions will also come to ruin.  We see this play out in the parable of the Good Samaritan where the people who passed by the man who was attacked were just as guilty of having no regard for human life as those who robbed the man on the road to Jericho.  It didn't matter whether they were a priest or a Levite that was supposed to be a man of God, that didn't give them a free pass when it came to living out the Law that they were supposed to teach to others.  Let us be consistent in our words and our actions.  The warning is given once again that the fool will come to ruin.