Proverbs 29:27

The Bible says in Proverbs 29:27, “The unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked.” There is a great difference between those who know God and those who do not. It is a spiritual difference. One of the things that makes this life unpleasant for those who believe in Jesus is all the people who do not believe in Jesus. We do not have the same priorities. We do not love what they love, and they do not hate what we hate or love what we love. They have different goals. We want to live by faith and honor Jesus. They do not, and they do not understand where we are coming from. And so it says in Amos 3:3, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” Christians must be careful. Even though we cannot have close communion with the lost souls of the world, we need to make sure that we show them love. People are won to Christ through love more than anything else.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:1-3, “The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, even the prophecy: the man spake unto Ithiel, even unto Ithiel and Ucal. [2] Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man. [3] I neither learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the holy.” Agur is going to write a chapter of the Bible in the book of Proverbs, the book of wisdom. And so Agur has been given wisdom from God to do that. And yet Agur starts very humbly. Agur does not talk about how much he knows: he talks about how little he knows. That is why Agur says in verse 2 that he has “not the understanding of a man,” and in verse 3 Agur says that he does not “have the knowledge of the holy.”

In Proverbs 30:4 Agur tells why he is so humble about his own level of understanding and knowledge. He writes by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?” By asking these questions, the writer is emphasizing the fact that man does not have the wisdom that he needs. God has all wisdom. This verse is a prophecy about Christ. Something very similar is written about Jesus in Ephesians 4:9-10, “(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?[10] He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)”

The last question that Proverbs 30:4 asks is very interesting: “what is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell.” God reveals Himself to us through His name. In the Old Testament one of the prominent names of God was Jehovah: the great I AM, the eternally –existent One. In the New Testament even more has been revealed about God in the name of God’s Son: Jesus. “Jesus” means Savior. Have you been saved by Jesus?

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:5, “Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.” This is a tremendous Bible verse. It says so much. It connects the Word of God to having faith in God or trusting in Him. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Reading the Word of God will help you grow in faith because when you read the promises of God it will remind you of how great God is and of all that God has done for you and will do for you. This verse says that the Word of God is “pure.” There is a lot of sin and depravity and error and failing in the world. What a wonderful oasis is the Word of God to provide us the means of goodness and truth. If you want to become a better Christian, read the Word of God and apply it to your life. Proverbs 30:5 also speaks of “every” Word of God. There are no mistakes in the Bible. Every Word was given by inspiration of God. Every Word has a good purpose in God’s plan to teach the human race all about His truth. Preach every word, read every word, think about every word of the Bible, memorize every verse that you can. You need it. It will be a lifelong pursuit to do that properly.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:6, “Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.” This teaching is an important part of the doctrine of the scriptures. God has given us His written Word. We call it the Bible. The Bible is complete. Everything that God has wanted to tell the human race, God has put in the Bible. Nothing should be added to the Bible: no other book of any kind can add to God’s words. No other book contains God’s words, unless that book quotes the Bible. If that book quotes the Bible, only the quotations are God’s Word. This means that all other religious writings are not God’s Word. What kind of a person comes up with other writings in addition to the Bible? The answer to that question this verse makes very clear: a liar. A very similar teaching about not adding to the Bible is found in Revelation 22:18-19, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book. [19] And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:7-9, “Two things have I required of thee: deny me them not before I die: [8] Remove from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: [9] Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” Interesting that the writer says in verse 7, “deny me them not before I die.” These two requests the writer hopes to acquire before he dies. It is good to have a life-long goal especially in regards to what you what like to accomplish for the Lord in this life. Here is a goal that some might have: to teach every verse of the Bible at least once. The writer’s goal is to have “vanity and lies” removed from him. Vanity refers to things that are worthless, and they are worthless because they are part of the deceitful world. Those who know and serve Jesus love the truth, and do not want to be around lies or liars. It may not happen in this life, but it certainly will in the next: there will be no lies and no liars in heaven.

The writer’s second goal is just like the first: something that every believer should seek. He said, “give me neither poverty nor riches.” He did not want to be rich or poor. That is usually God’s will for everyone. To keep us from being really poor, God promises to supply our needs. Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” If God has promised to supply your needs each day, one day at a time, then you do not need riches. Riches usually turn into a temptation and an opportunity to turn away from God. That is the big reason to not be rich and to not wish to be rich. As the writer said in verse 9, “Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord?” A rich person will be more likely to trust in their money and not turn to the Lord for help. Jesus said in Matthew 19:24, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”

God does not want us to be poor either. There is an extra temptation for those that are rich, and there is an extra temptation for those that are poor. The writer said in Proverbs 30:9, “Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” If someone is poor, the temptation will be greater for them to steal. Of course, what a poor person should do is get training or education, work hard, and trust the Lord to improve their situation with a good job. The poor person is tempted to be a thief and to take God’s name in vain. That probably means that a poor person is tempted to blame God for their situation in life. And so the poor person is likely to break two of the Ten Commandments: 1. Thou shalt not steal, and 2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:10, “Accuse not a servant unto his master, lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty.” In other words: mind your own business. A servant reports to his master. He does not report to you. God has established the lines of command on the earth, and God wants them to be followed and respected.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:11, “There is a generation that curses their father, and does not bless their mother.” What is God’s will for the attitude of a child to its parents? That is an easy answer because one of the Ten Commandments is addressed to children, and it says, “Honor your mother and your father.” There are some cases of extreme hatred and animosity of adult children to one or more of their parents. Sometimes the hatred comes from an inability to forgive. One of the benefits of being a Christian is that you learn how to forgive others since Jesus has forgiven you. Sometimes the hatred for parents comes because the child has made mistakes and blames things on one or more of the parents. No matter what your parents were like, you are responsible for your own actions. Do not blame anyone for your life. Confess your sins to God, and clean up your life the best that you know how. Learn to love your parents. They are human beings who deserve to be loved and who need to be loved just like anyone else.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:12, “There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness.” There is only one way of becoming pure: obtaining forgiveness from the Lord Jesus Christ. Anyone who tries to justify himself or herself will stand before God one day without a Savior. In order to come to Christ you must first admit your own guilt and sin. When you do that, He will forgive you.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:13, “There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up.” Human beings tend to become arrogant and prideful. In order to keep that from happening, you need the truth about yourself. First, you are a sinner. Second, God made you, and so you cannot take credit for anything that you have accomplished. Bow your head and ask Jesus to forgive you for your faults, mistakes, and sins. Be thankful to the Lord Jesus for all your blessings, including your gifts and abilities. Do not take credit for what He has done: give Him the glory.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:14, “There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.” There are people in the world who do not know God and do not serve God. Some of these people will take advantage of others. Some of these people will use others. Some of these people will “devour” others. They forget one thing: there is a God who sees all and knows all. These evil ones are heading toward the judgment which they greatly deserve.

The Bible says in Proverbs 30:15-16, “The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:[16] The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.” A leech is a creature that once it gets on, it will never get off on its own. It is constantly hungry and seems to never be satisfied. In other words it says, “Give, give.” Four other things are like that. The grave is like that. The grave never says, “Enough people have died. No more need to come to their grave.” Everyone will die except for those who are alive when Jesus raptures the church. The barren womb is never satisfied. Thank God for the options that exist for adoption in our day and age. And thank God that we can have spiritual children when we lead others to Jesus. When a fire consumes, does it ever say, “I have burned and consumed enough. I will stop now.” No, that does not happen. That is why a small fire is so dangerous. It can grow very quickly. If you have ever lived in a very dry climate, then you know how dry earth or dry sand swallows up any water that is poured upon it, and there is always room for more. Is there anything else on earth that can have that kind of hunger? Once in a while, someone can have a hunger for God and the things of God and the Word of God. Sad that such a thirst for righteousness does not happen more often. Jesus said in Matthew 5:6, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

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