Proverbs and Jeremiah tidbits

Proverbs 20.7
The righteous man walks in his integrity;
His children are blessed after him.
As I reflected in this verse, it occurred to me that I might be a little more passionate about my children than righteousness and integrity. I suspect that if I have a focus more on my own "tōm" ( H8537 ) then the children will probably be fine. Mulling that thought over.

Proverbs 22.14
"The mouth of an immoral woman is a deep pit; He who is abhorred by the LORD will fall there."
Not "will be abhorred if you fall in", but... That's a heavy verse to mull over.

Proverbs 21.3
"To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice."
A good Sunday morning verse. Does what happened during the week confirm my words on Sunday morning?

"Faith does not save. Faith in Christ saves" --Todd Aherend @ Tulsa Bible Church mission conference.

Parts of Proverbs 24 are about our relations with adversaries. This is one of them.
17-18 Don’t gloat when your enemy falls, and don’t let your heart rejoice when he stumbles, or the LORD will see, be displeased, and turn His wrath away from him. (HCSB)
--> Don't become like your enemy.

Proverbs 23.22-26 emphasize the importance of listening to parents in contrast to 23.29-35 warning against abuse of alcohol.
Where does the statement in 23.27-28 that a harlot/seductress lies in wait as for a victim put the idea of a "victimless crime"?

This is my prayer today for President Obama, Gov. Fallin, & Mayor Bartlett, etc.
Proverbs 25.4-5
Take away the dross from silver,
And it will go to the silversmith for jewelry
Take away the wicked from before the king,
And his throne will be established in righteousness.

This is a classic. Enjoy.
Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, "Don't do it!"
He said, "Nobody loves me."
I said, "God loves you. Do you believe in God?"

He said, "Yes."
I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?"
He said, "A Christian."
I said, "Me, too! Protestant or Catholic?"
He said, "Protestant."
I said, "Me, too! What franchise?"
He said, "Baptist."
I said, "Me, too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?"
He said, "Northern Baptist."
I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"
He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist."
I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region, or Northern Conservative Baptist Eastern Region?"
He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region."
I said, "Me, too!"
Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879, or Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?"
He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912."
I said, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.

Proverbs 26.7
Like the legs of the lame that hang limp Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
So it takes wisdom to make a proverbs useful. This seems to allude to the skill needed to make it useful.

Jeremiah 23 was quite a place to land in my Bible reading during a preaching workshop.
16 Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless; They speak a vision of their own heart, Not from the mouth of the LORD.
17 They continually say to those who despise Me, 'The LORD has said, "You shall have peace" '; And to everyone who walks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say, 'No evil shall come upon you.' "

Proverbs 27.9 The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense.
This describes the worshops with the men this week.

 In my ongoing effort to suggest solid baby names from my Bible reading, let me suggest Ahikam, an official in Judah who helped prevent Jeremiah from being "lynched" in Jeremiah 26.24.

Two Proverbs that help explain each other and serve as a good reminder.
Proverbs 28.13-4
He who covers his sins will not prosper,
But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.
Happy is the man who is always reverent,
But he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

Proverbs 1.30-31
They would have none of my counsel:
they despised all my reproof.
Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way,
and be filled with their own devices.
If we don't want to change roads, we will end up where we are going.

Jeremiah 29.11 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end."
We get all kinds of sentimental ideas about this verse. The context is a message from the Lord via Jeremiah to the Jewish exiles in BabProverbs 3.5-6 seem to be favorites for many people, but the next two are pretty good and seem to give some helpful context. I'm thinking about those today.
"Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the LORD and depart from evil.
It will be health to your flesh,
And strength to your bones."Babylon who were being punished until the Land had it's Sabbaths. This was a consolation to the exiles (being chastened for there sins) that God would one day restore them. When we are chastened, we should, if His son, have patient confidence in God's good intentions like in Hebrews 11.5-6, 11.

Proverbs 2.1
"My son, if thou wilt receive my words,
and hide my commandments with thee;
So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom,
[and] apply thine heart to understanding;

So, we don't just sit passively waiting for something to happen.

35 is one of my favorite chapters in Jeremiah. I imagine that both my sons are glad that the names "Jonadab" and "Recab" were disapproved by their mother.  

Proverbs 3.5-6 seem to be favorites for many people, but the next two are pretty good and seem to give some helpful context. I'm thinking about those today.
"Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the LORD and depart from evil.
It will be health to your flesh,
And strength to your bones."