"But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." Proverbs 4:18

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Proverbs 4

Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

For I was my father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.

Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.

I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.

Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.

Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.

For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.

For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.

Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
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"The book [the Book of Proverbs] now before us marks out right paths, the way of wisdom. All who walk therein shall find their steps unstraitened, and shall be enabled to run without stumbling. How needful, then, to heed the exhortation that follows!
13 Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go:
Keep her; for she is thy life.
14 Enter not into the path of the lawless,
And go not in the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, pass not by it,
Turn from it, and pass away.
16 For they sleep not, except they have done evil;
And their sleep is taken away unless they cause some to fall.
17 For they eat the bread of lawlessness,
And drink the wine of violence.
The principle here enunciated is of prime importance, and cannot be too often insisted on. The child of God is called to separation from all evil-doers. He who knoweth what is in the darkness has described their unholy ways. We need not mistake them. Called to holiness, we are to avoid their path. To trifle and temporize with them is most deleterious, and will greatly hinder soul-progress. The true pilot may not know every rock or reef, but his wisdom consists in taking the safe channel: so the Christian need not make himself aware of all the evils of the day. He is to simply take the safe path described in the verse that follows:
18 But the path of the just is as a shining light,
That shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
19 The way of the lawless is as darkness:
They know not at what they stumble.
Marked is the difference thus presented. The path of the righteous, leading onward and upward to that city where the glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the lamp thereof, shines brighter and brighter as the uncreated glory from that city of bliss illumines it with splendor. Who would not cry, “Let me die the death of the righteous; let my last end be like his”? A far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory is at the end of that path."

Henry Allan Ironside
Excerpt from Proverbs Four




Photo by Johannes Plenio on Pexels

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I'm a Christian saved by God, by His Sovereign grace. I want to encourage all to read, to hear, to believe, and to feed upon the only Words in all the world that are truly spirit and life, living and active; to know the One True God: God the Father, His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit; Who has graciously given us the Holy Scriptures
“All Scripture is God-breathed..."
2 Timothy 3:16–17; cf., John 3:31-36; John 6:63; John 14:26; John 17:3, 17; Romans 1:1-6, 16-17; 1 Corinthians 2:1-16; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; 2 Peter 1:20–21; Hebrews 4:12-13. As for the commentaries I post and refer to; with much gratitude, as they have done for me, it is my hope and prayer that they serve to edify all who read them.

Shalom, beccaj
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