Proverbs 14:26-30

Proverbs 14:26-30
Prov 14:26 (KJB)
In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge.
Strong Confidence - Security of strength
Place of Refuge - A hiding place
Those saved who continue to live in the fear of the Lord will have a strong confidence as they see the Lord continually protect them and guide them through the hard situations of life. The strength of the LORD is the security of the believer, knowing that God will never forsake us and that all the powers of Heaven are used for the benefit of the believer. In the second half of this verse, we read a very comforting passage that the children of God will have a great place of refuge and that will be hiding in the Lord Himself. When we surrender every situation to the Lord, we will find a calming peace that the world will never know. (Psa 91:2 KJV) I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. If there is one thing the believer can be, knowing that the Lord is his security of strength, and that is, the boldness to be the type of witness that god intends His children to be. When we fear God more than man, we can do great things for the Lord because retreat will not be in our vocabulary.
Prov 14:27 (KJB)
The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.
To depart - To turn aside
When one is walking in the fear of the LORD, it is like a fountain of life which belches forth the sweet waters of life. The waters which come forth from that fountain bring the believer much discernment and understanding. (Psa 36:9 KJV) For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. Psalm 36:9 teaches that the fountain of life will be in the light of the Lord. This light guides the believer from becoming entangled in the ways of the world which allows them to turn aside from the snares of death. The evil ways of the world have the light of God shining on them so the believer’s pathway is made clear. (Psa 119:105 KJV) NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. When one opens the fountain of God’s word, they will have the knowledge to protect themselves from being snared by the world. The word “depart” does not mean a casual turning away or a simple neglect. It carries with the idea of an intentional rejection of whatever is in view. It means the believer turns his or her back on it.
Prov 14:28 (KJB)
In the multitude of people is the king's honour: but in the want of people is the destruction of the prince.
The want - The end
Whether a king has a kingdom or not, in the multitude of people under his authority, he will be honored as the king. This king is a kind king because in comparing the second half of this verse, it seems that this king takes care of his people and concerns himself with their well-being. The second half of this verse seems to be stating that the lack of people will lead to the destruction of the prince. If a prince is always making war or treating his people cruelly leading to many deaths, then he is losing numbers of people and soon his kingdom will have very few people and will be vulnerable to attack and to be conquered. This is a lesson in kindness because the king that seeks the welfare of his people will definitely maintain a strong kingdom but the cruel prince will not only lose many lives but will subject himself to an uprising and possibly lose his own life. It is like those in business management, if they are nasty to the employees, then they will suffer a big turnover and that means employees will not be growing or progressing in their vocations at that company. It will be an incessant task to keep training new people just so they could use their talents elsewhere. There is a spiritual lesson here also. When God keeps saving people, the kingdom of the prince of the power of the air becomes smaller and on the last day, he will lose every follower and he too will be destroyed, thus putting an end to the kingdom of Satan forever.
Prov 14:29 (KJB)
He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
Slow - Patient or long
Hasty - Short tempered
Folly - Foolishness
(Nahum 1:3 KJV) The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. In Nahum 1:3 we read the same word “slow” in reference to the LORD who is slow to anger. Those who have become saved will be able to exhibit this same characteristic. (Gal 5:22 KJV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Galatians 5:22 speaks of one of the fruits of the Spirit as “longsuffering.” Patience is one of the fruits of the Christian walk and in Proverbs 14:29, it adds that those who are “slow to wrath” have great understanding. This is because the believer understands that those who are unsaved do not possess a calm spirit and they see everything in the present as urgent. The believer understands that the unbeliever, if they do not become saved, will suffer eternally in hell and it creates a level of compassion for the unbeliever. Herein lies the great understanding of the believer. The second part of this verse teaches that those with a quick temper will continually exhibit foolishness. They have foolish hearts and will be quick to speak and not so quick to listen and this will normally get them into trouble. (Prov 29:20 KJV) Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him. A person who thinks with his mouth and not with his brain, shows that a fool has more hope than him. Words are not the only thing which people use in haste but also actions. Many people are in such a hurry, they do not assess the situation and with only partial knowledge they begin a project and it utterly fails because of lack of complete planning. I am sure we have all run into people who go ahead without total assessment and have ultimately regretted it.
Prov 14:30 (KJB)
A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.
Sound - Calm - carries with it the idea of healing
Rottenness - Decay
One of the tenets of having a healthy body is to have a calm heart. Those in the world do not possess calmness as anxiety is the way of the unsaved. The calm heart comes with a person’s salvation. (Isa 26:3 KJV) Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Isaiah 26:3 teaches that we will be in perfect peace if we continue to focus our lives upon the Lord. If we transfer all our problems to Him, we will retain peace in our lives and in our bodies. Many years ago before I became Christian, I too was a person of anxiety to the point that I had to go on tranquilizers. When a person has a calm body and is not riddled with anxiety, they do not realize what a great gift that is. This is why God wants us to focus on Him because He knows this removes the anxiety from us and leaves us as calm witnesses in this world.
On the other hand is the person who is living with much envy, actually it is speaking of jealousy, this person always exudes a competitive spirit and will desire to win in any fashion he can. Jealousy will eat at a person just as an animal eats his prey. It will not stop eating until it has completely devoured its prey. This verse describes envy as being rottenness to the bones. If the bones decay, then the person can no longer stand up because the skeletal system has been compromised. If the skeletal system has been compromised, they will be unable to walk or perform their duties. This means a person who lives with a jealous nature, will never really amount to much more than a jealous person who always comes in second, plus jealousy can lead to violence against the person who is being envied.

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