Scripture Daily

Context No. 1949 of 4322 · Proverbs

Context · Reflection

Proverbs 17:17-28: in context

17A friend loves at all times; and a brother is born for adversity. 18A man void of understanding strikes hands, and becomes collateral in the presence of his neighbor. 19He who loves disobedience loves strife. One who builds a high gate seeks destruction. 20One who has a perverse heart doesn’t find prosperity, and one who has a deceitful tongue falls into trouble. 21He who becomes the father of a fool grieves. The father of a fool has no joy. 22A cheerful heart makes good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. 23A wicked man receives a bribe in secret, to pervert the ways of justice. 24Wisdom is before the face of one who has understanding, but the eyes of a fool wander to the ends of the earth. 25A foolish son brings grief to his father, and bitterness to her who bore him. 26Also to punish the righteous is not good, nor to flog officials for their integrity. 27He who spares his words has knowledge. He who is even tempered is a man of understanding. 28Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is counted wise. When he shuts his lips, he is thought to be discerning.

This cluster of proverbs touches on friendship, folly, and the heart, and it ends with a pair of sayings about speech: he who spares his words has knowledge, and he who is even-tempered is a man of understanding. Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is counted wise; when he shuts his lips, he is thought discerning. The wise, these proverbs suggest, are marked by restraint in speech, by knowing when to hold their tongue.

The closing proverbs point to a mark of wisdom we often overlook: restraint in speech. He who spares his words has knowledge; the wise person is not the one who talks the most but often the one who talks the least, who holds his tongue, who does not pour out every thought and opinion. And the last proverb makes the point with a touch of humor: even a fool, when he keeps silent, is counted wise; when he shuts his lips, he seems discerning. So much folly is revealed the moment we open our mouths, and so much of it could be hidden, and so much trouble avoided, by simply staying silent. There is practical wisdom here for our own speech. We are prone to say too much, to speak before we think, to pour out words, to feel we must voice every opinion and fill every silence. And much folly, much trouble, much regret comes from this flood of words. In the multitude of words, another proverb says, sin is not lacking; but he who restrains his lips is wise. The discipline of restraint in speech, of holding our tongue, of speaking less and more carefully, of not saying everything we think, is a mark of wisdom, and a guard against much folly and harm. Let every person, James says, be quick to hear and slow to speak. This does not mean we should never speak; there is a time to speak. But it means that the wise are marked by restraint, by a measured tongue, by the knowledge of when to be silent, rather than by a readiness to say everything that comes to mind. Much of the trouble we cause and the folly we reveal comes from speaking too much and too quickly; and much of it could be avoided by the simple discipline of holding our tongue. Even a fool who keeps silent is thought wise; how much more the one who has learned the wisdom of restraint in speech, spearing his words, holding his tongue, and speaking with the measure that understanding gives.

Am I prone to say too much, to speak before I think, to voice every opinion and fill every silence, causing trouble and revealing folly by my flood of words, or can I learn the wisdom of restraint in speech, of holding my tongue and speaking less and more carefully, knowing that he who spares his words has knowledge and that much folly could be avoided by simply staying silent?

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