December 8
PROVERBS 22
7 The rich rules over the poor,
and the borrower is the slave of the lender.
8 Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity,
and the rod of his fury will fail.
9 Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed,
for he shares his bread with the poor.
10 Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out,
and quarreling and abuse will cease.
11 He who loves purity of heart,
and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend.
12 The eyes of the LORD keep watch over knowledge,
but he overthrows the words of the traitor.
– Proverbs 22:7-12
PROVERBS 21 WHEN YOU DRIVE OUT A SCOFFER
The Hebrew word for scoffer is “lutws,” which literally means “to twist the mouth” or “make mouth at”. The book of Proverbs says that the scoffer is the most difficult person to reach with the good news of Jesus Christ. Proverbs 13:1 says, “A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke”.
Freedomchurchweb.com says this about mockers: Mockers are also called scoffers in Scripture. They defy and renounce truth and good things, not only to their own detriment and destruction, but that of others. They are provokers of others to wrong, strife and evil. Scripture tells us “Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you.” You can’t persuade or reason with a mocker to turn away from his mockery. Without God’s often dramatic intervention, most mockers are a “lost cause.” When confronted with the truth, they will hate you because they hate the truth. Sadly, the mocker is usually beyond any human help. Don’t waste your time or energy trying to instruct the mocker. Pray for them, the only cure for them is God himself, who has to arrest him and humble him.
Solomon shows us the aftermath of driving out a scoffer in verse 10. All kinds of quarreling, strife and abuse stops. Their absence brings about peace, joy, faith and love. A heavy burden will be taken away from you when you let them go because they are toxic.
REFLECTION
• Share some encounters with scoffers that you have experienced.
