Psalms 12:2(v7)Everyone lies to his neighbor. They speak with flattering lips, and with a double heart.
Psalms 55:21(v7)His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war. His words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.
Judges 16:15(v7)She said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me…
Matthew 9:3-4(v7)Behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man blasphemes.” Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your…
Luke 11:37-54(v7)Now as he spoke, a certain Pharisee asked him to dine with him. He went in, and sat at the table. When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled…
Show all 18 cross-references
Luke 7:39(v7)Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would have perceived who and what…
Daniel 11:27(v7)As for both these kings, their hearts will be to do mischief, and they will speak lies at one table; but it won’t prosper, for the end will…
Proverbs 19:22(v7)That which makes a man to be desired is his kindness. A poor man is better than a liar.
2 Samuel 13:26-28(v7)Then Absalom said, “If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us.” The king said to him, “Why should he go with you?” But Absalom pressed…
Psalms 141:4(v6)Don’t incline my heart to any evil thing, to practice deeds of wickedness with men who work iniquity. Don’t let me eat of their delicacies.
Proverbs 23:3(v6)Don’t be desirous of his dainties, since they are deceitful food.
Daniel 1:8-10(v6)But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s dainties, nor with the wine which he drank. Therefore he…
Deuteronomy 15:9(v6)Beware that there not be a wicked thought in your heart, saying, “The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand,” and your eye be evil…
Matthew 20:15(v6)Isn’t it lawful for me to do what I want to with what I own? Or is your eye evil, because I am good?’
Deuteronomy 28:56(v6)The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground for delicateness and tenderness,…
Proverbs 22:9(v6)He who has a generous eye will be blessed; for he shares his food with the poor.
Proverbs 28:22(v6)A stingy man hurries after riches, and doesn’t know that poverty waits for him.
Mark 7:22(v6)covetings, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (21 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn vv6, 8That is, covetous, as contrary a good eye is…
That is, covetous, as contrary a good eye is taken for liberal, as Prov. 22:9.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Pro 23:6 Eat thou not the bread of [him…
Pro 23:6 Eat thou not the bread of [him that hath] an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:
Ver. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye.] That is, of a miserly muckworm, that wisheth thee choked for so doing, even then when he maketh greatest show of hospitality and humanity.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Of him that hath an evil eye; of the…
Of him that hath an evil eye; of the envious or covetous man, who secretly grudgeth thee the meat which he sets before thee, as this phrase is used, Pro 28:22; Mat 20:15; as, on the contrary, a liberal man is said to have a good eye, Pro 22:9.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry1710 · Public DomainOn v6Those that are voluptuous and given to appetite (Pro…
Those that are voluptuous and given to appetite (Pro 23:2) are glad to be where there is good cheer stirring, and those that are covetous and saving, that they may spare at home, will be glad to get a dinner at another man's table; and therefore both are here advised not to be forward to accept of every man's invitation, but especially not to thrust themselves in uninvited. Observe, 1. There are those that pretend to bid their friends welcome that are not hearty and sincere in it. They have a fair tongue, and know what they should say: Eat and drink, saith he, because it is expected that the master of the feast should so compliment his guests; but they have an evil eye, and grudge their guests every bit they eat, especially if the eat freely. They would seem to be liberal in making the entertainment, and would have the credit of it, but they have so great a love to their money, and so little to their friends, that they cannot have the comfort of it, nor any enjoyment of themselves or their friends. The miser's feast is his penance. If a man be so very selfish, and sordid, and mean that he cannot find in his heart to bid his friends welcome to what he has, he ought not to add to that the guilt of dissimulation by inviting them, but let him own himself to be what he is, that the vile person may not be called liberal nor the churl bountiful, Isa 32:5. 2. One can have no comfort in accepting the entertainments that are given grudgingly: "Eat not thou the bread of such a man; let him keep it to himself. Do not sponge upon those that are bountiful, nor make thyself burdensome to any; but especially scorn to be beholden to those that are paltry and not sincere. Better have a dinner of herbs, and true welcome, than dainty meats without it. Therefore," (1.) "Judge of the man as his mind is. Thou thinkest to pay thy respect to him as a friend, so thou takest him to be, because he compliments thee, but as he thinks in his heart so is he, not as he speaks with his tongue." We are that really, both to God and man, which we are inwardly; and neither religion nor friendship is worth any thing further than as it is sincere. (2.) "Judge of the meat as the digestion is and as it agrees with thee. He bids thee eat freely, but, first or last, he will discover his sordid covetous humour, and as he thinks in his heart so will he look, and give thee to understand that thou art not welcome, and then the morsel thou hast eaten thou shalt vomit up; the very thought of that will make thee even to vomit the meat thou hast eaten, and eat the words thou has spoken in returning his compliments and giving him thanks for his civilities. Thou shalt lose thy sweet words, which he has given thee and thou has given him."
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Eat thou not the bread of him that hath…
Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye,.... A sordid covetous man, that grudges every bit that is eaten, in opposition to a man of a good eye, or a bountiful one, that is liberal and generous, Pro 22:9; if he invites to a meal, do not accept of it, sit not down at his table to eat with him:
neither desire thou his dainty meats; or savoury food, so as to lust after it; See Gill on Pro 23:3.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Evil eye - Of the envious or covetous man.
Evil eye - Of the envious or covetous man.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv6, 8Verse 6. Of him that hath an evil eye]…
Verse 6. Of him that hath an evil eye] Never eat with a covetous or stingy man; if he entertains you at his own expense, he grudges every morsel you put in your mouth. This is well marked by the wise man in the next verse: "Eat and drink, saith he: but his heart is not with thee."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn v6Pro 23:6-8. Eat not thou the bread of him…
Pro 23:6-8. Eat not thou the bread of him that hath an evil eye — Of an envious or covetous man, who secretly grudges thee the meat which is set before thee. For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he — Thou must not judge of him by his words, for in them he professes kindness, (as it follows,) but by the constant temper of his mind, which he hath fully discovered to all that know him by the course of his life. Eat and drink, saith he, but his heart is not with thee — He hath no sincere love to thee, but inwardly grudges thee that which he outwardly offers thee. The morsel, &c., shall thou vomit up again — When thou perceivest his churlish disposition and conduct, his meat will be loathsome to thee, and thou wilt wish that thou hadst never eaten it; and lose thy sweet words — Thy pleasant discourse, wherewith thou didst adorn his table, and design both to delight and profit him, is lost, and of no effect to him, and thou wilt be ready to repent of it.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn vv6–7A different danger from that of Pro 23:1. The…
A different danger from that of Pro 23:1. The hazard here is the hospitality of the purse-proud rich, avaricious or grudging even in his banquets.
Evil eye - Not with the later associations of a mysterious power for mischief, but simply, as in the margin ref. and in Mat 20:15.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Charles Bridges1846 · Public DomainOn v6Kindly intercourse with our neighbors is a part of…
Kindly intercourse with our neighbors is a part of the courtesies of life.†1 yet we ought not to entertain the invitation of a niggardly man, who grudges the very food we eat, or of a deceitful man, whose friendship is a cloak for selfish purposes. The evil eye will peep through the covers of his dainty meats, and betray him, in spite of his effort for concealment. We judge him not by his words; for as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. And while he saith, Eat and drink, it is but too plain, that his heart is not with us. (Luk 11:37 .) "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is," than his dainty meats. "A poor man is far better than such a liar."†2 Every morsel at his table is loathsome; and gladly would we retract, and lose the sweet words, with which we had unworthily complimented our host.
No such danger attaches to the invitations of the Gospel. There is no evil eye,†3 no grudging — "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." (Isa 55:1 .) The table is set. The herald is sent to make the proclamation. (Compare Pro 9:2-3 .) Hunger is the only qualification. While he saith — "Eat, O friends; yea, drink abundantly, O beloved" (Song of Son 5:1 ), his whole heart is with us. There are no repentings, no disappointments here. Every taste increases the appetite for more. And the prospect is near at hand, when we "shall be abundantly" and eternally "satisfied with the fatness of his house." (Psa 36:8 ; Psa 16:11 .)
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Footnotes:
†1 1Co 5:10-11 ; 1Co 10:27 .
†2 Pro 15:17; Pro 19:22 .
†3 2Sa 11:13 ; 2Sa 13:26-28 .
Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (1846) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary1859 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Man. Hebrew, "eat not bread of an evil eye,"…
Man. Hebrew, "eat not bread of an evil eye," the envious, or rather the sordid miser.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown1871 · Public DomainOn vv6, 8Beware of deceitful men, whose courtesies even you will…
Beware of deceitful men, whose courtesies even you will repent of having accepted.
evil eye--or purpose (Pro 22:9; Deu 15:9; Mat 6:23).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn v66-8. An evil eye — Is evil of eye:…
6-8. An evil eye — Is evil of eye: a metaphor denoting a malignant disposition or design — an envious, avaricious, or evil-designing mind.
Deu_15:7-9; Mat_20:15. The word שׁער. (sha’har,) thinketh, has given the critics some trouble, but it is probable that our Authorized Version gives the right sense. A man’s character is determined by the state of his mind, and not merely by the words he utters. An evil design may be concealed under a mask of pleasant words. Pro_23:8 represents, by a strong metaphor, the disgust that will be produced in the mind of the guest at the discovery that all the courtesies of the host were deceitful, and covered a malignant or selfish design.
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Sweet words — Meaning, perhaps, those addressed to the guest at the feast. Stuart expresses the sentiment well: “Beware of flattering and deceitful men, who show you special civilities only to mislead you and to put you off your guard. Their courtesies will be loathed when their design is known.” For the opposite of an “evil eye,” compare Pro_22:9.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv6–86. evil] i.e. grudging. See Pro_22:9 note, and comp.…
6. evil] i.e. grudging. See Pro_22:9 note, and comp. Deu_15:9; Mat_20:15.
dainty meats] Better, dainties.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv6–8(6) Him that hath an evil eye.—A sordid, grudging…
(6) Him that hath an evil eye.—A sordid, grudging temper.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv6–8Vers. 6-8. Another maxim, here a heptastich, concerning temperance.
Vers. 6-8. Another maxim, here a heptastich, concerning temperance.
Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye; the envious and jealous man, in contrast to the "good of eye". (Pro_22:9) Vulgate, Ne comedas cum heroine invido. Septuagint, andri baskanw , the man who has the evil eye that fascinates, which, however, is a later idea; here the notion is rather of a grudging, sordid temper, that cannot bear the sight of others" happiness or prosperity. (comp. Deu_15:9 Mat_20:15) Ecc 16:8, Ponhronwn ofyalmw , "The envious man hath an evil eye; he turneth away his face, and he is one who despiseth men." Dainty meats; as in ver. 3. The word (matammoth) occurs also throughout Genesis 27, where it is rendered, "savoury meat." Talmud, "To ask a favour from a miser is as if you asked wisdom from a woman, modesty from a harlot, fish on the dry land.
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Vers. 6-8. The graces of giving, receiving, and refusing.
The text treats of a hospitality which does not deserve the name, and of our duty when we are invited to accept a glint that is grudged. It thus opens the whole subject of giving and receiving. There are three graces here.
I THE GRACE OF GIVING. This is one which is readily recognized as heaven born.
1. God commends it to us. He says, "Give, and it shall be given unto you"; (Luk_6:38) "Give to him that asketh thee"; (Mat_5:42) "He that giveth let him do it with liberality" (Revised Version); "given to hospitality". (Rom_12:8, Rom_12:13)
1. It is the best reward of labour. (Eph_4:28)
2. It is the most God-like of all graces. For God lives to give; he is ever giving forth to all his creation; he is feeding the multitudes and millions of his creatures beneath every sky.
3. It is the source of the purest and most elevating joy. "It is more blessed to give than to receive.
II THE GRACE OF RECEIVING. If it is right and good for some men to give of their abundance, then the correlative act of receiving must also be right and good. There is, indeed, a virtue, a grace, in receiving cheerfully and cordially as well as gratefully, which may be almost, if not quite, as acceptable to God as that of generosity itself. There is truth in Miss Proctor"s lines"I hold him great who for love"s sake Can give with generous, earnest will; Yet he who takes for love"s sweet sake, I think I hold more generous still.
III THE GRACE OF REFUSING.
1. We may rightly refuse a gift, whether it he in the way of hospitality or not, which we are sure the giver cannot honestly afford; we do not wish to be enriched or entertained at the expense of his creditors.
2. We may properly decline a gift if we feel that it is offered us under a misconception; when we are imagined to be, or to believe, or to be working toward, that which is contrary to our spirit, our creed, our aim
3. We do well to decline the hospitality which does not come from the heart. The host is "as he thinketh in his heart." His fair or "sweet words" are no real part of himself; they only come from his lips; and if he is grudging us what he gives us, we may well wish ourselves far away from his table. No man who has any self-respect whatever will wish to take a crust from the man who counts what he gives his friends. Such food as that, however dainty, would choke us as we ate it. Nor is it begrudged hospitality alone that we should have the independence to refuse, but all else that is in the shape of gift; all money, all position, all friendship. Better to go entirely without than to have abundance at the cost of our own self-respect. Better to toil hard and wait long than to accept such offers as those. Better to turn to him "who giveth liberally and upbraideth not," and ask of him. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn v7For as he thinketh in his heart, so is…
Pro_23:7
For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.
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The importance of a mans thoughts
1. A man is as his thoughts.
2. A man has control over his thoughts.
3. God helps him in the exercise of that control.
We are that really, both to God and to man, which we are inwardly. (Matthew Henry.)
Thoughts
I. The infinite importance of mens thoughts. This text, in counselling for a particular case, and bidding us test the sincerity of one who invites us, asserts a principle of wide application. You do not know a man until you know his thoughts. God knows him perfectly, because He knows his thoughts.
1. You cannot know a man merely by listening to his words or watching his actions. There is always more, and often better, in men than comes into expression.
2. The revelations of close and trustful friendships are revelations of the thoughts.
3. The claims of God reach beyond right action, and demand right thought. The law of God searches the secret intents of the heart.
4. The redemption that is provided includes in its scheme the sanctification of the very thought.
5. All sin is represented as springing up out of, and finding expression for, lust in the sphere of thought. Show, by appeal to Christian experience, the difficulty found in the restraining of thought. In the unrestrainedness of thought often comes to us the feeling and the mastery of sin.
II. The amount of control man has over his thoughts. If he had no control over them his moral responsibility would be gone. We cannot help the evil thoughts coming to us. We have control--
1. Over the material of our thoughts. The materials are the sum of past impressions. Thinking is the combining, comparing, and rearranging of the actual contents of the mind. We can direct ourselves away from the evil and towards the good. We can fill our minds with good suggestions and associations. Illustrate from going into scenes suggestive of vice; reading questionable or immoral books, etc.
2. Over the processes of thought. There may be the nourishing of the evil. There may be the swaying of the mind through the power of the renewed will, and with the help of the indwelling Spirit. Apply to wandering thoughts in the house of God. Do we make the mastery of such evil the subject of real effort?
III. The help God renders man in the exercise of such control. An attempt to regulate thoughts will bring the conviction of human helplessness. When a man has mastered conduct he cannot say that he has mastered himself. When he thinks he has mastered thoughts he will surely find that he needs to cry unto God, saying, Try me and know my thoughts . . . and lead me in the way everlasting. (Robert Tuck, B.A.)
The thoughts of the heart the best evidence of a mans spiritual state
The knowledge of ourselves is one of the most noble and excellent attainments in human life. He that knows himself stands fair for immortal felicity. Doctrine: The thoughts of mens hearts do evidence what their spiritual state is. These do ordinarily give the best and surest measure of the frame of mens minds. What thoughts, then, evidence the spiritual state of men? Not occasional thoughts. Not such as arise from strong convictions, that come on us suddenly. Not such as arise from apparent Divine desertions. Despairing thoughts are no sure evidence of the condition of souls. Not such as arise from violent temptations. Not such as arise from mens particular calling and manner of life. Not such as arise from attendance upon, and the performance of, religious duties. The religious discourse of others may produce pious thoughts in an unregenerate person. A man may read Gods Word and be yet far from the kingdom. So he may attend the preaching of the Word, and even pray, without having more than surface thoughts. Answering the question affirmatively, mention may be made of voluntary thoughts, such as the mind is apt for and inclines towards. Four qualifications must attend them if they are to be a complete rule and a perfect standard of trial. They must be natural, numerous, satisfactory, and operative. Let us each see to it that our thoughts be such as evidence us to be holy persons. Practise frequent, serious, and close examination. (Nathanael Walter.)
The heart-state
The body is not the man. Our bodies die. Neither are a mans words himself. Words are often used to conceal, to misrepresent, to counterfeit. Neither is it possible, universally, to discern the essence of character in action. What good man is there who has not again and again failed to do himself justice in his life? Often, on the other hand, actions are much more beautiful than the thoughts of the heart. The essence of human character is found in the heart. It is the disposition, it is the heart-state, which is the true man. This test of human character is a just one, for our life is a progress, is in the direction of the realisation of this heart-state. Action is but heart-expression. The heart-thought, or purpose, is the true man. Not only is human progress towards the realisation of this heart-state, but the separation of the man from this full expression and realisation of his inner desire is not a matter of his own choice or creation, and therefore cannot enter as an element into his character. The field open, covered by the human choice, is only this, present desire. It often happens that a man is to a certain extent kept under the power of religious truth who is in heart utterly disloyal to the Divine law. When the life differs from the heart the latter, not the former, must be regarded as the true man. Sooner or later the full coincidence between the external and internal is inevitable; the full expression of the heart is sure to come.
1. Tendency is everything in the moral world.
2. Explain the different destinies of the Christian and un-Christian life.
3. Abstain from all judgment of your fellow-men.
4. Encourage those who are true and good at heart. (S. S. Mitchell, D.D.)
Thought the index of character
I. This is the Hebrew way of telling us in a casual word about feasting that a mans inmost thinking is the true index to his character. Talk is superficial. The lip gives a smiling welcome whilst a lofty disdain is in the heart. Mellifluous speech often comes from a malign spirit, whilst groanings that cannot be uttered are signs of a yearning supremely Divine. To the perfect ear of God, who catches the faintest quiver of hypocrisy in our devotion, and the lightest tone of insincerity in our song, our words justify or condemn us; but to our dull and insensitive organs they are unreliable signs, and our conclusions from them require to be corrected and qualified by the study of other data. We are, therefore, driven back upon the Hebrew teaching that a man is built up from within; that as he does his inward work--all his inward work--so he is in character, being, and power. He must be a whole man in his thinking in order to be to all intents and in all respects a man; for manly thinking, according to our ancient Scriptures, lies at the basis of manhood.
II. Christianity accepts and endorses this inward and broad basis of manhood, and employs its fact and revelation, impulse and inspiration, to secure a thorough regeneration of mans inmost life. It seeks to re-create him as a thinker, refuses to look on the mere scholar as the full man, and works on the Hebrew idea, lately re-announced by Emerson, that the true notion of manhood is man thinking; not man the victim of society and a mere thinker, or still worse, the parrot of other mens thinking--but man, thinking in his heart, with all his inward forces, conscience and will, fancy and emotion, hope and experience--thinking in the whole of him, and with the whole of him, and for the whole of him and his race, and so making speech the clear, full, and indivisible echo of his thought, and deed the visible garment of his inward life. God means us to be men, and He evokes the forces of an inward life by compelling us to wield the sword with our full strength against the enemy. For as a man battles for truth in his heart, so is he. Cowardly thinking makes a weak and poor life. Christ creates inward courage, heroic daring for reality and right, and renews the manliness of the world.
III. This is a thinking age. The sluggard intellect has received an unparalleled awakening, and thinking of nearly all kinds is proceeding with astonishing celerity and productiveness. The manliest thinking is done with the heart, i.e., with the whole of the inner forces of the life.
IV. Modern thinking, ignoring the Biblical rule, is smitten with the blight of cowardice, falls a victim to unreality, and lacks, notwithstanding its pride, Lutheran courage, holy daring, and self-devotion. Young men, do not be misled by the syren of a false peace. Truth is a prize to be won by strenuous battle with the shows and pretences of error, and the shock of downright attack with the foes of faith ought only to whet desire, quicken appetite, and concentrate your forces so that you may become masker of the situation. Give to your thinking the courage of the heart, the force of a resolute energy, the patience of an inflexible will, and as sure as you are true to your whole self God will be found of you in Christ Jesus, and become the sunshine of your life and the joy of your heart.
V. Another form of this mistake is that we expect too much to be done by mere thinking. Science thinks everything out, and we want to make all life scientific, and so we take out of it our personal trusts, and the subtle ministry of the reflex action of deeds on our thoughts. Convert thought-out truth into loyalty to Jesus Christ, and obedience to His laws. Courageous deed, following intrepid thinking, made the Reformation.
VI. No thinking is manly which fails to take adequate account of the force of intense moral enthusiasms. It is provable that only in the white heat of a glowing passion for an ethical goal have we the clearest vision of eternal fact.
VII. Again, the thinking that is of the brain only and not of the heart is in serious danger of passing over the unseen order and treating it as though it did not exist. It ignores the invisible forces which somehow or other, and from somewhere or other, undeniably find, move, and educate men.
VIII. But, above all things, do not let us be alarmed at any of the mistakes and mischiefs that cause disobedience to the Christian law of manly thinking. We need have no misgiving about the future. Man is essentially a thinker and a unit, and he must think towards unity, and truth, and perfection. Be his mistakes numberless, he cannot stop. He is made for God. God is his refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble; therefore, after every temporary eclipse, the Sun of Righteousness will break forth and reveal again the way to the Father. (J. Clifford, D.D.)
Thought
The capacity of thinking is a most wonderful thing. Here lies mans supremacy ever all the visible world about him. All great undertakings, the glorious enterprises of men for mens salvation, were once only thoughts. The character of a mans thoughts determines the character of his life. His actions are inspired from within. Every product of the soul, whether it be an action or a purpose, is first a germ. Sin lies in the soul in germs--in germs as well as in actions. The moral success of life consists in killing evil thoughts in the germ. There are few purer and richer pleasures in this world than the enjoyment of sweet thoughts, happy thoughts, holy thoughts. The heart determines our everlasting destiny. A heart without holiness never shall see the Lord. Christ is the only purifier of the heart. (Theodore L. Cuyler, D.D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary1892 · Public DomainOn v6Pro_23:6. Him that hath an evil eye—i.e., the jealous…
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Pro_23:6. Him that hath an evil eye—i.e., the jealous man.
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MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Pro_23:6-8
FEIGNED GENEROSITY
I. Men’s inward life and feelings are often directly opposed to their outward life and actions. A man is here pictured as manifesting a large hospitality. His board is laden with dainty meats and surrounded with guests whom he presses to eat and drink with such an appearance of goodwill that it seems ungenerous to suspect him of insincerity. But words and even deeds do not always proclaim the man. “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he;” and this man’s thoughts give the lie to his actions. He gives of his good things from no desire to cheer and relieve those who are poorer than himself, or to cement the bonds of friendship with his equals, but from some unworthy, and, it may be, from some base motive. He puts on for the time the garment of benevolence, but he is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” and will not hesitate to throw off his disguise, if the selfish ends which he has in view demand it. It is painful for us to be obliged to admit the truthfulness of the portrait here sketched by the Wise Man, but we know that it is not an exaggerated one.
II. Those who encourage such hypocrisy will meet with a well-deserved punishment. It is taken for granted, and it is undoubtedly true, that there is a false gloss upon such feigned generosity which makes it easy to distinguish from the real thing. And, if we accept the hospitality of such a man knowing it to be a deception, we too practise hypocrisy, and thus become a partaker of his evil deeds. Such a man is guilty of two heinous sins, he is first a covetous and self-seeking sinner and then he is a gross hypocrite. The covetous man is according to the Inspired Book an idolator (Col_3:5), and our Lord when on earth could endure without anger all contradiction of sinners against Himself (Heb_12:3) except hypocrisy. This always set His holy nature on fire with indignation and called forth the only Woes that ever passed His lips. It was forbidden to the apostolic churches to sit at the table of any man who, “calling himself a brother,” was yet covetous or an idolator” (1Co_5:11). For such a man was under a far deeper condemnation than one who openly manifested his real character, seeing that he added to his other sins that of professing to be what he was not, and to eat with such a man was not only to countenance his covetousness and idolatry but to share his hypocrisy. The Old Testament preacher here issues the same prohibition and obviously for the same reasons, and if men disregard them they fully deserve the negative and the positive punishment with which they are here threatened. All the friendly words which they utter to save appearances and to further selfish interests, and which convict them in their turn of hypocrisy, will be “lost,” and bitter regret and self-condemnation will be their final portion.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
The injunction, or dissuasion, I need not surely say, is by no means intended to give any licence or encouragement to a spirit of pride or disdain. No. It is only a salutary warning to be cautious of bringing yourselves under obligation to any selfish and hypocritical dissembler of kindness, who only wishes to lay you under such obligation to serve purposes of his own. The man who has thus entertained you will boast of his hospitality; tell others of it, making the most of it for his own behoof; set it down against you, debiting you on account of it with certain expected good turns at your hand, when he comes to need them. He will throw it up to you, should you not do all he looks for; or rail at you to others for ingratitude and meanness in forgetting his kindness. He will remind you of it again and again, with vexatious importunity,—teazing you for your favour and influence in some object he has in view for himself or his family. It is amazing what an amount of expectation a man of this sordid and selfish disposition will found upon a dinner! Your having sat at his table, eaten of his dainties, and drunk of his wines, is price enough even for your conscience itself. Beware of him. Keep yourself free.—Wardlaw.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann1924 · Public DomainOn vv6–8v. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him…
v. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, of a jealous and covetous man, neither desire thou his dainty meats, which are held out before his guest as a sort of bait, not with open kindliness, but with a hidden purpose, for the envious person’s selfishness will not permit him to dispense true hospitality;
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On v6General Information:
General Information:
These verses continue the "thirty sayings" (Proverbs 22:20).
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one with an evil eye
Possible meanings are 1) a stingy person, one who does not like to give things to other people, or 2) an evil person.
do not crave
"do not strongly desire." See how you translated "craves" in Proverbs 21:9.
his delicacies
"his special and expensive food." See how you translated this in Proverbs 23:3.
his heart is not with you
This is an idiom. AT: "he really does not want you to enjoy the meal" (See: Idiom)
You will vomit up the little you have eaten
This is an exaggeration for wishing one had not eaten anything. AT: "You will wish that you had not eaten anything" (See: Hyperbole and Generalization)
you will have wasted your compliments
Compliments are spoken of as if they were valuable objects. The abstract noun "compliments" can be translated as a verb. AT: "he will not be happy even if you say good things about him and the food" (See: Metaphor and Abstract Nouns)
GEBible — Godless Engineer's Bible App
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv6, 8 That is, covetous, as contrary a good eye is…
That is, covetous, as contrary a good eye is taken for liberal, as Prov. 22:9.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Pro 23:6 Eat thou not the bread of [him…
Pro 23:6 Eat thou not the bread of [him that hath] an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:
Ver. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye.] That is, of a miserly muckworm, that wisheth thee choked for so doing, even then when he maketh greatest show of hospitality and humanity.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Of him that hath an evil eye; of the…
Of him that hath an evil eye; of the envious or covetous man, who secretly grudgeth thee the meat which he sets before thee, as this phrase is used, Pro 28:22; Mat 20:15; as, on the contrary, a liberal man is said to have a good eye, Pro 22:9.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v6 Those that are voluptuous and given to appetite (Pro…
Those that are voluptuous and given to appetite (Pro 23:2) are glad to be where there is good cheer stirring, and those that are covetous and saving, that they may spare at home, will be glad to get a dinner at another man's table; and therefore both are here advised not to be forward to accept of every man's invitation, but especially not to thrust themselves in uninvited. Observe, 1. There are those that pretend to bid their friends welcome that are not hearty and sincere in it. They have a fair tongue, and know what they should say: Eat and drink, saith he, because it is expected that the master of the feast should so compliment his guests; but they have an evil eye, and grudge their guests every bit they eat, especially if the eat freely. They would seem to be liberal in making the entertainment, and would have the credit of it, but they have so great a love to their money, and so little to their friends, that they cannot have the comfort of it, nor any enjoyment of themselves or their friends. The miser's feast is his penance. If a man be so very selfish, and sordid, and mean that he cannot find in his heart to bid his friends welcome to what he has, he ought not to add to that the guilt of dissimulation by inviting them, but let him own himself to be what he is, that the vile person may not be called liberal nor the churl bountiful, Isa 32:5. 2. One can have no comfort in accepting the entertainments that are given grudgingly: "Eat not thou the bread of such a man; let him keep it to himself. Do not sponge upon those that are bountiful, nor make thyself burdensome to any; but especially scorn to be beholden to those that are paltry and not sincere. Better have a dinner of herbs, and true welcome, than dainty meats without it. Therefore," (1.) "Judge of the man as his mind is. Thou thinkest to pay thy respect to him as a friend, so thou takest him to be, because he compliments thee, but as he thinks in his heart so is he, not as he speaks with his tongue." We are that really, both to God and man, which we are inwardly; and neither religion nor friendship is worth any thing further than as it is sincere. (2.) "Judge of the meat as the digestion is and as it agrees with thee. He bids thee eat freely, but, first or last, he will discover his sordid covetous humour, and as he thinks in his heart so will he look, and give thee to understand that thou art not welcome, and then the morsel thou hast eaten thou shalt vomit up; the very thought of that will make thee even to vomit the meat thou hast eaten, and eat the words thou has spoken in returning his compliments and giving him thanks for his civilities. Thou shalt lose thy sweet words, which he has given thee and thou has given him."
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath…
Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye,.... A sordid covetous man, that grudges every bit that is eaten, in opposition to a man of a good eye, or a bountiful one, that is liberal and generous, Pro 22:9; if he invites to a meal, do not accept of it, sit not down at his table to eat with him:
neither desire thou his dainty meats; or savoury food, so as to lust after it; See Gill on Pro 23:3.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Evil eye - Of the envious or covetous man.
Evil eye - Of the envious or covetous man.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv6, 8 Verse 6. Of him that hath an evil eye]…
Verse 6. Of him that hath an evil eye] Never eat with a covetous or stingy man; if he entertains you at his own expense, he grudges every morsel you put in your mouth. This is well marked by the wise man in the next verse: "Eat and drink, saith he: but his heart is not with thee."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v6 Pro 23:6-8. Eat not thou the bread of him…
Pro 23:6-8. Eat not thou the bread of him that hath an evil eye — Of an envious or covetous man, who secretly grudges thee the meat which is set before thee. For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he — Thou must not judge of him by his words, for in them he professes kindness, (as it follows,) but by the constant temper of his mind, which he hath fully discovered to all that know him by the course of his life. Eat and drink, saith he, but his heart is not with thee — He hath no sincere love to thee, but inwardly grudges thee that which he outwardly offers thee. The morsel, &c., shall thou vomit up again — When thou perceivest his churlish disposition and conduct, his meat will be loathsome to thee, and thou wilt wish that thou hadst never eaten it; and lose thy sweet words — Thy pleasant discourse, wherewith thou didst adorn his table, and design both to delight and profit him, is lost, and of no effect to him, and thou wilt be ready to repent of it.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv6–7 A different danger from that of Pro 23:1. The…
A different danger from that of Pro 23:1. The hazard here is the hospitality of the purse-proud rich, avaricious or grudging even in his banquets.
Evil eye - Not with the later associations of a mysterious power for mischief, but simply, as in the margin ref. and in Mat 20:15.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Charles Bridges 1846 · Public Domain On v6 Kindly intercourse with our neighbors is a part of…
Kindly intercourse with our neighbors is a part of the courtesies of life.†1 yet we ought not to entertain the invitation of a niggardly man, who grudges the very food we eat, or of a deceitful man, whose friendship is a cloak for selfish purposes. The evil eye will peep through the covers of his dainty meats, and betray him, in spite of his effort for concealment. We judge him not by his words; for as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. And while he saith, Eat and drink, it is but too plain, that his heart is not with us. (Luk 11:37 .) "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is," than his dainty meats. "A poor man is far better than such a liar."†2 Every morsel at his table is loathsome; and gladly would we retract, and lose the sweet words, with which we had unworthily complimented our host.
No such danger attaches to the invitations of the Gospel. There is no evil eye,†3 no grudging — "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." (Isa 55:1 .) The table is set. The herald is sent to make the proclamation. (Compare Pro 9:2-3 .) Hunger is the only qualification. While he saith — "Eat, O friends; yea, drink abundantly, O beloved" (Song of Son 5:1 ), his whole heart is with us. There are no repentings, no disappointments here. Every taste increases the appetite for more. And the prospect is near at hand, when we "shall be abundantly" and eternally "satisfied with the fatness of his house." (Psa 36:8 ; Psa 16:11 .)
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Footnotes:
†1 1Co 5:10-11 ; 1Co 10:27 .
†2 Pro 15:17; Pro 19:22 .
†3 2Sa 11:13 ; 2Sa 13:26-28 .
Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (1846) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Man. Hebrew, "eat not bread of an evil eye,"…
Man. Hebrew, "eat not bread of an evil eye," the envious, or rather the sordid miser.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv6, 8 Beware of deceitful men, whose courtesies even you will…
Beware of deceitful men, whose courtesies even you will repent of having accepted.
evil eye--or purpose (Pro 22:9; Deu 15:9; Mat 6:23).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v6 6-8. An evil eye — Is evil of eye:…
6-8. An evil eye — Is evil of eye: a metaphor denoting a malignant disposition or design — an envious, avaricious, or evil-designing mind.
Deu_15:7-9; Mat_20:15. The word שׁער. (sha’har,) thinketh, has given the critics some trouble, but it is probable that our Authorized Version gives the right sense. A man’s character is determined by the state of his mind, and not merely by the words he utters. An evil design may be concealed under a mask of pleasant words. Pro_23:8 represents, by a strong metaphor, the disgust that will be produced in the mind of the guest at the discovery that all the courtesies of the host were deceitful, and covered a malignant or selfish design.
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Sweet words — Meaning, perhaps, those addressed to the guest at the feast. Stuart expresses the sentiment well: “Beware of flattering and deceitful men, who show you special civilities only to mislead you and to put you off your guard. Their courtesies will be loathed when their design is known.” For the opposite of an “evil eye,” compare Pro_22:9.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–8 6. evil] i.e. grudging. See Pro_22:9 note, and comp.…
6. evil] i.e. grudging. See Pro_22:9 note, and comp. Deu_15:9; Mat_20:15.
dainty meats] Better, dainties.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–8 (6) Him that hath an evil eye.—A sordid, grudging…
(6) Him that hath an evil eye.—A sordid, grudging temper.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Vers. 6-8. Another maxim, here a heptastich, concerning temperance.
Vers. 6-8. Another maxim, here a heptastich, concerning temperance.
Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye; the envious and jealous man, in contrast to the "good of eye". (Pro_22:9) Vulgate, Ne comedas cum heroine invido. Septuagint, andri baskanw , the man who has the evil eye that fascinates, which, however, is a later idea; here the notion is rather of a grudging, sordid temper, that cannot bear the sight of others" happiness or prosperity. (comp. Deu_15:9 Mat_20:15) Ecc 16:8, Ponhronwn ofyalmw , "The envious man hath an evil eye; he turneth away his face, and he is one who despiseth men." Dainty meats; as in ver. 3. The word (matammoth) occurs also throughout Genesis 27, where it is rendered, "savoury meat." Talmud, "To ask a favour from a miser is as if you asked wisdom from a woman, modesty from a harlot, fish on the dry land.
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Vers. 6-8. The graces of giving, receiving, and refusing.
The text treats of a hospitality which does not deserve the name, and of our duty when we are invited to accept a glint that is grudged. It thus opens the whole subject of giving and receiving. There are three graces here.
I THE GRACE OF GIVING. This is one which is readily recognized as heaven born.
1. God commends it to us. He says, "Give, and it shall be given unto you"; (Luk_6:38) "Give to him that asketh thee"; (Mat_5:42) "He that giveth let him do it with liberality" (Revised Version); "given to hospitality". (Rom_12:8, Rom_12:13)
1. It is the best reward of labour. (Eph_4:28)
2. It is the most God-like of all graces. For God lives to give; he is ever giving forth to all his creation; he is feeding the multitudes and millions of his creatures beneath every sky.
3. It is the source of the purest and most elevating joy. "It is more blessed to give than to receive.
II THE GRACE OF RECEIVING. If it is right and good for some men to give of their abundance, then the correlative act of receiving must also be right and good. There is, indeed, a virtue, a grace, in receiving cheerfully and cordially as well as gratefully, which may be almost, if not quite, as acceptable to God as that of generosity itself. There is truth in Miss Proctor"s lines"I hold him great who for love"s sake Can give with generous, earnest will; Yet he who takes for love"s sweet sake, I think I hold more generous still.
III THE GRACE OF REFUSING.
1. We may rightly refuse a gift, whether it he in the way of hospitality or not, which we are sure the giver cannot honestly afford; we do not wish to be enriched or entertained at the expense of his creditors.
2. We may properly decline a gift if we feel that it is offered us under a misconception; when we are imagined to be, or to believe, or to be working toward, that which is contrary to our spirit, our creed, our aim
3. We do well to decline the hospitality which does not come from the heart. The host is "as he thinketh in his heart." His fair or "sweet words" are no real part of himself; they only come from his lips; and if he is grudging us what he gives us, we may well wish ourselves far away from his table. No man who has any self-respect whatever will wish to take a crust from the man who counts what he gives his friends. Such food as that, however dainty, would choke us as we ate it. Nor is it begrudged hospitality alone that we should have the independence to refuse, but all else that is in the shape of gift; all money, all position, all friendship. Better to go entirely without than to have abundance at the cost of our own self-respect. Better to toil hard and wait long than to accept such offers as those. Better to turn to him "who giveth liberally and upbraideth not," and ask of him. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is…
Pro_23:7
For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.
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The importance of a mans thoughts
1. A man is as his thoughts.
2. A man has control over his thoughts.
3. God helps him in the exercise of that control.
We are that really, both to God and to man, which we are inwardly. (Matthew Henry.)
Thoughts
I. The infinite importance of mens thoughts. This text, in counselling for a particular case, and bidding us test the sincerity of one who invites us, asserts a principle of wide application. You do not know a man until you know his thoughts. God knows him perfectly, because He knows his thoughts.
1. You cannot know a man merely by listening to his words or watching his actions. There is always more, and often better, in men than comes into expression.
2. The revelations of close and trustful friendships are revelations of the thoughts.
3. The claims of God reach beyond right action, and demand right thought. The law of God searches the secret intents of the heart.
4. The redemption that is provided includes in its scheme the sanctification of the very thought.
5. All sin is represented as springing up out of, and finding expression for, lust in the sphere of thought. Show, by appeal to Christian experience, the difficulty found in the restraining of thought. In the unrestrainedness of thought often comes to us the feeling and the mastery of sin.
II. The amount of control man has over his thoughts. If he had no control over them his moral responsibility would be gone. We cannot help the evil thoughts coming to us. We have control--
1. Over the material of our thoughts. The materials are the sum of past impressions. Thinking is the combining, comparing, and rearranging of the actual contents of the mind. We can direct ourselves away from the evil and towards the good. We can fill our minds with good suggestions and associations. Illustrate from going into scenes suggestive of vice; reading questionable or immoral books, etc.
2. Over the processes of thought. There may be the nourishing of the evil. There may be the swaying of the mind through the power of the renewed will, and with the help of the indwelling Spirit. Apply to wandering thoughts in the house of God. Do we make the mastery of such evil the subject of real effort?
III. The help God renders man in the exercise of such control. An attempt to regulate thoughts will bring the conviction of human helplessness. When a man has mastered conduct he cannot say that he has mastered himself. When he thinks he has mastered thoughts he will surely find that he needs to cry unto God, saying, Try me and know my thoughts . . . and lead me in the way everlasting. (Robert Tuck, B.A.)
The thoughts of the heart the best evidence of a mans spiritual state
The knowledge of ourselves is one of the most noble and excellent attainments in human life. He that knows himself stands fair for immortal felicity. Doctrine: The thoughts of mens hearts do evidence what their spiritual state is. These do ordinarily give the best and surest measure of the frame of mens minds. What thoughts, then, evidence the spiritual state of men? Not occasional thoughts. Not such as arise from strong convictions, that come on us suddenly. Not such as arise from apparent Divine desertions. Despairing thoughts are no sure evidence of the condition of souls. Not such as arise from violent temptations. Not such as arise from mens particular calling and manner of life. Not such as arise from attendance upon, and the performance of, religious duties. The religious discourse of others may produce pious thoughts in an unregenerate person. A man may read Gods Word and be yet far from the kingdom. So he may attend the preaching of the Word, and even pray, without having more than surface thoughts. Answering the question affirmatively, mention may be made of voluntary thoughts, such as the mind is apt for and inclines towards. Four qualifications must attend them if they are to be a complete rule and a perfect standard of trial. They must be natural, numerous, satisfactory, and operative. Let us each see to it that our thoughts be such as evidence us to be holy persons. Practise frequent, serious, and close examination. (Nathanael Walter.)
The heart-state
The body is not the man. Our bodies die. Neither are a mans words himself. Words are often used to conceal, to misrepresent, to counterfeit. Neither is it possible, universally, to discern the essence of character in action. What good man is there who has not again and again failed to do himself justice in his life? Often, on the other hand, actions are much more beautiful than the thoughts of the heart. The essence of human character is found in the heart. It is the disposition, it is the heart-state, which is the true man. This test of human character is a just one, for our life is a progress, is in the direction of the realisation of this heart-state. Action is but heart-expression. The heart-thought, or purpose, is the true man. Not only is human progress towards the realisation of this heart-state, but the separation of the man from this full expression and realisation of his inner desire is not a matter of his own choice or creation, and therefore cannot enter as an element into his character. The field open, covered by the human choice, is only this, present desire. It often happens that a man is to a certain extent kept under the power of religious truth who is in heart utterly disloyal to the Divine law. When the life differs from the heart the latter, not the former, must be regarded as the true man. Sooner or later the full coincidence between the external and internal is inevitable; the full expression of the heart is sure to come.
1. Tendency is everything in the moral world.
2. Explain the different destinies of the Christian and un-Christian life.
3. Abstain from all judgment of your fellow-men.
4. Encourage those who are true and good at heart. (S. S. Mitchell, D.D.)
Thought the index of character
I. This is the Hebrew way of telling us in a casual word about feasting that a mans inmost thinking is the true index to his character. Talk is superficial. The lip gives a smiling welcome whilst a lofty disdain is in the heart. Mellifluous speech often comes from a malign spirit, whilst groanings that cannot be uttered are signs of a yearning supremely Divine. To the perfect ear of God, who catches the faintest quiver of hypocrisy in our devotion, and the lightest tone of insincerity in our song, our words justify or condemn us; but to our dull and insensitive organs they are unreliable signs, and our conclusions from them require to be corrected and qualified by the study of other data. We are, therefore, driven back upon the Hebrew teaching that a man is built up from within; that as he does his inward work--all his inward work--so he is in character, being, and power. He must be a whole man in his thinking in order to be to all intents and in all respects a man; for manly thinking, according to our ancient Scriptures, lies at the basis of manhood.
II. Christianity accepts and endorses this inward and broad basis of manhood, and employs its fact and revelation, impulse and inspiration, to secure a thorough regeneration of mans inmost life. It seeks to re-create him as a thinker, refuses to look on the mere scholar as the full man, and works on the Hebrew idea, lately re-announced by Emerson, that the true notion of manhood is man thinking; not man the victim of society and a mere thinker, or still worse, the parrot of other mens thinking--but man, thinking in his heart, with all his inward forces, conscience and will, fancy and emotion, hope and experience--thinking in the whole of him, and with the whole of him, and for the whole of him and his race, and so making speech the clear, full, and indivisible echo of his thought, and deed the visible garment of his inward life. God means us to be men, and He evokes the forces of an inward life by compelling us to wield the sword with our full strength against the enemy. For as a man battles for truth in his heart, so is he. Cowardly thinking makes a weak and poor life. Christ creates inward courage, heroic daring for reality and right, and renews the manliness of the world.
III. This is a thinking age. The sluggard intellect has received an unparalleled awakening, and thinking of nearly all kinds is proceeding with astonishing celerity and productiveness. The manliest thinking is done with the heart, i.e., with the whole of the inner forces of the life.
IV. Modern thinking, ignoring the Biblical rule, is smitten with the blight of cowardice, falls a victim to unreality, and lacks, notwithstanding its pride, Lutheran courage, holy daring, and self-devotion. Young men, do not be misled by the syren of a false peace. Truth is a prize to be won by strenuous battle with the shows and pretences of error, and the shock of downright attack with the foes of faith ought only to whet desire, quicken appetite, and concentrate your forces so that you may become masker of the situation. Give to your thinking the courage of the heart, the force of a resolute energy, the patience of an inflexible will, and as sure as you are true to your whole self God will be found of you in Christ Jesus, and become the sunshine of your life and the joy of your heart.
V. Another form of this mistake is that we expect too much to be done by mere thinking. Science thinks everything out, and we want to make all life scientific, and so we take out of it our personal trusts, and the subtle ministry of the reflex action of deeds on our thoughts. Convert thought-out truth into loyalty to Jesus Christ, and obedience to His laws. Courageous deed, following intrepid thinking, made the Reformation.
VI. No thinking is manly which fails to take adequate account of the force of intense moral enthusiasms. It is provable that only in the white heat of a glowing passion for an ethical goal have we the clearest vision of eternal fact.
VII. Again, the thinking that is of the brain only and not of the heart is in serious danger of passing over the unseen order and treating it as though it did not exist. It ignores the invisible forces which somehow or other, and from somewhere or other, undeniably find, move, and educate men.
VIII. But, above all things, do not let us be alarmed at any of the mistakes and mischiefs that cause disobedience to the Christian law of manly thinking. We need have no misgiving about the future. Man is essentially a thinker and a unit, and he must think towards unity, and truth, and perfection. Be his mistakes numberless, he cannot stop. He is made for God. God is his refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble; therefore, after every temporary eclipse, the Sun of Righteousness will break forth and reveal again the way to the Father. (J. Clifford, D.D.)
Thought
The capacity of thinking is a most wonderful thing. Here lies mans supremacy ever all the visible world about him. All great undertakings, the glorious enterprises of men for mens salvation, were once only thoughts. The character of a mans thoughts determines the character of his life. His actions are inspired from within. Every product of the soul, whether it be an action or a purpose, is first a germ. Sin lies in the soul in germs--in germs as well as in actions. The moral success of life consists in killing evil thoughts in the germ. There are few purer and richer pleasures in this world than the enjoyment of sweet thoughts, happy thoughts, holy thoughts. The heart determines our everlasting destiny. A heart without holiness never shall see the Lord. Christ is the only purifier of the heart. (Theodore L. Cuyler, D.D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v6 Pro_23:6. Him that hath an evil eye—i.e., the jealous…
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Pro_23:6. Him that hath an evil eye—i.e., the jealous man.
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MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Pro_23:6-8
FEIGNED GENEROSITY
I. Men’s inward life and feelings are often directly opposed to their outward life and actions. A man is here pictured as manifesting a large hospitality. His board is laden with dainty meats and surrounded with guests whom he presses to eat and drink with such an appearance of goodwill that it seems ungenerous to suspect him of insincerity. But words and even deeds do not always proclaim the man. “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he;” and this man’s thoughts give the lie to his actions. He gives of his good things from no desire to cheer and relieve those who are poorer than himself, or to cement the bonds of friendship with his equals, but from some unworthy, and, it may be, from some base motive. He puts on for the time the garment of benevolence, but he is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” and will not hesitate to throw off his disguise, if the selfish ends which he has in view demand it. It is painful for us to be obliged to admit the truthfulness of the portrait here sketched by the Wise Man, but we know that it is not an exaggerated one.
II. Those who encourage such hypocrisy will meet with a well-deserved punishment. It is taken for granted, and it is undoubtedly true, that there is a false gloss upon such feigned generosity which makes it easy to distinguish from the real thing. And, if we accept the hospitality of such a man knowing it to be a deception, we too practise hypocrisy, and thus become a partaker of his evil deeds. Such a man is guilty of two heinous sins, he is first a covetous and self-seeking sinner and then he is a gross hypocrite. The covetous man is according to the Inspired Book an idolator (Col_3:5), and our Lord when on earth could endure without anger all contradiction of sinners against Himself (Heb_12:3) except hypocrisy. This always set His holy nature on fire with indignation and called forth the only Woes that ever passed His lips. It was forbidden to the apostolic churches to sit at the table of any man who, “calling himself a brother,” was yet covetous or an idolator” (1Co_5:11). For such a man was under a far deeper condemnation than one who openly manifested his real character, seeing that he added to his other sins that of professing to be what he was not, and to eat with such a man was not only to countenance his covetousness and idolatry but to share his hypocrisy. The Old Testament preacher here issues the same prohibition and obviously for the same reasons, and if men disregard them they fully deserve the negative and the positive punishment with which they are here threatened. All the friendly words which they utter to save appearances and to further selfish interests, and which convict them in their turn of hypocrisy, will be “lost,” and bitter regret and self-condemnation will be their final portion.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
The injunction, or dissuasion, I need not surely say, is by no means intended to give any licence or encouragement to a spirit of pride or disdain. No. It is only a salutary warning to be cautious of bringing yourselves under obligation to any selfish and hypocritical dissembler of kindness, who only wishes to lay you under such obligation to serve purposes of his own. The man who has thus entertained you will boast of his hospitality; tell others of it, making the most of it for his own behoof; set it down against you, debiting you on account of it with certain expected good turns at your hand, when he comes to need them. He will throw it up to you, should you not do all he looks for; or rail at you to others for ingratitude and meanness in forgetting his kindness. He will remind you of it again and again, with vexatious importunity,—teazing you for your favour and influence in some object he has in view for himself or his family. It is amazing what an amount of expectation a man of this sordid and selfish disposition will found upon a dinner! Your having sat at his table, eaten of his dainties, and drunk of his wines, is price enough even for your conscience itself. Beware of him. Keep yourself free.—Wardlaw.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv6–8 v. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him…
v. 6. Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, of a jealous and covetous man, neither desire thou his dainty meats, which are held out before his guest as a sort of bait, not with open kindliness, but with a hidden purpose, for the envious person’s selfishness will not permit him to dispense true hospitality;
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 General Information:
General Information:
These verses continue the "thirty sayings" (Proverbs 22:20).
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one with an evil eye
Possible meanings are 1) a stingy person, one who does not like to give things to other people, or 2) an evil person.
do not crave
"do not strongly desire." See how you translated "craves" in Proverbs 21:9.
his delicacies
"his special and expensive food." See how you translated this in Proverbs 23:3.
his heart is not with you
This is an idiom. AT: "he really does not want you to enjoy the meal" (See: Idiom)
You will vomit up the little you have eaten
This is an exaggeration for wishing one had not eaten anything. AT: "You will wish that you had not eaten anything" (See: Hyperbole and Generalization)
you will have wasted your compliments
Compliments are spoken of as if they were valuable objects. The abstract noun "compliments" can be translated as a verb. AT: "he will not be happy even if you say good things about him and the food" (See: Metaphor and Abstract Nouns)
translationWords
evil
heart
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 23:6-8 Saying 8: Proverbs puts a high premium on…
23:6-8 Saying 8: Proverbs puts a high premium on generosity (11:24-26; 21:13; 22:9).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.