8 Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.
8 Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you.
8 So don't waste your time on a scoffer; all you'll get for your pains is abuse. But if you correct those who care about life, that's different - they'll love you for it!
8 Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.
8 So don't bother correcting mockers; they will only hate you. But correct the wise, and they will love you.
9 Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.
9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
9 Give instruction
9 Save your breath for the wise - they'll be wiser for it; tell good people what you know - they'll profit from it.
9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
9 Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn even more.
(Read Proverbs 9:1-12)
Christ has prepared ordinances to which his people are admitted, and by which nourishment is given here to those that believe in him, as well as mansions in heaven hereafter. The ministers of the gospel go forth to invite the guests. The call is general, and shuts out none that do not shut out themselves. Our Saviour came, not to call the righteous, but sinners; not the wise in their own eyes, who say they see. We must keep from the company and foolish pleasures of the ungodly, or we never can enjoy the pleasures of a holy life. It is vain to seek the company of wicked men in the hope of doing them good; we are far more likely to be corrupted by them. It is not enough to forsake the foolish, we must join those that walk in wisdom. There is no true wisdom but in the way of religion, no true life but in the end of that way. Here is the happiness of those that embrace it. A man cannot be profitable to God; it is for our own good. Observe the shame and ruin of those who slight it. God is not the Author of sin: and Satan can only tempt, he cannot force. Thou shalt bear the loss of that which thou scornest: it will add to thy condemnation.
16 "Let all who are simple come to my house!" To those who have no sense she says,
16 Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,
16 "Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!" And to him who lacks sense she says,
16 "Are you confused about life, don't know what's going on?
16 "Whoever is simple, let him turn in here"; And as for him who lacks understanding, she says to him,
16 "Come in with me," she urges the simple. To those who lack good judgment, she says,
(Read Proverbs 9:13-18)
How diligent the tempter is, to seduce unwary souls into sin! Carnal, sensual pleasure, stupifies conscience, and puts out the sparks of conviction. This tempter has no solid reason to offer; and where she gets dominion in a soul, all knowledge of holy things is lost and forgotten. She is very violent and pressing. We need to seek and pray for true wisdom, for Satan has many ways to withdraw our souls from Christ. Not only worldly lusts and abandoned seducers prove fatal to the souls of men; but false teachers, with doctrines that flatter pride and give liberty to lusts, destroy thousands. They especially draw off such as have received only partial serious impressions. The depths of Satan are depths of hell; and sin, without remorse, is ruin, ruin without remedy. Solomon shows the hook; those that believe him, will not meddle with the bait. Behold the wretched, empty, unsatisfying, deceitful, and stolen pleasure sin proposes; and may our souls be so desirous of the everlasting enjoyment of Christ, that on earth we may live to him, daily, by faith, and ere long be with him in glory.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Proverbs 9:8
Commentary on Proverbs 9:1-12
(Read Proverbs 9:1-12)
Christ has prepared ordinances to which his people are admitted, and by which nourishment is given here to those that believe in him, as well as mansions in heaven hereafter. The ministers of the gospel go forth to invite the guests. The call is general, and shuts out none that do not shut out themselves. Our Saviour came, not to call the righteous, but sinners; not the wise in their own eyes, who say they see. We must keep from the company and foolish pleasures of the ungodly, or we never can enjoy the pleasures of a holy life. It is vain to seek the company of wicked men in the hope of doing them good; we are far more likely to be corrupted by them. It is not enough to forsake the foolish, we must join those that walk in wisdom. There is no true wisdom but in the way of religion, no true life but in the end of that way. Here is the happiness of those that embrace it. A man cannot be profitable to God; it is for our own good. Observe the shame and ruin of those who slight it. God is not the Author of sin: and Satan can only tempt, he cannot force. Thou shalt bear the loss of that which thou scornest: it will add to thy condemnation.