Let not your heart envy sinners,
but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day.
Surely there is a future,
and your hope will not be cut off.
Hear, my son, and be wise,
and direct your heart in the way.
Be not among drunkards
or among gluttonous eaters of meat,
for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
and slumber will clothe them with rags.
Listen to your father who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.
Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.
Let your father and mother be glad;
let her who bore you rejoice.Proverbs 23:17-25
The antidote to envy (17, 18) is to take the long view, and look at the glory, or darkness, to come. 'There is an end' in 18 has been rendered 'There is a hereafter'. The thought is that there is a time coming when present conditions shall be reversed, and righteousness shall triumph (cf Psalm 37). In contrast, 19-21 give us the short view - intemperance, 'living it up', living for the day. The true believer, however, is temperate in all things, refusing to be brought under the power of any, bringing his body into subjection. This is what 'being wise' means in 19. In 22-25 the thought complements that of 12-16. Here is true wisdom for children of all ages, and a practical exposition of the commandment 'Honour thy father and thy mother'. The exhortation to 'buy' the truth is significant (23), and reminds us of Paul's similar emphasis in Colossians 4:5 on redeeming the time. A price has to be paid to enable one to do this; and sometimes it costs a great deal to buy the truth and hold on to it - sometimes it costs friends, social standing, reputation, possessions, and sometimes even life itself. The 'truth' can sometimes be very costly indeed. But it is a good 'buy', and no one is ever the loser for so doing: truth never devalues, never depreciates. One senses the pulse of feeling and emotion in 24, 25, and parents today will feel in harmony with the sentiments expressed, in view of the problems of bringing up young people in a world such as ours. For a son or daughter to grow up 'righteous’ is an inestimable boon. Yet we ought not to fear for them in any craven spirit: the promises are sure, and children are the heritage of the Lord.