Chapter 27

27:1 Boast not thyself of to ^a morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

(a) Do not delay the time, but take the opportunity when it is offered.

27:4 Wrath [is] cruel, and anger [is] outrageous; but who [is] able to stand before ^b envy?

(b) For the envious are obstinate, and cannot be reconciled.

27:6 Faithful [are] the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy [are] ^c deceitful.

(c) They are flattering and seem friendly.

27:10 Thy own friend, and thy fathers friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brothers ^d house in the day of thy calamity: [for] better [is] a neighbour [that is] near than a brother far off.

(d) Do not trust any worldly help in the day of your trouble.

27:12 ^e A prudent [man] foreseeth the evil, [and] hideth himself; [but] the simple pass on, [and] are punished.

(e) See

27:14 He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising ^f early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.

(f) Hastily and without cause.

27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a ^g man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

(g) One hasty man provokes another to anger.

27:19 As in water face [answereth] to face, ^h so the heart of man to man.

(h) There is no difference between men by nature, only the grace of God makes the difference.

27:21 [As] the refining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so [is] a man to his ⁱ praise.

(i) That is, he is either known to be ambitious and glorious, or humble and modest.

27:26 The ^k lambs [are] for thy clothing, and the goats [are] the price of the field.

(k) This declares the great goodness of God towards man, and the diligence that he requires from him for the preservation of his gifts.