Proverbs 22 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

Proverbs 22 Short Summary:

Proverbs 22 continues the short proverbs of Solomon that began in chapter 10. Solomon’s proverbs are recorded in Proverbs chapter 10 through chapter 29. These proverbs are typically short and concise statements of wisdom for the medication of the reader.

Proverbs 22 Summary

BREAKDOWN OF PROVERBS - CHART

DEFINITIONS:

• Scoffer (22:10) - A Mocker; Someone who makes fun of something or someone.

• Sluggard (22:13) - A lazy person who is slow to do their work.

• Ancient Landmarks (22:28) – These were markers that indicated property rights. A landmark may have been set at the end of a man’s field to mark where his property ended and where his neighbor’s began (see Deuteronomy 19:14).

HIGHLIGHTED PROVERBS:

• PROVERB #1:

  • Proverbs 22:1 – “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.”

  • It’s better to have an honorable name, than to have riches and be known as a crooked person.

  • Its better to have the favor of God and men than to have a pile of gold without it.

  • Don’t trade your reputation for anything.

  • If you become known as a scoundrel, it will be hard to change people’s perception of you.

  • You want your name to be respected so that God will be glorified through your life.

• PROVERB #2:

  • Proverbs 22:6 – “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

  • Children that are raised to be wise, virtuous, god-fearing, respectful, and righteous will carry those virtues into their adult life.

  • The upbringing of a child has a huge impact on the person they become in the future.

  • Children that are raised to love God will love Him until they have children of their own, and then they will teach their children to love God.

  • *This verse is an excellent example to reinforce the importance of our interpretive principle (see page 1). It is generally true that if a child is raised to be virtuous, they will grow into a virtuous adult. It is generally true, it occurs more often than not, but it is not an absolute guarantee.

• PROVERB #3:

  • Proverbs 22:7 – “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.”

  • Rich people have an advantage over less wealthy people.

  • Those who lend money have a lot of power over those who borrow money from them.  

  • It is generally wise to avoid going into debt.

  • As servants of God, we want to be free to serve God with as much of our time, money, and energy as possible. But if we have outstanding debts, we have to spend some of that time, money, and energy serving our lender.

  • Avoiding debt is ideal because we don’t want to be beholden to any man or institution.

• PROVERBS #4:

  • Proverbs 22:13 – “The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside! I shall be killed in the streets!”

  • The lazy man is a master of coming up with excuses as to why he can’t go out and work.

  • In this case, someone may have spotted a lion in the countryside, and the lazy man says, “I can’t go to work today, I might be killed in the streets by the lion.”

  • He uses these excuses, no matter how ridiculous, to avoid working.

  • Be a hard-working person, not someone who will do anything to get out of work.

  • Your community will see through those kinds of bad excuses, and they won’t respect you if you take every opportunity to get out of work.