Proverbs 12:24-28

Proverbs 12 ends with five maxims, at two of which deal with work and laziness, and two of which advocate encouraging others.

12:24--The hand of the diligent will rule,
while the lazy will be put to forced labor.

12:25--Anxiety weighs down the human heart,
but a good word cheers it up.

12:26--The righteous gives good advice to friends,
but the way of the wicked leads astray.

12:27--The lazy do not roast their game,
but the diligent obtain precious wealth.

12:28--In the path of righteousness there is life,
in walking its path there is no death.

What practical lessons for daily living do these proverbs suggest?
1. Verses 24 and 27 observe that God has so made human life that the person who works will receive sufficient sustenance to prosper and enjoy an independent life, while one who is lazy and refuses to work will lack the basic needs of life and will depend on others to exist even to the point of being subject to them.
2. Verses 25 and 26 call upon people who love God to find and use opportunities to cheer up those around them and to give them good advice. Human speech has power. It is able to build others up or to tear them down. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 13:10: "So I write these things while I am away from you, so that when I come, I may not have to be severe in using the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down."
3. Verse 28 uses the metaphor of a "road" or "way" or "path" to describe the journey of life. This is a very common metaphor in scripture (see for example, Psalm 1:6; six times in Psalm 119:1-16 and very often in the rest of this psalm). The "righteous" way or path is a path of joy and spiritual growth and great blessings. The author of Proverbs 12:28 urges his hearers to take and follow this way.

John Willis