Proverbs 28:7
The Company We Keep
1. This proverb sets before our eyes a contrast of two different kinds of men.
a. One is a wise son who obeys God’s law.
b. The other is a companion of riotous men.
2. They represent two very different lifestyles.
1. First we read of the son who keeps the Law.
a. This was the Old Testament, during the dispensation of Law.
b. Every Jewish citizen was expected (commanded) to keep the Law of Moses.
c. Their relationship to their country, countrymen, and to God depended upon it.
2. Keep: Guard; protect; observe; obey.
a. In our proverb, the term is used in the sense of obey or observe.
b. The author speaks of a son who walks in obedience to the Law of God… which was also the law of the land.
c. He wasn’t a rebel; he wasn’t a criminal; he wasn’t a traitor; he wasn’t out to overthrow the government; he wasn’t seeking to find ways around the law. He kept it. He obeyed it.
3. Law: the term means “instruction.”
a. It could be used in the sense of God’s law or the instruction from a mother or father.
b. Of course the one who keeps God’s Law will also keep the instruction of his parents – because God’s Law included that requirement: children obey your parents.
c. Obedience to God’s Law also includes obedience to the laws of the land. They were one and the same for Israel. And today, the “powers that be are ordained of God.” We are commanded to “obey all man made ordinances for the Lord’s sake.”
d. Obedience to God’s law incorporates earthly laws as well – both in the family and in the country. By way of application, we might even want to add the rules at work too – as servants were to obey their masters.
4. Ps. 119 speaks much of “keeping the Law.”
a. While the proverbs and the psalms describe life under the Old Testament Law, there is great application to the believer today. We might (by way of application) substitute “Law” with the “Word of God” for us today.
b. Ps. 119:69 – The right way to keep the Law is to do so with the whole heart – wholehearted obedience.
i. This speaks of not just doing what it said outwardly, but also doing what it said from the heart.
c. Ps. 119:2 – “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.” There is a special blessing that comes from obedience. (A clean conscience; peace; boldness.)
d. Ps. 119:22 – “Remove from me reproach and contempt; for I have kept thy testimonies.” There is an expectation of being free from reproach and contempt that comes from a sinful lifestyle.
e. Ps. 119:129 – “Thy testimonies are wonderful: therefore doth my soul keep them.” There is a sense of wonder and awe that comes from living in obedience.
f. Ps. 119:33-34 – “Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end. 34Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart.” There should be an inner desire to live in accordance with God and His Word… and to do so wholeheartedly.
5. The son who obeys God’s Law is a wise son.
a. Wise: understanding; insight; discreet; the ability to perceive things as they really are; discernment.
b. This son will have wisdom from above.
c. He will have guidance and instruction from above.
d. By keeping the Law of God he will avoid many pitfalls in life.
e. Note that it is the son who KEEPS the law that is wise—not the son who studies the law or knows the Law. It is possible to dedicate one’s life to studying the Law (like the Scribes and Pharisees) and not DO what it says.
f. Wisdom doesn’t come from knowing in the head; it comes from obeying from the heart.
1. Here we have the contrast: between a wise son who obeys the law and a companion of riotous men who shames his father.
2. Companion: Friend; comrade; a special friend; used of a best man in a wedding – the friend of the groom.
3. Riotous men: Glutton; vile; worthless one; light – no depth; insignificant one.
a. Several translations translate this term as “glutton,” as it is translated in Deut. 21:20.
b. Deut. 21:20 – “This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, (same word) and a drunkard.”
c. Out of 7 Hebrew dictionaries, five of them included the meaning of a glutton; but the meaning seemed to be much broader than that. A glutton would be one good example of such a light and worthless person.
d. But the term is broader: Glutton; drunkard; immoral man; lazy; sluggard; light, superficial and worthless person with no depth of character.
4. Prov. 23:19-21 – Solomon had already warned against associating with such a “light and worthless” crowd.
a. One reason given here is that their laziness results in poverty.
b. That kind of laziness and party attitude can ruin your family and your life.
c. Therefore, listen to your parents’ instruction! (vs. 22-23)
d. Sometimes young people get their advice and counsel from “light persons” and from gluttons (party goers) instead of taking heed to the instruction of their parents. That is not a good idea.
e. I Cor. 15:33 – Bad company (communications = fellowship) corrupts good manners.
• You can’t associate with light persons and not pick up some of their lightness.
• You can’t associate with gluttons and not adopt some of their lifestyle – laziness; self-indulgence; party attitude towards life; etc. It rubs off.
f. Prov. 13:20 – “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” There are consequences to such associations and companionships.
5. This unwise son shames his father.
a. The father of a light, superficial son who is a glutton and a party goer with no direction in life will be ashamed of his behavior.
b. Of course, the opposite is true as well – a son who obeys the Law and is wise brings great joy to his father.
c. But the unwise son (the friend of gluttons and wine bibbers) can change his ways. He can turn around. The first step is to STOP associating with the light and vain persons
d. Ps. 119:115 – “Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God.”
• It does become a choice between the two: associating with evildoers or associating with God, His word, and those who love His word.
• A foolish son CAN repent and bring forth the fruits of repentance by leaving his old ways and his old friends behind and making better choices in life.
• The prodigal son did just that. He repented and returned to his father—and found his father ready and waiting to receive him with open arms!
e. Ps. 119:65 – And when he leaves his light and vain friends behind, he should replace them with godly friends. “I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts.”