Let's open the Bibles, please, to Proverbs, the 16th chapter. Proverbs chapter 16. We'll go as far as we can in the 16th, 17th possibly, or if we just get through with the first one, we'll go with that. Proverbs are very special, and there's usually a little short sermon in each and every one. Actually, each verse is a short message in itself. And sometimes we deal with them a little more at length that way than we do otherwise. But let's look at verse 1 in chapter 16. The preparations of the heart in man and the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. You know, man makes his plans, disposings. The preparations are disposings. And God has the answer to those plans that we make. And sometimes we think that our plans didn't turn out like we wanted them to. Because man proposes, but God disposes. He's the one that brings it to pass. In the book of 1 Kings, I was thinking in relation to this particular verse of Jeroboam and Rehoboam. Rehoboam was going to go up against Jeroboam to battle. And in verse 24 of the 12th chapter, it says, Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren, the children of Israel. Return every man to his house, for this thing is from me. God said, this thing is from me. Now then, when we read the rest of it, we sometimes wonder, because Jeroboam turned out to be a wicked king. Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, had made Israel to sin, and yet God permitted it to happen that way, and really it was kind of a two-way street there because Rehoboam had counseled with the young men and decided they would not take the advice of the older men, and they said that we'll make the burdens of The people of God greater than even was made before, greater than His Father. And so we find that they were trying to do that, and it says that, My Father chastened you with whips, but I will chasten you with scorpions. And that was the advice of the young men, to make it harder on the people. And the older men said, if you'll love these people, and if you'll be good to them, and you'll lead them, they'll love you forever, and they'll follow you forever. And so, the Lord was doing something there, and the proposing and the disposing was of God. And as I say, it's hard to understand why he permitted Jeroboam to go ahead and be the one in authority at this time, because remember, Jeroboam turned around and he made the golden calves because he set up a man-made worship, and he set one in Bethel and one in Dan, so that it would be convenient for the people to worship. And I think I taught you that before, where he was playing politics with God's people, and he was playing politics with religion, which should never be done. And so we don't understand, but God sets up one and brings down another. In fact, in the Psalms, let me read for you in Psalm chapter 75, verse 6, it says, For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge. He put it down one and set it up another. In other words, promotion doesn't come from every direction. Promotion comes from God. Promotion comes from the Lord. He seteth up one. He puteth down another. And in the book of Daniel, much the same thing is said. So look in Proverbs 16, verse 1. Always hold your place where we're studying. Just don't turn from that. If you want to look at another reference, that's fine. But we want to keep right on each verse as we go down. We may give you references outside, but keep on the verse. The preparations of the heart in man and the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. So God does what He will with man's plans and preparations. All the ways of man are clean in his own eyes, but the Lord weigheth the spirits." God weighs the spirits. In other words, weighed in the balances. He knows how to put everything on the scales and test them and weigh them, one thing against another. Remember O. Val Schauser and Daniel's message, the handwriting on the wall that Daniel interpreted? And God said to Belshazzar, he said, you've gone in the ways of your father Nebuchadnezzar, and it was really his grandfather, but he said, your father Nebuchadnezzar, and you rebelled against God, and et cetera, and so on. And he says, thou art weighed in the balances and found warning. So God has the right kind of scales, doesn't he? It says, the Lord weigheth the spirits. So it's not only the outside, as men see it, that's put in the balances, but the very inside of man. that God puts to the balances and to the test. In verse 3, I want you to notice this verse. This is a good lot of wisdom for you if you follow this third verse. You never know what to do sometimes. Look. Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established." Have you ever put this to the test? Commit thy works unto the Lord and thy thoughts shall be established. A lot of times we say, well, I just don't know what to do. Well, have we committed that very thing, that problem, that thing that exists? If you commit that to God, then He'll help you to think it out and think right about it. So don't be always running to and fro and say, I just don't know what to do, and wring your hands about everything. What's the problem? Commit it to God. Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established. You will know what to do. And the failure on our part is to trust God with all of it. And we just fail to do that. Let me give you another verse of reference. Psalm 37 and verse 5 says, listen to this one. Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust also in him, that's have faith, and he shall bring it to pass. Not only your works, but your way. Psalm 37 and verse 5. Look at verse 4 now in our text. It says, The Lord hath made all things for Himself, yea, even the wicked, for the day of evil. The wicked are made for His purpose. You mean wicked people have a place in God's purpose and plan? They sure do. And God has a place in this world for the wicked. Now, it would be better if they were to turn to God and repent of sin. In fact, He gives more than ample opportunity for people to repent of sin. But if people are going to remain in rebellion, does this defeat the plan and purpose of God? No. Look, the Lord has made all things for Himself, yet even the wicked, for the day of evil. If you go back in the book of Exodus chapter 9 and verse 16, Remember concerning Pharaoh that rebelled against everything that Moses tried to get him to do and let the people go, the children of Israel go, and he would rebel against it. He wouldn't do what God wanted him to do. And it says in verse 16 of the 9th chapter, And in verity for this cause have I raised thee up, in other words, made thee to stand, for to show in thee my power. and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth." Because Pharaoh exalted himself against God, he says, who is the Lord that I should obey him? And remember every judgment that Moses would bring upon the land of Egypt. What would happen? He would rebel against it. He would say, I have sinned. At times he said, I have sinned. You know, there are many that say, I have sinned, that really don't mean it. I have sinned. All through the Old Testament you'll find various ones saying, I have sinned. But it's not true repentance if you just want to get out of the problem, you know. And what he was saying, you know, I've sinned because I don't like this plague, this judgment that's here. And Moses, if you'll get God to remove this, well, you know, everything will be all right. And Moses would intercede and get God to remove the plague or the judgment that was And then he turned around and hardened his heart again against God. See, it was not real genuine repentance. You know the difference between a person saying, I have sinned, and then turn around and rebelling, and the one that says, I have sinned, and that it really means, is he carries it out. He does repent and he does something about it. The prodigal son is a good example. He said, when he was down in the hog pens feeding the hogs, In the far country, away from the Father, he said, in my Father's house there is bread and enough to spare. And he said, I will arise and I will go to my Father, and I will say unto my Father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight, and no more worthy to be called thy son, make me as one of thy hired servants. He made up his mind what he wanted to do. But did he sit there in the hog pens? No. The Bible says, and he arose and came unto his Father. So he put feet to his prayers, didn't he? His repentance was genuine. And when He said, I have sinned, He really meant it. And He came back home. And when He was yet a great way off, His Father saw Him. When we were yet a great way off, the Lord saw us. We were yet a great way off in our sins. In fact, when we were yet a great way off before the worlds were, God looked down from heaven, the council halls of eternity, and Christ, the Lamb that was slain from before the foundation of the world, was prepared to redeem sinful man before he was ever created, because God knew exactly what was going to happen. The foreknowledge of God. You say, well, if God knew that man was going to sin, why did he make man? Because he wanted a He wanted men that would have the right to choose good or bad. And he knew that from the beginning there was going to be a bad choice made. But he also knew that his son would come and redeem him. And the purpose and plan of God in the Council Halls of Eternity, the Bible says that Christ was the Lamb that was foreordained before the foundation of the world to be slain and be sacrificed so that we could be redeemed to God by His precious blood. And that's a great plan of redemption. And you and I are so amazed to even be able to understand a bit of it. But God was thinking of us before he saw us when we were a long ways off, before we ever were brought into existence. Let's go back to our Proverbs in chapter 16 and verse 5. It says, Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord. Though hand joined in hand, he shall not be unpunished. The proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord. An attitude that God hates. God hates the proud in heart. Boy, that ought to make us realize to check up on ourselves from time to time. You know, we have this human built-in thing that sometimes the ego or wanting to be known or wanting to be proud or wanting to put ourselves in the front. Sometimes that gets the best of us. And let's remember that God hates it. In Proverbs 6, it says in verse 16, these six things that the Lord hate, The very first thing on the list says, a proud look and then a lying tongue and hands that shed innocent blood. and on and on. A heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. The seventh is abomination to the Lord. He that soweth discord among brethren. That's what the Lord hates. But the first thing that tops the list, these six things that the Lord hates, what is it? A proud look. So let's learn to try to humble ourselves in the sight of God and realize that apart from His grace, We wouldn't amount to anything at all. We're just human beings, all sinners, saved by grace. We need the Lord. We need each other. And, you know, politics and promotion is for the outside world. And the Bible said, we preached it this morning, be not conformed to this world. We're not to set that as a pattern for ourselves, are we? So let's don't let that enter into our business. of God's business. Let's look at this. It says, though hand joined in hand, he shall not be unpunished. Look at verse six. By mercy and truth, iniquity is purged, and by the fear of the Lord, men depart from evil. Listen, here's genuine Christianity that's described. What is it? By mercy and truth, iniquity is purged. And by the fear of the Lord, this is reverence toward God, men depart from evil. And these are the fruits of true repentance, mercy and truth. Verse 7, when a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Remember Paul said in the book of Romans, if God be for us, who can be against? Do you ever get too worried about what people think, or who's against you, or who your enemies are, or who's trying to put you down, or who's opposing what you're doing in life? The thing about it is, don't worry about them. Worry about being right with God, and then that'll take care of itself. If God be for us, who can be against us? Who is He that condemned us? It is Christ that died, and He didn't condemn us. Who's the one that judges us? You read in Romans 8. Let's turn over there quickly. Romans chapter 8. if you will, and you'll get a whole list of things, beginning with verse 35. Well, verse 33, who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? Question, isn't it? It is God that justifies. If God doesn't lay anything to our charge, who else could do it? It is God that justifies. Look, who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died. Well, if he's going to condemn us, he certainly wouldn't have died for us, right? Yea, rather, that is risen again." He not only died, but he rose again. Look at verse 34 again. "...who is even at the right hand of God, and who also maketh intercession for us." Who is He that condemns? Christ died for us, He's risen again, He's at the right hand of God, and He makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Verse 37, they and all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, any other thing you can name, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. There's nothing. If that doesn't encourage us, I don't know what would. Let's go back to Proverbs 16 again. Verse 7, when a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Look at verse 8. Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right. Honesty at all cost. And God's blessings are upon honesty. Look at this. Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right. If you don't get it right, you'll never enjoy it. But if you get it right, God will bless you and you'll enjoy what you have. Whether it's little or much. You know, I'm reminded of the Children of Israel, as they gathered the manna, God provided for them in the wilderness, in their wilderness journeys. And he sent manna from heaven, and that little round, like a coriander seed, and it was like a wafer. And they said, what is it? This is stuff falling down. And they would gather it. And they'd go out every day and gather. God says, you go out and gather enough for the day. And the Bible says concerning this gathering, and we'll try to shorten the whole story because there's a whole wonderful, a lot of wonderful lessons in there. But the point I wanted to make is that the Bible says, he that gathered little had no lack, and he that gathered much had nothing, oh, not too much. So they gathered every man according to his need. And every man's need here will be supplied. Some have greater needs than others. Some need more physical, material things than others. Some need more money than others. You say, Preacher, that's not right. That is right. The greater your obligations, the greater your responsibilities, the greater your needs in certain respects. And so you just have to don't say, well, that guy makes a hundred dollars more than I do, or that guy makes a thousand dollars more than I do. Well, he has enough and you have enough too. God's going to see to it that you have enough if you'll do what he wants you to do. Paul says, but my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory to the Philippian church. And he will do that. He's faithful in doing that. All right, let's look at the next verse. Verse 9, A man's heart deviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his steps. You know, we can make all the plans we want to make, but we still need to trust God's leading. A man's heart deviseth his way. We make our plan, we say, we're going to do this. Well, if the Lord will, we'll do this or that. And God's leading, the Lord directeth his steps. The Bible says, order my steps in thy word. This is Psalm, I believe 119, and it might be verse 133. I'm not sure. But anyway, Psalm 119, it says, or verse 33. Look back, that's got me buffled now. Psalm 119, but it says, order my steps in thy word and let not any iniquity have dominion over me. Let's see, it is 133. When I said 133, I thought that's a whole lot of verses, but that's it. Psalm 119 verse 133 says, order my steps in thy word and let not any iniquity have dominion over me. And so we do need God's leading, do we not? At all times. Back in our Proverbs, I hope I don't carry you too fast. I want to cover as much of this as I can. Verse 10 says, A divine sentence is in the lips of the king. His mouth transgresseth not in judgment. You know, if you're a king, you have great responsibility. And it says, A divine sentence is in the lips of the king. His mouth transgresseth not in judgment. The greater position you have, the greater responsibility you have. And that's true in various realms of life. And then in verse 11, it says, A just weight and balance are the Lord's. And it says, All the weights of the bag are His work. God will balance the scales. Have you ever seen people say, Well, now I'm going to get even. That fellow cheated me, and I'm going to get even with him. Don't worry. God can balance the scales. You don't have to do it. He knows just how to do it. Look at that verse again. A just weight and balance are the Lord's. They belong to God. And it says, all the weights of the bag are His work. He's going to take care of that. You say, well, He didn't do it. Well, just, you know, don't be too impatient. He'll take care of it. He'll balance the scales. You say, well, that fellow cheated me and I want to get even. Don't worry. God will balance the scales. What goes around comes around, we used to say. And so it will. And it'll have its way. Look at verse 12. It says, It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness, for the throne is established by righteousness. Kings, men in great authority, have a responsibility. A king has responsibility, and look at his authority. It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness, for the throne is established by righteousness. Lips are the delight of king, and they love him that speaketh right. What is a king's interest? He should recognize God's authority in everything. And then in verses 14 and 15, we see the king's power. Look at verse 14 and 15. The wrath of the king is as messengers of death, but a wise man will pacify it. Remember when the king says, this man has done something wrong in this sentence, and the judgment is upon him? Remember back in the book of Esther. King Hacerius, he made certain decrees and edicts that were to be followed and things had to be carried out. And remember old Haman, the right hand man, he thought he was doing pretty well until the king said, well, you take him out there. He had prepared a gallows for Mordecai, the Jew. He says, okay, let's get rid of that Jew. He's in our way. And the very gallows he built for Mordecai, After certain things transpired, they said, go and hang Haman on that gallows that he built for Mordecai. Isn't that an amazing thing? You try to bring someone else down and look where you end up. Don't try to do that. It's not good advice. It's not good advice to try to put someone down. I could say something about a personal situation recently with Daryl. They were giving him a bad time. But I'll tell you, I won't go into it. It didn't take long for the Lord to answer prayer and change things completely around that had been there for years. When it gets so bad, you just say, God, you've got to do something about it. And you know, Daryl told me, he says, I'm surprised that God answered prayer so quick. One weekend, things changed. I mean, the whole situation changed on the job. You know, God hears it before we send it. Remember in the book of Daniel, it says, before the prayer left your lips, before it came, I already had the message and I had the answer for it. And he sent the answer back. If he wants to, he can answer immediately. And if he wants to, he can say, wait a while, I'll work it out. But just leave it to God. And that's the problem we have, is not leaving it to God. It says in verse 15, in the light of the king's countenance is life. Well, it's good if the king smiles upon you, isn't it? And his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain. So the king's power for evil or for good. Remember old Joseph found favor under the leadership of the king or pharaoh of Egypt, remember? And he gave him favor. And he said, there's no man that will lift up hand or foot, do anything, unless they consult Joseph about it. Because he put him in his right-hand man, didn't he? In fact, he took the ring off his hand and put it on Joseph's hand. And that ring was a ring that would seal. Every transaction was sealed with the king's ring. In the same way, in the book of Esther that I mentioned earlier, was sealed with the king's ring, and it could not be changed. And so God has power, and the king has power, and he should use that In the light of the king's countenance is life, and his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain." If we apply this to God being king over all things, whether it's good or bad, then we can really see the picture. Verse 16, how much better is it to get wisdom than gold? That's an exclamation. Notice, it doesn't ask a question. He's saying, how much better is it to get wisdom than gold? He doesn't say I'm asking you, I'm telling you it's better. I'm telling you it's much better. And then in the latter part of verse 16, and to get understanding rather than to be chosen is rather to be chosen than silver. This is what we want, is understanding. So it's better than gold and silver, wisdom and understanding. Do you place a great deal of value upon what you learn? You ought to place all kinds of value upon what you learn from God's Word. The Word of God will keep you. It will protect you. It will be an ornament of grace around your neck. It will be like a chain of gold. It will be that which will protect you and be of, dear to you and most precious to you, and so well to realize the value of God's word. Then in verse 17, the highway of the upright is to depart from evil. What course have you set for life? He that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. Do you have the straight and sure way? The straight way is the highway of the upright. The straight way is to depart from evil. And then the sure way, he that keepeth his way, preserveth his soul. If you live for the Lord, he's going to protect you. If you go in the right way, he's going to watch over you. He's going to be nearby your side. He's going to take care of you with angels ministering. They'll come down from heaven and be on your right side and on your left and encamp round about you. They'll protect you from all evil. You believe in the protection of God's ministering spirits that are sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? Hebrews 1 verse 14. God has sent his angels. Are they not all ministers and flames of fire? And are they not down here with God's people? Remember when Jacob saw the ladder, it says the top of it reached to heaven, the bottom reached to the earth. And it says angels of God were, listen at the order, ascending and descending upon it. Where were they? If they had to go up, it's down here, right? And Jesus said, you shall see the Son of Man, John chapter one. And the angels of God will be ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. Jesus now is a connecting link between earth and heaven, and the angels are down here with us, and they ascend back to heaven, but they're down here. We'll talk about the angels in heaven. What about the angels on earth? What about those that are round about us? And I'm not preaching angeology to you as if it's some kind of a magic. I'm telling you what the scripture says. We're not trying to Give them worship. And Paul warns against undue worship of angels. We're not worshiping angels. We're just saying that God has his ministers to take care of us. And they're around about us. OK, let's go with this. The highway of the upright, verse 17, is to depart from evil. He that keepeth his way, preserving his soul. Verse 18. Pride goeth before destruction and a haunted spirit before a fall. Look at that. Pride goeth before destruction and a haunted spirit before a fall. Have you ever seen that happen in life? I've seen it happen many times. Somebody, boy, just proud and, oh, they've got it made, and you're nothing, and they're everything, and the first thing you know. What happened to that guy? He had a great fall, didn't he? Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall, and Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. And all the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put him back together again, could they? They can't do it. Because if you are lifted up with pride, I'll guarantee you, you're bracing for the fall. And then it says in verse 19, Better is it to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoiled with the proud. Better is it be. What's better? To be of an humble spirit with the lowly. Jesus said, I am meek in what? Lowly in heart. And he said, Come unto me, all ye that labor heavy laden, and I will give you rest. I'll give you rest. Then he says, Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me. For I am what? Proud and mighty and really lifted up. Jesus himself, the Son of God, says, For I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Isn't there a lot of wisdom in God's words? Let's put it down in our hearts and hide it in our hearts. Look at this next verse. In verse 20. He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good, and whoso trusteth. Now notice two things. Whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he." There's trust and there's handling a matter wisely. There's efficiency and there's faith. Efficiency first. He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good. We need to learn how to handle a matter, a situation that arises. And if you handle it wisely, you shall find good. And it says, and whoso trusteth in the Lord, we need to do it in faith. What? Now, if you handle a matter foolishly, it could turn back on us, couldn't it? It could cause lots of problems. But he that handles the matter wisely. Now, verse 21, the wise in heart shall be called prudent. That means they're cunning, they're diligent. We're talking about true wisdom here. The wise in heart shall be called prudent, and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning. It's good to the taste. It's good to our ability to enjoy. The sweetness of the lips increaseth learning. Learning is the key. Then verse 22, understanding. Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it. Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it. You know, everything we do, we must learn to live with our conscience. And so understanding and knowing what's right and wrong and doing what is right from our heart will help. In the last part of the verse, but the instruction, and by the way, this is the chastisement as well, of fools is folly. Why do they have to be chastened? Because they continue to do foolishly. In verse 23, the heart of the wise teacheth his mouth and addeth learning to his lips. So notice how many times you find teaching and understanding and wisdom and knowledge all intertwined. In verse 24, pleasant words are as a honeycomb sweet to the soul and health to the bones. Pleasant words. Kindness to say nice things. Treat people with a little kindness and a little love. Darlene had a plaque down there. It's in her trailer. About this big. She kind of embroidered or whatever. And it says, try a little kindness. And try a little kindness. T-A-L-K. Talk. And talk with one another, but try a little kindness. The first letter of each one came down as a capital part of it. And it says talk this way, and it says try a little kindness crosswise. And if we try a little bit of kindness, you say, well, I'll be kind to those people if they're kind to me. But that's not the way to do it. is to be kind anyway, is to be considerate. And I know we all fail in many ways of doing all the things we're supposed to do. We look back and there's a lot of times we could have been more considerate. There's a lot of times we could have spoken a kinder word. But let's check up on it and make it a habit of life to try to develop a character and a characteristic of kindness toward others. In verse 25 it says, There is a way that seemeth right unto man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. There is a course of life that's the deceptive road. The deceptive road. There is a way that seemeth right unto men. Have you ever heard people say, well, it seems all right, but seeming all right doesn't make it all right. If it just seems all right from the human standpoint, or from carnal reasoning, it probably is not right, but God has the right way. He says, I'll tell you the way, here's the way, and you walk in it, in the book of Jeremiah. He says, I'll show you the way. And He says, you walk in that way. But there is a way. Notice this, if you're looking at it. There is a way. That's singular, isn't it? Look at the verse. That seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are what? The ways. Plural. See, you have a way and the ways. You have singular and have plural. So every man may have his own way that seems right, but all of these many ways. You know, one man has one way and one another way, another another way. But all those ways, unless they're the ways of God, are the ways Plural of death. Because there is one way, and that's God's way. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me. We find people saying, well, you know, I'm going to go to heaven because I try to live by the golden rule. No, you're not. Because you haven't lived by the golden rule. In the first place, I'm going to go to heaven because I kept God's law. No, you haven't kept God's law either. I'm going to go to heaven because I try to do right. Yeah, but you haven't done right. That's the only problem. See, Jesus said there is none righteous, no none won. So you didn't do that. There is none that doeth good. There is none that seeketh after God. We all, like sheep, have gone astray. The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. And when Jesus bore our burdens and our sins upon Himself, then we have a way out. The way out is by faith in Him who has paid the price, and who has fulfilled the law, and who is the perfect One, and who has not only shown us the way, but He has made for us the way. And that's in himself. Okay, we'll hurry now. In verse 26, he that laboreth laboreth for himself, for his mouth craveth it of him. There is an encouragement to toil, labor, encouragement to hard work. In verse 27, an ungodly man diggeth of evil. He wants to find it, and in his lips there is a burning fire. Mischief maker, isn't he? In verse 28, a froward man soweth. That means he spreads it. Soweth strife, strife or a quarrel. He sows the quarrel, he tries to cause a quarrel. And a whisperer, that means a tail-bearer, separates a cheap friend. Certain of these words that I've given descriptions to are the real, actual root meaning of the word. So when it says a whisperer, it actually means a tail-bearer. The Bible tells us that a tail-bearer, God is displeased with that too. Okay, verse 29. A violent man enticeth his neighbor and leadeth him into the way that is not good. Leads him into temptation. Enticement and temptation. In verse 30, he shutteth his eyes to devise froward things. Moving his lips, he bringeth evil to pass. Then in verse 31, the hoary head is a crown of glory. That's the beauty of age. The gray hair, many winters. When it comes to us, it says, is a crown of glory if it be found in the way of righteousness. Notice that, if it be found in the way of righteousness. That doesn't mean all old people, men or women, are a crown of glory. It means if it's found in the way of righteousness, then it's the crown of glory. I get amazed, I'll go up to the care center and I'll find some ladies in there, they're just as sweet as they can be. And they know they're in a bad situation and they make the best of it. And others are raving and they're just mad at everybody, they won't do anything. And you know, the temperament of their whole life is coming out. And I know it would take a lot of grace to be in their situation. I'm not putting that down because every time I go up there I think about it, and I have to go very often. But the thing I want you to see is that some people can take all the trials, all the sad situations, circumstances of life with grace, and others take them the other way. Did you see on the television this young lady? that was born without any arms or legs. You see that on the CNN news? Some of you saw it, I think. I'll get some nods here. And she had done the best. She was left on her grandparents' doorstep when she was born. All she's got for legs is one little foot or two with one toe and then another little toe. Some of you may have seen it. Anyway, she grew up. She was a beautiful young lady in a wheelchair all of her life as she grew up. And she got married. She got married. Nice young man. And she looked just beautiful and happy at her wedding. And she's going to college. Now that's making the best of a situation, isn't it? I'm telling you, I admire people. When I saw that, tears just came to my eyes. I thought, look at... And then we see some people, she says, I don't want to be a welfare person the rest of my life. And she had had to have help, naturally, in that situation. But she had grown out of that and she wanted to be on her own. She wanted to be one that's making her living. Now doesn't that put down some of these bums that want to stay on welfare all their lives? Brother, I'm telling you, if a person like that, and she took the pencil or pen to sign her name between these two little toes that she had, only two on one little stub of a foot, we don't know anything yet about living with difficulties. I'll tell you, if you've got your health and your physical well-being, And God has given you life and health and strength. You better thank God every moment of the day for it and be grateful. And then it says here in verse, what verse were we in? 32. Okay. He that is slow to anger. Look here. is better than the mighty. Here's self-control. Look here. And he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city. Spirit rule. Self-control. Slow to anger is better than the mighty. You say, here's a mighty man of power. Here's a man that's got position. But the man that's slow to anger is better off than that. And then we'll get to the last one. The lot is cast into the lap. They use small stones. They were used for this purpose when it says the lot. They cast them and they, by some way, made decisions. And it says, but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. The verdict disposing comes from God. And God decides and not chance. Even in the days when the They were using, they cast lots and they were choosing another apostle to fill Judah's place, remember? And there was a way of, I don't know how they did it, there was a way of kind of voting for one or the other between Matthias and who else was there. And so the decision was made though from God. And now we don't do those kinds of things to make decisions. We have the vote of every member of the church. And that disposing, God moves upon the hearts of the people to say yes or no to a certain given situation. And when the majority votes one way, all of us, we may not have been pleased with it. Maybe it didn't suit us exactly. But we go along with it because we feel that God has moved upon a sufficient number of hearts to say this is the way it ought to be. And so we try to follow God's guidance and leadership in that way.