Proverbs 20:27 - GNT - The Lord gave us mind and conscience; we cannot hi... (2024)

FAQs

What does Proverbs chapter 20 verse 27 mean? ›

Man's spirit possesses thought, motives, intentions, feelings, and desires, all of which the Lord tests.

Rev. Graham: Yes, God has put within each of us a conscience — an inner sense of right and wrong.

This phrase, “sound mind” is taken from the Greek word sophroneo, which is a compound word combining sodzo and phroneo. The Greek word sodzo means to be saved or delivered. It suggests something that is delivered, rescued, revived, salvaged, and protected and is now safe and secure.

No deceit. No manipulation. Just the truth. The word is delivered with the ability to “commend ourselves” to every person's conscience. In other words, the life of the deliverer of the message must reflect the honesty of the message to everyone's conscience.

No matter how much death and destruction occur, there can always be more. There is no limit to how many people can die; in the poetic sense, death's appetite is infinite.

Dishonest business practices, gossip, greed, and laziness are all condemned as immoral and dangerous. God knows everything about us, and whatever evil isn't punished by righteous government will be judged by a perfect, holy God (Proverbs 20:12–30).

The original word in the Greek language for “sound mind” is sóphronismos. This word means discipline, self-control, or to act moderately. In this verse, we are instructed to not act in fear or be irrationally minded, but instead, to act within God's will and be reasonable in our thoughts and ways.

I said the voice of the Lord comes to us in our own thoughts. John 4:24 says, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” This is saying that communication with God is Spirit to spirit, not brain to brain or mouth to ear, the way we communicate in the physical realm.

Sound mind and memory refers to a person's state of being at the time of the making of their will. A sound mind and memory means the person has sufficient mental capacity to understand their actions.

The conscience is an inner human faculty corrupted by sin and the Fall. And the Holy Spirit is the divine agent God uses to begin His redemptive work in a believer.

What does our conscience represent? ›

Conscience is the “highest authority" and evaluates information to determine the quality of an action: good or evil, fair or unfair and so on. Consequently, conscience ranks higher than consciousness and, in addition, has the ability and the authority to decide how information will be used, either for good or for evil.

But It's Not God. When Paul talks about wisdom in areas where Scripture is not clear, he makes it clear that unity is more important than uniformity. Many Christians would agree.

When Paul speaks of the "foolishness of God," he is not implying that God is foolish. Rather he is saying that since God's way of reasoning is in accord with things of the spirit, it confounds the reasoning of this world. It is wiser than human reasoning, because spiritual things are wiser than carnal ones.

In other words, God is in love with every one of us. The Gospel says that not even a sparrow will fall to the ground outside our heavenly Father's care. Yet, “sparrows” continue to fall, innocents die, children are sold for a few dollar s or thrown away as soon as their short flight of life took off.

The word sticks comes from a Hebrew word that's often translated in the Old Testament as cleave. It means commitment out of a passionate love. This kind of friendship brings something into your life that mere obligation cannot bring, and therefore nothing else comes close to a true friend.

The spirit of man —the heart—is the lamp of the Lord. This means that God will lead you by His Spirit in your spirit. c. Only when your heart is right and pure, can you trust what your heart is telling you.