Session 10 • Proverbs 10
Righteous & Wicked Paths — Theme 4: Outcomes
Proverbs 10 marks a turn in the book: a rapid series of contrasts between the righteous and the wicked, the diligent and the lazy, the careful and the careless with words. Each verse is like a small signpost showing where each path really leads.
Scripture should always be read first in your own Bible, with prayer and dependence on the Holy Spirit for understanding. North & Narrow’s notes are created with the help of technology and reflect a fallible, interpretive layer. Use this program as a supplemental guide, not a replacement for Scripture itself.
What today is about
Proverbs 10 opens the collection of short, paired sayings contrasting the righteous and the wicked. It shows that work, words, and everyday choices are not neutral—they steadily move a person toward life or harm. The wise treasure instruction, speak carefully, and work steadily; the foolish despise correction, talk loosely, and drift toward loss.
- Diligent work gathers and keeps; careless living leads to poverty and lack.
- Wise lips protect; foolish talk brings trouble and sometimes ruin.
- Fear of the LORD lengthens days; wicked shortcuts shorten the road.
Section 1 — Diligence, Slackness & Real Gain (vv. 3–5)
Proverbs 10:3–5 (KJV)
Proverbs 10:3 The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.
Explanation (v.3): The LORD does not abandon the inner life (“soul”) of the righteous to starvation. Those who walk in wickedness may seem to gather much, but what they rely on is ultimately scattered.
Proverbs 10:4 He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
Explanation (v.4): Chronic laziness and half-hearted effort tend toward lack. Steady, diligent work tends toward increase—not always dramatic, but real.
Proverbs 10:5 He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.
Explanation (v.5): Wisdom sees seasons and acts when it is time to gather. Neglect in the moment of opportunity (sleeping at harvest) dishonors those who depend on you.
Section 2 — Speech, Violence & Covering Hatred (vv. 6, 8, 11–12, 18–19)
Proverbs 10:6, 8, 11–12, 18–19 (KJV)
Proverbs 10:6 Blessings are upon the head of the just: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
Explanation (v.6): The righteous receive blessing and favor; the wicked are marked by words and actions that bring harm. What covers them is not honor, but violence.
Proverbs 10:8 The wise in heart will receive commandments: but a prating fool shall fall.
Explanation (v.8): Wise people welcome instruction and command; fools prefer endless talk. Refusing correction is not neutral—it ends in a fall.
Proverbs 10:11 The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
Explanation (v.11): Words from the righteous refresh and give life, like a flowing spring. Words from the wicked are again linked with harm and damage.
Proverbs 10:12 Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.
Explanation (v.12): Hatred keeps reopening conflict; love chooses to cover and not keep stoking wrongs. This is not hiding injustice, but refusing to feed quarrels.
Proverbs 10:18 He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool.
Explanation (v.18): Both fake niceness that hides hatred and open slander are called foolish. Dishonesty about inner hostility harms others and corrodes the speaker.
Proverbs 10:19 In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.
Explanation (v.19): Much talking multiplies chances to sin. Wisdom often shows itself by restraint—choosing fewer, more careful words.
Section 3 — Fear of the LORD & Safe Strongholds (vv. 24–25, 27–29)
Proverbs 10:24–25, 27–29 (KJV)
Proverbs 10:24 The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.
Explanation (v.24): The wicked, who live apart from God’s ways, often meet the very outcomes they dread. The righteous, aligned with God, see their deepest desires increasingly met in Him.
Proverbs 10:25 As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.
Explanation (v.25): Trouble sweeps away lives built on wickedness like a storm removing a tent. The righteous have a more solid foundation; they are not immune to storms, but they stand.
Proverbs 10:27 The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.
Explanation (v.27): Reverent fear of the LORD tends toward a longer, more stable life (without promising a specific number). Those who despise God’s way move toward self-destructive paths that cut life short.
Proverbs 10:28 The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.
Explanation (v.28): The righteous hope in something that can actually hold—God and His promises. The wicked place expectation in things that cannot last, and their hoped-for outcome dies.
Proverbs 10:29 The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.
Explanation (v.29): Walking in the LORD’s way gives strength and stability to those who are upright. The very same way, resisted and rejected, becomes a path of ruin to those who work evil.
Recap — Proverbs 10 (Key threads)
- Diligence in its proper season leads toward sufficiency; slackness leads toward lack (vv.3–5).
- Words can be a well of life or a channel of harm; love covers, hatred stirs up strife (vv.6, 8, 11–12, 18–19).
- Fear of the LORD, righteous desires, and upright ways give strength and endurance (vv.24–25, 27–29).
- Outcomes are not random; small steady choices on either path accumulate into very different ends.
Today’s practice — Fewer words, steadier work
Aim: Let today’s work and words lean into the righteous path—steady effort, guarded speech, and quiet fear of the LORD. This session especially supports Work & Diligence • Wood and Speech & Integrity • Wood medallions.
Quick — Today (5–10 minutes)
- Before your next task, say: “I will gather in my ‘summer’ today, not sleep through harvest.”
- Pick one specific small task you have been putting off and complete it in one focused block.
- For the rest of today, consciously pause once before speaking in any emotionally loaded moment.
Medium — 7 days (“Words & Work Check”)
- Each day, log two lines: “One way I worked diligently:” and “One moment I chose fewer words.”
- Choose one “harvest” area (work project, home task, learning goal) and touch it daily, even briefly, for seven days.
- At week’s end, note one outcome that started to shift because of these small choices.
Deep — 30 days (“Path Reset”)
- Identify one pattern of slackness (work avoidance, chronic lateness, scattered effort) and one pattern of careless speech (venting, gossip, needless criticism).
- Design a 30-day experiment: “I will give 20–30 focused minutes daily to this work lane,” and “I will not speak about absent people unless it is necessary and kind.”
- End each day with a one-line check: “Work: ____; Words: ____.” Track how your sense of strength and stability shifts over the month.
Comparative lenses — Other wisdom echoes
Aristotle — Virtue as Stable Habit
Aristotle pictures virtue as a settled habit between extremes. Proverbs 10’s steady contrast between diligence and slackness, measured speech and talkativeness, lines up with this idea: character is formed not by occasional bursts of effort, but by repeated balanced choices.
Confucius — Right Conduct & Measured Speech
Confucius emphasizes speaking appropriately within one’s role and season. His stress on restraint and fitting words resonates with Proverbs 10:19: wise people know when not to speak, and harmony is preserved when lips are guarded.
Socrates — Examining Your Daily Path
Socrates urges an “examined life,” asking what kind of person our repeated actions are making us. Proverbs 10 invites the same question: Are your daily work habits and speech patterns pulling you toward the righteous path or toward the foolish one, even if you have never named it aloud?
Buddha — Right Effort & Right Speech
In the Eightfold Path, Right Effort and Right Speech call for disciplined action and non-harmful words. While the worldview differs from Scripture, there is a shared warning: lazy effort and uncontrolled talk create suffering. Proverbs 10 anchors this in the fear of the LORD, not in self-effort alone.
Closing prayer (optional)
Lord, thank You for showing that work, words, and reverent fear of You all matter. Teach me to gather when it is time to gather, to restrain my lips when many words would harm, and to walk in Your way as my strength. Shape my path so that my outcomes honor You. In Jesus’ name, amen.