Skip to content

Passage Research

Proverbs 23 — Sermon Preparation

Below is a research summary for Proverbs 23, drawn from openly licensed scholarly databases — original-language morphology, classic sermons from the church fathers through the Puritans, and ancient geography data.

35
verses
274 / 164
Hebrew words / lemmas
20
classic sermon excerpts
4
preachers & commentators

Proverbs 23 in the Hebrew

Distinctive vocabulary of this chapter, based on original-language morphology.

Hebrew Transliteration Strong's Count Glosses
לֵב lêb H3820 9 heart, feelings
עַיִן ʻayin H5869 6 eye, fountain
מוּסָר mûwçâr H4148 3 chastisement, reproof
גִּיל gîyl H1523 3 spin, rejoice
יַיִן yayin H3196 3 wine, intoxication
שָׂמַח sâmach H8055 3 brighten, be
סָבָא çâbâʼ H5433 2 quaff, become tipsy

How preachers through history handled this text

20 public-domain excerpts on Proverbs 23, from the church fathers to the Puritans.

Spurgeon 8 Matthew Henry 6 Alexander MacLaren 5 John Wesley 1

“The gracious Saviour who purchased pardon and peace for his people, with all the affection of a tender parent, counsels us to hear and be wise, and is ready to guide our hearts in his way. Here we have an earnest call to young people, to attend to the advice of their godly parents. If the heart be guided, the steps will be guided. Buy the truth, and sell it not; be willing to part with any thing for it. Do not part with it for pleasures, honours, riches, or any thing in this world. The heart is what the great God requires. …”

— Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible (Concise), on Proverbs 23:19–28 (Public Domain)

Need the complete sermon prep report on this passage?

Greek exegesis, historical background, current scholarship, sermon outlines, illustrations — a complete PDF report on Proverbs 23, delivered in 45 minutes.