Trust in the Lord.
v.25 Prosperity. A greedy person stirs up trouble in trying to obtain wealth at any cost. He is contrasted with the man who trusts in the Lord and, ironically, prospers. The object of your faith and appetites determine the course of your life. The greed of the first man becomes a hindrance to his obtaining wealth.
v.26 Trust. The one who trusts in himself (his own mind) is a fool (and will not be safe), but he who trusts in the Lord (and is therefore wise) will be kept safe from harm. The human heart is desperately wicked, to trust in it is the epitome of folly.
v.27 The poor. Whomever gives to the poor will not lack anything, but the one who turns his eyes away and doesn’t help will receive many curses (presumably from the poor who are being ignored).
v.28 The wicked. When the wicked rise to power, people hide themselves (28:12). When they perish the righteous will increase. Wisdom benefits both the individual and the community.

Read Proverbs 28:25-28

Hard work and finding favor.
v.19 Work hard. Work (your land) hard and you will be satisfied with food. But if you chase after daydreams you will find your fill of poverty (and go hungry). See 12:11, 20:13.
v.20 Wealth. Earn your wealth ethically with hard work and you will be blessed. Trying to get rich quick will result in ruin and punishment. Don’t be in a hurry to acquire wealth.
v.21 Partiality. The proverb cautions against showing partiality, indicating that for a small bribe a man will do wrong (i.e., show partiality). Rendering a wrong verdict based on a bribe seems to be in view.
v.22 Greed. Stingy, greedy people try to get rich quick, not realizing that they are headed for poverty (v.20). The idea of getting rich quick implies that it is done through some dishonest means.
v.23 A good rebuke. Paradoxically, when you rebuke a man (honest criticism) you will afterward find more favor than the one who only flatters with words.
v.24 Parent robbery. If you rob father and mother (claiming no wrong done) you are a companion of one who destroys (the family). Don’t try to get all of the inheritance for yourself.

Read Proverbs 28:19-24

Fear the Lord always.
v.13 Mercy. If you conceal (cover up, blame others, excuse, indulge) your sins you will not succeed, but if you confess and forsake (abandon) them you will obtain mercy. See 1 Jn 1:9 and Ps 51:4.
v.14 Beatitude. Blessed is the one who fears God always (by confessing and forsaking sins, v.13). But the one who hardens his heart will fall into trouble. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12).
v.15-16 Wicked ruler. A wicked ruler is like a dangerous wild animal (i.e., attacking bear or lion) preying on the poor of his country. A ruler without understanding (wisdom) is a cruel oppressor. But, a ruler who doesn’t go after gain unjustly will have prolonged days.
v.17-18 Walk in integrity. Do not help a murderer who is a fugitive fleeing from justice. He who walks in integrity will be delivered but the one crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.

Read Proverbs 28:13-18

Responsibility to the poor.
v.1 Guilty conscience. The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion. A guilty conscience causes the wicked to flee (ACCS). The righteous have a clear conscience and don’t need to look over their shoulders in fear.
v.2 Moral decay. Where there is moral decay, a government easily topples (or, the bureaucracy increases). But a man of wisdom and knowledge brings security and stability (maintains order, NIV).
v.3 The poor. A poor man (or ruler, NIV) who oppresses the poor (e.g., Mt 18:28) is like a pounding rain that destroys the crops, leaving no food for the hungry. The tyrant takes away the produce and labor of the poor and driving rain takes away the crops and soil (NICOT).
v.4 Do right. Those who forsake doing right (ignoring instruction/the law) praise the wicked (Rom 1:32). Those who continue doing right (heading instruction/the law) strive against the wicked (14:8).
v.5 Justice. The evil man does not grasp (or understand) justice (their evil thoughts and intentions blind their eyes) while the one who seeks the Lord understands it completely (or all). See Ps 92:6-7.
v.6 Walk in integrity. It is (much) better to be poor and walk with integrity than to be rich and crooked in your ways. Parallel in Prv 19:1. There are of course rich people who walk with integrity, the proverb only addresses those rich who are perverse.
v.7 Gluttons. A young man who is a companion of gluttons (habitually greedy) brings shame on the family, but the young man who obeys the law is wise.
v.8 Usury. If you increase your wealth by charging interest on the poor, you gather it for the one who is generous to the poor. In Israel it was against the law to charge the poor interest (Ex 22:25). Wealth obtained through unjust or unlawful means will eventually go to the poor.
v.9 Hear the law. If you turn away from hearing the law, even your prayers will be counted an abomination. See also 15:8. Don’t expect God to listen to you if you don’t listen to him.
v.10 Just reward. The man who leads an upright person astray will be destroyed by his own evil. Likewise, good rewards wait those who walk in integrity. The proverb shows that the righteous are corruptible and can be led astray into sin.
v.11 Wise in their eyes. The rich are wise in their own eyes (26:16), but a poor man with understanding will find them out (see through them).
v.12 Righteous government. When the righteous triumph the city is glad (11:10), when the wicked get ahead, the people hide (28:28).

Read Proverbs 28:1-12

Caring for your animals.
v.23-27 Condition of the flocks. Know the condition of your flocks because riches don’t last forever. The implication is that you need to take good care of your animals in order for them to provide food and clothing from generation to generation. The lambs provide for clothing and goats can be sold for the price of a field. The wise will take care and there will be enough goats milk for one’s household.

Read Proverbs 27:23-27

The heart reflects a person’s true nature.
v.17 Iron sharpens iron. Just as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. Much wisdom arises from the critical interaction with a good friend (both encouragement and correction). “Sharpens” refers to the process of molding and shaping one’s character.
v.18 Fig tree. Faithful servants will eat of the fruit of their labors (1 Cor 9:7-10). He who serves his master well will be honored (Mt 25:21).
v.19 Reflection. As clear water reflects the face, so the heart of a man reflects the man — and the Lord weighs the heart (21:2). See Mt 5:8.
v.20 Desire. As death and destruction (here personifying the destiny of the dead) are never satisfied, so the desires of man are never satisfied. We never have our fill of money, power, or pleasure. No one dies with half of what they wanted.
v.21 The furnace. The furnace tests silver and gold (17:3), so also man is tested by praise (whether it results in pride or humility). The furnace is used to purify silver and gold by heat. Likewise praise is used to reveal a person’s character.
v.22 Grind to a pulp. Folly is so deeply rooted in the character of a fool, that it is unaffected even if you grind him to a pulp (the idea is severe physical punishment).

Read Proverbs 27:17-22

Loud neighbors and a quarrelsome wife.
v.13 Security. Take a man’s garment, and hold it in pledge, when he puts up security for a stranger (or a strange woman or a foreigner) (see 20:16). See warnings about pledges at 6:1-5.
v.14 Loud neighbor. A loud and cheerful greeting, early in the morning, will be counted as a curse. What you say and when you say it are both important. Saying the right thing at the right time is a blessing (15:23).
v.15-16 Continual dripping. A quarrelsome wife is like the continual dripping on a rainy day (19:13). Stopping her complaints and nagging is like trying to stop the wind or grab something coated with oil (Est 1:18).

Read Proverbs 27:13-16

Home and family.
v.7 Hungry mouth. Those who are fully satisfied refuse honey (that which is sweet and healthy), but to the hungry mouth even bitter (that which is painful or displeasing) things are sweet. “The person who does not find his spiritual craving satisfied in true religion will go after any grievous idolatry and, being sated by it, will despise true religion” (Waltke).
v.8 Strays from home. A person who strays from home is like a bird that strays from the nest. He will find trouble before he finds what he is looking for. Perhaps to be understood as he who wonders from his home leaving it unprotected.
v.9 Earnest counsel. Oil and perfume are sweet and make the heart glad, in the same way the earnest counsel of a friend is sweet and gives delight (see also v.6).
v.10 Far away. Prefer a nearby neighbor to a far away, physically or emotionally(?), relative in your time of need or calamity. Likewise, do not fail your friend in his time of need. Compare 17:17. Don’t burn your bridges with your friends or your parents friends.
v.11 Teacher. A teacher is often evaluated by the results in his or her students. Here Solomon tells his son to make his heart glad (live wisely) so he can answer his critics.
v.12 The prudent. The prudent (shrewd) man sees danger ahead and takes it into account, the simple (naive) continues on and suffers for it.

Read Proverbs 27:7-12