Proverbs 15:30 Commentary and Bible Study

The proverb is about two senses which act as channels by which information about the world enters into our hearts, and it is about the spiritual counterpart of these two senses. The first illustration is of the great advantage that the sighted have over the blind. In restoring sight to the blind, Christ returned men and women, ruined by the fall, to the original good state in which God created them, the state which he intended him to enjoy. These miracles were a figure of the healing effect of his coming into the world and the spiritual transformation he works in those who are spiritually blind to God. Man is incomplete without the gift of sight, and is deprived of one of the great evidences by which we may know there is a God (Romans 1). By the sight of the eyes the soul is enriched for it sees beauty which it has never seen before and gazes upon landscapes that give a wonderful perspective on human life. It considers colours and patterns that it instinctively knows are worthy of appreciation. It sees towering mountains that transport it out of the ordinary, and rolling waves that convey an impression of God’s power. It gazes into the distance of the furthest galaxies and has its understanding stretched as it tries to grasp the mind of God whose thoughts are so much higher than our thoughts. Without sight it is cut off from all these things, and it is foolish to pretend otherwise, for what the eyes see of the works of God teach them what they could not otherwise know.Likewise a good report, or good news, conveys to the heart through the ears information which instructs, elevates, inspires, and edifies. The report referred to is not a report about someone spoken to a third party, but a report to someone, a report which is heard by the individual and brings tidings that make a difference. The ear thus becomes the channel by which what was unknown becomes known. The report in mind is one which the hearer would like to hear. It could bring good news, or vital information, or encouragement, but it has a deep effect. But the greatest report that ever comes to the human heart is the report of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. This brings us what we could not otherwise know: the news of God’s willingness to forgive sinners and reconcile them to himself, to make them his children and give them an eternal inheritance. This makes the bones fat in the sense that they flourish with good health and vitality, the bones being themselves a figure for the strength of the whole person. The bones of the soul are the fundamental truths which it believes which give structure to our view of the world. Our souls need an understanding of why we exist and where we are going, and of the God who made us and how we may relate to him. These truths are the skeleton of the soul that hold it upright and enable it to walk through life.