Proverbs 15:32 Commentary and Bible Study

But some despise their own souls – an extraordinary and unnatural thing to do. Strangely there is something they love more than their own souls: their pride. This is a false love of self and not one that works for our true good. It is not wrong for us to love our own souls as is evident from many Scriptures – David calls his soul his darling, or his only one (Psalm 22:20). We see that our souls are eternal, the most precious possession that we have. A single soul is worth more than all the world put together. We should be ready to bear all loss for its sake, and we should cetainly be ready to bear loss of face before men and to accept the reproof of those who see our faults more clearly than we do. The soul’s good does not always come in the most straightforward way, directly to itself. God knows how to bring good to the soul and it does not always mean the most comfortable path, or even a healthy body. A man who hears instruction must handle himself carefully. Assuming that it is justified correction, he must admit that no matter who it comes from, the fact that it is true gives the other person the right to correct him. He who has a true love for his soul is not too proud to be rebuked or too prickly to be corrected but gladly accepts what he knows will do him good. He can therefore offset the present discomfort against the future benefit. To confuse love for the soul with love for self is a great mistake. Love of the soul is entirely consistent with love for others and love for God. Therefore we suppress indignation on being corrected and to the extent that they speak what is true we accept all men as our teachers.