Proverbs 22:18 Commentary and Bible Study

He urges us to store up the proverbs in our hearts so that they provide a ready source of wisdom on our lips, in all our speech, when we are called upon to speak to the situations of life.How do we store them, keep them in our hearts? This is the greater work, the longer work, while the speaking that comes afterwards may take only a very few moments. Clearly the belly is a metaphor for the immaterial part of man, the heart, for this is where knowledge lives and where we store within us the truth of God. That knowledge has to be stored thoroughly, digested so to speak within us as we would digest a good meal. We do not simply retain the bare form of words of the proverbs or any other part of the word of God, but we look at them from this angle and that; we turn them over in our minds; we let them speak to the various situations we encounter; we recall them again and again and look for fresh light from them. They become a part of us and remain with us and we encourage them to have as great an effect on us as they can. They are like guests that are allowed to have access into every room in our house.Certainly this process will be aided by memorisation of Scripture and even of the proverbs. Memorisation will necessarily involve deep reflection on the meaning of the words in order to get them into our memories. The process of learning words forces us to consider their precise meaning. But it will also help us greatly if we use our spare thinking time to reflect on what we have learnt. What do our minds turn to when we have free time, while travelling to work, or doing tasks that do not occupy the mind directly? Do they turn naturally to the Scriptures and try to improve what we have already taken into our hearts? This is how we make profitable use of Scripture, and this will be the preparatory work necessary to prepare our lips to speak.God has made such a connection between our heart and our lips that the things we say come readily from within. Speech is more of an effort for some than for others, and some must work hard to consider what they will say before they say it, while other find that words seem to trip off the tongue. But all will discover that the storing up of truth in the heart will make them more able to speak edifying words. We think using silently verbalised words often, and the practice of doing so is not far removed from the actual opening of our lips with spoken words. This is why meditation on the truth of God is so profitable.