Friends are a wonderful blessing from God – a gift given to help us become better people (Prov. 27:17). Yet they are only a blessing when we have chosen the right ones. “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed” (Prov. 13:20). “Evil companionships corrupt good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33).
Therefore, we should try to surround ourselves with companions who are wise enough “to turn [you] away from the snares of death” (Prov. 13:14) while avoiding those who don’t care where we spend eternity.
What are some of the characteristics of those we should not have as close friends?
Consider these pearls from the book of Proverbs:
- Proverbs 20:19 – “He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with one who flatters with his lips.”
- Proverbs 22:24-25 – “Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul.”
- Proverbs 23:20-21 – “Do not mix with winebibbers, or with gluttonous eaters of meat; for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.”
- Proverbs 24:21-22 – “My son, fear the LORD and the king; do not associate with those given to change; for their calamity will rise suddenly, and who knows the ruin those two can bring?”
- Proverbs 25:19 – “Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint.”
Instead of having friends like that, make it your goal to surround yourself with good, wise, and righteous people. If you do, it won’t be long before you’ll be on your knees saying, “Thank you, God, for my friends.”…Eddie Parrish
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