Proverbs 23:1 · World English Bible
Proverbs 23:1 Meaning When You Sit to Eat
When you sit to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before you;
What does Proverbs 23:1 mean?
To sit at the ruler's table is to come before whatever power the mind has set over itself and to take in what it offers. The counsel to consider carefully is a call to watch which teacher is doing the feeding, for the ego rules like a lord and spreads a table of its own, serving the mind thoughts of lack and desire disguised as nourishment.
From the Christian Psychology reading below.
Proverbs 23:1 through 1 lens
The same verse, read by one tradition.
Christian Psychology
CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY
Christian Psychology
To sit at the ruler's table is to come before whatever power the mind has set over itself and to take in what it offers. The counsel to consider carefully is a call to watch which teacher is doing the feeding, for the ego rules like a lord and spreads a table of its own, serving the mind thoughts of lack and desire disguised as nourishment. What is set before one is not always food for the soul.
The mind that looks with care before it swallows keeps its choice its own. It can receive what love would give and set aside what fear would feed it, no longer consuming every thought put in front of it as though it had no say.
Ruler: the power the mind has set over itself, the ego enthroned as a lord that feeds it thoughts of its own choosing. That which is before thee: the thoughts offered to the mind to take in, the fare to be examined before it is swallowed.
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Live Proverbs 23:1 today
- Before the first scroll of the day, ask what you are about to let in. Then choose it on purpose instead of taking whatever is served.
- When someone hands you a strong opinion about a third person, hear it without swallowing it. You can hold it loosely and decide later.
- In a meeting or a heated thread, when a thought arrives insisting you must respond right now, look at it for a second. Urgency is usually the least reliable part.
What did I take in today without ever deciding to?
The same truth in other traditions
Buddhism · yoniso manasikara, wise attention
Before acting, look at where a thought is coming from and where it leads. Not every thought that arrives deserves to be believed.
Stoicism · Epictetus
When an impression shows up, stop and test it. Ask whether it is actually true before you let it move you.
Taoism · Zhuangzi
The cook who studies the ox finds the openings and never dulls his blade. Looking closely first saves all the forcing later.
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