Warning against Self-Praise and Presumption.
V. 7. The full soul, one already satisfied with food, with no appetite remaining, loatheth an honeycomb, inviting and appetizing as it otherwise may be; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet, for “hunger is the best cook.”
V. 8. As the bird that wandereth from her nest, deserting her home in a spirit of restlessness, so is a man that wandereth from his place, roaming about in a spirit of adventure instead of cultivating proper domestic tastes.
V.9. Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart, both of them being used by the Oriental host in honoring his guests; so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel, if the counsel really proceeds from a sincere heart, it is pleasant beyond all outward indications of affection.
V. 10. Thine own friend and thy father’s friend forsake not, for they are reliable, having been found tried and true; neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity, since a relationship by blood is not so close and intimate, in many cases, as one founded upon true friendship; for better is a neighbor that is near, with whom one is connected by the bonds of friendship, than a brother far off, with whom one may no longer have many things in common. The ties of blood may be less reliable than those of genuine friendship.