The Way
A Friend's House
As iron sharpens iron
Story
My son, this is the house of an old friend of mine. Now that the sun has set, he has lit a lamp in the courtyard and is welcoming us gladly. All he has set out is a bowl of greens and a few loaves of bread. Still, better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened ox where there is hatred.
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of trouble. This evening my friend did not hide my fault from me; he told me plainly. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the many kisses of an enemy are deceitful. As iron sharpens iron, so one person brightens the face of his friend.
My son, a man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Keep a friend like that beside you, and be that kind of friend to someone too. It's late now. Let's go home through the dark alleys.
Walk this scene on the map →Sayings
As iron sharpens iron, so one person brightens the face of his friend.
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of trouble.
Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the many kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
The sayings are fresh renderings of the original meaning in today's language. Text: Prov 15:17; 17:17; 27:6, 17; 18:24
Background
In Solomon's time a house in Israel was often a 'four-room house'. In the middle was a courtyard open to the sky, with rooms lined by stone pillars on either side and a long broad room across the back. In the evening people spread mats in the courtyard and shared bread baked in the oven along with greens, and they lit small clay lamps filled with olive oil.
Pause and Reflect
Do I have a friend who will tell me my faults honestly? Am I that kind of friend?