The Sweetness of a True Friend (Proverbs 27:9)
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Proverbs 27:9
‘Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.’
This verse reminds us that just as oil and perfume delight our senses, so too does heartfelt, earnest counsel refresh and uplift the soul.
This earnest, heartfelt counsel from a friend seen in this verse is so sweet. So sweet.
Have you experienced it? Have you ever had a friend come to you with some counsel that was clearly prayed over, significantly thought through, and lovingly delivered?
It’s something special, and I’ll tell you from experience it means so much. I really think the language used here in this Proverb is depicting a friend delivering advice from the heart. And whenever someone speaks to you from their heart, to me that resembles a place of care, of vulnerability, of love, and of trust.
Again, it’s a beautiful thing. It’s sweet.
‘Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.’
A beautiful picture of this earnest counsel in Scripture can be found in Exodus 18, where Moses is in the heart of his ministry, and he’s doing a lot for the people of Israel – in fact, arguably too much – which is why his father-in-law Jethro delivered him some heartfelt advice.
Jethro begins in verses 17 and 18 by saying, ‘What you are doing is not good. 18 You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone.’
And then he proceeds to tell Moses to bring some more people onto his team to help lighten the burden he was carrying. And that advice genuinely made Moses’ heart glad in the same way we see in Proverbs 27:9, and helped relieve him of the burdens he was carrying.
It’s like having a spotter in the gym – helping you lift what you thought was too heavy. That’s biblical friendship. That’s the friendship seen in Exodus 18 with Moses and Jethro, and that’s the principle of friendship in Proverbs 27:9. Carrying one another’s burdens and giving advice and encouragement to help each other see where and what we can do to lighten our load.
That’s sweet, the sweetness of a friend.
And all of it leads me to ask you today:
Who in your life gives you real, heartfelt counsel? If no one comes to mind, what might be keeping you from having that kind of friendship?
And on the flip side, are you the kind of friend to give this kind of counsel to anyone in your life?
If not, that’s important to know so that you can change it.
We need friends like the one described in the verse, and we also all need to be the friend in this verse.
And of course, while we all need friends who give us earnest counsel and also need to be the friends who give this counsel, let’s not forget the ultimate friend, the greatest counselor, who is Jesus Himself. Through His Word, through prayer, through the Holy Spirit – He speaks truth into our lives, lifting burdens we can’t carry alone.
Let’s pray with Him at the forefront in reflecting on this verse.
