Proverbs 13:20 “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.”

You are the company you keep. As the idiom goes, “A man is known by the company he keeps”. In our walk with God, this is an extremely valuable Proverb to keep at the forefront of your mind. Even if you are wise, foolish friends will destroy you. And if you are foolish, wise friends will show and teach you the error of your ways. It’s easy to succeed in life when we keep wise people in our company.

This is such a simple rule too! Get rid of foolish friends and choose wise people for friends. Doing this, you will grow in wisdom yourself while also avoiding a great deal of trouble in life. Yes, giving up your friends is hard. The devil will even try to convince you of the lie that you can resist the evil influences of foolish friends. But God even teaches us not to fall into that foolish trap.

Proverbs 22:24-25 “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.”

To make things even more difficult, it may be your best friends are fools. Moreover, if your foolish friends are popular, dumping them may cost you your status amongst your peers. You may even naively think you can help or change your foolish friend, though they have rejected the truth. The Word of God says …

1 Corinthians 15:33 “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.”

The warning about deception is there to save you since many people think their friends are not dangerous. If you allow any evil into your life, you WILL lose your good manners. How did Lot end up in a cave with nothing but his 2 daughters? He drew close to Sodom and made friends with that sinful city.

Genesis 13:12-13 “Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.”

The best parents monitor and sift through every friend because foolish friends are a great threat to children and young people. Many decent parents make schooling decisions to protect their children but fail to monitor and sift through individual friends. This is one of the most important things you can do for your children. Children and youth are not wise enough to choose their own friends, so it is a parent’s responsibility to choose for them.

Fools cannot be real friends to a child of God. It is impossible because they are incompatible by nature, desiring completely different things in life.

Galatians 5:16-17 “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”

Galatians 5:19-22 “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,”

If you find yourself having the same worldly interests as your foolish friends, then you have the same affections as they have … and that is a problem.

Amos 3:3 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”

When born again, when converted, all our affections change. Yes, the enemy of souls will tempt us back into our old nature, but since our affections have changed, we resist the temptations … we do not fall back into them.

The fool has nothing of value to offer the child of God. What is a fool? Like always and with all things, let’s allow the Word of God to define its own terms.

Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

Romans 16:17-18 “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.”

Ignore your feelings and history and cut off your foolish friends. We have the example of David who rejected fools.

Psalm 1:1 “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”

Psalm 101:1-8 “I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing. I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person. Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD.”

Psalm 119:115 “Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God.”

David chose his friends from amongst those who fear God.

Psalm 119:63 “I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts.”

Psalm 119:79 “Let those that fear thee turn unto me, and those that have known thy testimonies.”

David absolutely had good friends! He had Jonathan.

1 Samuel 18:1-4 “And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father’s house. Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.”

1 Samuel 20:16-17 “So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, Let the LORD even require it at the hand of David’s enemies. And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.”

1 Samuel 23:16 “And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God.”

2 Samuel 1:26 “I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.”

He had king Hiram.

1 Kings 5:1 “And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.”

He had Ittai the Gittite.

2 Samuel 15:21 “And Ittai answered the king, and said, As the LORD liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be.”

So, how can you get rid of foolish friends? The best ways are to be upfront and honest (in as loving a way as possible!) by saying you cannot do former activities because of what the Lord says. Or, plainly tell them the friendship is over. How can you find wise friends? Learn to discriminate wisely.

2 Thessalonians 3:14 “And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.”

Titus 1:16 “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.”

How far should you flee from fools? VERY far! NEVER go in their direction!

Psalm 1:1 “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”

Proverbs 1:10, 15 “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path:”

Proverbs 4:14-15 “Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.”

Proverbs 9:6 “Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.”

Have no fellowship with them!

Proverbs 14:7 “Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.”

Ephesians 5:11-12 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.”

Since your salvation and future are at stake, find the way of good men and go in that direction.

Proverbs 2:20-21 “That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous. For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.”

Since marriage is about picking a companion for life, use this Proverb for picking a spouse. Have a good fear of God and you will be blessed with wisdom. If you do, wisdom will guide and bless your marriage and family. If you do not, both of you will be severely damaged. The friends you need above all others are the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.

Abraham was God’s friend because he carefully obeyed God and passionately worshipped Him.

2 Chronicles 20:7 “Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever?”

Isaiah 41:8 “But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.”

James 2:23 “And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.”

For his faith and obedience, Moses was treated as a great friend to God.

Exodus 33:11 “And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.”

Those who love and obey Jesus Christ are considered His friends.

Luke 12:4 “And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.”

John 15:14 “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.”

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