Proverbs 24:27

thy work viz. the work required for building thy house. Follow the course pursued in the erection of the Temple, 1 Kings 6:7. Comp. 1 Chronicles 28:2, I had made ready(the same Heb. word as is here rendered prepare) for the building.

Such preparingand making readyincludes mental as well as material preparation, prudent "counting the cost," as well as careful selection of materials. When this is understood, the proverb which has been obscured by supposing it to mean, "first till thy field and then build thy house," or, "first make provision for a family and then found one," is plain and forcible, and lends itself readily to moral and spiritual applications.