Proverbs 22:28

Perhaps your boundary is ancient. Perhaps your family agreed the boundary with your neighbour’s family, many years ago. But perhaps now, you need more land. And your neighbour will not sell his land. You could just move your fence. Your neighbour might not even realise that the boundary has moved. And you will have the land that you desire.

But before you act, think first! There was an ancient agreement. Perhaps, before the agreement, there were many arguments. Perhaps your family even fought your neighbour’s family. If you do not obey the agreement, then these troubles might start again.

An agreement is like a promise. Everyone should respect an agreement. And you should respect your neighbour’s property. If a neighbour does not want to sell his land, then you cannot buy it. And you are a thief if you take his land without an agreement. See 1 Kings 21.

In ancient Israel, the ‘land’ had a special meaning. God owned the land (Leviticus 25:23). Proverbs 22:28 repeats God’s command in Deuteronomy 19:14. So these ancient boundaries were not merely agreements between neighbours, like our boundaries today. The ancient boundaries in Israel were an agreement between the people and God. And anyone who moved a boundary was refusing to obey God’s law.

v29 A skilled workman serves kings.

He will not serve ordinary people.