Proverbs 18:24 in the KJV says, “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”  Although I love the KJV, and use it as my main Bible, I believe we can get a better understanding of what this verse means by looking at a couple of other translations.

NASB – “A person of too many friends comes to ruin, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

WEB – “A man of many companions may be ruined, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

DARBY – “A man of [many] friends will come to ruin but there is a friend [that] sticketh closer than a brother.”

As you can see, this gives a very different insight as to the true meaning of what the Lord is trying to teach us with this verse.  The literal translation of the first part of this verse, from the Hebrew, is, “a man of friends will come to destruction.”  The one Hebrew word, “raw-ah’” is translated “must show himself friendly” in the KJV (and some other translations).  According to the Strong’s Concordance, that word literally means “to spoil, afflict, do mischief, vex”. In fact, that same word is translated as “wickedly” (Genesis 19:7); “hurt” (Genesis 31:7); “evil” (Exodus 5:23), “afflicted” (Numbers 11:11), and so on.  So, what is the proper lesson for us in this verse?

I believe this is a very good and important warning to us.  A person who will form friendships too quickly and indiscriminately is opening himself up to his own ruin.  When our desire is to gain as many friends as possible, we may begin to open ourselves up to evil influences.  We are instructed in 1 Timothy 5:22 to, “Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men’s sins: keep thyself pure.”  In this case, to lay hands on someone is to accept them into our circle of friends.  When we take someone into our confidence and begin to spend valuable time with them, we often allow their thoughts and practices to influence us.  Perhaps we are much better off with a smaller group of true and godly friends than we are with a large group of friends that can lead us away from living a life to honor the Lord. 

• Proverbs 13:20 warns us, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.”
• Proverbs 22:24-25 warns us, “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.”
• 1 Corinthians 15:33 warns us, “Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”” (NASB).

It is true that to have good friends, we need to be friendly, and we should be friendly and show godly love to everyone.  Colossians 3:12 instructs us to, “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering.”  Yes, we MUST exhibit the love and care of God to all, but we must be cautious about who we invite into our lives to become part of our daily living. 

The 2^nd part of Proverbs 18:24 deserves our attention.  “And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”  There is one friend who will always love us, always meet our needs, and never forsake us.  The Lord Jesus Christ, Himself.  He sticks closer than any brother ever could.  We read in Proverbs 17:17 that, “A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”  A true brother is there to be a support in all matters of difficulty.  We thank the Lord for faithful brothers (natural and spiritual), but the Lord’s love for us is so much greater than even the most loving brother.  Dear reader, is the Lord Jesus your friend?  He says to us, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” (John 15:14).  And what does the Lord command you to do?  “Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” (John 6:29).  In other words, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior.  (CC)  (721.2)