New Year, Proverbs of Old
Proverbs 1 King James Version (KJV)
“The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck. My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.”
- Proverbs 1 (KJV)
“The proverbs of Solomon.” The Book of Proverbs is a collection of practical life wisdom given mostly in short, memorable statements. Though part of a larger body of wisdom literature that includes Job, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon, the Book of Proverbs is unique.
i. It is unique in its structure, being mostly a collection of individual statements without much context or organization by topic.
ii. It is unique in its theology, being concerned with practical life wisdom more than ideas about God and His work of salvation.
iii. Proverbs is also unique in its connection with the secular literature of its time. Neighboring kingdoms had their own collections of wisdom literature, and in some places there are significant similarities to these writings.
iv. As Ross notes, “The genre of wisdom literature was common in the ancient world, and a copious amount of material comes from ancient Egypt.” Some of these works are titled:
Egyptian:
Instruction of Ptah-hotep
Teaching of Amenemope
Instruction of Ani
Babylonian:
Instruction of Shuruppak
Counsels of Wisdom
Words of Ahiqar
v. There are several sections of Proverbs (Pro 22:17-23:14, 22:23, 22:26-27 are examples) that seem to be borrowed from The Teaching of Amenemope, an ancient Egyptian writing. There is debate as to whom borrowed whom, but most scholars believe Amenemope is earlier.
“If Proverbs is the borrower here, the borrowing is not slavish but free and creative. Egyptian jewels, as at the Exodus, have been reset to their advantage by Israelite workmen and put to finer use.”
-A. Kidner
“The proverbs.” Proverbs teach wisdom through short points and principles, but should not be regarded as “laws” or even universal promises.
“Proverbs are wonderfully successful at being what they are: proverbs. They are not failed prophecies or systematic theologies. Proverbs by design lays out pointed observations, meant to be memorized and pondered, not always intended to be applied ‘across the board’ to every situation without qualification.”
-K. Phillips
“Naturally [proverbs] generalize, as a proverb must, and may therefore be charged with making life too tidy to be true. But nobody objects to this in secular sayings, for the very form demands a sweeping statement and looks for a hearer with his wits about him. We need no telling that a maxim like ‘Many hands make light work’ is not the last word on the subject, since ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth.’”
-A. Kidner
Proverbs itself makes this clear. A proverb is not a magical formula, bringing wisdom and blessing by incantation as we see later in The Book of Proverbs:
“The legs of the lame are not equal: so is a parable in the mouth of fools.”
-Proverbs 26:7 (KJV)
Proverbs rarely quotes other parts of the Hebrew Scriptures, such as the torah or law.
“An analogy to this is American folk wisdom which, although often dominated by Christian morality and presuppositions, contains few allusions to the Bible or Christian theology.”
-S. Garrett
“The proverbs of Solomon.” Solomon was the king of Israel, famous for his wisdom. In The First Book of Kings, Solomon asked God for wisdom to lead His people, and then presented a remarkable demonstration of his wisdom:
“And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places. And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment; Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.”
-1 Kings 3:3-13 (KJV)”
Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlaid it. And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear. And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king. Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living. And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it. Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof. And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.
-1 Kings 3:16-28 (KJV)
“And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five. And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.”
-1 Kings 4:32-34 (KJV)
The opening “the proverbs of Solomon” should not be taken to mean that Solomon was the author of all these proverbs. There are a few other authors specifically mentioned. Yet, it may well be that Solomon collected all these other proverbs and set them in his book. Whether Solomon was the collector or some unnamed later person, we can’t know for certain.
“The book tells us that it is the work of several authors. Three of these are named (Solomon, Agur and Lemuel), others are mentioned collectively as ‘Wise Men’, and at least one section of the book (the last) is anonymous.”
-A. Kidner
Yet, the prominence of Solomon in these wonderful statements of wisdom gives the reader pause. We know that this remarkably wise man did not finish his life in wisdom.
“To know wisdom and instruction:” In the opening of his collection of proverbs, Solomon explained the purpose of these sayings of wisdom. They were and are to give the attentive reader wisdom, instruction, perception, and understanding.
““We’re living in the ‘information age,’ but we certainly aren’t living in the ‘age of wisdom.’ Many people who are wizards with their computers seem to be amateurs when it comes to making a success out of their lives.”
-J. Wiersbe
“To perceive the words of understanding:” The reference to sight implies that these words of wisdom could be and were read, which we also see later in Proverbs Three:
“ My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion.”
-Proverbs 3:21 (KJV)
In Sumer and in ancient Egypt, schoolboys wrote down the instruction literature, and in ancient Israel most children were literate as we see in the following scripture:
“And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.”
-Deuteronomy 6:9 (KJV)
“And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates.”
-Deuteronomy 11:20 (KJV)
With the invention of the alphabet in the first half of the second millennium, any person of average intelligence could learn to read and probably to write within a few weeks. The earliest extant text in Hebrew (ca. 900 b.c.) is a child’s text recounting the agricultural calendar. A. Millard says that ancient Hebrew written documents demonstrate that readers and writers were not rare and that few Israelites would have been unaware of writing.
“To know wisdom.” It is helpful to remember the difference between wisdom and knowledge. One may have knowledge without wisdom. Knowledge is the collection of facts; wisdom is the right use of what we know for daily living. Knowledge can tell one how financial systems work; wisdom manages a budget properly.
“It is probably a safe bet to say that most people today are not much interested in wisdom. They are interested in making money and in having a good time. Some are interested in knowing something, in getting an education. Almost everyone wants to be well liked. But wisdom? The pursuit of wisdom is not a popular ideal.”
-J.C. Boice
“To receive the instruction of wisdom.” Proverbs is something of a school of wisdom. We come to it open hearts and minds, receiving its teaching. If we do, it will show as “justice, and judgment, and equity,” flow from our lives.
“And herein, as one well observeth, the poorest idiot being a sound Christian, goeth beyond the profoundest clerks that are not sanctified, that he hath his own heart instead of a commentary to help him to understand even the most needful points of the Scripture.”
-V. Trapp
“To give subtilty to the simple.” The simple one is uneducated and needs instruction. The wisdom of this book will make the young, inexperienced one know what to do and how to do it in life. It will give “the young man knowledge and discretion.”
One characteristic of the simple is that they are gullible as we see in a later Proverb:
“The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.”
-Proverbs 14:15 (KJV)
“The word indicates the person whose mind is dangerously open. He is gullible, he is naïve. He may have opinions, but he lacks deeply thought-through and field-tested convictions.”
-K. Phillips
“Two conflicting worldviews make their appeal, ‘of Wisdom/Folly, Good/Pseudo-Good, Life/Death,’ and one must choose between them, for there is no third way.”
-W. Waltke
“A wise man will hear, and will increase learning.” The Book of Proverbs is not only for the simple and inexperienced. Even a wise man will find much to help and guide him, if he will only hear. Even a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels from Proverbs.
“Proverbs is not simply for the naive and the gullible; everyone can grow by its teachings. Discerning people can obtain guidance from this book so that they might continue in the right way.”
-D. Ross
“To understand a proverb, and the interpretation.” The wisdom of the Book of Proverbs can also help us to solve difficult problems and some of the riddles of life.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” The Book of Proverbs focuses on practical life wisdom more than theological ideas. Yet it is founded on a vital theological principle; that true knowledge and wisdom flow from “the fear of the Lord.”
This “fear of the Lord” is not a cowering, begging fear. It is the proper reverence that the creature owes to the Creator and that the redeemed owes to the Redeemer. It is the proper respect and honoring of God. Several writers give their definition of “the fear of the Lord.”
“But what is the fear of the Lord? It is that affectionate reverence by which the child of God bends himself humbly and carefully to his Father’s law.”
-T. Bridges
“A worshipping submission to the God of the covenant.”
-A. Kidner
“‘The fear of the Lord’ ultimately expresses reverential submission to the Lord’s will and thus characterizes a true worshiper.”
-D. Ross
“The fear of the Lord signifies that religious reverence which every intelligent being owes to his Creator.”
-A. Clarke
ii. God should be regarded with respect, reverence, and awe. This proper attitude of the creature toward the Creator is “the beginning of knowledge” and wisdom. Wisdom cannot advance further until this starting point is established.
iii. If true wisdom can be simply gained by human effort, energy, and ingenuity (like the rare and precious metals of the earth), then the “fear of the Lord” is not essential to obtaining wisdom. But if it comes from God’s revelation, then right relationship with Him is the key to wisdom.
iv. “What the alphabet is to reading, notes to reading music, and numerals to mathematics, the fear of the Lord is to attaining the revealed knowledge of this book.”
-W Waltke
“The beginning of knowledge:” Solomon probably meant knowledge here mostly in the sense of wisdom. The idea that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom is also found in the following scripture:
“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”
-Job 28:28 (KJV)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.”
-Psalm 111:10 (KJV)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”
-Proverbs 9:10 (KJV)
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”
-Ecclesiastes 12:13 (KJV)
“The fundamental fact, then, is that in all knowledge, all understanding of life, all interpretation thereof, the fear of Jehovah is the principal thing, the chief part, the central light, apart from which the mind of man gropes in darkness, and misses the way.”
-J.P. Morgan
“My son, hear the instruction of thy father.” This is a warm and appropriate scene. A father speaks to his son, encouraging him to receive the wisdom of his parents. It is often the nature of the young to be slow to receive the wisdom of their older generation.
i. The mention of a son reminds us of another tragedy or irony regarding the life of Solomon. The man who had 700 wives and 300 concubines left record of only one son, Rehoboam, and he was a fool.
ii. Because both the father and the mother are mentioned, we know that teaching the children wisdom is the responsibility of both parents.
iii. The mention of instruction shows that Solomon understood that children are not to be taught only or even primarily through bodily punishment (such as a spanking). Children are regarded as capable of thought, learning, and obedience beyond blind submission.
“They shall be an ornament of grace unto they head.” The idea is that the instruction and law given from parent to child will adorn the life of their children, if they will only receive it. Like a crown “unto thy head” or “chains about thy neck,” such wisdom will be a reward to a younger generation.
“My son, if sinners entice thee:” Solomon first warned his son about the danger of bad company. The actions of some people clearly reveal them to be sinners, more than in the general sense in which we are all sinners. These are those whom the young must resist their enticements.
Significantly, this first instruction and warning in the book of Proverbs speaks to the company we keep and the friendships we make. There are few more powerful forces and influences upon our life than the friends we choose. It has been said, show me your friends and I can see your future. It speaks to the great need for God’s people to be more careful and wise in their choice of friends.
“They can do thee no harm unless thy will join in with them…Not even the devil himself can lead a man into sin till he consents. Were it not so, how could God judge the world?”
-A.C. Clarke
“Come with us, let us lay wait for blood.” When the wicked plot their evil actions, the wise son will not consent. He will distance himself from them, no matter what the promised or potential gain may be: “we shall fill our houses with spoil.”
Part of their enticement was simply the sense of belonging: “come with us.”
“Apparently in ancient Israel, no less than in the modern world, the comradeship, easy money, and feeling of empowerment offered by gangs was a strong temptation to the young man who felt overwhelmed by the difficulties of the life he confronted every day.” -M Garrett
Solomon described the words of sinners in terms of their real meaning and effect, and not what they actually said. Surely such sinners would appeal to riches and quick gain, and not merely invite this one to shed blood. Solomon tells us to hear what people mean with such promises of quick and easy riches, not only what they say.
“Walk not thou in the way with them.” The guidance from father to son was simple and clear. Stay away from the wicked and all their plotting, “for their feet run to evil.”
“In vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.”
“The bird does not see any connection between the net and what is scattered on it; he just sees food that is free for the taking. In the process he is trapped and killed. In the same way, the gang cannot see the connection between their acts of robbery and the fate that entraps them.”
-M. Garrett
Tragically, Solomon’s company with sinners, in the form of his wives given to idolatry, became a trap he himself was caught in.
“They lay in wait for their own blood.” Ultimately, the gain promised by the wicked can never be fulfilled. They say, let us lie in wait to shed blood, but in fact they are the hunted. They seek to take the life and livelihood of others, but it takes away the life of its owners.
“Wisdom crieth without.” Solomon presents wisdom as a person, a woman who offers her guidance and help to the world. Her cry is aloud, but often ignored.
“And this wisdom is said to cry with a loud voice, to intimate both God’s earnestness in inviting sinners to repentance, and their inexcusableness if they do not hear such loud cries.”
-A. Poole
“The greatest tragedy is that there’s so much noise that people can’t hear the things they really need to hear. God is trying to get through to them with the voice of wisdom, but all they hear are the confused communications clutter, foolish voices that lead them farther away from the truth.”
-W. Wiersbe
“In the streets: She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates; in the city.” Wisdom presents herself to everyone in every place. She offers her help to anyone who will give attention to “her voice.”
“Here the open proclamation…to make it clear that the offer of wisdom is to the man in the street, and for the business of living, not to an élite for the pursuit of scholarship.”
-A Kidner
“How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?” Wisdom begins her appeal by addressing those who most need her help, the ‘simple ones,” those who are untrained in the ways of wisdom.
She challenged those without wisdom to give account for their lack, asking “How long?” How many more weeks, months, or years will the “simple ones” reject or neglect wisdom’s help?
“I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts.”
-Isaiah 65:2 (KJV)
This warning is given for a prolonged refusal. Because wisdom has been continually rejected, wisdom will laugh at the calamity of those who have rejected it. The problem with these “simple ones” was that they loved their simplicity. They preferred their foolish ignorance than the effort and correction required by the love and pursuit of wisdom.
“The scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge.” This scorn describes those who boastfully reject and despise God’s wisdom. They love their simplicity and scorn, and they “hate knowledge.”
“Scorners think they know everything and laugh at the things that are really important. While the simple one has a blank look on his face, the scorner wears a sneer.”
-W. Wiersbe
“Fools are people who are ignorant of truth because they’re dull and stubborn. Their problem isn’t a low IQ or poor education; their problem is a lack of spiritual desire to seek and find God’s wisdom.”
-W. Wiersbe
We can see a downward progression. You started gullible, then became a fool, and ended up a scorner.
“Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you.” The embrace of wisdom begins with a turn. One must be willing to change direction from the pursuit of foolishness and scorn, and turn towards God and His wisdom. This response to wisdom’s rebuke invites wisdom to pour itself out.
It seems that the description here is of the spirit of wisdom, not specifically the Holy Spirit. The two concepts do not contradict each other, but they are also not exactly the same.
“Because I have called and you refused.” This is the rebuke that wisdom offered. She promised that if she were rejected, she would “laugh at your calamity.” Rejected wisdom has nothing to offer the fool when “destruction cometh as a whirlwind.”
“Wisdom does not laugh at disaster, but at the triumph of what is right over what is wrong when your disaster happens.”
-W. Waltke
“They shall call upon me, but I will not answer.” When wisdom is rejected, she has no alternative plan for the fool. In the time of crisis the fool cannot expect to beg for and receive instant wisdom; “they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me.”
“And did not choose the fear of the Lord.” This “fear of the Lord” is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge as we see in the following scripture:
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
-Proverbs 1:7, (KJV)
“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”
-Job 28:28 (KJV)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.”
-Psalm 111:10 (KJV)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”
-Proverbs 9:10 (KJV)
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”
-Ecclesiastes 12:13 (KJV)
To reject this respect of God is to reject wisdom.
“Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way.” The consequences of rejecting wisdom cannot be avoided. The end result of this love of foolishness and scorn will be death; “shall slay them,” and destruction; “shall destroy them.”
“Eat as they baked, drink as they brewed. They that sow the wind of iniquity, shall reap the whirlwind of misery.”
-V. Trapp
“The eleven other occurrences of “turning away” are all in Hosea or Jeremiah, always with reference to Israel’s apostasy, faithlessness, and backsliding from God and from the Mosaic covenant.”
-W. Waltke
“The reason for the sinner’s ruin is placed again at his own door. He is wayward since he turns away from wisdom’s beckoning voice. He despises the only cure.”
-J. Bridges
“If, elsewhere in the book, fool and scorner appear to be fixed types, it is their fault, not their fate: they are eating of the fruit of their own way.”
-A. Kidner
“But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely.” Those who do listen to wisdom’s call “shall be quiet from fear of evil.” Their fear of the Lord resulted in their having no “fear of evil.”
“And as a wicked man’s mind is oft full of anxiety in the midst of all his outward prosperity and glory, so the mind of a good man is filled with peace and joy, even when his outward man is exposed to many troubles.”
-A. Poole
“Death shall lose its terrors, and become the Father’s servant, ushering you into His presence. Pain and suffering shall but cast into relief the stars of Divine promise. Poverty will have no pangs, and storm no alarms.”
-J. Meyer
Brothers and sisters, in these times of trouble and strife, remember God is always there and Jesus carried your pain and suffering to the cross.
-God bless!
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THE PROTECTIVE POWER OF WISDOM
“The ‘alphabetic’ poem is a single sentence consisting of 22 verses, matching the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet, probably to suggest its completeness.”
-Bruce Waltke
Proverbs 2 King James Version (KJV)
“My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things; Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked; Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths:To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead. None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life. 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. But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.”
-Psalm 2 (KJV)
“My son, if thou wilt receive my words,” In the first chapter of Proverbs Solomon began to speak to his son, instructing him in the ways of wisdom. Here he continues the teaching, appealing to his son to “receive my words” and to “hide my commandments.” Wisdom can never benefit if it is not received and treasured.
“The search, strenuous as it must be, is not unguided. Its starting-point is revelation—specific (words) and practical (commandments); its method is not one of free speculation, but of treasuring and exploring received teachings so as to penetrate to their principles.”
-A. Kidner
“‘Accept’ [receive] is paralleled with ‘store up’ [hide], a figure that implies that most teaching cannot be used immediately but that some time will pass before education’s effects are felt.”
-D. Ross
“Hide my commandments with thee.”
“God’s intention is that you and I make His wisdom our own. We are to learn it from the Bible. Nobody is to know it in our stead. Pastors are charged by God with helping us to grow, but we must make His Word ours, so as to keep it ‘with’ us.”
-K. Philipps
“Hide my commandments with thee.”
“He who has the rule of his duty only in his Bible and in his head, is not likely to be a steady, consistent character; his heart is not engaged, and his obedience, in any case, can be only forced, or done from a sense of duty: it is not the obedience of a loving, dutiful child, to an affectionate father. But he who has the word of God in his heart, works from his heart; his heart goes with him in all things, and he delights to do the will of his heavenly Father, because his law is in his heart.”
-A.C. Clarke
“And apply thine heart to understanding.” This implies effort. The heart must be applied to understanding. It won’t happen by accident. This wisdom, discernment, and understanding must be sought out as if it were silver and “hid treasures.”
In these few verses Solomon described many ways that we must seek after wisdom. The one who pursues wisdom in this way will not be disappointed.
“But this search must be serious, strenuous. The way of wisdom is never revealed to triflers.”
J.P. -Morgan
“There must be willingness and desire to know. To this must be added diligence. The illuminative phrases are ‘cry,’ ‘lift up thy voice,’ ‘seek,’ ‘search.’ All indicate desire, expressing itself in devotion.”
J. P. Morgan
“Apply thine heart to understanding.”
“Attention of body, intention of mind, and retention of memory, are indispensably desired of all wisdom’s scholars; such as King Edward VI, who constantly stood up at the hearing of the word, took notes, which he afterwards diligently perused, and wrought the sermon upon his affections by meditation.”
-V. Trapp
“Seekest her as silver:
“Refers to silver as mined and smelted, not as a precious metal in its native state.”
-W. Waltke
“If you seekest her as silver.”
“With the same unwearied diligence, and earnest desire, and patient expectation under all delays, disappointments, and difficulties, which worldlings use in the purchase of riches, or in digging in mines of silver.”
-D. Poole
“How do men seek money? What will they not do to get rich? Reader, seek the salvation of thy soul as earnestly as the covetous man seeks wealth; and be ashamed of thyself, if thou be less in earnest after the true riches than he is after perishing wealth.”
-A.C. Clarke
Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord.” Solomon established the principle that the “fear of the Lord” is the beginning of knowledge and wisdom.. Here he teaches us that without the effort to seek out wisdom, we will lack in our “fear of the Lord” and “knowledge of God.”
“The knowledge of God.” In short, “knowledge of God” refers to personal intimacy with Him through obedience to His word as we see in The First Book of Samuel:
“Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him.”
-1 Samuel 3:7 (KJV)
“For the Lord giveth wisdom.” This explains why the “fear of the Lord” is the foundation of wisdom, and an essential aspect of the pursuit of wisdom. True wisdom is found in Him, and He giveth it.
“Out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” The most significant way God gives wisdom is from the words of “His mouth.” His word reveals “knowledge and understanding.” In His word “He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous.”
“He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.” God not only gives wisdom in His word; He actively works to defend, guard and preserve those who walk in His ways.
“Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity.” The sense is that we need this defense from God to gain this proper understanding. There are so many wrong ideas about in the world that we will never hold on to what is wise and true without being defended against the false and foolish.
“He who is taught of God understands the whole law of justice, mercy, righteousness, and truth; God has written this on his heart. He who understands these things by books only is never likely to practise or profit by them.”
-A.C. Clarke
“When wisdom entereth into thine heart.” Solomon mentioned the idea of protection relevant to wisdom. Now he explains that something happens when we gain wisdom, when we value God’s knowledge, it is “pleasant unto thy soul.”
“Wisdom gives both pleasure and surefootedness in life. The more wisdom one learns, the more one desires and enjoys it. The protection wisdom gives, moreover, is that it keeps its follower from making decisions that will later bring only regret.”
-A. Garrett
“Spiritual joy mortifies sin. His mouth hankers not after homely provision that hath lately tasted of delicate sustenance. Pleasure there must be in the ways of God, because therein men let out their souls into God, that is the fountain of all good; hence they so infinitely distaste sin’s tasteless fooleries.”
-V Trapp
“Discretion shall preserve thee.” We need God’s protection to gain wisdom, but wisdom also protects us. “Understanding shall keep thee” from many foolish and harmful consequences in life.
“To deliver thee from the way of the evil man.” Wisdom will keep us from going evil ways, and from associating with “the man that speaketh froward things.” Our fallen nature may be attracted to perverse things, but wisdom will guard us from leaving that path: “who leave the paths of uprightness.”
“The promised protection is first defined as deliverance from apostate men who have opted for dark and crooked paths instead of the father’s bright and straight ways.”
-W. Waltke
“Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked.” Fallen nature is not only attracted to what is evil and perverse, it rejoices and delights in it. Shame is cast away and what is wrong and twisted is celebrated. This celebration of perversity is no unique to our time, but it certainly marks our present age.
“They rejoice, the outward parallel of their joy within, expresses exuberant, enthusiastic, spontaneous shouts of joy, like those heard in bawdy theaters and bloody stadiums.”
-W. Waltke
“Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths.” Wisdom protects us from these evil men. If not protected by wisdom, their crooked ways will come to harm us, and we will suffer from their devious character.
“To deliver thee from the strange woman.” Here Solomon especially spoke to his son, who could be easily deceived and trapped by “the strange woman.” Wisdom could protect him from her.
The Bible’s wisdom is much more sophisticated than much of popular thinking in today’s world. Today there is the tendency to view things without nuance; for example, to think of all women as victims to all men. This rejects the idea of “the strange woman,” thinking that if there is a sexual liaison between a man and a woman, he must be the perpetrator and she must be the victim. The Bible recognizes that human beings and human relationships are far more complicated than that.
“The stranger which flattereth with her words.” Before Solomon described this immoral woman in any other way, he wrote of her as a seductress who uses words to seduce. The Song of Solomon shows us that King Solomon knew the power of the female form, but there is also great power in the flattering words of the seductress.
“The subtlety of the appeal comes from flattering speech. The adulteress talks smoothly; an example of such talk is found in Proverbs 7:
“ I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows. Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves. For the goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey: He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.”
-Proverbs 7:14-20 (KJV)
“Which forsaketh the guide of her youth.” The immoral woman Solomon had in mind had a past record of disloyalty and unfaithfulness. This was evident not only among men; “the guide of her youth,” but even more importantly in relation to God (and forgetteth the covenant of her God).
“Marriage is a mixed covenant, partly religious and partly civil: the parties tie themselves first to God, and then to one another. The bond is made to God, who also will be ready enough to take the forfeiture.”
-V. Trapp
“For her house inclineth unto death.” This is an important part of wisdom’s protection, to see where a path leads. Time with the flattering seductress seems wonderful, but wisdom helps us to understand where it leads, and that is “unto death.”
Matthew Poole wrote of many ways that “her house inclineth unto death.”
“By wasting a man’s vital spirits, and shortening his life; by exposing him to many and dangerous diseases, which physicians have declared and proved to be the effects of inordinate lust; as also to the fury of jealous husbands or friends, and sometimes to the sword of civil justice, and undoubtedly, without repentance, to God’s wrath and the second death.”
-M. Poole
“The woman who abandons herself to prostitution soon contracts, and generally communicates, that disease, which, above all others, signs the speediest and most effectual passport to the invisible world.”
-A.C. Clarke
“Her paths unto the dead.”
“Those who enter the house of the immoral woman, on the other hand, find only the ghosts of those who preceded them and discover too late that there is no exit.”
-M. Garrett
“None that go unto her return again.” As with many statements in the Proverbs, this is not only an absolute promise, but also a true principle. Solomon had seen many go down the path of death with an immoral woman, never to return to the way of wisdom.
“That go unto her,” is also seen thusly in The Book of Genesis:
“And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.”
-Genesis 16:2 (KJV)
“There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.”
-Genesis 6:4 (KJV)
specifically referring to sexual intercourse.
A life early given to promiscuity and sexual sin is much more difficult to reclaim. It is far better to never go down such paths. That is why Solomon warned, “none that go unto her return again.”
“Adulterers and whoremongers are very rarely brought to repentance, but are generally hardened by the power and deceitfulness of that lust, and by God’s just judgment, peculiarly inflicted upon such persons.”
-M. Poole
“The transgressors shall be rooted out of it.” Solomon reminded his son of the consequences of the path of the seductress. It invites the discipline or the judgment of God, who according to His covenant with Israel promised that “the upright shall dwell in the land,” but “the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.” These consequences give us a clear choice; one or the other.
“There’s a price to pay if we would gain spiritual wisdom, but there’s an even greater price to pay if we don’t gain it. We must walk with God through the study of His Word.”
-W. Wiersbe
“For the upright shall dwell in the land.” Here the wise man speaks after the manner of Moses’ law, under which he lived as we see in The Book of Deuteronomy:
“Therefore shall ye keep all the commandments which I command you this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the land, whither ye go to possess it.”
-Deuteronomy 11:8 (KJV)
“Here the wicked will be cut off because they defile the earth and threaten the relationship of the righteous with their God.”
-W. Waltke
-God bless!
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Proverbs 3 King James Version (KJV) WISDOM FROM TRUSTING GOD
“My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine. My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her. The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew. My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion: So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck. Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble. When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.
-Proverbs 3 (KJV)
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