I worked at the Post Office when I graduated from High School. It was actually about a week after I graduated High School and I was working at a job that paid $9.75 per hour when minimum wage was $5.15. I worked at this job for about a year and a half while I was going to college at NAC. At this time I got a pay raise. Minimum wage was still $5.15 and I was making $12.75 per hour. Nice. It’s not like I was wealthy, but I was doing very well for being fresh out of High School. I was working about 50 hours per week with the exception of the Summer. Mail was slower at that time, so I only worked about 35 to 40 hours per week. With all my overtime pay and night differential added in, I probably made about the same amount of money that I make now.

I was single and living at home with my parents, which means that I did not need to really spend much money at all. Put that into perspective. Right now we pay a mortgage, utilities, and groceries for four people on the amount of money that I had floating around in my bank account in 2002. And you know what? I blew so much money…I was unwise with all of that money and have nothing to show for it today. Had I put into practice the principles found in the Book of Proverbs things might be different for me today.

I chose friends for myself at one point in my life that aided in a downward spiral that brought me to a place that I never should have been. If I’d put into practice the principles found in the Book of Proverbs things might have worked out differently for me. My life would probably have had less heartache. By contrast, the close friends that I have now are ones that look like the friends from the Book of Proverbs and they are a great blessing to me.

I had come to my senses by the time that I was looking for a wife. And I chose one that was good and wise and in accord with the principles found in the Book of Proverbs and she has been a great blessing to me.

This is what I’m getting at. God has ordered the Universe a certain way. In His Universe A + B usually = C. And it is wise for us to order our lives in such a way that we are living wise in God’s Universe. It is good for us to set up life goals that are good and wise principles according to God’s Word. These principles will honor God and help us to wisely navigate the world He has created.

Who Wrote The Book of Proverbs?

Wisdom for living a life that is pleasing to God is found in the Book of Proverbs. Jesus was fond of quoting the Book of Proverbs for just this reason. Within the Book of Proverbs is found Wisdom for navigating this world that God has created. It is very concerned with a wise relationship with both God and the people that surround us.

King Solomon is given credit for the writing of the Book of Proverbs with a few portions being credited to Agur son of Jakeh (30:1) and King Lemuel (31:1). Theologians have long said that it seems that Solomon wrote some of the Proverbs, some are compiled by him as he gives credit for their origin to other people. And King Hezekiah’s men had found other Proverbs of Solomon, copied them, and put them in the book with his others.

So, Solomon either wrote or compiled all of the Proverbs.

This matters greatly because, as we learned in Sunday School Solomon was especially gifted with wisdom by God. (1 Kings 3:3-15) God told Solomon that he could ask for one thing and the one thing young Solomon asked for was wisdom. And God gave it to him in abundance, so much so that people all over the known world would travel to hear Solomon’s wisdom.

We also believe that, like the rest of the Scriptures, God the Holy Spirit was overseeing the entire process. The words of Solomon found here are also completely the words of God. And, we study it as such.

What Is A Proverb?

We must also quickly answer the question, “What is a proverb?” If we’re going to study it then we need to know what it is. The definition often give of a proverb is “a pith observation on the workings of life. Pithy is a funny word that means brief and forceful. Oftentimes a Proverb is one or two sentences long, and sometimes short sentences. You will find that though the statement is brief there is a lot in the statement itself. And we find this to be true of American Proverbs as well. Here are a few examples.

“A stitch in time saves nine.”

This is a proverb that uses the language of needlework or sewing. It means that if you deal with a situation early then you will save yourself both time and effort. Much like the Proverbs we will study, there is much imagery and understanding that is packed into 6 words. Here is one more example of an American Proverb.

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”

The meaning here is quite simple. The thing you have is better than the abundance that is out of reach. It is oftentimes better to keep and be thankful for what you have rather than give up what you have for what you don’t.

So, we must now answer two questions as we proceed.

  • What is Wisdom?
  • What is Wisdom’s Foundation?

We will begin with the latter so that we can answer the former.

Wisdom’s True Foundation: The Fear of Yahweh (Proverbs 1:7)

When we learn math, where do we begin? You may not remember doing it, but you learned your numbers. You learned to count to five. Then you learned to count to ten.  Eventually you learned to count to 20, then 100. Then, you started learning to add. It was slow. You started with 1+1=2.

When we learned to read, where did we start? We learned by singing the alphabet song. Then, you likely started learning your “at” words: bat, cat, hat…then you added “ad” words, etc.

Learning is similar to building a house. First, the foundation is laid. This firm foundation is what the rest of the structure will rest upon. This must be sure and settled. Numbers are the foundation of math. We learn numbers before we go further. Letters are the foundation of reading. We learn numbers before we go further. Reinforced concrete is the foundation of your home. You must get that right before you go any further. And Solomon states here that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge”.

In other words, the foundation of knowledge, or wisdom is “the fear of the LORD”. So, now we are drawn to another question. What is “the fear of the LORD”?

Here is what we know. First, involves a person. The person is the LORD. Now, there is a reason that this word is in all capital letters in your Bible. God announced His personal name to the Israelites as YHWH, we put vowels in the word to make the vowel sounds and so we see it as Yahweh. Now, the Hebrew people so revered the personal name of God that they would not even write it on paper. English translations have kept up the practice of not writing the name “Yahweh” and instead written the word “LORD” with all capital letters. So, the first thing we know is that this fear involves God Himself. (As a side not, I disagree with interpreters and publishers insistence on keeping with Hebrew tradition. I believe that God Himself introduced Himself as “Yahweh” and intended to be known by His people as Yahweh. So, you will notice that I do not hesitate to write God’s personal name when discussing Him. I believe this takes away some of the confusion that can come when reading “Lord” and “LORD”.)

At first glance this is really not enough to help us. What does fear mean? Is it a terror of God? Is it a certain way of living in fear of His judgment and justice? Really, this first part doesn’t fully answer the question. But as we dig a little further into the Scriptures we find out more.

The second thing for us to consider is that “the fear of the LORD” is taught. I get this as I look at the way “the fear of the LORD” is used in other passages of Scripture. Look at Deuteronomy 4:9-10.

9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children– 10 how on the day that you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, the LORD said to me, ‘Gather the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.’”—Deuteronomy 4:9-10 ESV

 

It’s interesting how things change with just a little more information. Information is to be given to following generations in order that “they may learn to fear me [Yahweh]”. This means that it cannot simply be a terror at the thought of God, or a living in constant fear. Things also get more illuminating as we continue to look at the rest of the Scriptures for understanding.

Third, “the fear of the LORD” also involves an action on our part. It involves doing God’s will. Look at Psalm 111:10.

 “10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it [Some say “who do His commandments] have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!”—Psalm 111:10 ESV

Practice it has the meaning of practicing God’s commands. So some translations, as noted above actually say “who do His commandments”. The meaning is clear with this bit of explanation. The person who does God’s commands has good understanding.

There is something intriguing to this and the next verse we will look at. His father is the person who wrote these passages of Scripture. David was Solomon’s father. I’m certain after studying these passages and looking at their connection to Solomon’s writings that David helped him to understand what this idea “fear of the LORD” meant.

Fourth, and the most telling is that “the fear of the LORD” is faith. Look at Psalm 25:14.

“14 The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.”—Psalm 25:14 ESV

We begin as enemies of God and must be reconciled to God (Romans 5:10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20). It is by faith that anyone in the Old or New Testament responded to God and then was brought into friendship with Him (Romans 4:1-5:11; Galatians 2:15-3:29). All of a sudden things begin to make sense. The Fear of the LORD and faith are taught from God’s Word (Deuteronomy 4:9-10; Romans 10:17). And true faith is itself accompanied by the outworking of wisdom or good works (James 2:26).

Why didn’t I just go right to this one? Well, for one reason I like the suspense. And, the more serious reason is that all of these elements are involved in faith. There is a learning of facts to faith. The person who has faith does good works.

Think with me for a moment. Faith has an object. It always does. When we sit down we have faith in a chair. A person flying on a plane has certain convictions about planes. They believe certain things about propellers, pilots, but my convictions don’t get them to their destination. They have to entrust their self to the plane and its workings in order to arrive at the desired destination. It is this that is foundational for having wisdom. We must first trust ourselves to God in order to be truly wise people.

Faith ends up being the grid by which we view all things. God has created the world. I trust Him. I will live in the way that God has stated that I should live in this world because I trust Him. This is the attitude of faith. I have to understand that God knows better than me the workings of this world. So, in every situation I align myself with what He has said. I end up viewing everything through my faith in Him. It is the foundation of all the decisions I make in this life.

God created the world and all things in it. He knows the workings of this world. Even though this was the case, man sinned and rebelled against God. This is the same response that we have today toward God. We break His Law. By nature we do not obey His commands. We are disobedient as soon as we can make decisions on our own. In other words, we are foolish and unwise by nature. By nature, we lack the foundation of wisdom. And because we act as fools and rebel against God we deserve God’s justice. But God did not leave us in the mess we’ve made with our foolishness. He made a way for us to be redeemed from our sin and rebellion. He sent His Son to pay the full price for our sins. He died on the cross paying the punishment for our foolishness and rebellion. He then rose from the dead, giving God’s stamp of approval. The Son, Wisdom Incarnate, had conquered sin and death. He made a way for us to be made right with God. Our response to this glorious news is faith. We turn from ruling our own lives. This is called repentance. We also trust in Christ. This is called faith. These are two sides of the same coin. We turn from ruling our lives toward Christ where we rest in His finished work.

This is the foundation of wisdom. True wisdom in this world cannot be attained without faith. Now that we have understood the foundation of wisdom, what is it?

What is Wisdom? (Proverbs 1:1-6)

The passage of Scripture that we are looking at doesn’t exactly tell us what wisdom is as much as it tells us what is contained in wisdom. Read Proverbs 1:1-6 and you’ll understand what I’m saying.

Solomon opens the book by saying that a person can gain wisdom from what is written in these pages. Now, the wisdom that he is giving will cover a number of topics. Here it is in a list.

  • “receive instruction/training” – Solomon will give information and the goal is that the reader understands the instruction and works to apply it to their life.
  • “understanding/insight/discernment” – Solomon will give information that will help us learn to be discerning in decision making. This might be in choosing friends or the attitude we should have when things are not going our way.
  • “wise dealing” – Solomon will give information for us to learn on wisdom in every day, normal activities.
  • “shrewdness/discretion” – We will find in the Book of Proverbs information to learn about making plans. This might be where to go to college? It could be what do I do with myself after school? This will most definitely cover the qualities that I should look for in a spouse when the time comes.

These topics range from honoring God and living wisely in the biggest decisions of my life to small every day decisions that we make. The point is that the topics covered in this wisdom category cover the actions of our entire life. It is having the ability to discern what is good and right and acting in that way.

There is a saying in the world today that has been around for quite some time. It is “Live and learn”. Here Solomon calls us to something better. Rather than acting like a fool, making mistakes and then gaining wisdom we are to do it another way. We are to learn wisdom and then live wisely.

With all that being said, the next portion will not be surprising.

We Should Desire Wisdom (Proverbs 1:20-33)

Wisdom is personified as a woman crying out in the streets. Her wisdom is being distilled but none will listen. Read Proverbs 1:20-33.

Is this not the situation that we are in today? Well, apparently this is the situation that was found in Solomon’s day as well. And, I would argue that for the most part there has always been a refusal to listen to the cry of Lady Wisdom. It seems that more often people take their lumps and bruises in life as they ignore the wisdom of God and live foolishly. A few years later, after much heartache and pain caused by their foolish behavior, they have taken their lumps and learned some wisdom. They have lived and learned. Beaten and battered by their foolishness they begin to live more wisely, but oftentimes they do so without the foundation in place and it all crumbles in the end.

Even the person who seems to be wise with their finances in this life that doesn’t have the foundation right is a fool in the end. He died with a lot of wealth and lives apart from Christ for all eternity. They disregarded the foundation and everything else crumbled.

Concluding Thoughts

 

Proverbs are not promises. It is not as if every single time you behave in this certain way, you will be blessed. But rather, Proverbs are observances about how the wise person orders their life and the blessings that normally flow from these decisions. It behooves us to heed this wisdom because God has ordered the world in such a way that as a general rule certain behaviors yield certain results.

Listen to wisdom. Trust in Christ and live in a way that will honor Him as you live wisely in this world.

Some people will live lives that seem relatively wise. They handle their finances well and seem to live wisely in their home and family lives. They may also seem to be wise in their friendships, but if the foundation is not there it will eventually crumble. The crumbling may not happen until the next life, but it will happen.

The brick is falling off of my parent’s home. Every time I go to visit more of it has fallen off. Someone poured the foundation wrong. A few weeks after I was born I moved into that house. I lived in that house throughout my early childhood all the way to a few years out of High School. And, there was no sign of any problems. One day, when I lived in Russellville and going to school at Arkansas Tech, I noticed cracks in the brick. I asked my Dad about it and he said, “I know, it’s doing it at the back of the house too…and a little under the porch”. I asked him what was wrong and he told me the story.

Apparently the contractor was in a hurry to get everything finished and did not put the amount of rebar in to reinforce the concrete around the edge as he was supposed to do. Someone had seen this occur and everything carried on without a hitch. Everything seemed like it was done well enough in the days ahead…in fact it was fine for years, until it wasn’t. Now, the brick is falling off of the house in large chunks.

Don’t get to the end of your life and realize that you have no foundation. Trust in Christ and then learn wisdom.

R. Dwain Minor