Proverbs 1
A Successful Life
1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: 2 To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, 3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity; 4 To give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion— 5 A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, 6 To understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles. 7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction. 8 My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother; 9 For they will be a graceful ornament on your head, and chains about your neck. 10 My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. 11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait to shed blood; Let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause; 12 Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, and whole, like those who go down to the Pit; 13 We shall find all kinds of precious possessions, we shall fill our houses with spoil; 14 Cast in your lot among us, let us all have one purse”— 15 My son, do not walk in the way with them, keep your foot from their path; 16 For their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood. 17 Surely, in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird; 18 But they lie in wait for their own blood, they lurk secretly for their own lives. 19 So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain; It takes away the life of its owners. 20 Wisdom calls aloud outside; She raises her voice in the open squares. 21 She cries out in the chief concourses, at the openings of the gates in the city she speaks her words: 22 “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge.
23 Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. 24 Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, 25 Because you disdained all my counsel, and would have none of my rebuke, 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, 27 When your terror comes like a storm, and your destruction comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. 28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. 29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, 30 They would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke. 31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled to the full with their own fancies. 32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; 33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil.”
One thing that I heard which was significant in my thoughts was that the book of Psalms was written from a perspective of us humans crying out to God. The book of Proverbs was written where God responds back to us. I like that and as I go through these two books I pick up this point of view. The word ‘Proverbs’ means ‘to rule’. It was therefore written to list words and sayings that are supposed to rule and govern our lives.
Besides the bible other men have written proverbs which our Precious Holy Spirit did not include in His Word. Here are a few examples. See if there are any that come to your mind:
. “Victory goes to the player who makes the next-to-last mistake.”
. “His ignorance is encyclopedic"
. "Political correctness is tyranny with manners."
. "You can avoid reality, but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality."
. "Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted."
. "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
. “In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."
Let’s now take a look at the Proverbs that our Wonderful Holy Ghost wanted us to know and understand. To begin we are informed who the primary writer is – Solomon.
1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:
When you review the book of Proverbs Solomon is pointing out that you derive certain benefits; He starts to list for us what they are;
1. 2 To know wisdom and instruction - You will get to know wisdom and instruction. Develops character.
2. to perceive the words of understanding – you will recognize and grasp the truths of life. Ability to grasp a truth with insight and discernment.
3. 3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity – You will be able to gain the all that is needed to lead a complete life
4. 4 To give prudence to the simple – discretion in practical affairs. To spot evil and obtain the intelligence that sees behind things.
5. to the young man knowledge and discretion – you will be able to gain in a young age the knowledge and ability to make wise plans and decisions. I have heard it said a lot by people that they wish that they could go back to their younger 20’s and 30’s while at the same time retaining all the knowledge that they gathered over there life span. Well, here is a great message to younger people that you can gain the wisdom and knowledge that older folks have if you get into God’s Word.
6. 5 A wise man will hear and increase learning – you will continue to gain knowledge throughout your lifetime.
7. and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel – you will gather around you friends who will give you good and sound advice.
8. 6 To understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles – you will be able to understand complex sayings.
Our Holy Ruler did not put us down here to just wander around hoping that somehow we would find out what is right and wrong. If that was so, I do not think anyone would ever come to the truth. In order to help us He gave us a manual to follow. If we study His rules and regulations then everything will work for us and not against us. Ultimately, this wisdom will lead to a successful and satisfying life.
If you will remember anything from this teaching today then please let it be this. You see our Precious Holy Spirit teaches the ‘serious’ not the ‘curious’. We need to stop and think about the one who penned these words of Wisdom – Solomon. If he had stored these truths in his heart and not just his head, he would have gone down as the greatest of earthly kings, not wind up the loser that ultimately befell him.
The apostle Paul understood this principal and in just two verses listed for us these principles. In his second letter to Timothy chapter 3 he wrote, “All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Let us break down what he reports;
1. Doctrine – that’s what right
2. Reproof – That’s what’s not right
3. Correction – That’s how to get right
4. Instruction – That’s how to stay right
7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Our Blessed El Shaddai – Almighty God – Is The only living God. All others are demons disguising themselves. We all need to fear and at the same time respect our Creator.
Here is a good question for you. Can you tell me what the very first verse in the bible is? – ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.’ Why did I ask this question? Look at Satan’s plan against our Holy Master. He gets mankind to put forth ‘evolution’. This is a slap in the face to Jehovah Elohim – The Lord Most High. It takes our Creator right out of the picture. It makes us falsely believe that all of what we see and experience is just a coincidence. We do not like to think about this because it is so silly. Yet, rotten professors in our colleges and universities spew this garbage because they will not bow to a Designer.
It is therefore so right to see our Precious Holy Spirit right from the start let us know that the beginning of knowledge is to know that there is a God and that we are accountable to Him.
8 My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother; 9 For they will be a graceful ornament on your head, and chains about your neck.
In the book of Exodus chapter 20 we read of our Majestic Sovereign Lord’s Ten Commandments. The first four let us know about our proper understanding of The True and Living God. The last 6 Commandments deal with our relationships with other human beings. I know that you are aware of the 5th Commandment – Honor your father and mother. As a reminder this one comes with a promise from our Holy Maker. If you obey you are promised long life.
You can see who wore the pants in Solomon’s family it was his mom. Look at the verse again. Please notice Solomon’s comments about his father David’s instructions, yet at the same time, his mother’s laws. You have to remember that David had several wives so you can see how Bathsheba spent a lot of time with her son.
Solomon is now under inspiration of our Wonderful Holy Spirit going to teach us two different paths of choices; one will be the choice of God’s ways and His Wisdom or choose the world’s way of wickedness.
10 My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.
Are you a follower of a leader? Many Christians are loners. That is not as bad as it sounds. We all want to be popular and fit in, don’t we? However, the highway of walking with the Lord is costly. It says this in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 10 verse 37, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”
It is possible that you will lead a lonely path through life, but let me assure you that if it is a result of being sold out for Jesus then it is all worth it.
If you walk with the wrong crowd then you will end up doing the wrong things. I remember as a kid during a real hot summer night a few of my so called friends and I snuck into the local community swimming pool which had closed for the night. When a car would drive by we would hug the side of the pool away from any possible flash or search light. Besides being quite refreshing I must admit that there was also a thrill of doing something illegal.
Now there was also an elite country club pool in our town also, so my fellow nocturnal swimmers thought it would be fun to now go and sneak into that pool.
Have you ever taken some time to reflect on how our Precious and Awesome Loving God had protected you even before you were a believer? I suggest that you take some time this week, pray and think about your past and after you come up with the obvious times when He protected you, then write them down for future reference.
On this occasion, I opted out of going to the other swimming pool. It was a good thing that I didn’t go. After this group managed to get into the pool, they decided to break into the concession stand for some snacks. After stealing items they then decided to trash this place because those rich arrogant people needed to be taught a lesson. The police happened to arrive at the perfect time and catch them all in the act. The Lord helped me avoid this evil occasion. We all need to write this down and put it on your refrigerators, ‘Sin does not need any incubation period. It leaps full grown into our lives.’
11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait to shed blood; Let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause; 12 Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, and whole, like those who go down to the Pit; 13 We shall find all kinds of precious possessions, we shall fill our houses with spoil; 14 Cast in your lot among us, let us all have one purse”
Here is another nugget of truth worth remembering. Evil offers;
1. Power
2. Pleasure
3. Prosperity
4. Promotion
This is what it might seem at first great, however in the end, you will pay more than you ever think you gain.
Please note the intent of lying in wait. In our county we have two types of murder; 1st degree and manslaughter. When you intentionally plan out to kill someone there is no forgiveness. If caught you should be put to death. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 19 we read our Lord’s instructions in dealing with such a situation, “But if anyone hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises against him and strikes him mortally, so that he dies, and he flees to one of these cities, then the elders of his city shall send and bring him from there, and deliver him over to the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die" Your eye shall not pity him, but you shall put away [the guilt of] innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with you.” In our present society they have passed laws ignoring this command from the law.
Now there are also times when it is an accident and our Lord planned to deal with these situations also, 1 “When the LORD your God has cut off the nations whose land the LORD your God is giving you, and you dispossess them and dwell in their cities and in their houses, 2 you shall separate three cities for yourself in the midst of your land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess. 3 You shall prepare roads for yourself, and divide into three parts the territory of your land which the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, that any manslayer may flee there. 4 “And this is the case of the manslayer who flees there, that he may live: Whoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, not having hated him in time past— 5 as when a man goes to the woods with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies—he shall flee to one of these cities and live; 6 lest the avenger of blood, while his anger is hot, pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long, and kill him, though he was not deserving of death, since he had not hated the victim in time past. 7 Therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall separate three cities for yourself.’ 8 “Now if the LORD your God enlarges your territory, as He swore to your fathers, and gives you the land which He promised to give to your fathers, 9 and if you keep all these commandments and do them, which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and to walk always in His ways, then you shall add three more cities for yourself besides these three, 10 lest innocent blood be shed in the midst of your land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, and thus guilt of bloodshed be upon you.
15 My son, do not walk in the way with them, keep your foot from their path; 16 For their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood. 17 Surely, in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird; 18 But they lie in wait for their own blood, they lurk secretly for their own lives. 19 So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain; It takes away the life of its owners.
Our Precious Holy Spirit instructs us to take a look at the animals and birds around us. If you wanted to catch any bird would you just try to use a butterfly net and try to snatch it up. Good luck! You will never succeed. You have to go to great effort to secretly set up the trap and then maybe you will capture your game.
On the other hand look at how gullible we are. We are the ones made in our Creator’s image and look at how naive we are. We just jump into something stupid and wham!, it’s all over. I use to work with this one guy whose son is in prison for killing another person. At a popular night club he was insulted by this guy. Being laughed at by the club patrons, he left and steamed outside in his car. When the guy who embarrassed him came out of the night club, he ran him over with his car.
Now you should be thinking to yourselves that ‘how can all this horror be avoided. The answer – Choose wisdom!
Look with me for a moment at the beginning of Psalm 119, “1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD! 2 Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart! 3 They also do no iniquity; They walk in His ways. 4 You have commanded us to keep Your precepts diligently. 5 Oh, that my ways were directed to keep Your statutes! 6 Then I would not be ashamed, when I look into all Your commandments. 7 I will praise You with uprightness of heart, when I learn Your righteous judgments. 8 I will keep Your statutes; Oh, do not forsake me utterly! 9 How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 10 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! 11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.
20 Wisdom calls aloud outside; She raises her voice in the open squares. 21 She cries out in the chief concourses, at the openings of the gates in the city she speaks her words:
God’s wisdom is applicable no matter where you are. Look at the various locations;
1. Outside
2. Open squares
3. Chief concourses
4. Gates at the cities
No matter where you go you need to be ready for God’s guidance. One of my favorite verses comes from chapter 30 of the book of Isaiah, “When you walk this path and go astray, you will hear a voice behind you say, that’s not the way, walk here.’
22 “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge. 23 Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. 24 Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, 25 Because you disdained all my counsel, and would have none of my rebuke, 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, 27 When your terror comes like a storm, and your destruction comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. 28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. 29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, 30 They would have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke. 31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled to the full with their own fancies. 32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them;
You know what is very sad about these verses? They are probably not for you. You see you being here is evidence that you want Jehovah Elohim – The Blessed Holy Trinity - to be part of your life. You are seeking to know Him therefore these verses do not apply to you. It does however, apply to any prodigal son or daughter or other family member. If you think about these verses then it is really scary. Have you ever had a hard time dealing with these verses of chapter 6 of the book of Hebrews, “For [it is] impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put [Him] to an open shame.”
I had this beautiful and godly secretary. I personally witnessed many kids come to ask Jesus into their hearts because of her ministry. At 22 she did not want to wait any longer for the Lord to come up with a husband for her, so she took matters into her own hands. She started dating secretly a non-believer who by the way has been secretly using heroin and cocaine since he was 13. Well, to make a long story short, this guy got her hooked on drugs and now she is living with her drug addict supplier/lover. People question me and ask relative to what is said in Hebrews chapter 6, ‘Is she gone for good?’
I tell them that with God all things all possible yet these words like we also read in Proverbs chapter 1 are pretty straight to the point, “For [it is] impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put [Him] to an open shame.”
There is the potential that when disaster strikes and you finally say ‘uncle’ and cry out to the Lord, He will not come to your rescue. Now that is a real ‘scared straight’ point of view.
If you stay close to the Lord and His word then you will never have to face such potential travesty for Proverbs 1 ends with,
33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil.”
Amen!
