This And That
Proverbs 1:1-4
The Book of Proverbs is attributed to Solomon, the son of David. Whether or not Solomon personally wrote the various proverbs or simply collected them--or both--is immaterial because the Holy Spirit is the real author of them all. Attributing them to Solomon provides a kind of date. The Book of Proverbs was put together during Solomon’s reign and serves as a compendium of rules or thoughts or practical advice for godly living. It is as applicable today as it was in Solomon’s day because of the eternal nature of God’s Word.
The book itself tells us why it was written, "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" (vs. 2-4). Each sentence fragment answers the question about why it was written, and each engages an important verb--to know, to perceive, to receive, and to give.
These proverbs are given so that people can know and make use of God’s wisdom. It is important to notice that God (Scripture) assumes that people do not already know wisdom. That is to say that apart from God’s Word wisdom is not known, and that wisdom can be known be-cause God gives it. Wisdom, then, is not an inherent part of the human constitution, but is an additional gift of God. Wisdom is not the reward of human accomplishment, but is an unqualified gift of God that is be-stowed through His Word, Scripture. An important corollary is that wisdom is not know apart from God’s giving it. There is no Godly wisdom apart from knowing Scripture.
What is this wisdom that God wants us to know? The Hebrew word for wisdom, chokmah, is rich in meaning, and covers every aspect of human experience. For instance, wisdom is involved in craftsmanship and technical work (Exodus 28:3, 31:3, 31:6), in the proper use of tactical warfare (Isaiah 10:13), in the proper administration of government (Deuteronomy 34:9, 2 Samuel 14:20)--in every human endeavor, as we shall see.
It is important to notice that wisdom is available to pagan leaders as well as to those who are committed to the Lord. We can see this universal aspect of God’s wisdom when Ezekiel, speaking on behalf of the Lord, prophesied against the King of Tyre. In that prophecy Ezekiel noted that Tyre, a ancient center of paganism, had been able to make riches for itself, to work gold and silver into its treasuries because it employed wisdom and understanding (Ezekiel 28:4). In other words, sound fiscal policy, whether in the home, in the church, or in the state, requires the implementation of these proverbial principles. Wealth and material prosperity are consequences of the principles taught in Scripture, and particularly in Proverbs.
Does that mean that people can get rich by following the principles taught in Scripture? In a way it does. It doesn’t guarantee that every individual who practices these principles will become rich, but it teaches that societies that are dominated by these principles will prosper physically as well as spiritually.
However, motivation is everything. The motivation to get rich is al-most always a function of selfishness and greed, and is not a proper biblical motivation. Nonetheless, the implementation of biblical principles will usually result in greater social and personal wealth and prosperity. Yet, we must understand that the result of wealth and prosperity alone is not always a blessing. Apart from God’s grace even wealth and prosperity are used as a judgment against the faithless. Wealth and prosperity are a blessing to the faithful, but a curse to the unfaithful. Many societies have been brought to ruin by wealth and prosperity. Similarly, poverty (the lack of abundance, not starvation) can be a blessing to the faithful, as it can be a curse to the unfaithful.
God’s concern is not wealth and prosperity, but grace and faithful-ness. God is not simply concerned about the result of our activities, but about our personal motivation. "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess" (Matthew 23:25). Even the faithless can know and apply God’s Word to an extent, and Proverbs calls attention to this fact by contrasting the word wisdom with the word instruction.
While wisdom involves the practical application of knowledge, instruction is another matter. The Hebrew word for instruction, muwcar, carries the sense of correction and chastisement. To know instruction is a function of discipline or discipleship. To be instructed means to receive correction. To know instruction requires knowing an instructor. There can be no instruction apart from an instructor. Instructions are orders or commands that when followed result in correct construction. A thing is put together correctly by following the instructions.
So, when Scripture calls us to "know wisdom and instruction" (v. 2), it means that we need to know about the world, to be worldly wise or to know the ways of the world, the truth about how things work in the world. But it also means that we need to know the Lord Himself, who provides instruction for those who love Him.
There are two errors that Proverbs avoids by contrasting and comparing various things. The first is knowing God apart from knowing practical knowledge about the world, which results in idealism. The second is knowing the world apart from knowing the wisdom of God, which results in atheism. Both are based on half-truths. Both are popular roads that lead to hell.
The Hebrew word for instruction, muwcar, suggests correction that results in education or learning on the part of the person who has been corrected. Speaking of discipline and correction, the Lord Himself said to the ancient Israelites: "Therefore thou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway. And know ye this day: for I speak not with your children which have not known, and which have not seen the chastisement (muwcar) of the LORD your God." The Lord went on to provide some examples of His chastisement, such as "his greatness, his mighty hand, and his stretched out arm, And his miracles, and his acts, which he did in the midst of Egypt unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and unto all his land; And what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how the LORD hath destroyed them unto this day; And what he did unto you in the wilderness, until ye came into this place; And what he did unto Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben: how the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their households, and their tents, and all the substance that was in their possession, in the midst of all Israel: But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the LORD which he did. 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 11:1-8).
God requires both knowledge of the world and knowledge of Him. And yet, mere knowledge is not enough because God not only demands that we know "wisdom and instruction," but that we also "perceive the words of understanding" (v. 2). Again, we see that knowledge and perception are contrasted. The Hebrew word for knowledge, yada, suggests the many kinds of knowledge that can be gained by the senses. Yada is sensual in its root meaning, and is also used for sexual intercourse as in the well-known euphemism, "Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived" (Genesis 4:1).
In contrast, biyn, the Hebrew word translated as perceive refers to knowledge that is superior to the mere gathering of data or sensory experience. Biyn refers to spiritual knowledge or insight. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:14, "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
The various contrasts in Proverbs are both numerous and instructive. We have already seen the contrast between wisdom and instruction, and between knowledge and perception (or insight). We now note the contrast between perceive and receive, "to perceive the words of understanding; To receive the instruction of wisdom" (vs. 2-3). We are to understand the words of Scripture both physically and spiritually; that is, to understand both the worldly or ordinary application of Scripture as well as its spiritual import.
Here we see that Scripture not only applies to all of life, but to all people for all time. Scripture is not just for Christians, not just for some elect group of people, to the exclusion of the rest of humanity. Rather, God intends for His Word to be applied to or by all people-everywhere and at all times. Just as God’s love for mankind is without qualification, so God’s mandates are without qualification. God’s Word is for the species known as Man.
In addition, Proverbs tells us that people are supposed to humbly receive the instruction (or chastisement--muwcar) of the Lord, who is Himself the Teacher of wisdom. Three kinds are listed: the instruction of wisdom, of justice, of judgment, and of equity.
The word for wisdom (sakal) is not the same word used earlier. Sakal carries the sense of prudence and circumspection. It takes special regard for the future, and the consequences of one’s actions. Justice, the He-brew tsedeq, refers to righteousness, to what is right or just in an ethical sense. Judgment (mishpat) refers to the judgments rendered by courts of law. The Hebrew word meyshar (equity) literally means "a level place" and can best be understood by using the contemporary phrase "a level playing field." The concern for a level playing field is about fairness and evenhandedness.
With these definitions in mind we look again at the verse and see that the Lord uses these things to instruct and/or chastise His people. The Lord instructs and chastises His people with these four things--wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity. He instructs by teaching people to be aware of the consequences of their action, by teaching righteousness, through legal judgments, and through establishing a level playing field. When we apply these things to our lives, when we make use of what God has provided, we receive instruction. But when we fail to apply them to our lives, we receive chastisement to encourage us to apply them or to make better use of them.
But do all people humbly receive the instruction and chastisement of the Lord? History clearly shows us that they do not. So, regarding this contrast between perceiving and receiving God’s Word we find that humanity is divided into two groups: those who do and those who don’t, the faithful and the faithless, believers and nonbelievers, saved and unsaved, Christian and Pagan. All of these terms refer to the same distinction.
What is the difference between these two groups? Why are some people in one group and others in the other? The difference between believers and nonbelievers is illustrated by the various contrasts given in Proverbs. It is the difference between wisdom and instruction, be-tween knowledge and perception (or insight), the difference between perception and reception. This difference is the grand subject or theme of the Book of Proverbs. And this is the subject that we will explore as we study this important book.
Verse four tells us the benefits that God’s wisdom provides. It gives "subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion." It gives what to whom? It gives ormah to the pethiy. The Hebrew word ormah means shrewdness, craftiness, or prudence. And pethiy indicates an inexperienced or naive person. In other words, God’s wisdom provides a kind of virtual worldly wisdom for those who are inexperienced in the ways of the world. It provides worldly wisdom without worldly corruption, but only if it is believed, only if one’s behavior assumes God’s Word to be true.
Trying to understand the meaning of this verse provides an education in the corruption of language. To rely solely upon a contemporary dictionary to understand the meaning of these words yields either non-sense or the opposite of the Hebrew meaning.
First, the word subtle is defined in the dictionary as "fine, delicate." And the word simple means "unassuming or unpretentious; not affected; or manifesting little sense or intelligence." But the verse does not mean that God intends to teach stupid people how to be delicate, whatever that might mean.
Rather, God intends to teach people who are inexperienced in the sinful ways of the world about the evils of the world, without bringing them into actual contact with those evils. The Lord intends to instruct people who are without personal experience of the depth and depravity of sinfulness without personally exposing them to the temptations of sin because He knows the weaknesses of the flesh. The Lord wants to do this because He is very aware of the infectious and corrosive character of evil.
In particular, God has in mind young men, particularly virgin men who have not been tainted by the traps and snares of the world. God is not doing this because of some sexist, male dominated notion of culture or society, but because He is particularly aware of a weakness and susceptibility on the part of males--and particularly but not limited to, young men. At the same time the Lord couches much of His wisdom in terms that are sexual, the application of His wisdom reaches far beyond the sexual realm. What is true about the temptations, traps, and entanglements of human sexuality also applies to many other areas of life in this fallen world. Thus, the illustrations intended to garner the attention of young men will have wide application upon further study.
Much of the teaching of God’s wisdom is accomplished in the Book of Proverbs by comparing and contrasting various words and ideas. These comparisons always point to the distinction between the faithful and the faithless, the saved and the lost, between believers and nonbelievers. We will see these contrasts and comparisons everywhere and will make much use of them to help us in our study.
God wants His people to be discerning people, to discern between good and evil, between what is righteous and what is unrighteous, between believers and nonbelievers. Furthermore, we will see that the only way to do this effectively is to rely upon God’s Word and not upon our own experience or judgments. God’s Word is given explicitly for this purpose.
May we not miss it, or blur it, or distort it.
