The proverbs of Solomon son of David, King of Israel
1. For attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight;
2. For acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair;
3. For giving prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the young—
4. Let the wise listen and add to their learning and let the discerning get guidance—
5. For understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and the riddles of the wise..
6. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom
1. Pay attention to the instruction of your parents.
2. Do not give in to peer pressure.
3. Do not steal from anyone or hang around with those who do.
4. Those who rob others and get into trouble will end up wasting their lives, or worse.
5. We will find wisdom in studying, reading and meditating on God’s Word.
6. We will hear wisdom when we choose to seek it out from others who know God and have a new life in Christ Jesus. This is why we go to church, to hear God’s Word explained, to worship our King, and to make new friends with whom we can encourage and find common ground with.
7. We pray that our unsaved friends, and yes, even enemies, come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, be granted the grace of repentance, the faith to believe, and be given new hearts to desire to follow after Jesus Christ.
Warning Against Rejecting Wisdom
God has given us His Holy Scriptures so that we may seek Him and find Him when we seek Him with all our heart. Wisdom and knowledge come through Jesus Christ who is the Word of God made flesh.
God has given us a conscience and gives us many teachers during our lifetime. Some of those teachers are people in our lives who speak God’s wisdom to us at various times. Some of those teachers are tests and trials and other hardships to cause us to look to God. God can speak to us in various ways, but the number one way is through His Word, the Bible.
We can either curse God, ignore Him, or cry out to Him for mercy and salvation. God speaks to our conscience many times during our lifetime. We know when something is evil, we know that when we lie or steal it is wrong, although before we are saved we may make excuses for these things. God has made Himself known in many ways so that man is without excuse. None of us know exactly how much time they have on this earth, and any one of us could be snatched away in an instant in an accident, or any kind of disaster. This is why God says, “Today is the day of salvation.” You may not have a tomorrow.
Wisdom is seeking God until you find Him. Then continue to seek Him on a daily basis for getting to know Him in a deeper way. Listen to your heart conscience, as God will impress upon it what He knows you need to hear.
Where do you seek Him? Begin with His Word, particularly the Gospels first, and the letters, then Psalms and Proverbs, then you will be more prepared to understand the Old Testament books. Find a Christ honoring, Bible teaching Church that is full of grace and the love of Christ. Ask God to open up your understanding of His Word so that you may know Him and grow spiritually in Him.
Before you seek Him in His Word, first ask Him to open your understanding so you can know Him and know what you need to do. He will never turn away anyone who is sincere in wanting to really know Him. Your motive must be humble and sincere. If you go to His Word to try to prove Him wrong or to trash His Word, He will not listen to you. You will be putting yourself in greater danger of judgment. He is God and there is no other. He has the right to do what He pleases even if we cannot understand the why of any particular thing. He has given us enough information to be able to trust Him even when we do not understand the why of any situation. That is why we live by faith upon faith until the end of this life on earth. In eternity we will understand the why of everything.
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