Wisdom at All Cost

Introduction

Imagine for a moment that on December 31 God appeared to you in a dream and promised that he would give you whatever your heart’s desire was in the coming year. For what would you ask? You could have anything in the world! What would you choose? If you know your Old Testament well, you know something like that happened to King Solomon. And the king made a wise choice; in fact, he made the best choice. He chose wisdom.

1 Kings 3:9–10 ESV

Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?” It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

Now, I am sure that most of us would like to imagine that we’d follow in his footsteps. We too would ask for wisdom and understanding so that we could govern our lives and our families, discerning between good and evil. Some of us pray for wisdom. Some of us have gotten into the habit of reading our daily Proverb—one for every day of the month. Yet how many of us actually stop to ground our lives in the wisdom of the Proverbs? We read them, but do we meditate on them? Do we put them into action? Have we allowed the Proverbs to govern our understanding of how we spend our money, how we choose our friends, or how we understand and stand up for justice?

I have heard and I have made many New Year’s resolutions in my day, and yet, it is sad to say that I have neither heard, nor have I ever made a New Year’s resolution to be be wiser in the coming year. I have never heard or said that by the end of the year, I want to live life more wisely than I did at the beginning of the year. Has that ever been a New Year’s resolution for you?

I would like to think that I’d be like Solomon, but something tells me I would not have made the same choice. Would you?

As we begin this short series on Proverbs this morning, I want use this time to introduce the book of Proverbs to you. Some of this may be new to you; some of it may not be so new. But my hope is that after today, you will be more fully equipped to read the Proverbs and glean life-lessons and timeless truths throughout the year. In order to do that, I want us to see three qualifiers of Proverbs. The first qualifier is the aim of Proverbs. The second qualifier is the audience of Proverbs. Finally, there is the advancement of the Proverbs.

The Aim of Proverbs

The Audience of Proverbs

The Advancement of Proverbs

Proverbs 1:1–7 ESV

The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

The Aim of Proverbs

The first qualifier of Proverbs comes out in its aim, its purpose or goal. I use the word “qualifier” because that word means to limit the scope of that which it qualifies. In this case, we need to understand the aim of Proverbs if we want to live by its wisdom. So let me start of by stating that Proverbs are not promises. If we think of Proverbs to be promises, we will be sorely disappointed, disenfranchised, and/or disgusted with God. “He said this in Proverbs such and such, and it didn’t happen,” or “it’s not true,” or even “it was the exact opposite!” Many have lost faith or had their faith weakened/shaken because they read Proverbs wrongly. They were taught that the Proverbs of the Bible were promises when they are not.

Instead, Proverbs are “pithy sayings of general truths.” “Pithy” simply means short and to the point. Short sayings that pack a lot of punch about general truths—that’s what proverbs are. That being said, Solomon gives us further aims of his Proverbs.

Notice in verses 2, 3, 4, and 6, we have the word “to.” In Hebrew there is more than one word that can be translated as “to.” One of the most common ways is the prefixed preposition “li.” “Li” attaches itself to the beginning of a word and can be translated as “to, for, or toward.” But the general idea of this word is direction, not motion. It points toward something—it aims us—but it does not move us. Rather than running “to” something which involves motion, it causes us to look to something, and often that something is not external, but internal. Hence, “to know, to understand, to receive instruction, to give prudence, and so forth. The aim of Proverbs then is to point us in the direction of growing inwardly—growing spiritually or in character. The aim is not to grow financially or powerfully or influentially. Those may be outcomes of inward changes, but they are not the guaranteed results.

As you study, meditate upon, and engage the Proverbs you should first ask yourself, what inward part of me is this proverb pointing out? Is this pointing to how I view relationships (whether friendships, marriage, children, or enemies)? Is this pointing out how I view emotions (whether anger, depression, joy, etc.)? Is this pointing to how I understand wealth (whether poverty or riches)? What does this proverb point out about me, my character, my spiritual growth. Don’t look to the Proverbs to predict actual outcomes. That’s not the aim of proverbs at all. When we look for outcome, rather than insight, we are doing something akin to looking for the gift rather than the giver. Let us love the giver no matter what gift may come, and let us run after insight no matter what the outcome may be.

One last aim of the Proverbs: the aim is to move us from general to specific—usually. We’ve talked of parallelism before. Parallelism is a part of Hebrew poetry, in which one saying is followed up by a similar saying.

Psalm 51:2 ESV

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!

Wash is parallel to cleanse; iniquity is parallel to sin. But in Proverbs, we see step parallelism. It takes us from general to specific—usually. It’s not a hard and fast rule, but it almost always takes us from general to specific. It takes us up a step (hence, step parallelism). We see this verses 2, 3, 4, and 6. “Wisdom and instruction…words of insight.” It’s not just any type of instruction. You’re not going to find directions to build a boat in Proverbs. But instructions about looking inward—insight (inward sight). Or, last one, prudence to the simple. He explained what he means: knowledge/discretion to the youth. What does he mean by prudence? Knowledge and discretion. What does he mean by the simple? He means those who are young. There are also other types of parallelism such as parallels of opposites. The wise do this; the fool does that. The simple thinks this way; the wise thinks that way.

The Audience of Proverbs

This takes us to the second qualifier of the Proverbs. The first was the aim of Proverbs and the second is the audience of Proverbs. This may surprise you, but the book of Proverbs is not for everybody. We’ll get there in a moment. There are two types of people that the book of Proverbs is for and one type of person it is not. You will see these three types of people mentioned throughout the book.

The first type of person that the Proverbs was written to is the wise. You may come across other ways of saying this in the Proverbs, but they are always positive ways: the righteous, the blameless, the mature, the humble, and so on. The first type of audience of the Proverbs are those who want to grow in their insight and living. This was Solomon himself. Going back to 2 Kings 3, when God asked what Solomon wanted, he asked for wisdom. We see this person in verses 5 and 6.

First and foremost, the wise are listeners. It is not that these people never talk but that they talk after they have grown to understand their subject. Again, the parallelism of the “wise” is the “one who understands.” The parallel to “increase in learning” is “obtain guidance.” The way that Solomon wrote this is that the wise will buy counsel. That’s why I entitled the sermon, “Wisdom at All Cost.”

Those who are in financial advice-giving—like Dave Ramsey—often advise their listeners to take someone who is of the next level income than you out to lunch. They will tell us to find out how much these men and women make per hour and offer to pay them for their time so we can ask how we can make it to their level. That’s the same concept that Solomon is giving. Often times free advice is cheap advice. We must take care to go to the wise if we are to grow in wisdom. The wise, the prudent, the mature, will not go to just anyone for advice. They will go to the wise and do as they say.

But there is a second audience that the Proverbs is written for: the simple. Again, there are different words for those in this category: simple, young, ignorant, naive, etc. The Proverbs usually uses neutral terms to describe these types of people. They tend to be influenced rather easily. At any given time, they could go either way; sometimes they’ll do the wise thing. Other times they do the foolish thing. Generally, we find them naive or simple because they are so young, but it could be that they just haven’t had the opportunity to grow up.

An example of this type of person is Solomon’s son Rehoboam. When Solomon died and Rehoboam took the throne, the tribal leaders came to him and asked for reprieve. Rehoboam didn’t know what to do, so he consulted the wise advisers of Solomon. Afterwards, the consulted his friends. Rehoboam could have gone either way. He heard the advice from both sides, and was more influenced by his friends who made him feel good and puffed up his pride—being short-sighted, than he was by the advisors who could foresee the future and how things would work better for him in the long run. He was simple, young, naive, and it led him to think foolishly (foolish insight of pride/arrogance) and then to act foolishly.

Lastly, we find the foolish. Proverbs is not for the foolish. It’s not that the foolish can’t read the Proverbs; it’s that the foolish will ignore the Proverbs—so there is no point. As verse 7 points out: Prov 1:7

Proverbs 1:7 (ESV)

fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Again the category can and does include: fools, rebellious, unrighteous, wicked, etc. If it is a negative term, it is referring to this category. This is a way of life, not a momentary decision. Anyone can make a foolish decision; none of us are perfect. Fools, however, live life in rebellion. They do not want to grow up inwardly. They think they know it all. There’s no need to buy wisdom and counsel. They can handle it themselves. The rich man who built larger barns was a fool. You’ll remember that in the parable, this man did not consult anyone but himself.

And the result is read in verse 20

Luke 12:20 ESV

But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’

The Advancement of Proverbs

This, now, leads us to the third qualifier for Proverbs. The first is the aim, the second is the audience, and finally, the third qualifier is the advancement of Proverbs. The book of Proverbs in the Bible is not the only set of proverbs that we have in the world. Many religions give proverbs. Many people have thought of proverbs. If you’ve ever heard the saying, “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,” you’ve been given a proverb from Benjamin Franklin. “A stitch in time may save nine,” is one from Thomas Fuller. “When in Rome, do as the Romans do,” is from Bishop Ambrose in the fourth century, who was actually referring to fasting on Saturdays. When he was in Milan, he did not fast on Saturdays, but when he was in Rome, he did. When in Rome, do as the Roman (church) does.

But as great as these adages and proverbs can be, the advantage goes to the biblical book of Proverbs, for the biblical book of Proverbs is chief among all proverbs.

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Before we go further, we need to understand that we once again have a parallelism in this verse. Remember I told you that sometimes there is what’s known as “parallels of opposites”? This is one of those times. We have two opposing outlooks in life: “the fear of the LORD” and “despis[ing].” The implication is that the “wise” are those who fear the LORD, since we know that it is the “fool” that despises wisdom and instruction.

Hearkening back to the audience, we know that there are really only two categories of people for whom Proverbs was written: the wise and the simple. The wise already fear the LORD. This does not mean that the wise are terrified of Yahweh God, but that they give him all due respect. Remember that the wise would rather listen/hear than talk. They are willing to buy advice and counsel. That’s how important it is to them. They realize that the best counsel is godly counsel. They give God the respect of knowing that he is he all-wise, all-knowing, all-present, all-powerful King of the Universe. Therefore, before all other proverbs, all other wisdom, all other advice from gurus, wisemen, philosophers, etc., they will turn to God. If they want to grow, if they want to advance, there is no advancement like the advancement of the Proverbs. It deals with nearly every aspect of life.

The fool, however, does not fear the LORD. He doesn’t respect him in the least. Therefore, no amount of reading of the Proverbs will do him any good. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.” It is the beginning—the first step in a long marathon of knowledge acquisition. If we do not begin with reverence for God and his Word, we will not end in the true wisdom that his Word provides.

So what does this mean for you and me? It means nothing less than what we find in Proverbs 3:5–6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

What so often happens, beloved, is that we fail to trust God’s direction. We have these moments of cognitive dissonance when we hold two opposing views at the same time. On the one hand we treat the Proverbs like promises; on the other hand we treat the Proverbs like preferences. We want to acquire the outcome, but we don’t want to acquiesce to the insight.

Church family, there is an advancement that can be made in Proverbs. These words of wisdom can absolutely change our lives if we come at them trusting that God knows what he is talking about. It is fine to be naive and simple when we come to the Proverbs; it’s written to advance the simple. Don’t come to it thinking it’s not for you; it is. But know, as one who is naive, simple, immature, or wise, righteous, mature, that in every way, trust that God knows what is best and follow after it, even if you don’t understand where it might lead. Again, the outcomes are possibilities, not promises. The truth, though, is that you’ll never regret submitting to God’s wisdom. It always advances those who fear, revere, trust him.

Conclusion

As we come to the end of this message, we know that January 1 is only a couple of days away. What if you were to make a resolution to be a wiser man, a wiser woman, a wiser child by December 31, 2025? What if you were to resolve to be a wiser student of life? What if you were to resolve to trust God’s direction and trust him to make your paths straight?

We’ve seen that the aim of Proverbs is to point us to wisdom, understanding, insight, and the like. They point us; they don’t move us. They want us to see ourselves, our character, our own thoughts and ways of doing things and see if they line up with what it means to be wise or foolish.

We’ve seen the audience of Proverbs are marked by two categories: the wise, mature, righteous, etc., and the simple, naive, youthful, etc. The wise are already on the road to wisdom, the naive are not yet started. They are almost like blank slates, but highly influenced by those around them. We’ve also seen that Proverbs is not for the fool. It paints many a picture as to what a fool looks like, but it isn’t for the fool because the fool will not take its advice/counsel.

Finally, we’ve seen the advancement of Proverbs is for those who fear the LORD. If we do want to grow in our understanding, we must first submit ourselves to Yahweh God, admitting that we do not have understanding in the way we ought. Our understanding is corrupted by sin. Only God understands the ways of this world without bias, without prejudice, and without cracked lenses. The proverbs will advance us in seeing the world the way God does, if we trust him to do it.

Of course, Christ Jesus is absolutely our example of this. Luke tells us that as Jesus grew; he grew, not only physically, but in wisdom as well. He did not just grow intellectually, but in wisdom. Though we know that God is personified in Jesus as Wisdom itself, his human nature had to still grow in such understanding. If God the Son needed to grow in wisdom in his mortal flesh, who are we to ignore such a vital part of the Christian life?

Prayer

Our heavenly Father,

We want to be a wise people this coming year. We not only want to grow in knowledge of your Word; we want to grow in wisdom so that we may take good, hard looks inwardly and see what our character looks like. Where we are simple, attract us to wisdom. Where we are wise, let us grow wiser still. Send men and women and even children into our lives from whom we can learn. By our redemption, may we have a well-deserved respect for you. Speak to us even now, O Lord. In Jesus’s name, we pray. Amen.

Please stand now as we respond to the Word of God with a song to God. May it reflect our hearts’ prayer.