Hear and Hold

Text —these are the very words of God

Proverbs 1:8–19 ESV

Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood; let us ambush the innocent without reason; like Sheol let us swallow them alive, and whole, like those who go down to the pit; we shall find all precious goods, we shall fill our houses with plunder; throw in your lot among us; we will all have one purse”— my son, do not walk in the way with them; hold back your foot from their paths, for their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood. For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird, but these men lie in wait for their own blood; they set an ambush for their own lives. Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain; it takes away the life of its possessors.

Introduction

In 2003, a movie came out called Anger Management with Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler.

I don’t remember a ton from the movie. I saw it in college in a late-night showing at the Byrd Theater in Richmond and I fell asleep about 45 minutes in after I ran out of popcorn.

But one thing I do remember is Jack Nicholson plays a therapist and Adam Sandler is one of his patients who has anger issues.

Sandler has these outbursts of rage all the time.

So Jack Nicholson teaches Sandler a word to calm his down. It was an Eskimo word— goosfraba.

Every time that Sandler is feeling the invitation to rage, he was supposed to hold to Nicholson’s instruction and repeat, “Goosfraba, Goosfraba, Goosfraba.”

Maybe some of you wives will find your husbands in front of the TV watching his team in the playoffs later just whispering, “Goosfraba,” to himself.

I share this because in many ways, it is a parallel to what we will see in our passage this morning.

We have instruction that is to be heeded.

And that instruction, if heard and held to will counteract an invitation.

The instruction will counteract the temptation to sin.

And in a world filled with invitations to join in on the transgressing of God’s Law, we need this instruction!

Context

Last week we began our 2026 Proverbs series.

One of the things we saw is that the thirty one chapter of Proverbs can be split up into seven collections.

We examined the preamble of the first collection in 1:1-7 and it served as an instruction manual for the entire book.

Now we enter into the “Prologue” of the first collection, which will go on until we arrive at chapter 9.

This morning we will see Solomon speaking to his son.

He is urging the boy to listen because there is an evil world swelling with temptation at his door.

He wants to give him the instruction that will help him overcome an invitation to join in with sin.

And as we read, keep in mind there is a wider purpose in play as well.

For not only does Solomon want his son to hear these words, but all of the sons and daughters of Israel.

This is for the whole generation coming after him.

And even wider than that, we know that God wants all of us to have the instruction that counteracts the world’s invitation to disobey Him and harm our neighbors.

Outline

1. Hear and hold to authoritative instruction (v. 8-9).

2. Do not consent when covetous sinners offer you an invitation (v. 10-19).

3. Take note of how the instruction counteracts the invitation.

Hear and Hold (v. 8-9)

We begin this morning with that first teaching point:

1. Hear and hold to authoritative instruction (v. 8-9).

Parents as a Source of Authority in Our Lives

God has put multiple sources of authority in our lives in this fallen world.

There is the authority of the local church and the governing authority of her pastors.

There is the authority of government with everyone from Presidents to policemen.

There is the authority of the workplace with employers and supervisors.

There may be times in our lives that we do not like the authorities that God has placed over us.

There may be election seasons where we even seek to change the authority that God has placed over us.

But at the end of the day, these authorities are there and they are given to us by God to help curb our sinful desires, which have plagued us since birth.

Imagine a world where there was no authority and everyone was able to do as they see fit with no consequences.

It would be pure anarchy.

One of the most important sources of authority in our lives are parents.

Unfortunately not every parent approaches there position of authority with godliness.

Some parents are overbearing and domineering.

Some parents are absent and neglectful.

But ideally, a parent is leading their child with affection and with authority—the same way God deals with us.

The Bible calls on all people everywhere to honor their father and mother.

Exodus 20:12 ESV

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

In many ways, verse 8 is Solomon re-emphasizing the 5th Commandment.

The fifth commandment is seen as the first commandment on the 2nd Table of the Law.

The First Table of the Law is focused on how we are to relate to God.

No other gods.

No idols.

No blaspheming the Lord’s name.

No transgression of the Lord’s Sabbath.

The Second Table of the Law is focused on how we deal with our neighbors:

Almost all of these commandments are stated negatively as “shalt not,” commands.

Shall not murder

Shall not commit adultery

Shall not steal

Shall not bear false witness against your neighbor

Shall not covet

The only one that is stands out as being stated positively is the 5th Commandment:

Honor your father and your mother...

Solomon is re-stating this by saying, “Hear my instruction and forsake not your mother’s teaching.”

Solomon will talk in this way over 12 times in the first 8 chapters.

Some form of — “Hear my words, son…don’t forsake teaching.”

An example is what we see to start chapter 4:

Proverbs 4:1 ESV

Hear, O sons, a father’s instruction, and be attentive, that you may gain insight,

Not Naturally Submissive

We need the the strong and repeated warnings from Proverbs when it comes to not neglecting authoritative instruction, because thanks to the Fall, it is not in our nature to be submissive to it.

There is a reason that most little boys don’t run around pretending to be pastors, but pirates.

There is a reason why when young men start watching X-Men, they often like Wolverine over Cyclops.

We are attracted to the James Dean figures of the world.

We love a rebel, because we are born rebels.

We cannot forget what Solomon himself says of human depravity.

Ecclesiastes 9:3 ESV

This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

It is the madness of sin that leads us to be rigorously rebellious from birth.

Adam fell in the Garden and we all fell with him and in him. We have inherited his corrupted nature.

And that plays out in us naturally rebelling against God and the authority He has put in place, just like Adam in the Garden.

Believers Still Being Sanctified

Praise God that if you are believer tonight, Christ has saved you by His grace.

Your corrupt, dead hart was regenerated and resurrected by the very power that raised Christ from the dead.

You have been given a new nature and a new heart.

One that is not dead to God.

One that is justified before His throne.

One that is enabled by the Spirit to obey Him.

One that can work out salvation with fear and trembling and we are being sanctified.

But the reality that we are still being sanctified, should cause us to realize that we still need to listen in the way Solomon is calling us.

We cannot afford to neglect the authoritative wisdom that God gives us in His Word, any more than Solomon’s son can afford to ignore and neglect parental instruction and teaching.

Katie and I really like the show Alone.

If you have never seen it, they drop a person off in some brutal environment and they are totally alone.

They are given cameras to record their own footage and they stay out there until they outlast the other people who are also alone in their own area.

Now imagine if I told you that I was going to go on that show.

You might ask if I was a boy scout—to which I would say no.

You might ask if I have ever hunted—to which I would say no.

You might ask if I was good with a machete—to which I would again—say no.

You wouldn’t need to talk with me long before you became very worried that this was a terrible idea.

That is a show for survivalists and I don’t know how to survive!

On our own, we are the same when it comes to surviving life.

We do not have the knowledge within us to please God in this world.

We do not have the spiritual ability in and of ourselves to get to across the finish line.

We will not survive alone.

We need God’s authoritative wisdom.

We need His truth which sanctifies and causes the devil to flee.

The Rewards of Submission

And you see in verse 9 that when we do submit ourselves to authoritative instruction, it is good for our soul.

Solomon says that his instruction and his mother’s teaching are like:

A graceful garland for the head

A pendant for the neck.

The garland refers to the wreath worn my military leaders as they would return from war.

If they were victorious, they wore the garland as a sign of their victory and the life they possess after putting their enemies to death.

The pendant is likely referring to what was worn around the neck of Egyptian high judges.

The jewelry showed that they were men of dignity and they live an exemplary life.

Solomon’s point is not hard to grasp.

A child-like submission to God-given instruction and teaching will lead to life and honor.

Not necessarily an easy life.

But a life of victory and dignity.

Solomon’s warning comes with a promise—much like the 5th Commandment which promises that, in general, those who honor their mother and father will live long in the land.

Rebelliousness on the other hand, leads to danger and death and destruction.

Do Not Consent (v. 10-19)

Let’s move to our second point this morning:

2. Do not consent when covetous sinners offer you an invitation (v. 10-19).

When Solomon used the Hebrew word hatta, which translates to sinners (v. 10), evil has really made its first appearance in the book of Proverbs.

The King is warning his son not to be enticed, or mislead, by sinners.

He says “Do not consent,” if they try.

Don’t give in. Don’t go along with with them. Don’t give them your “Yes.”

The Sin of the Sinners

The sinners that Solomon is warning about are particularly defined by the sins of greed and covetousness.

If you go down to verse 19, you see the problem.

They are greedy for unjust gain.

They want what they do not have and they are willing to do anything to get it—so long as its easy.

They aren’t willing to work hard for it in a righteous manner.

They aren’t willing to save money and get it the old-fashioned way.

They are like Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka—don’t care how, they want it now.

At the beginning of this text, we saw Solomon pointing to the principle of the 5th commandment—honor your father and mother.

But in v. 18-19, we see that these people transgress the principle of the 10th commandment—they covet their neighbors stuff and they will cut a throat to get it.

Meaning, their violation of the 10th Commandment, will ultimately lead to a violation of the 6th Commandment—Do not murder.

This is why they lie in wait for blood (v. 11) and their feet run to evil and make haste to shed blood (v. 16).

They want that easy money.

We also see their covetousness and greed on display in v. 13:

We shall find precious goods (v. 13)

We shall fill our houses with plunder (v. 13)

Solomon’s Hypothetical

This is why In verses 11-14, Solomon gives his son a hypothetical about these sinners.

What parent has not done this?

Son—be careful at school today. If someone in class starts talking to you, just ignore them and look at the teacher.”

Daughter—remember who you are at this sleepover. If anyone tries to hand you anything to drink, you say, “No.”

As parents, one of our jobs is to look around the corner and see if there is danger, and then to say to our kids, “Be careful about what is around that corner.”

And we commonly give them hypothetical situations they might find themselves in, so they know how to apply our instruction.

Progression to Destruction

Notice that in this hypothetical, things start out pretty pedestrian. A simple invitation. What could go wrong?

If they say, “Come with us...”

We have to understand that this is how sin usually presents itself.

“No big deal.”

Satan likes to bait the hook in such a way that it looks like just a little worm.

But once we bite down, he sets the hook and drags us off into heinous falls and failures.

What starts as a daily nightcap becomes full blown alcoholism.

What begins as harmless flirtation becomes full blown adultery.

What is nothing but a few harmless minutes scrolling Facebook at its genesis, becomes a full blown social media addiction that adds up to hundreds of hours of your life wasted.

Nobody wakes up and says, “I think I will become a hardened criminal today.”

It is something that starts with a simple invitation to “Come” and join the crowd.

But look at how it escalates quickly.

What begins as a simple invitation turns into the intention to shed blood, almost immediately.

v. 11 depicts evildoers lying in wait like predatory animals, ready to pounce on someone.

The invitation to “Come,” morphs into an invitation to ambush the innocent without reason.

The use of the word innocent demonstrates just how unjust this groups of enticing sinners are.

They know they are sneak-attacking people who have done nothing wrong and they don’t care.

The son’s parental instruction will lead to life, but his partnership with these sinners would be a partnership with death.

You can see in verse 12 that the unjust evildoers desire to emulate Sheol—the grave.

They want to swallow the innocent up whole like the pit of Hell itself.

The swallowing up conjures up images of a shark sneaking up behind a smaller fish and swallowing them whole.

We already read about how they want to plunder their neighbors the way a people would plunder their enemies (v 13).

This shows you how they view their neighbors.

They don’t see them as someone to be loved, but someone they would steal from.

They view their neighbors the way a warring nation would view their enemies.

And in verse 14, you see the full escalation of the initial invitation.

What started as “Come with us,” has turned into, “Let’s steal, murder and plunder,” and afterwards, let’s share a bank account.

Let’s go into business together.

Cast lots with us for the stolen goods and we will divide up one purse as partners.

Do you see how we have gone from “Just be PRESENT with us,” to, “Be PARTNERS with us?”

This is the insidious nature of sin.

It creeps and creeps.

But what it is creeping toward is always destruction.

Verses 17-19 show us something of the coming destruction for these sinners.

The Destruction of the Sinner (v. 17-19)

Proverbs 1:17–18 ESV

For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird, but these men lie in wait for their own blood; they set an ambush for their own lives.

Look at what becomes of the sinners who offered the invitation.

In v. 11, they thought they were going to lie in wait for the blood of others, but in truth, they are lying in wait for their own blood.

They have set a trap for themselves.

And yet, they can’t even see it.

If you set a trap in the sight of a bird, the bird won’t fly into it.

It has a brain the size of a small nut and yet, it is smart enough to avoid a trap set in plain sight.

But not these sinners.

They are so foolish that they have failed to see the trap that they actually set for themselves with their evil scheming.

They do not realize the end result of their foolish sinning and their lack of fear of God.

Ultimately, their greedy lifestyle will suck the life out of them.

Their lives will be taken away (v. 19).

Their greed will lead to death.

They live life not fearing God, consuming all they can get their hands on and at the end of time, they will face God and answer for their sins.

They wanted to swallow the living like Sheol, but in the end, Sheol will swallow them forever.

They will go down into the pit.

Revelation 21:8 ESV

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Ultimately, Solomon is commanding his son not to accept invitations that lead to death.

Holding Back His Foot

Instead, Solomon’s son is to hold back his foot from the sinners’ path (v. 15).

He tells him to to “walk in the way with them.”

Solomon means that his son is not to:

Copy their character

Identify himself with them

Join in on their choices

Otherwise, he will inherit their consequences—destruction.

One of my favorite shows of all-time is The Wonder Years.

In one episode in Season 2, Kevin is upset because his neighborhood sweetheart, Winnie Cooper, has dumped him and she is dating an 8th grader—Kirk McCraig.

So Kevin makes a new friend of his own—Gary Cosay.

At first Kevin just lets Gary cheat off his math test.

Then he lets Gary to convince him to forge his mom’s signature on his detention slip.

Next thing you know, he is hiding illegal things in his locker.

He is smoking and drinking on a camping trip in the woods.

And he is verbally abusing his old girlfriend, Winnie.

And he had to deal with the consequences of those actions.

The episode is perfectly titled, “Heart of Darkness.”

A foot on Gary’s path led to a full on identification for Kevin...

This shows how sin creeps.

What begins as a parroting of character, turns to identification, which turns to choices, which becomes devastating consequences.

Who hasn’t seen this happen to someone.

Who hasn’t seen a good kid run with the wrong crowd.

They start to act like the new friends.

Then they start to identify with the new friends.

Then they make the choices of the new friends.

And then, they reap the consequences.

But this is not just a warning for kids.

Marriages end when people allow new crowds to change them.

Character changes when people start identifying with a new scene.

Addictions begin when people make choices they never would have made before, until they met a certain crowd.

And once foolish, crowd-sourced decisions are made, the consequences will be dealt with.

God will not be mocked. A man will reap what he sows.

You don’t want to be found reaping destruction with the wicked.

Take Note

And this really brings us to this morning’s final teaching point.

I would think that we hear this and we all want heaven.

We all want to reject the invitation that leads to death.

But if we are honest, in the moment by moment living of life, it is not so simple.

Because when the invitation of the sinners actually comes—it looks a lot more pleasing than it does when we are talking about it from afar here at church today.

What do we do when the heat of temptation is so strong that it seems like it is an invitation to life and not death?

3. Take note of how the instruction counteracts the invitation.

We have seen three commands in these verses today.

HEAR and FORSAKE NOT (v. 8)

Hear and Hold to the authoritative teaching from father and mother

DO NOT CONSENT to the enticement of sinners (v. 10)

Reject their invitation

DO NOT WALK IN THE WAY; HOLD BACK YOUR FOOT (v. 15)

Do not imitate them or identify with them or join in with them.

These commands are the substance of the father’s instruction and the mother’s teaching (v. 8).

And the commands themselves are laid before the son specifically to frustrate the attempts of the world to lead Solomon’s boy astray.

Meaning—the boy will be protected from everything that comes from the invitation of sinners if he simply HEARS and HOLDS TO the teaching of his father and mother.

The commands of v. 10 and v. 15 will be followed if he does what he is commanded in v. 8.

And if the commands of v. 10 and v. 15 are followed, the consequences of sin will not be felt.

The Goodness of God’s Commands

This may seem elementary but it reinforces something we too quickly forget—every command of God is nothing but pure, golden goodness.

Some people hear the word command and they think, “Ugh. Stuffy religiosity.”

Others hear it and say, “Oh no. Legalism.”

But the believer should never think these things of God’s commands.

They are not stifling.

They are not unnecessary.

They are not just something for the Old Testament saints.

They are not legalistic.

No—the believer should know that the commands of God are just good.

And the obedience of such commands will protect the soul from evil’s bitter effects and consequences.

If we go to Psalm 119, we can see the goodness of God’s commands and how they protect from evil sprinkled through the 176 verses.

Psalm 119:11 ESV

I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

When the good commands of the Word are stored up like resources in the heart, the Word becomes a repellent to sin against God.

Psalm 119:101 ESV

I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word.

The keeping of the Word’s commands results in the holding back of the Psalmist’s feet from evil.

Psalm 119:115 ESV

Depart from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commandments of my God.

Company with evildoers and obedience to the commands of God are incompatible.

What is implied is that company with evildoers will ultimately prevent a person from obeying God in the long run.

A Clear Choice

So then, Solomon’s son, and also the rest of us as readers, are left with a choice.

Will I ignore instruction and forsake teaching and go with the sinner, embracing both their actions and their consequences?

OR Will I hear instruction and hold to teaching and reject the sinner’s invitation, thus avoiding participating in their actions and their consequences?

And In many ways—that is the choice facing all of us everyday in this world.

Teenager—this will be your choice at school tomorrow.

Young people—this will be your choice as you make friends in your 20’s that will likely be in your life for the rest of your days.

Church member—this is your choice when those people from your past come around and they don’t really understand the change that Christ has made in your life.

Friend—this is your choice as you consider whether or not you will believe in Christ and give Him your life or continue on in the world as you are.

The question is—what will you do with the information?

If we fear God, there is only one choice—His commands must be held to.

The good, wise authoritative teaching He has placed in our lives must be heeded.

But if we do not listen and we go along with the world, what are we but FOOLS who despise wisdom and instruction?

And that foolish attitude toward instruction will lead to destruction.

A Caution About Grace

And yet—before we wrap up—this is where I must offer up a caution about commands.

I want to make sure you do not hear this today and think, “This means I need to count God’s commands as good and then just try really hard to keep them in my strength so God will reward me.”

That is not the Gospel.

THAT is actually stifling religion.

The Gospel is this—that you cannot keep the commands of God on your own.

You will fail again and again because you are sinner by nature.

From birth, your heart is far from God.

Therefore, before we think about cherishing commands and holding to them, we must think about heart change.

God has to change the state of your heart.

It must go from corruption at the root to grace at the root.

God must transform you to the innermost part of your soul by His undeserved love.

And praise Him that this is just what He promises to do.

Ezekiel 36:26 ESV

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

And if you keep reading, you find out how commands are kept.

When the heart is made new by God’s grace, this is what happens:

Ezekiel 36:27 ESV

And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

HE puts HIS Spirit with in us and by His grace and the power of His Spirit, we are enabled to walk in God’s statutes and obey His rules.

This is how someone is able to keep God’s commands.

God changes them by His love. God empowers them by His Spirit.

And then God gets the glory because the obedience blooms from the stem of His grace—not our sinful, strained efforts to somehow keep His laws.

So then, as we finish—what you need is ultimately to reject the invitation of sinners and accept the invitation of the Savior.

Receive the Invitation of Christ, Not Sinners

Instead of going with them on their way, we must go with Christ on His way.

He reaches out to us and says, “Come,” but his invitation is not to work iniquity, but to find rest.

Matthew 11:28 ESV

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

His invitation is not to drink the blood of the innocent, but to drink fully of the Spirit.

John 7:37–39 ESV

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

The invitation of the greedy, coveting world is for you to come with them in their fearless pursuit of evil gain.

They tell you that you will be satisfied.

They tell you that the poison of sin will be pleasure.

But the end of that road is death and destruction.

In fact, Proverbs 13:21 says that disaster pursues the sinner.

As long as the sinner is chasing sin, then destruction is chasing the sinner.

And destruction will catch the sinners heel on the day of Judgment, no matter how fast they think they are.

But the invitation of God in Christ is that you would fear God, know wisdom and have life.

Victory over sin.

Protection in life.

Dignity in death.

Hope for eternity.

Rest beyond the cold river.

Silly words repeated to yourself like Goosfraba won’t get you far.

Self-empowered efforts to keep God’s commands will fall short.

The invitation of sinners will drag into the pit of death.

But Hearing and holding fast to the commands of God...

...AFTER being changed by the grace of God...

...This is where abundant life is found now and forever.