Proverbs (3:1-18) WISDOM

FROM TRUSTING GOD

Psalms 119:130
The unfolding of your words gives light; it
gives understanding to the simple.
Biography
Solomon is Israel’s wisest king.

We find in I Kings 4:32 that Solomon wrote 3,000

proverbs and 1,005 songs.

I Kings 3, Solomon prayed to God for wisdom, to be able

to discern between good and bad.
Introduction
The book of Proverbs is mainly about wisdom.

Proverbs 1-7 lays down foundations of wisdom and the

principals, describing how great it is to have Wisdom and
Benefit from it.

Proverbs 1:7 states, “The fear of the Lord is the

beginning of knowledge.”
Let’s Pray Before the scripture
PROVERBS (3:1-4)-Walk rightly with God by valuing His word.

1-My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart keep my commands;
[Duet 8:1 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may
enter and possess the land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors.]

2-For length of days and long life And peace they will add to you.
[Prov 4:10 Listen, my son, accept what I say, and the years of your life will be many.]

3-Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet
of your heart,

4-And so find favour and high esteem In the sight of God and man
“Do not forget my law”: Solomon refers not to his laws but God’s word that he had
internalized and made personal.

“Let your heart keep my commands”: The key point to serving God and loving Him is
Obedience by keeping the commands and engraving them on our hearts.
[Ex 13:9 This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your
forehead that this law of the LORD is to be on your lips]

“They will add to you”: A heart that obeys God, and lives in Peace in principle, shall prosper a
long life. However, Some godly persons have trouble living in peace. We regard these as true
principles, not absolute promises.
“Let not mercy and truth forsake you”: “Mercy and truth are frequently joined together, as
they are in God. when you hold to the truth you are living a free life.

But why mercy and truth??

[John 8:31-32: So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word,
you are truly my disciples,32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”]

[Mat 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.]

[Daniel 9:9 "The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled
against him"]
(3:5-6) Walk rightly with God by truly trusting Him.

5-Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;

6-In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
[1 Chronicles 28:9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and
serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every
heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by
you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.]
“Trust in the Lord”: Solomon advised his son to live a life of trust in Yahweh. Solomon told
us to consciously put our trust in the Lord, the covenant God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Why trust in God “with all you heart”?

God knows everything we are going through at this very moment and everything we will go
through in the future. If trust in God is to be true, it must be complete.

[Mat 14:28-31 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29
“Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came
toward Jesus.

“Lean not on your own understanding”

30
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save
me!”
31
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why
did you doubt?”]
How can we know the will of God?

In principle, Solomon gave a wonderful answer in Proverbs 3:5-6. When we:

 Decide to put our trust in the Lord.

 Decide to not trust in our own understanding, but give attention and priority to God’s
revealed word.

 Decide to acknowledge and honour God in all that we do.

(3:7-8) Walk rightly with God by a humble, reverent life.

7-Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
[Rom 12:16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate
with people of low position. Do not be conceited.]

8-It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones.

 “Fear the Lord and depart from evil”: The natural result of trusting God. As we trust Him,
we come to know Him better, As we trust Him, we are drawn more to God and further
from evil.
[Matt 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.]
(3:9-10) Walk rightly with God in regard to your possessions.

9-Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
[Ex 22:29 Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the
firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me.]

10-So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.

 “Honour the Lord with your possessions”: Practical way to show that you do trust in the
Lord with all your heart,

 According to the principle of the sacrifice of the firstfruits, we should give to God the first
and best. If we will truly honour the Lord with our giving, it won’t be with the last and
leftovers.
(3:11-12) Receiving correction from God with the right heart.

11-My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor detest His correction;
[Rev 3:19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.]

12-For whom the LORD loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
[Deut 8:5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God
disciplines you.]
“Chastening” what does it mean?

According to the Dictionary subdue, humble

“Nor detest His correction”: This is when God either brings or allows some discomfort or
affliction in the life of the believer for the good of:

 Exposing a sin or evil not previously seen.

 Showing the nature of the problem and need to address it.

 Discouraging the previous embrace of the sin or evil.

 Guiding to the rejection of sin or evil and embrace of God’s best.

It is not the physical or mental punishment that God wants us to bare just to please Him self
by seeing us being tormented, whereas He is seeking the pureness in us.

The particular discomfort or affliction could come in many ways. God may do it through the
inward conviction of the Holy Spirit. It may come through critics and adversaries. It may
come through disappointing and sour circumstances. However it may come, it will
not feel good, but before God could be allowed to do much good in the life of the believer.
(3:13-18) The wonderful benefits pureness and God’s correction.

13-Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding;

14-For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, And her gain than fine gold.

15-She is more precious than rubies, And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.

16-Length of days (long life) is in her right hand, In her left hand riches and honour.

17-Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.

18-She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy are all who retain her.
“Happy is the man who finds wisdom”: In the fear of the Lord, wisdom and understanding (often
the result of God’s loving correction) would guide men and women into a truly A life with God
without worries = Happy Life.

“Her proceeds are better than the profits of silver” :Wisdom and the correction from God, uproars
character and training that brings contentment and quality of life that money can’t provide.

“All the things you may desire cannot compare with her”: This wisdom is greater than all kinds of
riches – silver, fine gold, or rubies. To have the wisdom that comes from God’s loving correction is
to have something better than material wealth.
[Job 28, also a good reference for understanding the wisdom and how it outweighs worldly
material]
“Length of days is in her right hand”: In principle, wise people live longer, enjoy great prosperity
(riches) and esteem (honour).

We can say that “Wisdom is represented as a great and generous princess distributing gifts to her
subjects.”

“Her ways are ways of pleasantness:

They live lives marked by pleasantness, by peace, and by happiness (happy are all who retain
her).
[Psalm 119:165 Abundant peace belongs to those who love Your instruction; nothing can make
them stumble.]

“She is a tree of life”:

[Revelation 2:7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one
who overcomes, I will grant the right to eat from the tree of life in the Paradise of God.]