We are starting a new series, and we're in Proverbs, the book of Proverbs today.
If you don't have a Bible, please raise your hand. We'll have someone from our church bring a Bible to you to help.
Sungmin is back from his very long vacation in California, and he is ready to bring you the Bibles that you need.
And if you are using one of our Blue Pew Bibles, if you don't have one, you can borrow that from us while you're here.
Proverbs is in page 527.
It's in the Old Testament after the long book of Psalms.
Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.
Heavenly Father, we come to your Word.
Lord, wanting once again to hear your voice, to be addressed by our King, by our Heavenly Father.
We come in particular this morning to the book of Proverbs, the book of wisdom.
Lord, we recognize that we cannot have wisdom unless we first humble ourselves before you.
And that is our prayer this morning, because only you can do that work.
That you would instill in us a profound fear of the Lord.
Lord, that you would make us a people that tremble before you, that stand in awe of you, that live under your authority, your power.
Lord, that's your prayer.
People who know Christ.
People who have humbled ourselves, humbled themselves, and have entrusted themselves fully to Christ and His salvation.
Lord, make us such people this morning.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Proverbs chapter 1.
We will just do verses 1 through 7 today.
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.
This is God's holy and authoritative word.
The Bible is immensely practical for all of life.
But because it is primarily concerned.
As 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 15 says.
With making us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
It doesn't always get into the mundane details of everyday life.
The book of Proverbs, however, does get into not only the wisdom for salvation.
But also wisdom for finance.
Wisdom for dealing with your neighbors.
Teaches about friendship.
Wisdom for parenting, etc.
As Derek Kipner, a Bible commentator, puts it.
There are details of character small enough to escape the mesh of the law and the broad sides of the prophets.
And yet decisive.
In personal dealings.
Proverbs moves in this realm.
Asking what a person is like to live with or to employ.
How he manages his affairs.
His time.
And himself.
So considering where many of us are as a church in our stages of life.
We thought this would be a very helpful book to go through.
A bit of a change in scenery from where we've been.
And in order to interpret any passage of scripture or any book.
Correctly, properly.
We need to pay attention to three different contexts.
First is the historical context.
The second is the literary context.
And the third is the theological context.
And this is because all scripture is embedded in a particular historical period and culture.
And so our interpretation needs to take into account the relevant historical context.
And so to that end, we need to ask ourselves the questions like, you know, who wrote it?
For whom was it written?
When was it written?
Why was it written?
And also because scripture is literature, our interpretation has to take into account its literary context.
The words.
The syntax.
The structure.
The grammar of the text.
As well as its genre.
Is it a poetry?
Is it a proverb?
Is it a narrative?
Is it a letter?
Or, and since all scripture is divinely inspired, finally we need to consider its theological context.
How does a passage or a book fit in with the rest of scripture?
What does it teach us about God?
How does it relate to Christ?
And verses 1 to 7 is a preamble of the book of Proverbs.
And so it helpfully answers many of these questions for us.
And the overall message of this passage is that we can learn the saving wisdom of God only by humbling ourselves before him.
And so first we'll look at the historical context and then the literary context and the theological context of this book going through verses 1 through 7.
So let's look at the historical context to start.
Right off the bat it tells us who wrote the book.
Verse 1 it says,
The Proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.
So the whole collection of Proverbs is attributed to Solomon as the lead author.
But this doesn't mean that he was the sole author.
The book of Proverbs is an anthology.
It's made up of a number of texts written by various authors from various time periods.
And different sections of Proverbs are marked with captions that attribute that section to a particular author.
And I have a list of that to show you.
For example, Solomon is the direct attribution.
Chapter 1, verse 1.
Chapter 10, verse 1.
Chapter 25, verse 1.
And then it refers to the wise.
Kind of generally a category of the wise people as responsible for the sections between 22.17 and 24.34.
And then Augur, chapter 30.
And King Lemuel in chapter 31.
So these are all different authors of the book of Proverbs.
But because Solomon is the principal author, the whole collection is attributed to him.
It's kind of like when you write an academic paper, there's a lead author.
His name is first.
And he's the one that gets cited or mentioned and named most frequently.
And this is not surprising because other parts of Scripture corroborate Solomon's great wisdom.
So we see in 1 Kings 3, verses 5-14, that at the beginning of his reign,
Solomon asked God specifically to grant him an understanding to discern what is right.
And it says that God granted him that.
And so throughout the Old Testament narrative, Solomon is frequently mentioned as kind of this paragon of wisdom.
And we see that specifically in chapter 4, verse 29-34 of 1 Kings.
It says,
And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure,
and breath of mind like the sand on the seashore,
so that Solomon's wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt.
For he was wiser than all other men,
wiser than Ethan the Ezraite,
and Heman,
Calco,
and Darda,
the sons of Maho.
And his fame was in all the surrounding nations.
He also spoke 3,000 proverbs,
and his songs were 1,005.
And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
and from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
So since Solomon wrote the bulk of the proverbs,
this also tells us the date,
which means it dates to around the 10th century B.C.
But we know that there was some redactional activity.
There's some editing going on later in stages of proverbs.
Because chapter 25, verse 1 explicitly tells us,
These also are proverbs of Solomon,
which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, copied.
So the word copied literally means to move forward,
or to pass on,
or to transmit.
It refers to the copying and editing work of scribes
in order to transmit an older document,
and to make it available for future generations.
So that means the book of proverbs was redacted
in the early 7th century.
And if you compare proverbs to other ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature,
you find that they have a lot in common.
For example, especially the sayings
that are attributed generically to the wise,
you guys saw that earlier,
in chapter 22 to chapter 24.
That section in particular contains striking similarities,
for example, with the Egyptian instruction of a menemope.
And that's sometimes people who don't believe in scripture
as the word of God will point to that and say,
Well, you see, Solomon didn't write this.
You know, he just copied it from his source or whatnot.
But that's actually not at all surprising,
because most wisdom, most proverbs that you know,
how many of you can identify the author of a proverb that you know?
I don't think I can identify a single one.
That's the nature of wisdom,
which is passed down from generation after generation,
and it's known in many different cultures.
And it's also not surprising,
because 1 Kings 4, chapter 4, verse 30,
which we read earlier,
specifically tells us that Solomon interacted with
and surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the East
and the wisdom of Egypt.
He knew the proverbs of Egypt,
and he attributes a section of proverbs to the wise,
generically speaking.
And Solomon was also married to an Egyptian princess,
as we know from 1 Kings 3, verse 1.
So it's not at all surprising to see that kind of parallel.
But proverbs does not uncritically assimilate the wisdom
of its surrounding culture.
It transforms it,
because it takes the wisdom gleaned from these cultures
and expresses them in its unique theological context,
as we will later see.
And we see one notable difference between the book of proverbs
and other contemporary ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature right away,
in verse 1.
Usually, in ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature,
not only the author,
but also the addressee is specifically named.
And the addressee is typically the first son of the author,
or an apprentice of the author,
who will succeed that sage in his capacity working in the royal courts.
So it's a form of professional,
it's a manual,
it's a professional manual to instruct them
so that they can take over for the person that's writing.
For example,
I mentioned the instruction of Amenemope.
It's written by Amenemope,
who identifies himself as a scribe in Egypt
that oversaw the registry of lands and grains,
a role that seems very similar to the one that Joseph occupied
in Genesis 41 and 47.
And the addressee of that instruction is his son,
the youngest of his children,
who is expected to succeed him in the Egyptian court.
The book of Proverbs, in contrast,
lacks a specific addressee in the introduction.
Solomon does not address his heir apparent, Rehoboam.
And by omitting a specific addressee,
Solomon democratizes his work to all of God's people.
So it says in verse 4,
the Proverbs was written to give prudence to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the youth.
And not only that,
it says in verse 5,
that those who are already wise,
too, may hear and increase in learning.
So the mention of the simple on the one hand
and the wise on the other hand,
they're groups of the opposite ends of the spectrum.
This shows that Proverbs is addressed to all people,
applicable to all people,
not only to a professional intellectual class.
Now at various points,
it does specifically address my son or sons,
but that's not because there is a specific son in view.
Rather, it's a literary device that sets the book of Proverbs
in the context of family instruction.
That's why chapter 1, verse 8 says,
Hear, my son, your father's instruction,
and forsake not your mother's teaching.
And this is,
it uses the male perspective frequently,
just as languages in many cultures do,
when it applies to both.
So for example,
in Proverbs,
in chapters 5 to 7,
you'll find warnings about the adulterous woman.
But because it is given from that male perspective,
there are no parallel warnings about predatory,
adulterous men,
which you should be just as wary of.
But this doesn't mean that Proverbs is only applicable to men.
It has an entire section dedicated to praising a woman who fears the Lord,
in chapter 31.
And this woman also appears to be schooled in wisdom,
since chapter 31, verse 26,
says,
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
And in several places in Proverbs,
it mentions not only the father,
but also the mother as the instructor of wisdom in their household to their children.
And so this is,
in fact,
the caption in chapter 31,
verse 1,
says,
The words of King Lemuel,
an oracle that his mother taught him.
And so the fact that mothers are able to instruct their children in this wisdom,
shows that daughters as well as sons were schooled in this instruction of wisdom,
so that they're able to transmit it to their children later.
So that's the kind of historical context.
And now let's look at greater detail in verses 2 to 6 for the literary context of Proverbs.
Verse 2 tells us the purpose of Proverbs.
It says,
To know wisdom and instruction,
to understand words of insight.
So this is what the book is all about.
It's about acquiring wisdom.
And this reveals the genre of Proverbs.
It belongs to the wisdom genre in the Bible,
which also includes the book of Job and the book of Ecclesiastes.
And these three books kind of have to be understood in relationship to one another.
These are very general observations.
But to make very general observations,
Proverbs captures the idealism of a parent,
of a well-wishing parent.
Its basic message is,
Child, it will go well for you if you live wisely in this way.
That's the book of Proverbs.
Ecclesiastes, however,
captures kind of the realism of a weathered veteran.
It says,
No matter how wisely you live,
this life is going to throw curveballs at you,
and bad things are going to happen.
That's Ecclesiastes.
And then Job captures kind of the fideism,
the doctrine of faith.
It has to filter everything that you experience in life.
It's the fideism of a suffering saint.
It says,
We can't explain all that happens in life,
but we have to trust that it all makes sense
in the sovereign wisdom of God.
And these three books,
they kind of work off of each other
and nuance each other,
expand upon each other
to create a very rich matrix of biblical wisdom.
You kind of have to see them together,
understand them together.
Ecclesiastes is prose,
and Job is a mix of poetry and prose,
but Proverbs is poetry.
And because poetry is written
not merely to communicate an idea clearly,
but also to produce pleasure
with something beautiful and imaginative,
with these striking turns of phrases,
it requires that we really meditate,
ruminate on the words,
and engage our creativity.
And so we need to pay attention
when we're reading Proverbs
to figurative language and imagery.
For example, when Proverbs 10, verse 26,
says,
Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
so is the slugger to those who send him.
So we're being invited
to really meditate on that image.
What does vinegar do to people's teeth?
What does smoke do to the eyes?
And as you're meditating on it,
thinking about it,
it gets you deeper into the meaning
of that proverb.
So because of this poetic nature,
you really can't give Proverbs
a cursory reading,
just really quick kind of skimming,
and think that you can get much out of it.
It doesn't work like that.
You have to meditate on it.
You really have to memorize it.
And so there's a pastor, Tim Keller,
who wrote a book on the book of Proverbs.
It says this.
It's a really helpful illustration.
He says,
A proverb is like a hard candy.
If you just bite down on it,
you get little out of it
and may even get a broken tooth.
Instead, you must meditate on it
until the sweetness of insight comes.
And because it's poultry,
we also need to pay attention
to parallel structure.
How are the lines and strophes,
how do they modify and magnify each other?
To give you an example,
let's look at our passage.
Proverbs often use bi-kola,
which is a line in one verse
with two kola or half verses.
And here in our passage in verse 2,
it's unique.
Verse 2 is unique in this passage
because it has two infinitive clauses
in each column.
It says,
To know wisdom and instruction.
That's the first half.
And then,
To understand words of insight.
That's the second half.
And these parallel half verses
shed light on the dual purpose of Proverbs.
Its first purpose is to know wisdom
and instruction.
That implies an internalization
of an experience of the substance of wisdom.
It's not merely head knowledge,
but heart knowledge.
It's confirmed by the word instruction,
which refers to kind of a humble submission
to the authority of one's teacher.
Job 5.17, for example,
translates that same word instruction
as discipline.
Behold, blessed is the one
whom God reproves,
therefore despise not
the discipline of the Almighty.
So to know wisdom and instruction
is to internalize and obey
the substance,
the lessons of wisdom
by submitting to discipline
and correction.
That's the one purpose of Proverbs.
The second half,
so the first half refers
to the substance of wisdom.
Second half of verse 2
refers to the form of wisdom,
the expression of wisdom.
To understand words of insight.
It means,
to understand means to perceive
or to discern or grasp something.
And the word refers to a saying,
a proverb,
words of insight.
And this is a common distinction
that a lot of ancient Near Eastern literature
make between knowledge
and its expression.
The substance of wisdom
and how it's articulated.
You need to both understand
what the words are saying
and then really grasp
and internalize its content,
its substance into your life.
So then Proverbs is intended
both to help us grow wiser
and also for us,
to help us grasp the wisdom.
To become characterized by wisdom
and also to understand
the way wisdom is articulated.
And verses 3 to 6 then
unpack verse 2.
Verses 3 to 4 expand
on what it means
to know wisdom and instruction.
And then verses 5 to 6 expand
on what it means
to understand the words of insight.
And we know that there's an association
between these subsections
and the head verse in verse 2
because they're connected by catchwords,
which is also a literary device
that biblical writers often use,
using keywords,
repeating keywords
or synonyms of words
to tie literary units together.
So I have a...
I can show you this.
Yeah, so the words know
and instruction
from the first half of verse 2
are repeated again
in verses 3 to 4.
To know wisdom and instruction.
To receive instruction
in wise dealing.
Knowledge and discretion
to the youth.
And then the words understand
and the word word
are repeated in verses 5 to 6.
To understand words of insight.
The one who understands
obtains guidance.
To understand a proverb
and a saying.
The words of the wise
and their riddles.
So using that parallel structure
as a guideline,
let's then unpack
what it means
to know wisdom and instruction.
The first half of verse 2.
So first,
to know wisdom and instruction
requires two things.
A teachable person
and a person
who is willing
and able to teach.
So verse 3
speaks of a teachable person.
It says,
to receive instruction
in wise dealing,
in righteousness,
justice,
and equity.
As I mentioned earlier,
instruction is a word
that conveys a sense
of discipline
or correction.
So that means
we need to be ready
to receive instruction.
The word receive
implies eager acceptance,
receptivity.
So a truly wise person
humbly submits
to the discipline
of God's word.
He doesn't cut through
the word of God
with the mold
of his own worldview
and ideas.
Making the Bible
fit his mold
and then cutting off
all the excess.
A truly wise person,
a godly person,
instead,
takes the mold
of God's word
and puts it
over himself.
Make his life
and his ideas
fit the mold
and get rid
of any excess.
Humble receptivity
to receive instruction.
And a truly wise person
does not merely
have cognitive wisdom,
but also experiential wisdom.
He has submitted
to course correction
in wise dealing,
in righteousness,
justice,
and equity.
It's kind of like this.
One can understand
all the mechanics
of throwing a football,
yet be completely
incapable
of throwing a football.
That's me.
One can master
the details of theology
and yet not know God.
One can understand
the psychology
of persons
and yet be totally
inept at knowing
and relating
to people.
Similarly,
one can have
much knowledge
and yet be
totally unwise
in the way he lives.
There's a difference
between a wise cracker
and a wise person.
To know wisdom
and instruction
requires someone
who is teachable.
It also requires
someone who can teach.
That's what verse 4
has in view,
to give prudence
to the simple,
knowledge and discretion
to the youth.
Being simple
can be a sign
of godly humility
and faith,
and that's not
the kind of simplicity
that's in view here.
It's referring to people
who are simplistic,
naive,
gullible.
It's the type of people
who often get duped
or scammed.
What they need
is prudence
that can also be
translated as shrewdness.
And the goal
of wisdom instruction
is to impart knowledge
and discretion
to the youth.
Discretion is the quality
of being judicious
or circumspect
in one's dealings,
not impulsive
or careless.
And the youth
are identified
as the category
of people
that particularly
need this kind
of discretion,
but youth
doesn't merely
refer to teenagers
in the Bible.
The Hebrew words
for young people
are not as narrow
and specific
as in the English.
So youth,
the word,
is sometimes used
to refer to infants,
Exodus 2,
chapter 2,
verse 6.
It refers to teens,
Genesis chapter 37,
verse 2.
It even refers
to a 30-year-old Joseph
in Genesis 41.
So anyone
who is asking questions
like,
who am I?
Where do I fit in?
What do I believe?
How shall I live?
If you're asking
these questions,
you can identify
and put yourself
in the category
of the youth
that the Proverbs
is addressing.
So that's what it means
to know the substance
of wisdom,
to know wisdom
and instruction,
to humble yourself,
to receive the discipline,
the correction
of God's word.
Now turning to
the second half
of verse 2,
the form of wisdom,
the expression of it,
to understand
words of insight.
Let's look at
verses 5 to 6.
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.
So the subsection
is connected
to the second half
of verse 2
by the words
understand and words.
So it's possible
to know,
as I said,
it's possible
to know the form
of wisdom
without understanding
its substance.
But it's also
impossible
to understand
the substance
of wisdom
without grasping
the form.
You also need
to understand
what the words mean.
You have to grasp it.
And so,
you know,
you need to be able
to understand it
before you can apply it
and obey them.
And so that's what
verses 5 to 6
are concerned about.
Even the wise
should pay attention
because then
they will increase
in learning.
And whoever
understands
will obtain
guidance
to understand
a proverb
and a saying
the words
of the wise
and their riddles.
Several different
words are here
used to refer
to a proverb.
It's called
a proverb,
a saying,
words of the wise
and riddles.
Habakkuk 2,
verse 6
uses three
of these four words
to refer to
the exact same song.
So we know
that these words
are not referring
to different types
of proverbs
or wisdom sayings.
It's all referring
to the same thing.
But it does highlight
different aspects
of what a proverb
is like.
And so a proverb
is literally
kind of a form
of parable.
It's kind of
a metaphor.
The book of Proverbs
includes sections
of longer narratives
as well,
but it features
what we've come
to associate primarily
with the word proverb.
These kind of pithy,
kind of punchy,
witty sayings
that you guys know,
I'm sure,
several from memory.
And so that means
by definition,
because it's a proverb,
proverbs do not
come with
qualifications,
nuances,
and footnotes.
If it had those things,
it would be an essay.
It would not be a proverb.
It would no longer
be pithy or witty.
And for that reason,
we need to be careful
not to absolutize
the proverbs
to make it fit
every context.
Instead,
we need to use
the proverbs
in their appropriate
contexts.
And we can see this
even in the examples
of non-biblical proverbs.
So to give you an example,
sometimes in life,
a speedy response
to a situation
is called for.
So there are proverbs
that say that, right?
He who hesitates
is lost.
A stitch in time
saves nine.
You guys understand
what that means?
Nobody stitches up
things anymore.
If you have a little hole,
like a pinhole
on your shirt,
if you don't stitch it up
in a timely fashion,
it's going to become
this gaping larger hole
that's going to require
nine stitches
instead of one.
That's what that means.
So you've got to respond
quickly to a crisis
or a situation.
So these proverbs
are calling for
a quick response.
But then there are
other proverbs
that call for
a more slower,
measured,
and deliberative
response to things,
like,
look before you leap.
Haste makes waste.
They're contradictory.
They advise opposite things.
But we know from experience
that these sayings
are both true.
Similarly,
Proverbs chapter 13,
verse 25 says,
The righteous
has enough
to satisfy his appetite,
but the belly
of the wicked
suffers want.
Pretty straightforward,
right?
If you live righteously,
you will have plenty
to eat.
If you live wickedly,
you will go hungry.
However,
just two verses earlier,
Proverbs chapter 13,
verse 23,
it says,
The fallow ground
of the poor
would yield much food,
but it is swept away
through injustice.
This proverb suggests
that though the hardworking
and righteous poor people
could have plenty to eat,
theoretically speaking,
injustice robs them
of the fruit of their labor.
So we see
a similar tension
like this
all over Proverbs.
Just to give you
another similar example,
Proverbs chapter 15,
verse 6,
It says,
In the house of the righteous
there is much treasure,
but trouble befalls
the income of the wicked.
Once again,
pretty straightforward.
If you're righteous,
God will reward you
and you'll be rich.
However,
just a few verses later,
it says in Proverbs 15,
verses 16 to 17,
Better is a little
with the fear of the Lord
than great treasure
and trouble with it.
Better is a dinner of herbs
where love is
than a fattened ox
and hatred with it.
And still later,
Proverbs 16, 8,
says,
Better is a little
with righteousness
than great revenues
with injustice.
These latter Proverbs
suggest that sometimes
crooks acquire
great revenues
with crookery,
with injustice,
and that the righteous
who fear the Lord
are sometimes poor,
but that nevertheless
it's better to be righteous.
The interplay
between these Proverbs
reveals something
more profound.
And it's generally true
that honest,
hardworking person
gains prosperity.
But that's the way
God has ordered
the world to work.
However,
this world is also
broken and sinful
and backwards,
and so we are
commanded to seek
righteousness
even when it leads
to poverty and hunger.
So because of
its proverbial nature,
some Proverbs
are by necessity
partial.
So we have to be
careful not to take
them as divine absolutes
that fit every single
situation.
So we would be
causing a lot of
trouble and doing
damage to people's
lives, for example,
if we use Proverbs 15, 6
to bludgeon
every poor person
in the church
and saying,
well, you are
full of injustice,
aren't you?
That's why you're poor.
That may be true
in some cases,
but it's definitely
not true in other cases.
That's why chapter 1,
verse 6,
calls Proverbs
a riddle.
It's something
like solving a puzzle,
and only when
they are put together
do you truly
appreciate the
profound wisdom
and beauty
of God's word.
That's the literary
context of Proverbs.
And finally,
let's turn to the
theological context
of Proverbs.
I feel a little bad.
I'm sorry if this
sounds a little more
like a lecture
than a sermon.
We're getting to
Christ here
in a second.
That's kind of hard
with the introductions
to books.
The Bible scholars
have at times
struggled to make
the book of Proverbs
fit with the rest
of Scripture.
It's unique
because it doesn't
really talk about
the covenant
between God
and his people,
about God's
salvation plan,
that all the other
books in Scripture
talk about.
So some scholars
have gone so far
as to say that
this is a book
of secular wisdom
that doesn't require
a belief in God.
But that's actually
a very bad
mischaracterization
of the book.
Because it says
in verse 7,
and this is really
the thesis statement
of the entire book,
the fear of the Lord
is the beginning
of knowledge.
Fools despise
wisdom and instruction.
The author of Proverbs
situates the book
in the worship
and fear
of the Lord,
which is a common
refrain through
all of Scripture.
And the Lord
in all caps
as in here,
it's the proper,
it's the personal
name of God.
It's the name
that God revealed
to His covenant people
in Exodus chapter 3,
verses 14 to 15.
I am who I am.
Say this
to the people of Israel.
I am has sent me
to you.
God also said
to Moses,
say this to the people
of Israel.
The Lord,
Yehovah,
the God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham,
the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob
has sent me to you.
This is my name forever,
and thus I am to be remembered
throughout all generations.
That means Proverbs
cannot be separated
from the rest of Scripture
in which God
has revealed Himself
and His plan of salvation.
Yes, Proverbs is a book,
but it's in a more
important sense
a chapter in a larger book
called the Bible.
The Bible has God
as the ultimate author
behind the immediate
human authors.
Therefore,
like every part
of the Bible,
Proverbs yields
its fullest
and richest fruit
only when it's viewed
in light of
its fulfillment
in Jesus Christ.
So what does it mean
to fear God?
To fear God
is to relate
and respond
to God
appropriately
with reverent obedience
and humble submission.
It doesn't refer
to being terrified.
It refers to being
in awe.
I've used Exodus
chapter 20
verse 20 before
as a case in point
to prove this.
After God appears
to the Israelites
to give them
the Ten Commandments,
Moses says to the people,
Do not fear,
for God has come
to test you
that the fear
of Him
may be before you
that you may not sin.
It's the exact same word
in both of those occurrences,
the word fear.
Don't fear
because God
has appeared to you
so that you might
fear Him.
Right?
And that's not
a contradiction.
Moses doesn't want
the people
to be terrified
and to flee
the presence of God.
He wants them
to stand
in awe of God,
to revere God
and to fear Him
in a healthy sense
so that it constrains
their behavior
and produces
obedience
in their life.
That's the fear of God.
To summarize it,
to fear the Lord
is to live
every waking moment
in the presence of God
under the authority of God
and for the glory of God.
That's what fear of God is.
To live before the face of God
as if He's always with you.
To do all things
and say all things
as if you're always
under His authority.
And to do everything
for the glory of God.
That's to fear God.
And this is a very
relevant reminder
as we go through
the Proverbs
because people
and there's a lot of you
out there
because this is Cambridge.
I include myself in this
so please don't be offended.
People with control issues
love the book of Proverbs.
They do.
Why?
Because they feel like
to use a rock climbing metaphor
like they feel like
Proverbs gives them
handles or holes
that they can use then
to scale
the wall of life.
Oh, this is straightforward.
I can do this.
If I do these things
then I will have
a materially
and spiritually
successful life.
This gives me
control.
Handles
for life.
But the book
is not intended
to be used that way.
It's intended
to make us
more dependent
trusting of
and submitted
to God.
That's why
even though
Proverbs chapter 4
verse 7
exhorts us
to get wisdom
and whatever you get
get insight
and then later
in Proverbs chapter 21
verse 30
it tells us
no wisdom
no understanding
no counsel
can avail
against the Lord.
If we think
that we can
manipulate God
by mastering
these Proverbs
we are deeply
mistaken.
Right apprehension
of the Proverbs
the right appropriation
of the Proverbs
begins with
the fear
of the Lord.
It begins
with humility.
It begins
with faith.
It begins
with submission
before God.
That's why
verse 7
contrasts
fearing the Lord
with despising
wisdom
and instruction.
Only when
we humble
ourselves
before God
in faith
are we truly
ready
to learn
wisdom.
And note well
that the fear
of the Lord
is the beginning.
It's not
the end.
It is
primary
not
secondary.
It's
foundational.
It's not
incidental
to wisdom
the fear
of the Lord.
It is
the principal
thing.
Bible scholar
Bruce
Walke
puts it
this way
what the
alphabet
is to
reading
notes
to reading
music
and
numerals
to
mathematics
the fear
of the
Lord
is to
attaining
the revealed
knowledge
of this
book.
Being wise
in the
dealings
of this
world
does not
begin with
reading about
the dealings
of this
world.
It does
not begin
with those
what they call
the books
for dummies
series.
It doesn't
begin with
watching how-to
videos on
YouTube.
If you
want to be
truly wise
in the
dealings
of this
world
you need
the fear
of God.
That is
the
foundational
principle.
It begins
with knowledge
of God.
And every
subsequent
proverb
that we
read
in this
book
we have
to read
in light
of this
reality.
And faith
in God
is not
this tells
us that
faith in
God
is not
something
that you
attain
at the
end
of your
lifelong
pursuit
of wisdom
and truth.
Some of
you are
not yet
believers
and followers
of Christ
and I
want to
exhort you
with this.
Don't
wait on
faith.
Faith is
not something
you arrive
at after
a lifelong
pursuit
of truth.
If you
don't know
God you
haven't
started on
your journey
of knowledge.
Because all
knowledge is
incomplete unless
it is situated
in its proper
context with
relation to
God.
This is
something,
this is why
I think
sometimes it's
difficult for
genuine
Christians to
defend
Christianity.
Not because
there are no
reasons for
their faith,
they have
plenty of
reasons for
their faith,
but they
just have a
hard time
articulating
that.
And G.K.
Chesterton
explains it
this way in
his book
Orthodoxy,
it is very
hard for a
man to
defend
anything of
which he
is entirely
convinced.
It is
comparably
easy when
he is only
partially
convinced.
He is
partially
convinced
because he
has found
this or
that proof
of the
thing,
and he
can expound
it.
But a man
is not
really
convinced
of a
philosophic
theory when
he finds
that something
proves it.
He is only
really convinced
when he
finds that
everything
proves it.
Sometimes
Christians have
a hard time
defending
Christianity,
not because
they have
these proofs,
they don't have
reasons for it,
because to
them,
everything
makes sense
in light of
Christianity.
Everything in
their life is
evidence of
Christianity.
C.S. Lewis
puts it eloquently
this way,
I believe in
Christianity as I
believe that the
sun has risen,
not only because
I see it,
but because by
it I see
everything else.
fear of the
Lord is the
beginning of
knowledge.
Yet there is
a conspicuous
absence of the
fear of the
Lord in our
world.
Quoting from
Psalms,
from the
Psalms,
Paul writes
in Romans
chapter 3,
none is
righteous,
no,
not one.
No one
understands,
no one
seeks God.
All have
turned aside,
together they
have become
worthless.
No one
does good,
not even
one.
There is
no fear
of God
before their
eyes.
That is
the single
most devastating
malady that
currently
humanity is
experiencing.
More
significant,
more
threatening
than even
the
coronavirus.
virus.
We are
a proud
people,
brazen
people,
a
foolhardy
people,
and we
desperately
need the
wisdom of
God.
And we
find that
wisdom in
the person
and work of
Jesus Christ
who is
described in
God's word
as the
wisdom
of God.
Please follow
along with me
as I read
1 Corinthians
chapter 1
verses 17
to 25.
For Christ
did not
send me to
baptize but
to preach
the gospel
and not
with words
of eloquent
wisdom,
lest the
cross of
Christ be
emptied of
its power.
For the
word of
the cross
is folly
to those
who are
perishing,
but to
us who
are being
saved it
is the
power of
God.
For it
is written,
I will
destroy the
wisdom of
the wise
and the
discernment
of the
discerning
I will
thwart.
Where is
the one
who is
wise?
Where is
the
scribe?
Where is
the
debater of
the sage?
Has
not
God
made
foolish
the
wisdom
of
the
world?
For
since
in the
wisdom
of
God
the
world
did
not
know
God
through
wisdom,
it
pleased
God
through
the
folly
of
what
we
preach
to
save
those
who
believe.
For
Jews
demand
signs
and
Greeks
seek
wisdom,
but
we
preach
Christ
crucified,
a
stumbling
block
to
Jews
and
folly
to
Gentiles,
but
to
those
who
are
called,
both
Jews
and
Greeks,
Christ
the
power
of
God
and
the
wisdom
of
God.
For
the
foolishness
of
God
is
wiser
than
men
and
the
weakness
of
God
is
stronger
than
men.
God
the
gospel,
the
good
news
of
Jesus
Christ
that
he
was
crucified
for
the
sins
of
his
people
and
that
he
was
raised
triumphantly
for
our
new
life
and
resurrection
so that
we
might
be
pardoned
of
our
sins
and
granted
citizenship
in
his
kingdom.
That
good
news,
that
gospel
is
the
wisdom
that
fools
despise.
In
Jesus,
God
has
destroyed
all
human
pretensions
to
save
themselves
because
if
you
look
around
our
world
is
full
of
human
wisdom
and
human
strategies
for
salvation.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
capitalistic
economies
and
the
generation
of
wealth
or
the
socialistic
redistribution
of
wealth
can
solve
poverty
and
all
these
human
ills.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
if
we
have
just
enough
technology
if
we
have
just
enough
scientific
advancements
that
we
can
solve
all
of
the
world's
problems.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
proper
education
will
bring
an end
to
human
ignorance
and
misdemeanors.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
through
self-help
techniques
like
yoga
and
mindfulness
and
dieting
that
we
could
attain
health
and
peace
in
the
world.
that's
like
telling
people
that
you
can
cure
cancer
by
eating
blueberries.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
advancement
of
philosophy
and
learning
can
lead
to
enlightenment
and
salvation.
Human
wisdom
believes
that
worshiping
idols
created
by our
own
hands
can
bring
salvation
to
people.
in
essence
human
wisdom
believes
that
we
have
the
power
to
save
ourselves.
That
is the
essence
of human
wisdom.
And
as such
there are
pretensions
of human
pride
and they
amount
to the
worship
of the
creature
instead
of the
creator.
But
God
has
made
foolish
the
wisdom
of the
world
by
ordaining
that
through
the
folly
of
what
we
preach
to
save
those
who
believe.
It's
not
those
who
claim
to be
able
to
save
themselves.
It's
only
those
who
believe
that
they
cannot
save
themselves
and
cast
themselves
at
the
feet
of
Jesus
saying
I
need
you
to
save
me
Lord.
I
need
your
grace
in
my
life
because
I
cannot
save
myself.
These
are
the
people
who
are
truly
wise.
They
are
the
ones
who
are
truly
saved.
Only
those
who
humble
themselves
before
God
attain
saving
wisdom.
So if
you
want
to
begin
in
earnest
your
quest
for
knowledge
to
start
your
journey
on the
path
of
wisdom
I
exhort
you
this
morning
to
come
to
Christ.
He
is
the
wisdom
of
God.
Please
take a
moment to
reflect on
that and
we're
going to
respond by
praying
corporately
together at
the
church.