DAY FORTY-FIVE: 

The Proverbs of Solomon 

 Proverbs 16:1-18:24

Yesterday we looked at some of the broad principles of wisdom. Wisdom begins with the fear (reverence, respect, awe) of the Lord. Wisdom teaches us to trust the Lord and not lean on our own understanding. Wisdom teaches us to love good and to hate evil.

There are three classes of people in the Book of Proverbs: the wise, the "simple" and the fool. The wise person learns from the wisdom of others and has learned how to discern good from bad. The "simple" person is someone who is naive and unlearned. The simple will hopefully learn from their own mistakes and choose to learn the ways of wisdom. The fool is someone who utterly rejects God and His way. Psalm 14:1 says, "The fool has said in his heart, 'there is no God.'" Not in his head, but in his heart. The fool may acknowledge the existence of God, but lives as if God doesn't exist. There is little hope for the fool because he will not accept correction and will not learn from his mistakes.

Our passage today gives us a little slice of the Proverbs pie. Solomon gives his proverbs in the form of couplets or "two-liners." He compares and contrasts the wise and the foolish. Let's look at a few examples:

"All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit." (16:2)

"Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues with injustice." (16:8)

"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." (16:18)

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death." (16:25)

"Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life." (16:31)

"Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife." (17:1)

"Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends. (17:9)

"The beginning of strife is like letting out water, so quit before the quarrel breaks out." (17:14)

"Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent." (17:28)

"A fool's lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating. A fool's mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul." (18:6-7)

"If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame." (18:13)

"A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." (18:24)

You see how very deep these little couplets are! We dare not speed through the Book of Proverbs. Each proverb is worthy of meditation. We find advice on relationships, finances, and governance. It's impossible to overestimate how much these words will help us in life. I encourage you to read regularly in the Book of Proverbs. There are 913 verses in the book, so if you read just two verses a day you'll finish the book in a year. Take the time to think about what you read and how you might apply this truth to your life.

It's a great tragedy that Solomon didn't follow his own wisdom. We saw earlier how he became bored with wisdom and decided to search out the appeal of folly. The Book of Ecclesiastes details his return to his senses. At first glance it seems a very depressing book, but I find lots of hope in its pages, and it's one of my favorite books of the Bible.

Solomon also wrote the Song of Solomon. Its Hebrew title is the Song of Songs. It is a beautiful expression of love between a man and a woman. Many have tried to allegorize (find symbolic meaning) in this book, and to an extent it is a picture of Christ and His Church (Ephesians 5:21 ff). The translation into English tends to tone things down, but in the Hebrew it is very sensual. In the Orthodox Jewish tradition, a man is not allowed to read the Song of Songs until he is 30 years old- he won't have the maturity to cope with it before that!

Here's a little song to reinforce an important truth from Proverbs: