The Wise Words of Solomon

Hey guys, A book in the Bible that has really touched me as-of-lately is the wisdom and the ways-of-life embedded in Proverbs. This book is filled with a lot of wisdom and truths for our daily living, and in a time where we have to especially be intentional to remain in God, with all that life throws at us, these books have really pulled me into cultivating habits rooted in God and knowing His wisdom that can be equipped for everyday life.

In Proverbs, words of wisdom are introduced by Solomon, with instructions for the godly being brought up. Throughout Proverbs, you’ll see that the godly are advised to have good traits like love and faithfulness (Proverbs 3:3-4 NIV), know the time to speak and the time to stay silent (Proverbs 18:4 NLT, Proverbs 13:3 NLT, Proverbs 29:11 NLT), and even be cautious in their actions (Proverbs 13:16 NLT), but the greatest wisdom of Proverbs lies in scriptures such as Proverbs 9:10:

Proverbs 9:10 NLT

Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.

This echoes the other areas in the Bible with this principle, for if we seek God and His righteousness, the rest will be added onto us. Seeking God provides us with a foundation to place these good principles on, and when we really revere God and include Him within our life and plans, Proverbs 1:7 NIV says that we can then be on the path to begin in true knowledge. 

Proverbs 2:1-5 NIV advises us to store up wise commands and turn to wisdom in order to understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God, and with listening to wisdom in this way, our speech will be able to express what we have learned (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬-‭2 NLT). Wisdom was there before anything else on earth was created (Proverbs 8:22, 29-30 NLT), and wisdom is coupled with aspects such as good judgement, knowledge, discernment, common sense, success, insight, and strength (Proverbs 8:12, 14 NLT)! God constantly delights in wisdom (Proverbs 8:29-30 NLT), and if we are called to be more like Him and to draw near to Him and His ways, what He delights in should be what we delight in! With this, we should welcome His discipline that shapes us to be better in accepting wisdom and acting wisely (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬), and we should not despise discipline because Proverbs 1:7 NIV states that this is the act of fools, someone who is unwise.

Foolishness is rooted in no correction and even pride in the convictions of one’s own steps, and those that don’t accept correction are bound to fall (Proverbs 12:15 NLT, Proverbs 14:8 NLT, Proverbs 29:1 NLT). There is a degree of foolishness in laziness, in which the lazy may go out and achieve a little, but their laziness prevents them from working harder into prosperity (Proverbs 13:4 NLT, Proverbs 12:27 NLT). There is foolishness in rushing without knowledge, for there is mistakes in our haste and this is opposite to the cautious living we are supposed to uphold (Proverbs 19:2, Proverbs 14:16 NLT). In the brash and careless ways of the fool, they repeat the same mistakes because they don’t care to learn and they love their own ways (Proverbs 26:11 NLT, Proverbs 18:2 ISV), and in these destructive ways, the righteous are even advised to stay away, for their lack of knowledge within their actions is evil, they will lead us astray, and our wise words will not land due to their unwillingness (Proverbs 14:7 NIV, Proverbs 13:19 NLT, Proverbs 12:26 NLT, Proverbs 23:9 NLT).

God is still mighty to save and able to redeem all things, so in prayer and a turn in honestly towards the Lord in wrongdoing, even the wicked can be saved (Proverbs 28:13 NIV). From there, God’s wise discipline can be accepted, and there will be a need to rely on His wisdom that makes us strong, attracts valuables through good judgement and knowledge, and enables us to go against the mighty and pull down strongholds (Proverbs 24:3-5 NLT, Proverbs 21:22). With our foundation in Him, we can lean on the Lord and not ourselves, and function by relying on His infinite wisdom and knowledge that directs us along every way, because He will never fail us while we are in His care (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬-‭7 ‭NIV, ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭20‬:‭24‬ ‭NLT)! Certain things may be hard to do, and in Solomon’s next book, Ecclesiastes, he even mentions in Ecclesiaties 1:18 NIV that with more wisdom and knowledge there is more sorrow and grief, in which we’d have to give up more for the sake of doing right, but God rewards us for our pursuit in Him, and although we feel that we are missing out here on earth, all that He instructs us to do is for our benefit and our own good, and there is and abundance that we can’t evem imagine that we gain in eternity:

Proverbs 23:17-18 NLT 

17 Don’t envy sinners, but always continue to fear the Lord.

18 You will be rewarded for this; your hope will not be disappointed.

I hope you’ve been blessed in reading, and I hope you’ll remember ‬‬‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬ in this: Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment.