Proverbs 3:13-18 – Happy is the
man who finds wisdom…
What is
Wisdom?
Secular definition: wisdom is the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment, as well as the ability to use knowledge and experience to make sound decisions.
Biblical Definition: Biblical wisdom is the ability to make sound judgments and live a life of righteousness by applying God’s truth.
- Beyond mere intellect: It is distinct from mere intelligence or cleverness, which can be selfish or prideful. Instead, it is a humble reliance on God’s perspective and a desire to see beyond superficial appearances to a deeper reality.
Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy
One is understanding.
That word fear in Hebrew is yirah means awe
or reverence. Like standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon and looking
out.
How do we
get wisdom?
James 1:5
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who
gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
SOLOMON:
I
Kings 3:5-14 – Solomon asks for and receives Wisdom from God.
· Solomon could have asked for riches, or defeat of his enemies, long life. God blessed him because he sought wisdom instead of things.
· Jesus basically says the same thing in Matthew 6:33 – But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.
I Kings 3:24-27 – Famous
“Judgement of King Solomon” where he orders baby to be divided
I Kings 4:29–34 – God gave Solomon
extraordinary wisdom; people from all nations came to hear his wisdom. He spoke
3000 proverbs and wrote 1005 songs.
34 And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon.
Proverbs:
· Solomon wrote the first 29 chapters of Proverbs.
· Chapter 30 “Sayings of Agur”
· Chapter 31 “The Sayings of King Lemuel” (belonging to God)
What is a proverb?: Short pithy saying held to embody a general truth
Examples of secular proverbs:
-If you dine with the devil use
a long fork
-The Cynic knows the price of
everything, but the value of nothing
-Being frugle is a virtue, but being cheap is expensive
What a proverb is not: Proverbs are not promises.
Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, And
when he is old he will not depart from it.
• We know this isn’t always true. God
Raised Adam and Eve and they went off the rails.
|
Character |
Key Traits |
Typical Outcome |
Representative Verses |
|
The Wise Person |
Loves instruction, fears the Lord, humble, disciplined,
speaks truth |
Long life, honor, wealth, peace |
Prov 1:5; 9:8-9; 14:16, 21:20, 24:5 |
|
The Fool |
Despises correction, loud, reckless, lazy,
quick-tempered |
Poverty, disgrace, ruin, early death |
Prov 1:22; 10:8, 10:23; 15:5, 12:15; 26:4 (do not
answer a fool) 26:11 |
|
The Scoffer / Mocker |
Arrogant, mocks everything, stirs up strife, hates
being rebuked |
Sudden calamity, no remedy |
Prov 9:7–8; 13:1; 21:24; 22:10 |
|
The Simple / Naive |
Gullible, open to any influence (good or bad), lacks
judgment |
Easily led into disaster
unless they choose wisdom |
Prov 1:4, 22; 7:7; 9:4–6, 16 |
|
The Sluggard / Lazy Man |
Sleeps too much, makes excuses, loves comfort more than work |
Hunger, poverty, ruined fields |
Prov 6:6–11; 10:26; 20:4; 24:30–34, 26:13(Lion) |
|
The Righteous |
Lives by integrity, generosity,
fears God |
Blessed, protected, prosperous in
the end |
Prov 10:3, 11:8, 12:28 |
|
The Wicked |
Violent, greedy, deceitful, oppresses others |
Cut off, trapped by their own sin |
Prov 10:6–7, 11:5–6, 21:7 |
|
Lady Wisdom |
A woman calling in the streets, builder of a house,
offers life and favor |
Those who find her find life |
Prov 1:20–33; 8:1–36; 9:1–6 |
|
The Strange Woman / Adulteress |
Seductive, smooth-talking, leads men to death and Sheol |
Destruction, loss of honor and life |
Prov 2:16–19; 5:3–6; 7:6–27; 9:13–18 |
|
The Quarrelsome Wife |
Constant dripping, worse than living on a roof corner |
Makes life miserable |
Prov 21:9, 19; 25:24; 27:15 |
|
The Excellent Wife / Woman of Noble Character |
Industrious, wise, strong, kind, fears the Lord |
Praised by husband and children, blessed |
Prov 12:4; 18:22; 31:10–31 |
The three
different Types of Fool:
|
Hebrew |
English label |
Core traits |
Can they change? |
|
כְּסִיל (kesil) |
Simple stubborn fool |
Thick-headed, hates correction, repeats mistakes |
Sometimes (with discipline) |
|
אֱוִיל (’ewil) |
Perverse/vile fool |
Loud, immoral, quick-tempered, loves evil |
Rarely |
|
לֵץ (lēs) |
Scoffer/mocker |
Arrogant, cynical, mocks truth and authority |
Almost never |
1. כְּסִיל
(kəsîl) – The dull, stubborn, “thick-headed” fool(The most common word; appears ~50 times in Proverbs)
- Prov 1:22 – “How long, O simple
ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their
scoffing and fools (כְּסִילִים) hate knowledge?”
- Prov 10:23 – “Doing wrong is
like a joke to a fool (כְּסִיל), but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.”
- Prov 12:15 – “The way of a fool
(כְּסִיל) is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to
advice.”
- Prov 14:9 – “Fools (כְּסִילִים) mock at the guilt offering, but the upright enjoy
acceptance.”
- Prov 15:5 – “A fool (כְּסִיל) despises his father’s instruction, but whoever heeds
reproof is prudent.”
- Prov 17:10 – “A rebuke goes
deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool (כְּסִיל).”
- Prov 18:2 – “A fool (כְּסִיל) takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in
expressing his opinion.”
- Prov 26:11 – “Like a dog that
returns to his vomit is a fool (כְּסִיל) who repeats his folly.”
- Prov 29:9 – “If a wise man has
an argument with a fool (כְּסִיל), the fool only rages and laughs, and there is no quiet.”
2. אֱוִיל
(’ĕwîl) – The morally perverse, loud-mouthed,
“vile” fool(More obnoxious and dangerous than the kəsîl)
- Prov 1:7 – “Fools (אֱוִילִים) despise wisdom and instruction.”
- Prov 7:22 (about the young man
seduced) – “All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter…
like a fool (אֱוִיל) to the correction of the stocks.”
- Prov 10:8 – “The wise in heart
will receive commandments, but a babbling fool (אֱוִיל
שְׂפָתַיִם) shall fall.”
- Prov 12:16 – “The vexation of a
fool (אֱוִיל) is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult.”
- Prov 14:3 – “In the mouth of a
fool (אֱוִיל) is a rod of pride, but the lips of the wise will preserve
them.”
- Prov 15:2 – “The tongue of the
wise commends knowledge, but the mouths of fools (אֱוִילִים) pour out folly.”
- Prov 17:28 – “Even a fool (אֱוִיל) who keeps silent is considered wise…”
- Prov 20:3 – “It is an honor for
a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool (אֱוִיל) will be quarreling.”
- Prov 27:3 – “A stone is heavy…
but a fool’s (אֱוִיל) provocation is heavier than both.”
3. לֵץ (lēs) – The scoffer/mocker – the arrogant, cynical fool(The worst category; almost impossible to correct)
- Prov 1:22 – “…and scoffers (לֵצִים) delight in their scoffing…”
- Prov 9:7–8 – “Whoever corrects a
scoffer (לֵץ) gets himself abuse… Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will
hate you.”
- Prov 13:1 – “A wise son hears
his father’s instruction, but a scoffer (לֵץ) does not
listen to rebuke.”
- Prov 14:6 – “A scoffer (לֵץ) seeks
wisdom in vain, but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.”
- Prov 15:12 – “A scoffer (לֵץ) does not
like to be reproved; he will not go to the wise.”
- Prov 19:29 – “Condemnation is
ready for scoffers (לֵצִים), and beating for the backs of fools.”
- Prov 21:24 – “Scoffer (לֵץ) is the
name of the arrogant, haughty man who acts with insolent pride.”
- Prov 22:10 – “Drive out a
scoffer (לֵץ), and strife will go out, and quarreling and abuse will
cease.”
- Prov 29:8 – “Scoffers (לֵצִים) set a city aflame, but the wise turn away wrath.”