Welcome to our study of the book of Proverbs!
Human babies are born with some natural reflexes--for example, they "know" to root for their food source and to suckle when they find it. Those reflexes lead to frustration when they accidentally end up with a hand or a toy that pacifies, but doesn't satisfy. My granddaughter, Rayna, is only 3 months old, and yet she has already learned the difference between the rubber nipple of a pacifier and that of a bottle. One is ok for a time, but the other will truly satisfy her need. There are other instinctive behaviors, but most of what we do on a daily basis are learned behaviors; you learn manners, you learn to ride a bike, you learn to read, you learn to tell time, etc. And once you learn these things, you know them--you know your manners, you know how to ride a bike, you know how to read, you know how to tell time. The book of Proverbs will help us take this one step further. It will teach us how to learn, how to know, and then how to use...wisely!
King Solomon, widely considered one of the wisest people EVER, is the author of Proverbs. (Or at least most of Proverbs...) King Solomon is wise because, when given the opportunity to ask God for long life and wealth for himself, he instead asked for wisdom, discernment, and understanding to govern God's people. (1 Kings 3:6-12) His wisdom is a gift from God, yet he also knows that wisdom has to be pursued. In the book of Proverbs, we see his desire to lead wisely spill over into his parenting. Solomon teaches his son that if he wants to understand words of insight, if he wants to know how to deal wisely, if he wants to live rightly, justly, fairly--then he needs to accept instruction. And once he has received it, he needs to retain it. It's not a natural born reflex, like rooting and suckling. It's a learning and a knowing formula, just like the examples given above. We could learn and know manners, and yet never use them for the good of anyone else. We could learn and know how to read, and yet never read to another person. Unfortunately, knowing something doesn't guarantee a wise response. (I swore I wasn't going to use this analogy, but it can't be helped.😂😂😂) Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad; folly is knowing a tomato is a fruit, putting it in a fruit salad anyway, and it being terrible. 😝😝
Solomon lays it all on the line in verse 7--"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." This is the spring board for the rest of the book. Tomorrow, we will get dressed and ready to hit the streets!!
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