Proverb A Day, Proverb 3 [Prayer and Meditation]

There is no better commentary on Scripture than the Scripture itself.
So I offer Hebrews 12:3-11 as a commentary on Proverb 3:11-12

Proverb 3 (NKJV)

Guidance for the Young

01 My son, do not forget my law,
00 But let your heart keep my commands;
02 For length of days and long life
00 And peace they will add to you.

03 Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
00 Bind them around your neck,
00 Write them on the tablet of your heart,
04 And so find favor and high esteem
00 In the sight of God and man.

05 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
00 And lean not on your own understanding;
06 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
00 And He shall direct[1] your paths.

07 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
00 Fear the LORD and depart from evil.
08 It will be health to your flesh,[2]
00 And strength[3] to your bones.

09 Honor the LORD with your possessions,
00 And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
10 So your barns will be filled with plenty,
00 And your vats will overflow with new wine.

11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD,
00 Nor detest His correction;
12 For whom the LORD loves He corrects,
00 Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
00 And the man who gains understanding;
14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver,
00 And her gain than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies,
00 And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
16 Length of days is in her right hand,
00 In her left hand riches and honor.
17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
00 And all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
00 And happy are all who retain her.

19 The LORD by wisdom founded the earth;
00 By understanding He established the heavens;
20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up,
00 And clouds drop down the dew.

21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes--
00 Keep sound wisdom and discretion;
22 So they will be life to your soul
00 And grace to your neck.
23 Then you will walk safely in your way,
00 And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
00 Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror,
00 Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
26 For the LORD will be your confidence,
00 And will keep your foot from being caught.

27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
00 When it is in the power of your hand to do so.
28 Do not say to your neighbor,
00 "Go, and come back,
00 And tomorrow I will give it,"
00 When you have it with you.
29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor,
00 For he dwells by you for safety's sake.
30 Do not strive with a man without cause,
00 If he has done you no harm.

31 Do not envy the oppressor,
00 And choose none of his ways;
32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the LORD,
00 But His secret counsel is with the upright.
33 The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked,
00 But He blesses the home of the just.
34 Surely He scorns the scornful,
00 But gives grace to the humble.
35 The wise shall inherit glory,
00 But shame shall be the legacy of fools.

The purpose of Writing the book of Proverbs was to reveal the mind of God in matters high and lofty and in common, ordinary, everyday situations. It appears that no topic escaped King Solomon's attention. Matters pertaining to personal conduct, sexual relations, business, wealth, charity, ambition, discipline, debt, child-rearing, character, alcohol, politics, revenge, and Godliness are among the many topics covered in this rich collection of wise sayings.

Without wisdom, knowledge is nothing more than an accumulation of raw facts, influenced by emotional feelings. Many highly educated people are in positions of power in the United States, but very few of those educated leaders have the wisdom needed to rule properly.

One can say that they have been educated well beyond their intelligence. A cursory look at the court system will prove my point that knowledge without wisdom will only lead to an immoral society that eventually crumbles from within. Judges are supposed to be above the fray, and immovable to emotions. Instead, the vast majority of judges today are Godless individuals who are vacant of wisdom. So their rulings are totally based upon emotional feelings. .

We the people are to blame, because we ignored God's guidance in appointing our leaders. Instead of putting leaders full wisdom in power, we instead chose those who would scratch our itchy ears to lead us.

Of the 31 Proverbs, only the first 24 were written by Solomon. King Hezekiah wrote 5, Proverbs 25 to 29, Agur wrote Proverb 30, and Lemuel wrote Proverb 31. Now many believe Lemuel was in fact King Solomon and Lemuel was just a nick name his Mother, Bathsheba gave him. We are told that Solomon write over 3000 Proverbs and composed 1000 songs, but the only Proverbs God decided to preserve for us are Proverbs 1-24. Like the New Testament epistle by James, it is impossible to get a chronological outline for a study since they all bounce from subject to subject.

Along with my daily routine of reading the Bible, I try to read through the book of Proverbs once a Month. It's an easy task when you consider there are 31 Proverbs. So all you need to know is what day of the Month it is. In the Months that have 30 days, or in the case of February, I just double up by reading more than one two proverb so I can begin the next month with Proverb 1 on the first again.

The wise Christian understands that he or she will need to be repenting from sin (acquired in the falling rebellion event jointly with Adam in the garden) until the day he dies.

And so with a tender heart towards God, the chastening of a loving Father is likely to be slight and well tempered with mercy, even in the face of a large error. Overdoing it is a frequent error when men carry this kind of activity out among men. Harsher rebukes come to a hardened heart. Hearts can harden with pride and hatred. I have sometimes tried to understand why I suffered such hard times at certain points in my life. The answer seems to be that I had a bad pride habit. Being intelligent and talented, I also assumed that these things were for my own seeking of glory among men.

“Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God” — and I’ve seen this includes gladly accepting His provision, not being filled with fretting or worry about it, even if my ability to perform before men seems to be at risk — “and He will exalt you at the proper time.”

And this seems to me to be a bit like a 24/7 laundry. Pretreat, wash, rinse, repeat.

One open secret of the Lord is how tenderhearted He is. “Not willing that any should perish, but all come to repentance.” Because we are frequently NOT tenderhearted, we may frequently see harsh assaults from the devil that in turn knock us temporarily off our feet. Then it may begin to dawn on us what we really need.

It took Christ to bear the pain that a tenderhearted God suffers from a mankind that refuses to mirror it. God would have the right to send all us stubborn sinners to hell, but instead sent His Son to give all a second chance.

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