Proverbs Pt. 18 Wisdom Exposes Evil & Wisdom Provides Light for our Path.
Good morning and praise God that He has given us another day to live for His glory!
Wisdom exposes wickedness for all to see and avoid.
Proverbs 4:13-17 Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life. 14) Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. 15) Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. 16) For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. 17) For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
King Solomon put the way of life into stark contrast with the way that leads to death and separation from God. He urged his son to latch on to all of the careful teaching and God honoring instruction that the king gave him. He told his son that instruction in the wisdom from God is life and he must hang on to this teaching as if his life depended upon it.
Why did Solomon give his son this responsibility? Because instruction, knowledge and wisdom will show him the right way to live and expose the ways of darkness that carry one to destruction.
Solomon gave six warnings to his son about avoiding the path of unrighteousness. He told his son do not enter the wrong path and do not go in that evil way. The action words he used to drive his point home were "Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it and pass away."
King Solomon gave a graphic description of what the wicked were truly like. They could not go to sleep unless they committed some crime or did harm to someone. Then, the king verified for his son the sure doom and judgment that would come upon all unrepentant sinners. They will eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
Wicked people will be judged by God.
Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
Revelation 14:18-20 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. 19) And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20) And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.
Here are a couple of texts that describe the future judgment of God that will fall upon the evil and wicked people. Divine wrath will fill their cups and they will drink it. This is what Solomon was speaking of when he said they will "drink the wine of violence."
Light for living from Wisdom.
Proverbs 4:18 But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
No greater contrast can be imagined. The way of the life of a person who has responded to God in faith and diligently seeking His wisdom for how he or she should live is like a bright light that is shining to show them the way to walk. The more we seek wisdom from God, the more brightly it will illuminate our path.
John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Remember from our studies in John's gospel that Jesus Christ declared "I Am the Light of the world." John also introduced Jesus Christ as the Word who was with God and was God. He is the Creator who commanded "Let there be light" and there was light.
Jesus taught us the same truth. He is the light of the world and all who follow Him will walk in the light of life. This is in accord with what Solomon taught his son.
Light comes from Christ, from His Word and from the Father of lights (James 1:17).
The apostle Paul told us that Jesus Christ is the fullness of the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24). God's truth entered into our hearts and gives us light to see God and light to live by (Psalm 119:130).
The wicked walk in darkness.
Proverbs 4:19 The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.
Sinners stumble into sin because they walk in the darkness of the devil's kingdom. It is a hard life filled with misery, unhappiness and destruction. This miserable life should be avoided at all costs.
Proverbs 4:20-23 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. 21) Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. 22) For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. 23) Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
King Solomon closed this chapter with one more heartfelt plea to his son to hear and heed what he was communicating. His son needed to bend his ear to listen carefully and he needed to keep all his father's instruction in his mind and heart. Why? Because wisdom from God brings life and health. It leads to a far better quality of life than those who live the hard life of transgressors.
Solomon stated the real intention of God when giving us heaven's wisdom. It is to keep our heart pure and help us always be on guard against evil. God is always aiming at our heart to change us. What our minds focus on is what will come out in our speech and actions. Therefore, we need to live in dependency upon the Lord for a daily supply of His Wisdom from His Word.
Thoughts to Ponder...
Proverbs 4:24-27 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. 25) Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. 26) Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. 27) Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
King Solomon closed out Proverbs 4 with some really practical applications to the truth he taught his son. This same truth is needed by us today so that we can live a life that is pleasing to God.
There are eight more imperatives in the closing verses of Proverbs 4.
- They deal with what we say by addressing the rebellious, perverse tongue that engages in speech that deviates from righteousness.
- They deal with what we see by telling us to not put any evil thing before our eyes.
- They deal with where we go and what we do by urging us to let our way of life be guided by Divine Wisdom.
- They deal with what we think about right and wrong as defined by God's law. We are urged to not deviate from God's righteous standard and to avoid walking down the evil path of life.
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