OF MEN AND BIRDS

Proverbs 1:17 Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.

The proverb above appears in the midst of a long litany of specific warnings about certain actions and their consequences. It is a simile the father uses to instruct his son that these actions are nets that will ensnare him.

What are these actions? They are the actions of those who prey on innocent people to steal from them unaware. They are the actions not only of those who stalk a house until the opportune time to break in, but also of those who prey against senior citizen with tricky offers that rob them of their life savings. These actions are the strategy of smart businesses who lure people into buying things they don’t need, or even unhealthy and ungodly things. These actions never go unpunished. In this simile, the father instructs his son that these actions have an uncanny boomerang effect; they return, and ensnare their executors (v: 18,19).

By performing such vile acts with such cruel intent, a man spreads a net for his own captivity. Reading these proverbs a man is warned. He can see the net and can avoid it. Bird catchers know why it is vain to spread a net in the sight of any bird. Birds instinctively avoid visible spread nets. God has put in them this sense of prudence.

How is it that man cannot do the same as birds? How is it that birds see the net and avoid it, and men don’t?

WHY DON’T WE?

Proverbs 1:10 My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

What freedom we have been given; what self-determination has God put within each of us to help us stay on the right track!

Yes the powers of evil seem to be ruling the world with great noise and pomp but here is the good news: as powerful as the forces of evil are, so are the powers of godliness, and more. We have within ourselves the power to say no; the power to refuse to follow the evil crowd; so why don’t we? Why is the righteous so easily enticed by sinners?

Here we arrive at the place where even God asks for permission to enter. This is the realm that makes us different from all the creatures on the face of the earth. Here is the inner sanctum cave where the big game is played: free will.

Our own personal will is the one and only successful weapon against the lures of the enemy. It is the element that defeats the devil in a moment: the moment we yield it to God. At that instant, the armies of God the Most High fill the inner sanctum of our heart as we hear the screeching noise of the forces of hell retreating. At that very instant, the battle is won.

The question still remains: if all we have to do is yield ourselves to God, why don’t we?

HEAVENLY ACCESSORIES

Proverbs 1:8-9 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: (9) For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

Oh, how earthly and human are the dynamics in this passage.

The father is the preceptor, the pattern after which the family unit is shaped. He often has to be away doing such things as fathers do to supply for their families or to protect their fields. The mother on the other hand is mostly at home caring for his children, nurturing them in the instruction of the father.

Isn’t this a beautiful picture of God the Father of us all? With His booming voice, He gave us His instructions on Mt Sinai, and afterward left us with the motherly care of the Torah (the 5 first books of the Bible) to teach us in our daily lives. In Jewish traditions, the Torah is often related to as the “breasts” of God. King David in the Psalms even makes a reference to ‘nursing fathers’.

The event at Mt Sinai is paralleled in both concept and chronology with the events in Jerusalem ten days after Jesus’ ascension. Here was Jesus leaving the disciples, but He sent them the Holy Spirit to lead and comfort them in their daily lives.

May we proudly bear the Instruction (translated as ‘law’ in most Bibles; ‘Torah’ in Hebrew) of our Heavenly Father as an “ornament of grace” unto our heads; and may the laws of the Holy Spirit be daily the chain that decorates our neckline. May they be heavenly accessory part of our daily garments. May we rejoice in them that all may see and glorify our “Father which is in Heaven”.

THE RACE THAT IS ON HIGHER GROUNDS

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

This word ‘fear’ used in our King James Bible sounds cold as a word to describe our relationship with God, but is it? It is not a word that denotes of fear as we have from an irrational enemy or an oppressor; it tells rather of a respectful fear. It is the fear of the knowledge that whatever we do, good and bad, has retribution. It is the fear of knowing that even when we think that no one hears, God does. It is the knowledge that when we believe no one sees us, God’s eyes look even in the deepest chambers of our being, and knows our every thought, intentional and unintentional. It is realizing that the Holy Spirit is the ‘police’ of our soul.

There are many today who have succeeded in rationalizing the voice of their conscience and therefore, they do not even realize that they have one. They live their lives in total oblivion of the presence of God and think that life will never catch up with them. They despise the wisdom and instruction that are able to save them from the pits the enemy of our souls has prepared for us in order to catch us in his net on judgment day. Are we living in a generation of fools?

We are indeed, but here is the good news: we are each one of us individuals with freedom of choice. We do not have to run the loosing race with the fools. Any moment, any time, we can change the course of our lives; have a turn-around, a ‘metanoia’ (Greek word for ‘repentance’) and run the race that is on higher grounds; the race that affords infinite rewards and eternal dividends.

Which race do you run?

. . . AND UNDERSTANDING ONES GET WISDOM;

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


. . . and understanding ones get wisdom;

To whom is understanding given? To who is wisdom granted? If we want to understand to great wisdom of God we cannot only try to tune in to His ‘learning channel’. We also have to use the ‘tools’ of His trade.

Let’s say I own a factory designed to produce dishwashers. Now I am asked to produce cars. Even though I have production chains ready using such materials as could be needed to produce cars, my attempts would be futile unless I actually change the chains, get new materials, and even train my workers into the manufacture of cars.

Our spirit works much the same way. We cannot even start to understand the beginning of the wisdom of God unless our spirit has been regenerated. The circuitry that runs it rewired and we are taught new reactions towards His Words.

Once we are rewired, It is possible to be so ingrained into a form and understanding of the Word that we cannot see any other way that what we have been taught for such a long time. It is therefore important to also stay with an understanding of the Word that is totally unadulterated by the rationalizing of man. That is why Jesus said we needed to become babes, so we can take God’s Word for what it says: at face value.

May God help us through the study of these royal proverbs to find the wisdom granted to those who have the ‘tools of the trade’ to understand.

. . . KNOWLEDGE AND JUDGMENT TO THE YOUNG MAN

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


. . . knowledge and judgment to the young man; the wise hears and increases learning;

Where are the ‘wise old owls’ of the past; the older men and women who were sought for their advice?

The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness, (Proverbs 16:31) wise King Solomon tells us. It is true, but we live in a generation that idolizes youth. Our culture vilifies old age; we are ashamed of it and use all sort of products, contraptions and even surgery to try to appear and stay young.

God puts the older folks in our midst, those who have a larger and more complete perspective on life, as a source of wisdom. They may not know how to use all of our modern contraptions; they may now know how to replicate the latest dance moves on the dance floor; they may not wear the trendiest fashionable clothes, but they usually know more about life than our arrogant youth who seems to be leading their generation to its destruction. They think they know it all; they have arrogantly pushed away the word of the wise and tried to be the voice of wisdom for their own generation. How foolish are the children of today

In the days of Israel’s glory, a man usually went over one full study cycle of the Torah (the 5 first books of Moses) each year. He grew with the Word, and each year, as he matured, he saw and understood the Word in a different way. As he got older, he had a natural grasp on spirituality that young men could only dream to caress.

As we, who have lived longer and know more about life teach these proverbs in our homes, they will give knowledge and judgment to our young men and women. Let us faithfully study the Godly words of wisdom, understand them ourselves, and make sure to impart their wisdom to our youth.

. . .TO GIVE SENSE TO THE SIMPLE;

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


. . .to give sense to the simple;

When studying the Bible, if we are serious about finding out what God wants to say to us, we sometimes need to refer to the original language, as well as to the contextual culture. The word sense in this text holds the meaning of ‘wisdom in caution and prudence’. The word simple means, ‘foolish’, as in ‘easily seducible’.

As I was warning my students about the grave dangers of unsupervised and uncontrolled Internet use by teenagers, one of my young, obviously ‘simple’ and ‘foolish’ students said, “ I don’t care; if I want it, I’ll do it even if it is dangerous”!

When I heard this, my heart sank and saw that my work was cut out for the year with that student. She needs to learn ‘sense’, but as they say, ‘common sense is not always so common’.

The words in these proverbs are to teach us this prudence we so desperately need. These proverbs are to help us not be so seducible and gullible to the doctrines, ways and ‘truths’ sent to us by the enemy of our soul. These proverbs can help us get the truth again from the Word, without the foolish relative interpretations of men who constantly try to weasel away form the definite constant stability of God’s standards.

Let us in all honesty dig in these proverbs and find again the Word of life that is able to save our soul from certain spiritual death.

. . . TO RECEIVE THE INSTRUCTION OF WISDOM, JUSTICE, AND JUDGMENT, AND UPRIGHTNESS;

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


. . . to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;

The unmovable standards of wisdom, justice and judgments are forever established in the heavenlies. Their Creator has provided us with the means to understand them, but today, the shifting sands of moral and spiritual relativity have robbed us from the stable standards of God’s words imbedded in rock solid stone.

We think we are so mart. We are like one who having bought an expensive piece of equipment, studies the manual in order to rewrite it to his own liking. What he thinks to improve, to his own hurt, he destroys with every alteration.

While we search for answers to heal our frazzled psyches, we fill ourselves with instructions of every sort. Only the instruction of wisdom, of the wisdom coming from God, makes any sense to the psychological programming imbedded in our souls. Anything else will freeze the program to an eventual total shut down, as we can see happens to many today.

God’s principles of justice and judgment are the foundation of human social etiquette; but in our search for self-justification, we have with each generation re-written the rules of right and wrong. The difference between black and white has not only become blurry, but one has traded with the other.

Uprightness is integrity towards God, His instruction and His sense of justice and of judgment. In total disregard to the unshakable truths found in the spiritual dynamics of obedience to God in spite of personal hurt, the concept of uprightness has now shifted to become integrity towards self-interest and preservation.

Let us in the study of these proverbs rediscover the ultimate unshakable truths that created us and our universe.

. . . TO RECOGNIZE THE WORDS OF UNDERSTANDING

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.

to recognize the words of understanding;
On radio, on TV, through the mail or the Internet, we are daily bombarded with advice about health, marriage, finances, religion and child rearing. It’s a market out there as everyone wants to tell us that they have the million dollars solution to life’s problems. Somwhere though, one of these voices that shouts in the market place is the voice of wisdom.

It’s like Moses and Pharaoh’s magicians. Somehow, Pharoah’s men could replicate Moses’ changing of a wooden staff into a snake, which would the unsuspecting confused wondering, “who then is the true God? Are they all the same?” How then do we make thje difference and “recognize” which is “the word of understanding”?

These proverbs from King Solomon are said to help us make the difference between the esoteric boastings of the world from the illusionary realm of Satan and the true power that comes from the Kingdom of God. It is my prayer that as we study these proverbs together, we will grow in knowing how to make the difference.

. . . AND INSTRUCTION

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


. . . and instruction; In ancient times God established His Laws upon tablets of stones. The children had no sooner promised to follow and obey God that they turned away from Him to worship the work of their own hands. They knew what was right, but only in their heads. In spite of all they had seen God do to the Egyptians for their defiance against God, The Children of Israel did not yet have “wisdom” to ‘fear the Lord” in their hearts yet.

The Hebrew word for instruction that is used in this passage is the word ‘musar’. Properly this word means ‘chastisement’; figuratively it means rebuke, reprove, doctrine, warning, and also restraint. In the book of the New Covenant, Paul also advises Timothy to . . . reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine (2 Timothy 4:2).

Once we enter a new situation such as a new school, a new job, or a new social circle, isn’t helpful to get an orientation and familiarize ourselves with the modus operandi, the do’s and don’t of our new environment? God enters a betrothal covenant with us and He doesn’t want to leave us in the dark as far as His expectations from us, and what does He expect more than any husband would expect from his wife, only that she be consecrated and dedicated to him.

These proverbs from King Solomon not only give us the wisdom to fear and honor God, but also teach us in the ways of the great King.

TO KNOW WISDOM

Proverbs 1:1-6
The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

to know wisdom and instruction;
to recognize the words of understanding;
to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and uprightness;
to give sense to the simple,
knowledge and judgment to the young man;
the wise hears and increases learning;
and understanding ones get wisdom;
to understand a proverb and its meaning;
the words of the wise, and their acute sayings.


This statement starts the Book of Proverbs. This ‘loaded’ sentence tells us everything these Words from the wisest king the world can teach us. We will go over them phrase by phrase.

To know wisdom: Wisdom today is relative, but the wisdom inferred here is most certainly the wisdom of God, also called by the apostle James, the wisdom that is from above (James 3:17).

We may not always know what decisions are done in this wisdom that is from above from those which are not, but the apostle gives us a clue as to its properties, and fruits. James said, But the wisdom that is from above is first truly pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. Above all, let us also remember that the fear (obedience, respect, honor) of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Let us take seriously reflecting on these proverbs from the king inspired by the King; they will help us to know His wisdom.

THE PERPETUAL BLESSING

Psalms 134:3 The Lord that made heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion.

This is the blessing the priests pronounced on the pilgrims as they returned to their homes in the four corners of Asia at the end of their thrice-yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

The pilgrimage was motivated by much more than the desire to see the holy sights and the tombs of the patriarchs. It was not a touristic visit to the Holy Land. Like the longing of the homing pigeon to return to its place, it was motivated by the longing of the human soul to return in the presence of its Creator. As the pilgrims left, the priests sent with the blessing of the promises of Zion.

The blessing of the promise of Zion is the presence of Jesus the Messiah and of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. We may spend time in the temple of God in the privacy of our prayer closet; we may enjoy the blessings and edification of fellowship with the saints; so wherever we go, let us take this blessing with us and overflow it on everyone that we meet on our way.

1 Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

THE PERPETUAL TIME OF PRAISE

Psalms 134:2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.

The fourth chapter of the book of Revelations tells us of the throne of God. In front of the throne is an altar ablaze with a perpetual fire (Revelations 8:3). The throne is surrounded by four winged beasts full of eyes before and behind that rest not day or night from praising the God of heaven (Revelations 4:6-9).

To convey this notion to His people, God gave them a symbolic wooden Ark, representing His throne, with a flaming altar in front of it. God also established the levitical service: the fire and of the altar which must be tended to day and night. The Ark, the altar, and later on the temple were only symbols of greater spiritual truths, only to be discarded in the day when the Messiah established His throne in our hearts.

We in whom Christ reigns; we in whose heart is the throne of God through the mediation of His Messiah; let us serve Him in the day light when all is clear and bright; and let us serve Him also in the night watches when we cannot sleep. At all times, let us serve Him with praise and with dedicated hands. Let us bless and thank Him for all His benefits to us. That may be the reason why we cannot sleep sometimes: Jesus calls upon us to do the service of praising and blessing Him by the altar.

1Chronicles 9:33 And these are the singers, chief of the fathers of the Levites, who remaining in the chambers were free: for they were employed in that work day and night.

‘PRAY-ORS, PRAYEES, AND PRAY-OR-PRAYEES.’

NOTE: From 120 to 134 the psalms are called ‘songs of degree”. Pilgrims sang these songs as they traveled on their thrice-yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The 134th Psalm is the last one of the songs of degree. When pilgrims left Jerusalem at the break of dawn, they were moved with a sense of awe and melancholy as they watched the light emanating from the chambers of the priests who tended to the temple during the night watches.

Psalms 134:1 Behold, bless ye the LORD, all ye servants of the LORD, which by night stand in the house of the LORD.

There are those who pray, and there are those who are prayed for. There are also those who pray for the prayer warriors. Moses, as the good prayer warrior and intercessor he was, needed to be supported in that way.

When the children of Israel were fighting Amalek in the desert (Exodus 17:11-12), Moses, Aaron and Hur were watching and praying on a nearby hill. They realized that when Moses lifted up his hands in prayer, Israel was winning, but when Moses had his hands down, Israel was losing the battle. Aaron and Hur then decided to help prop up Moses’ tired arms until the battle was won.

Let us, with our prayers bless the pastors, the shepherds, the teachers, and the prayer warriors who spend their time by day or in the night watches praying for us. Let us not forget that their prayers are the winds that direct the fiery Word arrows to the heart of the enemy (1 Peter 5:8), and generate the noise of heavenly chariots that drives him away in fear (2 Kings 6:24; 7:5b-7).

Hebrews 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.

THE MEASURE OF A LIFE

Psalms 91:16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

How do we measure a man’s life? By its length? By its depth? Or by its content?

Some of us have the philosophy that life is short; that therefore it is to be enjoyed at any cost. Others, with a sense of responsibility, fill it with philanthropic activities. But really, how does God look at it? How does God measure the fullness of a life?

We are actors on the great stage of existence. We yearn to play in the greatest play of all, under the greatest Playwright of all times. The fullness of our existence is therefore only fulfilled in one thing: playing the role He has set for us to play. Oh, but there are so many others who desire our participation in their drama. These other producers tempt us with carnal incentives that we at times waste our talent on; we sadly sometimes fall for their illusionary empty promises, and in doing do, we exchange the substantial best for our lives, for an illusionary temporary good

Each of our lives has a particular purpose and God is the great Playwright who has written the script of our existence. Each part of our script is synchronized with the script of other players and produces a domino effect on the rest of the plot. Our presence in the play, or lack of it, is never passive, but reactionary; it has an effect.

The fullness of a man’s life is in how much he absorbed the script of God, regardless of how boring, glamorous, short, long, simple or intricate.

Knowing that we play for the Master-producer, conducting the only movies that have the right outcome in the theater of life, let us dedicate ourselves to only play His script; to not just play the role, but to be the role He assigns for us daily.

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service.