Proverbs 2:1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;
2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;
3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;
4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;
5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
A week ago there was some tragic news that came out of Michigan. A man in his forties, chose to take a gun and kill his entire family. He shot his wife and his six children and then himself. He thought that taking that route would fix whatever was troubling him. He hurt those around him who knew him. He did not fix his troubles. Death does not fix anything unless the heart is right with God. If the heart is right with God, a person does not murder others and himself.
The book of Proverbs is called the book of wisdom. We need God’s wisdom. We can only appreciate His wisdom when we know Him as our own personal God and Saviour.
In our verses today, God strongly invites us to take heed to His Word. He uses some descriptive terms here to speak of His Word. He tells us that we need to receive His words. King Solomon is the writer, but God is the Author of these words. As we already noted in chapter 1, God is addressing the son. The son will grow up to be the man who will be a leader. He may become a husband and a father. He may be involved in the army and in the defence of his nation. Whatever he will be he needs to be humble enough to receive God’s Words. God’s Words are not suggestions to consider. They are Truths to lay hold of and cherish.
The son needs to hide God’s commandments with him.
Psalm 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
God’s Word needs to be so precious to us that we never want to make a decision without first consulting His Word. We do not just want to consult, but we want to consult with the intent of doing what God says. That is why they are called commandments. It is not crippling or burdensome to hide God’s Word in your heart. We memorize verses every week in our church. It is important to be saved and then to be governed by the Word of God.
In verse 2 we see that the son needs to incline his ear unto wisdom. To incline is to pay attention to something. There is not an idle word in the Bible. There are instructions and commands that are worth heeding. There are warnings to heed as well.
Psalm 119:9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.
No one has ever gone wrong by bowing to God’s wisdom. The son also needs to apply his heart to understanding. The devil deceived Eve into believing that God was withholding good from her. Adam knew better, but he chose to listen to a lie, rather than hold to the truth. He had understanding, but he did not apply his heart to it. He allowed the devil to interfere with what God had put in his heart. He became a sinner through his disobedience.
God’s Word is good. He knows what is right for us and He will never withhold any good thing from those who love Him.
Hebrews 13:9 Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
When we have understanding we will know that God wants to give us good things. We will not grasp at straws. We will humble ourselves and receive His blessings.
In verse 3 we see that there is a need to cry after knowledge. Rather than going off to some university or college that will pollute your mind, go to a good, Bible believing church that will teach you the truth. Unless your heart is fixed on God, you will be corrupted by the many false voices out there.
Canada has many well educated people who are clued out when it comes to what is actually important. I heard a supposed educated person talking about climate change this week. The climate is always changing. God is in charge of it. The forest fires in Canada are in part due to bad forest management. Those who worship “mother nature” think it is wrong to cut wood to use in a fireplace or a wood stove for heating. They believe the smoke from the fires is causing climate change. Foolish people cannot appreciate the things that God has given us.
Again we are told to lift up our voices for understanding. We see here that our priority needs to be to seek Truth. Truth comes from the God of Truth.
In verse 4 we are reminded that seeking God’s wisdom is worth more than silver. Many people are obsessed with finding a better paying job. Unions are destructive to any workforce. There is no need for them. We need to seek God’s wisdom as silver. Silver is still a precious metal. It is still valuable. However, you cannot take one gram of silver out of this world. However, if you live by God’s Wisdom, it will lead you to an eternity in heaven with God.
Hid treasures are in the eye of the beholder. We know of a farmer who used to bury his money in cans around his yard. He did not trust banks so he stored his money where he figured it would be safe. He did not realize that the government was watching what he and others were doing. He had quite a lot of cash and he went to buy a new piece of equipment and paid cash for it. The government checked the business where he purchased that item and they wondered where he got all his money. They knew he was not paying income tax and they did an assessment of his farm, and charged him a large sum of money based on their estimate of what he was worth. He started using banks after that. He has died but there could still be money buried on that farm. A person could get a metal detector and try to find that and a person could spend hours and hours trying to find some hid treasure.
How much time are you willing to spend on knowing the true God? That is of far greater concern.
In verse 5 we see that if we are willing to seek after God and His Word, then we will understand the fear of the LORD. Then we will appreciate that fear. God is not like man. He does not try to scare anyone. He wants us to reverence Him and hold Him in awe. He is great and He will do all that He says He will. He will save the repentant sinner. He will grant that person peace the world cannot understand. He will send the unrepentant sinner to hell and then to the lake of fire. God means what He says and He says what He means. It is the fool who throws up his arms and claims not to care what God says. It is the fool who looks for a perversion that will corrupt the truth so that it sounds nicer.
When we put the right effort into knowing God, we will find the knowledge of God. We will begin to think in the right way.
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Verse 6 tells us that God gives wisdom. He does not withhold His wisdom from those who appreciate it. We see that His Word is inspired. Out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
Mary chose to sit at Jesus’ feet. Martha complained to Jesus about this. Jesus told her that Mary had chosen “that good part”. Looking after the meals and the housecleaning and other duties was important. However, it was not more important than seeking to know the truth.
We need to be reminded of what is truly important. It is important to take the time to pursue Truth.
Pastor Bartel