Title: Purpose of Proverbs/Topic: Instruction

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 1; Proverbs 2; Proverbs 3; Romans 7

Scripture: Proverbs 1:1-7
1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2 for attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight;
3 for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair;
4 for giving prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the young-
5 let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance-
6 for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.
7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools [a] despise wisdom and discipline.

Observation: The opening verses of Proverbs (my favorite book) tell us what the purpose of the book is; for gaining wisdom, understanding and insight, acquiring discipline, discretion and learning to do what is right and just. Sounds like something to pay close attention to! The young in age are mentioned as a special target audience. The ending verse tells us how to tell the difference between a wise person and a fool. The wise person fears the Lord but a fool sees no value in wisdom or in discipline. The difference between the wise and the foolish is a major theme in Proverbs. We will se that contrast over and over again.

Application: I think going through the book of Proverbs for ourselves and for our children on a regular basis is a huge key to developing mature, successful adults who have godly integrity and character. It is the one book that tells us it exists for the purpose of imparting those attributes to us. Let us pay close attention and read from it often with our children.

Prayer: Help me to pay close attention to your words of wisdom, Lord, and to not just read them but to assimilate them into my life.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.