Proverbs Chapter 4
Proverbs
Chapter 4
1. Listen, my sons, to a father's instruction; pay attention and gain understanding. These frequent repetitions are meant to wake us out of our sleep. It would have been possible for Solomon to make every sentence different and to give us something new from his mind in every proverb. But it was more appropriate for our sluggish and forgetful heart to have "rule on rule, rule on rule" (Isaiah 28:13). A genuinely wise person, like the apostle Paul in later days, exhorts like a father who is dealing with his own children (1 Thessalonians 2:11).
2. Solomon clearly speaks from the mouth of God. He declares that he gives sound learning. To many people, exciting, speculative, compromising, self-righteous, self-exalting doctrine is more attractive. But, young people, remember what humbles the soul before God. Remember what demonstrates the free grace of the Gospel. Remember what curbs the will, consecrates the heart, and imbues the heart with the spirit of the cross. Sound learning, no matter how unpalatable it seems, alone is good for the soul. So do not forsake it. Do not be carried away with the senseless cry, "Everybody else thinks in a different way." What is the judgment of the whole of mankind worth on the great subject of belief in God? Is this world's judgment to be preferred to the Word of God?
3. We now enter the family of "the man after God's heart," David, as he taught his child Solomon in the fear and service of the Lord.
4. We are especially privileged if we can speak of an Abraham or a David or a Lois or a Eunice who has taught us and bound us to the ways of God. Parents, you must remember than an untaught child will be a living shame (29:15).
Let us examine carefully this beautiful example of parental instruction. Where David's instruction begins is obvious. Where it ends is not so clear, whether it is at verse 6, [9, Niv], 10, 12, or 13, or as F. Taylor asserts, at the end of the ninth chapter. But as Geier observes, "Let the reader form his own judgment; provided that we pay due obedience to the instruction, it matters little, whether we have it in the words of David or Solomon."
Note in these verses how keen the father is about his son's heart-religion: "Lay hold of my words with all your heart."
5. "Get wisdom, get understanding." Note also how earnest this exhortation is. Many parents are like Augustine's father and advise, "Get wealth, worldly honor, or wisdom." Of his father Augustine prayed to God, "This father of mine never troubled himself with any thought of how I might improve myself toward thee."
When you have obtained heavenly wisdom, do not forget it or walk away from it.
6. We are to love wisdom. Thus Jerome wrote to a friend, "Beg now for me, who am gray-haired, of the Lord, that I may have Wisdom for my companion, of which it is written, 'Love her, and she shall keep thee.'" She is the one who can watch over your soul.
8. You are to esteem and embrace wisdom. Even in this life she will exalt you and will honor you.
9. Wisdom is a garland of grace in the church. Wisdom is a crown of splendor in heaven.
This is not the style of someone speaking in a detached way, trying to enforce some unimportant truth. It is the father feeling that his child's soul is perishing unless it is taught and led in wisdom's ways. Parents, do we know this anxious concern as we look for the first dawn of light on our child's soul? Is it our own first choice above all the world's glitter? Is it not only important, but all-important? It can have no place if it has not the first place. If it is to be anything, it has to be everything. Earthly wisdom may be a good pearl, but this wisdom from above is the pearl of great price. It is worth selling everything we have in order to obtain it (Matthew 13:45-46).
10. It is instructive to see a king (whether David or Solomon) who in the middle of his royal cares does not forget his domestic responsibilities.
11. Let us see the need for guidance for every step, both steps to take and steps to avoid. The way of wisdom will definitely lead to a happy life because it is lived in God's presence. This will happen if godly discipline has been exercised, if the Bible has been laid down as the rule of life, if habits of prayer, love for serving God, and fellowship with his people have been encouraged. The path, though sometimes rough and lonely, is a straight path and a path of freedom.
12. The eye that is focused on wisdom will be able to walk at an even pace and make progress. In this way, when you run, you will not stumble.
13. The animated exhortation to hold on to instruction shows that it is a struggle to retain our principles. Feeble, indeed, is our hold when we are only interested in wisdom because it is a novelty. Truths that are only grasped by our minds and that do not become the daily nourishment of our souls never enter into our hearts. Hold[ing] on to instruction is done by a personal, living faith. Jacob did this when he detained the angel (Genesis 32:26-29). The two disciples of Jesus did this when they asked him to stay with them as they walked along the Emmaus road (Luke 24:28-29). So, young Christian, do not let [wisdom] go; guard it well, for it is your life. May heavenly treasure be more important to you than every earthly blessing.
14. How often fellowship with evil men loosens our hold on instruction. Their path and the path of instruction lead in the opposite directions. Just to set foot on the path of the wicked means that you are forsaking God's way to walk in the way of evil men.
16. Evil men are so eager to pursue their work that they cannot sleep. Judas with his midnight torches (John 18:3), the early-morning meeting of the Jewish rulers (Luke 22:66), the frenzied vow of the enemies of Paul (Acts 23:12), and countless other plots against the church all vividly portray this tireless wickedness.
17. Mischief is meat and drink to these evil men. "To do evil is more proper and natural than to sleep, eat, or drink" (Reformers' Notes).
The evil company is loved, then the evil of the company. Eusebius mentions a young man whom St. John committed to the special charge of the bishop of Ephesus, but who by evil company was drawn away to be a captain of robbers, until St. John went after him and brought him back. Augustine's recollections of his own youthful theft was, "By myself alone I would not have done it. It was the company that I loved, with whom I did it. When they said, 'Come, let us go and do it,' I was ashamed not to be as shameless as they." To pray not to be led into temptation and yet not to watch so that we do not enter into that temptation is to contradict our prayers. It is to mock God by asking him for what we do not really want. Walk closely with God in secret, and he will spread his almighty covering over you for your safety. Avoid fellowship with those who will hinder your fellowship with God.
18. The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. This is a good contrast of the Christian's path of light with the dark and dangerous path of the wicked. This is not the feeble light of a candle, nor the momentary blaze of the meteor, but the grand illumination of heaven. And what a beautiful sight it is to see the Christian rise out of darkness!
Is this full light the picture of my path? There is no command for the sun to stand still here (Joshua 10:12). So a stationary profession of faith is rebuked. It is a rising and advancing, not a declining sun. Therefore it rebukes a backsliding state. It is not necessary that everything should be perfect at once. There may be an occasional cloud, or even (as in the cases of David and Peter) a temporary eclipse. But when did the sun fail to carry its early dawn till the full light of day? Do not despise the day of small things (Zechariah 4:10). But do not be satisfied with it either. Aim high, and you will come closer to reaching the mark. Religion must be a shining and progressive light. We must not mistake the beginning for the end of the course. We must not sit down at the entrance and say to our soul, "Take it easy now." There is no point where we may rest in complacency, as if there were no loftier heights that it is our duty to climb. Christian perfection is the continual aiming at perfection. The world of eternity will be one of the full light of day, where joy and light increase forever.
19. But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble. The contrast between the two paths is clear. Each has his own way. The path of the righteous is glowing light and joy. The way of the wicked is like deep darkness. It has no direction, no comfort, no safety, no peace. Their way is not just dark but darkness as a result of ignorance, error, sin, and misery. The love of sin rebels against the light. This darkness is deliberate and therefore accountable. The people who travel on the path of the righteous do not stumble.
20. These repeated injunctions (3:1; 5:1; 6:20-21; 22:17) are a good example for the Christian parent or minister. The desire for wisdom, the first step along the path, is encouraged. The means of obtaining, and the privilege when obtained, are pointed out. So keep your eye on the treasure of wisdom all the time.
21. A neglected Bible is the melancholy proof of a heart that is alienated from God. For how can we have a spark of love for him if that Book that is full of his revealed glory is despised? A superficial acquaintance with it is no good. If your ears were bored to the doors of the sanctuary, if the Word were never let out of your sight, your religion would still just be an idea and not principles, unless you keep them within your heart.
22. The keeping of the Word will be life to those who find it (see verses 4, 10, 13; 3:18). Some medicines are good for one part of the body, some for another. This is good for the body and the soul. We will enjoy vigorous health as we feed on this heavenly manna. We will not then bear our religion as our cross, as a cumbersome appendage. We will not drag our Christian duties around with us as if they were chains. Godliness will be a joy for us. The spirit will be aglow. The mind will be enriched with divine wisdom. The heart will be established with gospel grace.
23. The rules laid out in verses 23-27 constitute an invaluable safeguard for our Christian lives. Since we are attacked at every point, every possible place where sin may gain a foothold has to be guarded against—the heart, the mouth, the eyes, the feet.
First the heart, man's citadel, the center of his dearest treasure. It is frightening to think about its many assailants. Let it be guarded carefully. Never let the guard sleep at his post (Deuteronomy 4:9).
The heart must be known, so that it may be kept safe. Nothing is more difficult, but nothing is more necessary. If we do not know our hearts, it will be as if we knew nothing at all. Whatever else we know, to neglect this knowledge is to be a prize fool. If we do not know our weak points, Satan is well aware of them, "the sin that so easily entangles" (Hebrews 12:2).
Then, when I know my heart and feel that it is in the middle of so many dangers, the question arises, can I guard my own heart? Certainly not. This is God's work, though it is carried out through the agency of man. He works through our efforts. He implants an active principle and sustains the ceaseless exercise. When this is done in his strength and guidance, all the means of our preservation are greatly increased. Watch and pray. Nurture a humble spirit and a dependent spirit. Live in the atmosphere of the Word of God. Resist the evil world, even in its most plausible forms. This will be a conflict until the end of our lives. "The greatest difficulty in conversion is to win the heart to God, and after conversion to keep it with him" (Flavel). "What is there," asks Mede, "that will not entice and allure so fickle a thing as the heart from God?" Above all else, exhorts the wise man, guard your heart.
As Satan keeps special watch here, so must we keep special watch as well. If the citadel is taken, the whole town must surrender. If the heart is captured, the whole man—affections, desires, motives, pursuits—will be handed over. The heart is the vital part of the body. If the heart is wounded, that means instant death. Spiritually as well as naturally, the heart... is the wellspring of life. It is the great vital spring of the soul, the fountain of actions, the center and the seat of both sin and holiness (Matthew 12:34-35). The natural heart is a fountain of poison (Matthew 15:19); but the purified heart is a well of living water (John 4:14). As the spring is, so will be the streams. As the heart is, so will be the mouth, the eyes, and the feet. Therefore, above all else, guard your heart. Guard the spring so that the waters are not polluted. If the heart is not guarded, everything else is of no avail.
24. As we guard our hearts, we must not forget to guard the outlets of sin. What a world of evil the heart pours out from the mouth (James 3:5-6). Commit, therefore, both heart and mouth to divine discipline. Then let prayer and faith be the way you keep watch. Do not just shun but put away—yes, far away from you—perversity from your mouth.
25. After the heart and the mouth we come to the eyes: Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. The eyes are "the lamp of the body" (Matthew 6:22). Yet, all too often they are a most dangerous inlet to sin (Genesis 3:6; 6:2; 39:7; Matthew 5:28; 2 Peter 2:14). Therefore, like Job, we need to make a covenant with our eyes (Job 31:1). Place them under heavenly restraint (Psalm 119:37). Let your eyes look straight ahead, "like one plowing, who must not look back" (Cartwright). Fix your gaze directly before you. If Eve had done so, she would have looked on God's command and not on the forbidden tree (Genesis 3:2-6). Had Lot's wife looked straight ahead instead of behind her, she would, like her husband, have been a monument of mercy (Genesis 19:17, 26). Achan was ruined by neglecting this rule of wisdom (Joshua 7:21). David's example calls us to godly jealousy (2 Samuel 11:2-4). The pleasures of sin and the seductions of a tempting world do not lie on God's road. So they would not meet the eyes if his people were looking straight ahead. It is only when Christians linger, turn off the path, or turn back that they come into sight. Follow the motto of runners—"one thing I do" (Philippians 3:13). Get your goal in focus and concentrate on it. Go onwards, upwards, heavenwards.
26. Lastly, guard your feet. Has not experience, let alone Scripture, shown that you need to walk carefully? Traps are laid on every path— yes, for every step you take. The wicked attempt to snare your eating, your drinking, your calling, and perhaps most of all, your serving God. You should take great care as you travel along such a dangerous path. "The habit of calm and serious thinking makes the real difference between one man and another" (Dr. Abercrombie).
27. Here, then, is the voice of wisdom. Beware of mistaking presumption for faith, temptations for God's providence. Never deviate from a straightforward command for an uncertain command. Judge each step you take so that it is in line with God's will. The pleasures of sin lie to the right or the left. So your eyes need to keep looking straight ahead in order to keep your foot from evil.
May we all have grace and wisdom to ponder these sound practical rules. The man of God must only have one standard (Isaiah 8:20). He must not think about anyone "from a worldly point of view" (2 Corinthians 5:16). He must often put the church to one side, no less than the world, in order to listen more carefully to God's command. He must discern and crush the first sign of sin, guarding every avenue of sin—the senses, the memory, the imagination, the touch, the taste. He must walk by the straight rule of the Gospel, or else he will not only make himself stumble but the church as well (Galatians 2:11-14).
Cartwright's exposition about the middle path is valuable: "It is as if the royal way was hemmed in by the sea, and to wander off the path from either side would put you in danger of being drowned. Some are too greedy, others are too ascetic. Some are too bold, others are too diffident. Some neglect the Mediator, others seek other mediators. Some flee from the cross, others make their own unnecessary crosses. Some tamper with popery, others, from the dread of it, hazard the loss of valuable truth."