Blogging Through Proverbs Part IV - 1:20-33

Studying: Romans 8-9, Proverbs 1

Memorizing: Romans 1:1-8

Reading: 900 Days, the Siege of Leningrad

Entertainment: 1 hour

Thoughts: Good

"Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts her voice in the square; 21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out; At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: 22 "How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge? 23 "Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. 24 "Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; 25 And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof; 26 I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes, 27 When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. 28 "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me, 29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD. 30 "They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof. 31 "So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices. 32 "For the waywardness of the naive will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them. 33 "But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil." - Proverbs 1:20-33, NASB

Okay, it was only a matter of time before a Star Wars illustration crept into the picture, but I just can't resist.  All the humanistic new-agey philosophy aside, the collection makes a neat story, and I'm a sci-fi nerd, so zipping around in space interests me.  But let's take our old friend Anakin Skywalker for a moment in Episode III.  

Now for those of you who have seen it, I know the acting was pathetic at times, but bear with me in this illustration.  If you haven't seen it I won't bore you with the entire recap, nor do I have time for even a summary right here.  You'll just have to check out Wikipedia for a summary of what happens.  But getting back to Anakin, here's this young Jedi with tremendous potential.  He's powerful, strong, yet he's undisciplined and easily swayed.  Here's his mentor Obiwan.  Perhaps not as strong and powerful, yet definitely more disciplined and tempered. Every time I watch Episode III I can't help but see that even pop culture grasps the basic idea of wisdom fairly well.  Basically throughout the whole movie, Obiwan attempts to give Anakin wise counsel, tries to reprove him, yet time and time again Anakin does not listen.  Obiwan tries to warn him about the evil of the Emperor and about Anakin controlling his own emotions, but he does not listen.  So what happens?  Anakin is enticed by evil and he consents, and thus it ruins him.  There's a moral here that screams "No matter how good you think you are, listen to those who are wise and have experience.  You don't know everything.  You still have much to learn."

Now I give that example to emphasize again that even unbelievers can grasp this concept of wisdom.  When Solomon writes that "Wisdom shouts in the street" it becomes clear that wisdom is not some guru sitting on top of a far away mountain.  Wisdom is not buried in the ocean somewhere or in the middle of the desert sand.  The call to be wise, to listen to counsel and reproof is near and present. Note here that wisdom is "shouting" in the street.  She "cries out."  How then do we respond to that call?  Two words jump out here in these verses, "reproof" and "counsel."  

"Reproof" means correction.  To reprove someone is to tell them what they are doing wrong. Now that sounds harsh, and the issue of how reproof ought to be done between two people is another matter, but nonetheless, the voice of wisdom "shouts in the street...turn to my reproof."  The call to be wise, to attain wisdom, is a call to be submissive to correction.  It is a call to humility, to be willing to ask the question "What am I doing wrong?"  Now this is a hard thing no doubt.  And let's be honest.  I'll be the first to admit that when someone comes up and tells me that I'm doing something wrong my first inclination is not "Thank you!"  But again, remember that we're fallen.  Our thinking is twisted, and our natural inclination is not to do the right thing but to do the wrong thing.  We are prone to deception, and to be deceived, by its very definition, means to not know that it's happening.

"Counsel" on the other hand, means to tell someone the right thing to do.  Counsel is encouraging, directing and motivating.  The call to be wise, to attain wisdom, is a call to be attentive and listen to wise counsel.  As with reproof, it requires humility to ask the question "How can I do this correctly?"  

Again, both of these things are hard to do.  It's hard to humble oneself and be willing to be told "You're doing this wrong.  Do it, rather, this way."  But to live a godly life, this disposition must be taken, one of submissiveness and humility before God.  As the Psalmist writes in Psalm 119...

33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes,
         And I shall observe it to the end. 
    34  Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law
         And keep it with all my heart. 
    35Make me walk in the path of Your commandments,
         For I delight in it. 
    36 Incline my heart to Your testimonies
         And not to dishonest gain. 
    37Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity,
         And revive me in Your ways. 
    38 Establish Your word to Your servant,
         As that which produces reverence for You. 
    39 Turn away my reproach which I dread,
         For Your ordinances are good. 
    40Behold, I long for Your precepts;
         Revive me through Your righteousness.

What team wins whose players don't listen to a coach?  What army wins whose soldiers don't listen to their commanders?  In the same respect, what Christian perseveres who doesn't pursue wisdom?