A STUDY OF
WISDOM FROM THE BOOK OF PROVERBS
Living Like a Fool
Proverbs 17 SCC
10/25/15
Wisdom
is the knowledge and understanding of life’s usual patterns and the skillful
application of such to one’s life situations. Solomon wanted this insight
developed in the life of his family and extended family. So he explains the
content of wisdom in Proverbs, comparing and contrasting this with folly. Here
he concentrates on those who violate the knowledge and understanding of life’s
usual patterns—this is a fool. They invite mayhem and the need for damage
control. This only leads to further destruction and carnage. It is distraction
with controlling chaos. The wise attempt to avoid this.
A WISE PERSON
DOES NOT CREATE STRIFE
Conflict negates happiness that is directly
connected to a loving, peaceful household v 1
Poverty
with peace Solomon says is better than prosperity with strife. Having a peaceful, quiet Spartan meal
is far better than a sumptuous supply of food for feasting together with
conflict. There is no happiness with a
troubled household. Things like hatred, strife, divorce, arguments, and
resentments in the family will eliminate the possibility for happiness. People
often respond to such things with jokes and laughter, making sin sound normal
or funny. But it’s all a cover-up. There is no happiness in their hearts. So
they attempt to ignore reality with addictions to alcohol, drugs, food, sports,
sex, anything, which will dull the senses to the fact they are not really
happy. Abundance like full of feasting often brings a deterioration of moral
and ethical standards and an increase in envy and strife.
Conflicts must be stopped before they
get started and out of control v 14
Here
is a proverb of cause and effect. The image is of a small leak, perhaps in a
dam, that starts slowly to spurt water; the problem can only get worse. So the
advice is to stop it before strife breaks out. This may refer to litigation
also with the lesson to stop a quarrel before it gets to court for a legal
victory makes a disagreement permanent. Refuse to let an issue fester. It
should be droped before a dispute even starts. Have
you applied this to your marriage? In your home? At the office?
Contentious arrogant speech creates
strife that ends in destruction v 19
Here
is a double focus on the one who loves a quarrel and also has raised his door. First
this individual is quarrelsome and arrogant loving sin. Because he loves sin it
only leads to destruction—what he inflicts upon others as well as what he
brings upon himself. He loves sin because of the destruction it produces. This
won’t happen by compassion or kindness or prudence so he is not interested in
that. Then the raised door or the high gate he erects is figurative for his
braggadocio. The door is the mouth and speaks lofty or high things—he brags too
much. This naturally pits others against him and causes him to have to prove
his bragging is true. This is a downward spiral.
NB: If you live on the planet you have conflicts.
Autonomous beings by the very nature of their individual existence will come
into conflicts with one another. When another invades your space you have a
conflict. Avoiding it or running from it means your being dishonest and in
denial. Neither is the path of a biblical peacemaker. Solomon is referring to
starting a conflict. Do whatever you can to not start a conflict. But once you
have one it must be dealt with not avoided or abandoned. How so?
Godly
people saw conflict situations primarily as a conflict with God not with other
people—vertically not horizontally. Joseph was hated by his brothers and
jealous of him so they sold him into Egypt. They saw the situation as a
conflict between themselves and Joseph. But Joseph looked at the entire
scenario as an opportunity to serve God—first with Potiphar, then in prison,
before Pharaoh and eventually his brothers. Joseph did not see it as a conflict
with them. It was vertical not horizontal (Moses and Pharaoh; David and Saul;
Daniel and Satraps).
The world will always define conflicts
horizontally—between you and me politically, religiously, personally,
societally, ethnically. Godly people see all conflicts not with another but
between their own sin nature and the will of God. So if I hate someone I have a
conflict between God and me. If he hates me he has a conflict. If I don’t hate
him then only he has a conflict but that conflict is with God even if he does
not know it. Now we can face the other person in an entirely different way,
with an entirely different set of priorities and objectives. These do not come
from an independent value system like win win 7
habits of highly effective people but from God’s Word. I still must deal with
the other person but now its done as a function of my
obedience to God. Don’t disagree with God
about the life situation he placed you in when it includes conflict
assuming you can manage the conflict with your self-interests in mind. That
ignores God’s Word and will.
FOOLS AVOID WISDOM BY VIOLATING
THE USUAL PATTERNS OF LIFE
Fools promote themselves with empty
rhetoric v 7
Here
is a description of lofty speech that does not suit the fool. The point is that
lofty speech, whether in the form of great claims or arrogant opinions is
simply out of character for the fool. Drawing attention to himself his speech
swells into empty claims full of hot air. This person is godless and immoral in
an overbearing sort of way. Exaggeration could also be part of the expression.
In any case, the fool wants to seem bigger, better, badder,
than his or her life actually is. In contrast is a ruler with a code of honor
to whom truthfulness is almost second nature. The proverb is saying that if
fools should not speak lofty things, then certainly honorable people should not
lie.
Fools are not teachable v 10
Discipline
will benefit the wise but not the foolish. Those who are wise will be impacted
personally in such a way that it lasts and they learn from it. However, not
even a hundred lashes will make such a lasting impression on the fool. This
hyperbole emphasizes the point that while the wise are sensitive and learn
readily the thickheaded fool is unresponsive even after the most extreme
measures of correction are taken. Those who are teachable will also have
understanding. It is as Jesus said: For to everyone who has, more shall be
given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even
what he does have shall be taken away (Matthew 25:29). Those who have
understanding will receive more understanding, and fools will lose what little
understanding they have. But understanding is also an attitude that can best be
instilled in a person over time with long-term exposure. Not so the fool.
Fools cause collateral damage v 12
Which is worse meeting a
mother bear with her cubs or meeting a fool engaged in his folly? This
emphasizes the collateral damage caused by foolishness. Here we have the word
for a stupid fool. The warning is to avoid those who are unwise because
of the damage they cause to those around them. Don’t marry a fool. Don’t hire a
fool. Don’t form a partnership with a fool. Don’t hang around with a fool. Even
if they are not evil, those without wisdom cause collateral damage. Beware!
Consider meeting a fool wielding a gun or knife, or driving behind the wheel—how
often has the mother bear been less dangerous!
Fools have no desire to obtain wisdom v 16
The fool has no interest in
securing wisdom as it should be—by knowledge and understanding of the usual
patterns of life and orienting one’s life according to these. What good is the
offer of money since what is needed cannot be bought? Actually the fool lacks
the intellect to gain wisdom in the first place. He started playing the percentages
long ago abandoning wisdom for folly. Some consequences may have caught up to
him so he desires to short circuit the process by buying some of this wisdom in
hopes that it may get him out of the trouble he is in. One cannot buy wisdom
when he needs it. Its only assimilated by knowledge
and understanding over time.
Fools cause bitter grief to parents and family v 21, 25
Parents who hoped the child
would be a credit to the family and the faith are
bitterly disappointed. Two words in v 21 describe the foolish son or daughter
as both thickheaded and lacking spiritual perception. The child has neither the
knowledge of how life works nor the understanding to put it to use. This
requires real objective knowledge. So a wise household is not based on luck, or
chance, or religious mysticism. It is based on real things, which usually
happen, most of the time, in the real physical world. However, the science and art of living life is
replaced by folly—ignoring this knowledge and understanding. It’s painful and
grievous to watch the life of a foolish child.
Fools are preoccupied with their foolishness v 24
We cannot be sure specifically what Solomon had in mind by the
ends of the earth. It would include, however, not focusing on the reality
of his present situation. A fool will buy lottery tickets because he thinks
that he will be lucky. Some day he will get rich by chance. Some day his ship
will come in all by itself. So his eyes are on some unrealistic ends of the
earth scenario, not his present reality. He lacks any serious concentration
unable to fix attention on wisdom wandering from one potential quick scheme to
another. He drifts in the limitless sea of uncertainty with a vacant distracted
mind.
Fools can appear wise when silence hides their folly
v 28
Silence is evidence of wisdom. A wise man is cautious in
communication thinking before speaking; considering before talking. Even fools
appear wise in silence. At least he or she conceals their folly by keeping
silent. But he does not become wise by doing this—he just hides his folly for
the moment. The point is that a fool can mimic certain demonstrations that may
be wise. But that does not make him wise.
SO
WHAT?
First, do not be a contentious person. Get that chip off of your
shoulder. When you know and understand what strife produces, then you will
attempt to avoid it at all costs—even personal ones that are hurtful.
Second, reproduce your wisdom by discipling
others with the knowledge and understanding you have about the usual patterns
of life. That only happens when we intend for it to happen. We have to initiate
with others including our disciples and extended family. We cannot pass on our
wisdom without deliberately doing so.