His Ambassador Blog

Proverbs is a book known for its applicable wisdom. Written by Solomon, the son of David and the third king of Israel. The Lord told Solomon that He would give him anything that He asked for. Instead of asking for riches, power, or anything of these sorts, Solomon asked for wisdom and the Lord greatly blessed him with such. There are 31 chapters in Proverbs so for the next 31 days of May we’re going to take a look at the wisdom in each one. 

Chapter Four: Get understanding and avoid evil.

“Get wisdom; get insight; do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you. The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. Prize her highly, and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. She will place on your head a graceful garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown. Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life.”(v.5-9, 13) 

Wisdom is to be treasured. The word used here ‘get’ has the connotation of buying something. There will be a cost to wisdom. You are going to have to learn and allow the wisdom of God to change you and mold you to be more like Christ. Wisdom will also cause you to choose certain things over others, good over evil. But what we want to do isn’t always what we should do. You will have to sacrifice.

We should consistently exercise the pursuit of wisdom and understanding. It should be constant. It’s not something you gain from the Lord just like that. It takes time and experience and practice. This wisdom should be honored and esteemed highly as it is a gift from the Lord. Not everyone has wisdom. When we do pursuer wisdom and seek to grow as Christians, that is rewarded.

“Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of the evil. Avoid it; do not go on it; turn away from it and pass on. But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. The way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know over what they stumble.”(v4:14-15, 18-19)

It’s important that we don’t even go near the path of the wicked. Someone once said, “If a way is never entered, it never has to be remedied.” Walking down the path of evil has unimaginable consequences. Someone truly walking with wisdom will not find themselves on this path. Solomon uses 3 words in the KJV to express how important it is to stay away, these are: avoid, pass, turn. No matter what, flee evil! Once you get in its hard to see your way out, it is compared to a deep darkness. On the contrary, the way of righteousness is like the sun hopeful and bright. 

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.”(v.4:23-27)

The last 5 verses of Proverbs 5 involve the whole body. Solomon describes how every part of us can be dedicated to seeking righteousness and wisdom. We are to actively protect our hearts. The word says that our heart is deceitful so it must be a dedicated and diligent effort on our part to keep it from the ways of evil and foolishness. Our speech should be holy and good, bringing life and truth into our lives and the lives of others. A mark of wisdom is knowing the best time to speak and the best time not to (there are absolutely times where no words are needed). Our eyes should be looking ahead, to our future which is heaven. When walking on a path if you don’t watch where you are going you will end up lost. The Lord doesn’t call us to let our eyes aimlessly wander, we are called to look straight ahead to heaven, righteousness, and holiness. This ties into our feet and the path we walk on. Where your feet are you are sure to be. If you don’t think you should be somewhere, don’t let your feet wander there! 

Walking wisely is a matter of our whole being. Our feet will go where our heart wants to go. Out of the mouth does the heart speak. Our hands will be busy doing what the heart desires. We cannot let our hearts be corrupted by the paths of evil because it will overflow into every space of our lives, leaving us in darkness.