Pro 2:1 | KingComments | STEP | In Proverbs 2 the father is speaking again. In the previous chapter, he warned his son against the sin of violence. In this second chapter he warns his son against the second great sin, that is the sin of corruption. In doing so, he emphatically presents the result of two ways or paths, that is, the way of life and the way of death. It is not only about a life style, but also what that lifestyle leads to. The picture is of you walking on a road and coming to a fork in the road. There are two roads in front of you. One road seems attractive, sunny, easy, flat. The other road seems difficult, there are threatening clouds hanging over it, the first part goes up steeply, it is a narrow and slippery road. You can’t tell from either road where it ends, because somewhere in the distance there is a turn in the road. Now which road do you choose? Of course, it is tempting to choose the easy, sunny road. But what’s after the turn? The father in his wisdom now tells what comes after the turn, because he knows. In the case of the easy road, that is tearing up lions and bears, and in the case of the hard road, that is a beautiful valley. The father tells his son not to choose the road that leads to the tearing beasts, but the road that leads to peace. We live in a time when no thought is given to the future. It is about getting money easily, as in the previous chapter, and about an easy and pleasant life here and now, in this chapter. Young people do not worry about the future. Here and now and immediate enjoyment, that’s what it’s about. Let’s worry about that when we get there. It is the mentality of ‘seize the day’ and ‘let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’ ‘Of course after death it’s over and done with. Should there possibly be something, we’ll then see.’ The structure of this chapter is clear and remarkable: 1. In the father holds out some conditions to his son. The conditions begin with the word “if”. 2. If he meets those conditions, the result will be blessings. Those blessings begin with the word “then” in . 3. In the father tells of the two dangers from which his son will be saved if he listens to his advice. 4. The ultimate purpose is mentioned in , as evidenced by the word “so” with which the verse begins. In Hebrew, this chapter is one long sentence that can be divided into six parts: 1. If you listen to the Wisdom and seek Her ( ), 2. then the LORD will give you wisdom ( ), 3. and you will enjoy and live out the knowledge ( ), 4. you will be preserved from the evil path, from those who enjoy the evil ( ), 5. and you will be kept from the temptation of easy sex ( ), 6. with the result that you will walk on the way of life, while the wicked walk on the path down, to death ( ). The content of this chapter can be summarized in the word ‘preservation’ or ‘protection’. We can warn our children for certain matters in several ways or recommend them in several ways to pursue certain matters. It depends on our personal conviction with regard to those matters. If we ourselves are convinced, it will resonate in our voice. If we speak without conviction, it will also be noticed. We see here with the father, when he again speaks to his son, that he speaks with full conviction. He is even more motivated after Wisdom’s earnest words in the previous chapter to impress upon his son the value of wisdom. His words contain an urgent call upon the mind and effort of his son to acquire wisdom. It is hereby important that the son has a mind which “receives his words” without any resistance and “treasures” his “commandments” within him ( ). The words of the father have the authority of commandments. They are not merely recommendations or noncommittal advice, but commands. ‘Receive’ and ‘treasure’ mean that the words and commandments are accepted and treasured for later use (cf. ; ). Treasure is stronger than receive and means to learn by heart. It cannot stop at receiving. The father may offer and command, but the son must receive and treasure. If he doesn’t receive and treasure the words and commandments he hears from his father, he will hopelessly perish in the labyrinth of the world that is full of violence and corruption. The father does not say that he has all the answers to life’s questions, but he does point out to his son where he can find those answers, and that is with “wisdom” ( ). In that way he refers to the Lord Jesus. That also applies to us, with regard to God’s Word. The Word of God is the Word of Christ. It is important that we receive God’s words and commandments and treasure them in our hearts. Then our faith will not suffer shipwreck ( ). To receive and treasure the words and commandments, an open ear and a receptive heart are needed. The son must heed wisdom with his ear, which means that he listens to it attentively. The heart is the inner being, from which his whole person is governed. The heart must be desirous of “understanding”, that is, possessing the ability to discern between good and evil and then make the choice for the good. This understanding can be acquired by reading and treasuring this book in the heart. After the right attitude or mindset has been presented to the son, the father says to him to cry out “for discernment” and lift his voice “for understanding” ( ). He prefaces that order with an empowering “yes”. It is essential that the son does this. It means that he must pray for it and do so vigorously. ‘To lift one’s voice’ is a reinforcing form of calling. It is calling with a loud voice. The son will certainly do so if he sees the value of wisdom. Then the son is not supposed to hang around waiting for an answer to his prayer with his arms crossed. He must get to work himself. The father exhorts him to ‘seek’ and ‘search for’ ( ). This is the essential condition for gaining wisdom. It does not come to him by chance. He must be like a treasure hunter who shuns no effort in his search for “silver” and “hidden treasures”. In relation to wisdom, we must be treasure hunters. The effort to find wisdom is what we can call ‘discipline for the purpose of godliness’ ( ). That is worth a lot more than bodily discipline ( ). The latter is something into which many people put a lot of time because they want so badly to stay healthy. But the health of the spiritual life is much more important. And it is precisely in this that so little is invested. If the search for wisdom is our greatest joy, it is not an arduous task, but a task that we gladly undertake. The word “then” with which begins, is the answer to the conditional “if” of the previous verses. If the son does what is said in the previous verses, then he will receive what is said in this verse. He will then “discern the fear of the LORD”, that is, gain the understanding into it, understand what it means, that it is about living to God’s honor. He will also “discover the knowledge of God”, meaning that he will possess it, learning to know God’s will and acting accordingly. He will know how to express his reverence for the LORD in everyday life. The promise of discovering in this verse is linked to seeking in , according to the word of the Lord Jesus: “Seek, and you will find” ( ).

‏ Proverbs 2:1

Introduction

In Proverbs 2 the father is speaking again. In the previous chapter, he warned his son against the sin of violence. In this second chapter he warns his son against the second great sin, that is the sin of corruption. In doing so, he emphatically presents the result of two ways or paths, that is, the way of life and the way of death. It is not only about a life style, but also what that lifestyle leads to.

The picture is of you walking on a road and coming to a fork in the road. There are two roads in front of you. One road seems attractive, sunny, easy, flat. The other road seems difficult, there are threatening clouds hanging over it, the first part goes up steeply, it is a narrow and slippery road. You can’t tell from either road where it ends, because somewhere in the distance there is a turn in the road. Now which road do you choose? Of course, it is tempting to choose the easy, sunny road. But what’s after the turn?

The father in his wisdom now tells what comes after the turn, because he knows. In the case of the easy road, that is tearing up lions and bears, and in the case of the hard road, that is a beautiful valley. The father tells his son not to choose the road that leads to the tearing beasts, but the road that leads to peace.

We live in a time when no thought is given to the future. It is about getting money easily, as in the previous chapter, and about an easy and pleasant life here and now, in this chapter. Young people do not worry about the future. Here and now and immediate enjoyment, that’s what it’s about. Let’s worry about that when we get there. It is the mentality of ‘seize the day’ and ‘let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’ ‘Of course after death it’s over and done with. Should there possibly be something, we’ll then see.’

The structure of this chapter is clear and remarkable:

1. In Pro 2:1-4 the father holds out some conditions to his son. The conditions begin with the word “if”.

2. If he meets those conditions, the result will be blessings. Those blessings begin with the word “then” in Pro 2:5 ; 9.

3. In Pro 2:12 ; 16 the father tells of the two dangers from which his son will be saved if he listens to his advice.

4. The ultimate purpose is mentioned in Pro 2:20, as evidenced by the word “so” with which the verse begins.

In Hebrew, this chapter is one long sentence that can be divided into six parts:

1. If you listen to the Wisdom and seek Her (Pro 2:1-4),

2. then the LORD will give you wisdom (Pro 2:5-8),

3. and you will enjoy and live out the knowledge (Pro 2:9-11),

4. you will be preserved from the evil path, from those who enjoy the evil (Pro 2:12-15),

5. and you will be kept from the temptation of easy sex (Pro 2:16-19),

6. with the result that you will walk on the way of life, while the wicked walk on the path down, to death (Pro 2:20-22).

The content of this chapter can be summarized in the word ‘preservation’ or ‘protection’.

If …, Then …

We can warn our children for certain matters in several ways or recommend them in several ways to pursue certain matters. It depends on our personal conviction with regard to those matters. If we ourselves are convinced, it will resonate in our voice. If we speak without conviction, it will also be noticed. We see here with the father, when he again speaks to his son, that he speaks with full conviction. He is even more motivated after Wisdom’s earnest words in the previous chapter to impress upon his son the value of wisdom.

His words contain an urgent call upon the mind and effort of his son to acquire wisdom. It is hereby important that the son has a mind which “receives his words” without any resistance and “treasures” his “commandments” within him (Pro 2:1). The words of the father have the authority of commandments. They are not merely recommendations or noncommittal advice, but commands.

‘Receive’ and ‘treasure’ mean that the words and commandments are accepted and treasured for later use (cf. Lk 2:19 ; 51; Psa 119:11). Treasure is stronger than receive and means to learn by heart. It cannot stop at receiving. The father may offer and command, but the son must receive and treasure. If he doesn’t receive and treasure the words and commandments he hears from his father, he will hopelessly perish in the labyrinth of the world that is full of violence and corruption.

The father does not say that he has all the answers to life’s questions, but he does point out to his son where he can find those answers, and that is with “wisdom” (Pro 2:2). In that way he refers to the Lord Jesus. That also applies to us, with regard to God’s Word. The Word of God is the Word of Christ. It is important that we receive God’s words and commandments and treasure them in our hearts. Then our faith will not suffer shipwreck (1Tim 1:19).

To receive and treasure the words and commandments, an open ear and a receptive heart are needed. The son must heed wisdom with his ear, which means that he listens to it attentively. The heart is the inner being, from which his whole person is governed. The heart must be desirous of “understanding”, that is, possessing the ability to discern between good and evil and then make the choice for the good. This understanding can be acquired by reading and treasuring this book in the heart.

After the right attitude or mindset has been presented to the son, the father says to him to cry out “for discernment” and lift his voice “for understanding” (Pro 2:3). He prefaces that order with an empowering “yes”. It is essential that the son does this. It means that he must pray for it and do so vigorously. ‘To lift one’s voice’ is a reinforcing form of calling. It is calling with a loud voice. The son will certainly do so if he sees the value of wisdom.

Then the son is not supposed to hang around waiting for an answer to his prayer with his arms crossed. He must get to work himself. The father exhorts him to ‘seek’ and ‘search for’ (Pro 2:4). This is the essential condition for gaining wisdom. It does not come to him by chance. He must be like a treasure hunter who shuns no effort in his search for “silver” and “hidden treasures”. In relation to wisdom, we must be treasure hunters.

The effort to find wisdom is what we can call ‘discipline for the purpose of godliness’ (1Tim 4:7b). That is worth a lot more than bodily discipline (1Tim 4:8). The latter is something into which many people put a lot of time because they want so badly to stay healthy. But the health of the spiritual life is much more important. And it is precisely in this that so little is invested. If the search for wisdom is our greatest joy, it is not an arduous task, but a task that we gladly undertake.

The word “then” with which Pro 2:5 begins, is the answer to the conditional “if” of the previous verses. If the son does what is said in the previous verses, then he will receive what is said in this verse. He will then “discern the fear of the LORD”, that is, gain the understanding into it, understand what it means, that it is about living to God’s honor.

He will also “discover the knowledge of God”, meaning that he will possess it, learning to know God’s will and acting accordingly. He will know how to express his reverence for the LORD in everyday life. The promise of discovering in this verse is linked to seeking in Pro 2:4, according to the word of the Lord Jesus: “Seek, and you will find” (Mt 7:7).