The Purpose of Proverbs
1 The proverbs of Solomon a son of David, king of Israel:
2For learning wisdom and discipline;
for understanding insightful sayings;
3 for receiving prudent instruction
in righteousness, justice, and integrity; b
4 for teaching shrewdness to the inexperienced, ,c
knowledge and discretion d to a young man—
5 let a wise person listen and increase learning, e
and let a discerning person obtain guidance—
6 for understanding a proverb or a parable,
the words of the wise, and their riddles. f
7 The fear of the LORD
is the beginning of knowledge; g
fools despise wisdom and discipline. h
Avoid the Path of the Violent
8 Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction,
and don’t reject your mother’s teaching, i
9 for they will be a garland j of favor on your head
and pendants around your neck. k
10 My son, if sinners entice you, l
don’t be persuaded. m
11 If they say—“Come with us!
Let’s set an ambush n and kill someone.
Let’s attack some innocent person o just for fun!
12 Let’s swallow them alive, p like Sheol,
whole, like those who go down to the Pit. q
13 We’ll find all kinds of valuable property
and fill our houses with plunder. r
14 Throw in your lot with us,
and we’ll all share the loot” —
15 my son, don’t travel that road with them s
or set foot on their path, t
16 because their feet run toward evil
and they hurry to shed blood. u
17 It is useless to spread a net
where any bird can see it,
18 but they set an ambush to kill themselves;
they attack their own lives.
19 Such are the paths of all who make profit dishonestly; v
it takes the lives of those who receive it.
Wisdom’s Plea
20 Wisdom calls out in the street;
she makes her voice heard in the public squares. w
21 She cries out above the commotion;
she speaks at the entrance of the city gates:
22 “How long, inexperienced ones, will you love ignorance?
How long will you mockers x enjoy mocking
and you fools hate knowledge? y
23 If you respond to my warning, ,z
then I will pour out my spirit on you a
and teach you my words.
24 Since I called out and you refused, b
extended my hand and no one paid attention, c
25 since you neglected all my counsel d
and did not accept my correction,
26 I, in turn, will laugh at your calamity. e
I will mock when terror strikes you,
27 when terror strikes you like a storm
and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
when trouble and stress overcome you.
28 Then they will call me, but I won’t answer;
they will search for me, but won’t find me. f
29 Because they hated knowledge,
didn’t choose to fear the LORD, g
30 were not interested in my counsel,
and rejected all my correction, h
31 they will eat the fruit of their way i
and be glutted with their own schemes. j
32 For the apostasy of the inexperienced will kill them, k
and the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 But whoever listens to me will live securely
and be undisturbed by the dread of danger.” l
1:1. The title presents King Solomon as the primary author, raising the possibility of an initial edition of the book that contained only Solomonic proverbs, perhaps ending at 22:16. Interestingly, outside of this preface and the titles to the Solomonic collections (10:1; 25:1), the word “proverb” occurs only in 26:7, 9.
1:2–3. The purpose statements in 1:2–6 are grammatically linked to verse 1: these Solomonic proverbs are presented in order to achieve specific pedagogical and behavioral goals. Verse 5, which interrupts the sequence, describes how wise individuals will respond to this challenge. Verses 2a and 3–4 refer to the contents of the instruction.
1:4–6. Proverbs 1:4 introduces those potentially benefiting from this instruction. The primary addressees are the “inexperienced,” who presumably are also “young.” The “inexperienced” are simple, even naive, the stereotypical freshmen, but also open-minded and not yet set in their ways. Even the beginner in wisdom’s school can receive the necessary instruction to meet life’s challenges.
1:7. Proverbs 1:7a concludes the foreword by introducing the foundational theological principle or motto of the book of Proverbs. The phrase “the fear of the LORD” also occurs in 9:10, thus bracketing the book’s introductory section (also 1:29; 2:5; 8:13, and nine times in chaps. 10–31). To fear the Lord is not to cower in terror before an unknowable deity; rather, it entails a life lived in constant awareness of one’s dependence on and obligation toward the sovereign Creator. This expression distinguishes biblical wisdom from all other types of human learning. Ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature outside of Israel never presents wisdom as rooted in one’s relationship to a deity. The “beginning” refers to the essential foundation without which no growth in understanding can take place.
1:8–9. This first lesson contains three addresses to the son (1:8, 10, 15), each followed by imperatives (commands or prohibitions), thus dividing the instruction into three sections (1:8–9, 10–14, 15–19).
1:10–14. Verses 10–14 offer an anticipatory warning against yielding to the temptation to join a violent gang. Those unambiguously labeled as “sinners” seek comrades in their devious, violent, unprovoked, and unjustified actions, for which they possess an enormous appetite (1:10–12), offering the enticing promise of sharing the battle “plunder” (1:13; cf. Dt 20:14 and Jos 11:14, which use the same word).
1:15–19. Verses 15–19 present the admonition proper, followed by reasons for heeding it. Proverbs 1:15 introduces the major image and theme of the two ways in Proverbs, which can refer either to specific decisions or actions or to one’s general life choices or lifestyle. Paul quotes this description of frivolous bloodshed (1:16) in Rm 3:15. Proverbs 1:17 introduces a proverbial saying that suggests that a bird is cleverer than these evil schemers, who in setting an ambush for others are actually lying in wait (1:18; cf. 1:11) for their own lives!
1:20–33. In 1:20–33, wisdom is presented not simply as an abstract capacity or skill but as a person who directly addresses those most lacking in wisdom. The figure of Lady Wisdom is best understood as both a poetic personification of a divine attribute and a foil, or conceptual antithesis, to the promiscuous or foolish woman. Lady Wisdom embodies the fullness of wisdom qualities. The presence of a female figure justifies the use of the language of romantic love, as the author portrays the acquisition of wisdom as something profoundly personal, enjoyable, beneficial, and lifelong.