1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: 2 To know wisdom and instruction, To perceive the words of understanding, 3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; 4 To give prudence to the simple, To the young man knowledge and discretion— 5 A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, 6 To understand a proverb and an enigma, The words of the wise and their riddles. 7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction. — Proverbs 1:1-7 (NKJV)
I think that we as little children of God sometimes like to pick and choose a Bible verse or a Proverb to fit our need or to give us hope for tomorrow, and there is not necessarily anything wrong with that — just as long that we understand the actual meaning and context…
Read more: Proverbs Are Not PromisesDisclaimer! Proverbs are not promises. Even the Biblical Proverbs are not meant to be taken as such, because there are most always exceptions to the rule. Part of the wisdom is to know which proverb to apply to the situation at hand and never to work against the Agape love of the God.
4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. — Proverbs 26:4 (NIV)
5 Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes. — Proverbs 26:5 (NIV)
To illustrate my point, let’s look at Proverbs 26:4 and 26:5. We notice they are almost identical, with seemingly opposite directive. So do we answer a fool or not, and how…? Sometimes yes, but maybe it is better to avoid their company altogether because ”[…] He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the one who walks with fools will be destroyed.” (Proverbs 13:20 NLV)
One major disappointment earnest Christians face is not getting what they give, even though our Lord Himself says to ”[…] Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6:31, Matthew 7:12) So, is He mistaken? By no means no. Spiritual laws are not meant for manipulation, even with the best intentions. There are no guarantees we get anything from any specific person or group, but we will reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7) somewhere, from someone. Sometimes it’s best not to cast pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6). I think we should just ask for mercy and not justice from God, because which one of us hasn’t been the fool ourself in stead of the wise so many times?
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. — 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJV)
Finally, let us remember that all Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, or as the New Life Version puts it, ”[…] It gives the man who belongs to God everything he needs to work well for Him.”
All Scripture means everything from Book of Genesis to Book of Revelation. If you read only three chapters every weekday and five each Sunday, you have read the whole Bible in just one year. For helpful insight and historical context to accompany the reading, I have found the sermons by David Pawson on each Book of the Bible to be a treasure trove (please see David Pawson – Official on youtube).
God bless you, Dear Reader.
Bible Study 