A proverb is often a recommended way of acting that will be wise in some settings and not in others. Or: a general observation of experience that is very often true and useful, but not always true in every situation. The same act may be wise in one setting but foolish in another. The same fact may hold in one situation and not in another.

—John Piper

Source: By John Piper. © Desiring God Foundation. Source: desiringGod.org.

Now, a proverb is very simple. It is a principle stated in concise terms. We could say a proverb is wise in content, and concise in form. It is a brief, to the point, pithy statement for the purpose of instruction; brief, to the point, that they might be remembered. What you have in Proverbs, then, is a compilation of these concise, wise statements. This, then, becomes the basic book of truth that fathers use to teach their children, a book of wisdom. 

—John MacArthur  

Source: Copyright 2023, Grace to You. All rights reserved. Used by permission. This Grace to You article originally appeared here at gty.org. 

An accurate apprehension of the main purpose and scope of this book will greatly facilitate its understanding. The purpose of the book of Proverbs appears to be to give teaching about practical life. The true man of God will honor practical inculcation no less than doctrinal teaching. The truth that is in Jesus, in which we are taught by him, is practical truth (Ephesians 4:20-24). While other parts of Scripture show us the glory of our high calling, the book of Proverbs instructs us in detail how we should walk so that we are worthy of this calling.

We look into the book of Proverbs as if we were using a microscope and view all the minute details of our Christian walk. There is not a mood, a look, a word, a movement, the tiniest duty in which we do not either deface or adorn the image of our Lord and witness to him. Even if the book served no other purpose, it would humble even the most consistent servant of God, making him aware of countless failures. Not only is the last chapter, as Matthew Henry says, “a looking-glass for ladies,” but the whole book is a mirror for us all…

The purpose of this priceless book is not to teach secular or political wisdom, although many examples of each are included (Proverbs 6:1-11; 27:23-27), but the knowledge of God (Proverbs 1:7) that makes us wise about salvation and enables us to live godly lives (2 Timothy 3:15-17; Titus 2:11-12). Wisdom’s stunning privileges are set out (Proverbs 3:13-18). It is emphasized strongly that this is the principal thing; it is our very life (Proverbs 4:5-9, 13).

—Charles Bridges

Source: Content taken from Proverbs by Charles Bridges, edited by Alister McGrath and J.I. Packer. ©2001. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

What does it mean for us to value wisdom the way we should? The first nine chapters of Proverbs are motivational. They are motivating us to dig into chapters 10-31. And so we will have the motivation to meditate on and memorize and internalize the proverbs of chapters 10-31 if we have been persuaded by the argument in chapters 1-9.

—Kyle Johnston

Source: “Introducing Wisdom | Proverbs (1:1-7).” YouTube video. Posted by “The Word at Work,” August 5, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajN7NkXHzdw 

There are four primary characters in Proverbs: the wise, the fool, the simple, and the scoffer. The wise embrace God’s covenant. Fools, on the other hand, are opposed to God, yet they are not beyond hope. The simple are those who remain uncommitted to either wisdom or folly, and because of that they are easily misled. Scoffers are proud and arrogant and scorn God’s ways. Other voices in the book include Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly, each of whom personifies the characteristics of her name, and the Woman of Excellence, with whom the book concludes.

—Lydia Brownback

Source: Content taken from Proverbs: A 12 Week Study by Lydia Brownback ©2014. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Proverbs should be read “synoptically” along with the other wisdom books to give you a complete picture of life on earth. Proverbs tells us that there’s a created order put into the fabric of the world by its Creator. That is why, in general, hard work tends to lead to good outcomes and laziness to bad ones. But Ecclesiastes reminds us that, because of sin, this created order is confused (it doesn’t always “work”). You may work hard, but only “thorns and thistles” come up (Genesis 3:18). And the Book of Job also reminds us that even though God’s order is still operative—his justice is always working itself out—so often it’s hidden.

If you only read Proverbs, you might become like one of Job’s friends, who believed good people always have good lives. But if you only read Ecclesiastes, you might think it virtually impossible to enjoy wellbeing and satisfaction within the confines of this world, “under the sun.” But we are to read all of Scripture, lest we get a distorted view (just as we’d get a distorted view if we read just the Old Testament or even just the New Testament.)

—Tim Keller

Source: This article originally appeared here at The Gospel Coalition.

The book of Proverbs is a gospel book, because it is part of the Bible. That means the book of Proverbs is good news for bad people. It is about grace for sinners. It is about hope for failures. It is about wisdom for idiots. This book is Jesus himself coming to us as our counselor, as our sage, as our life coach. The Lord Jesus Christ is a competent thinker for all times and all cultures. He is a genius. And he freely offers us, even us, his unique wisdom. Do you remember how he concluded his Sermon on the Mount? He defined the gospel as a call to wisdom: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. . . . And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand” (Matthew 7:24, 26). Jesus is our priest and our prophet, but in the book of Proverbs we encounter Jesus as our mentor. Do you see him that way? You can have him that way—the universe’s greatest expert on you. He alone is qualified to have that kind of say in your life.

Let’s not patronize Jesus Christ as a nice man who gives us warm religious fuzzies while we turn to the “experts” (whoever they are), the seriously qualified people, for the challenges of real life. Jesus Christ is the shrewdest man who ever lived. No one ever outthought him. No one ever surprised him or cornered him in debate. He was always out ahead of everyone, both his friends and his enemies. Jesus Christ is the best counselor for all people in all seasons of life. The Old Testament prophesied that the Messiah would be anointed with the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, so that he would not judge by what his eyes see or decide disputes by what his ears hear (Isaiah 11:2, 3). In other words, our Messiah is not fooled by appearances or swayed by hearsay, like other leaders, even brilliant leaders. No one will ever pull the wool over his eyes. The Bible says that Jesus has eyes like a flame of fire, seeing through everything (Revelation 1:14). And God has given this super-smart expert to us as his best gift of amazing grace. The gospel says that Jesus is wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:30). It’s why he surprises us. When he taught in his hometown synagogue, his neighbors were astonished and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom?” (Matthew 13:54). Solomon had been the wisest man in history. But when the Pharisees tested Jesus and he reminded them that the Queen of Sheba came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, she was so eager to learn, Jesus said to them, “Behold, something greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42). They didn’t have to travel any distance. Wisdom incarnate was standing right there. But they were too sure of themselves to listen.

—Ray Ortlund

Source: Content taken from Proverbs: Wisdom That Works by Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. ©2012. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

We will love Jesus more because what we’ll see is Jesus is not just a really nice sufferer and example. He’s brilliant. He has thought everything through and has opened his heart and mind to us. He not only knows us; he understands us personally. And as we sort of chew on the book of Proverbs—the book of Proverbs is not like eating fast food, it’s like sucking on a hard candy. And you put that proverb in your mouth and kind of roll it around with your tongue and think about it for a while and taste it, and that’s how it goes down and that’s how it works. And so that is really the experience of Jesus conversing with us through Scripture in the power of the Holy Spirit so that we actually begin to see reality his way and love him more and understand why he’s so worth following. 

… For example, it says in chapter 2, as we open our hearts, it says, “Wisdom will come into your heart.” It’s not just an external, coercive thing, a whip keeping me in line. No wisdom will come into your heart. It will be internalized—become part of our personalities. “And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.” …I’m in the scriptures. I’m experiencing what God can do through Scripture. It’s profoundly moving and thrilling and powerful. Those are actually some of the great moments of life. And that’s where Proverbs wants to take us.

—Ray Ortlund

Source: Ortlund, Ray. Interview with Nancy Guthrie. Help Me Teach the Bible. Podcast audio. June 30, 2016. This podcast originally appeared here at The Gospel Coalition.

But what is the fear of the Lord? It is that affectionate reverence by which the child of God bends himself humbly and carefully to his Father’s law. God’s wrath is so bitter and his love so sweet that we have this earnest desire to please him and to fear him, so that we will not sin against him (Hebrews 12:28-29).

Why do so many despise wisdom and instruction? Because the beginning of wisdom, the fear of the Lord, is not set before them (Psalm 36:1). They are unaware of its value. They scorn its directions. They are only wise in their own eyes. They are rightly called fools who despise such blessings. Good Lord, may childlike fear of you be my wisdom, my security, my happiness!

—Charles Bridges

Source: Content taken from Proverbs by Charles Bridges, edited by Alister McGrath and J.I. Packer. ©2001. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Fearing the Lord means fearing to run away from him. It means fearing to seek refuge, and joy, and hope anywhere other than in God. It means keeping before our eyes what a fearful prospect it is to stop trusting and depending on God to meet our needs. The fear of the Lord is, therefore, the beginning of wisdom not only in the sense that it is the first step in a wise way to live, but also in the sense that all the later characteristics of wisdom flow from the fear of the Lord like a river flows from a spring.

—John Piper

Source: By John Piper. © Desiring God Foundation. Source: desiringGod.org. 

Proverbs has one more really important thing to consider. Khokhmah (Hebrew word for wisdom) is not some impersonal force. It’s an attribute of God himself. So in Hebrew thought, your journey to becoming wise has to begin with what proverbs calls the Fear of the Lord. It’s this healthy respect for God’s definition of good and evil and true wisdom means learning those boundary lines and not crossing them.

—BibleProject

Source: Proverbs are copyright 2016 by Bible Project and are available for viewing at www.bibleproject.com

Wisdom is represented as dwelling with God from all eternity: “I was formed long ago, at the very beginning, when the world came to be. . . . I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep . . . and when he marked out the foundations of the earth. Then I was constantly at his side” (Proverbs 8:23-30). Compare these verses with John 1:1-2; Hebrews 1:2; Colossians 1:15-16; 2:3. Jesus was the designer of the universe.

When you read the book of Proverbs, put “Christ” in place of “wisdom” in the verse (see 1 Corinthians 1:30). You will then begin to understand the wonderful power that is in this book. “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true” (1 John 5:20).

—Henrietta Mears

Source: This content is from What the Bible Is All About, written by Henrietta Mears. Copyright © 1953, 2011 by Gospel Light. Copyright assigned to Tyndale House Publishers, 2015. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. 

The third thing we should do to get wisdom is pray. Solomon was not born a wise man. He prayed for wisdom and God said, “Because you have asked this and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold now I do according to your word” (1 Kings 3:11). And Daniel admitted that in himself he had no wisdom (Daniel 2:30), but he said, “To thee, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for thou hast given me wisdom and strength, and hast made known to me what we asked of thee” (Daniel 2:23). And we have seen how Paul prayed that the churches might be given “spiritual wisdom” (Colossians 1:9) and that they might have “a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of God” (Ephesians 1:17). And finally, James puts it as clearly as we could wish: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God” (James 1:5). The wisdom that leads to true and lasting happiness is not natural or inborn. It is supernatural. It is a gift of God. Therefore, if we would “get wisdom,” we must pray.

—John Piper

Source: By John Piper. © Desiring God Foundation. Source: desiringGod.org.