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If you listen to wisdom
(Proverbs 1:20-33)
Andy Nagahara
Today, in the third time of our Proverbs series, we will read from verse 20 of chapter 1 onward. This part is not written in the form of a father admonishing his son as in the previous passage, but rather as “wisdom” speaking to him.
The Japanese Bible does not make it clear what the personified “Wisdom” who speaks is, but the English Bible, the NIV, tells us that she is a woman.As we continue reading Proverbs, we come across another personified woman in chapter 9. This woman also speaks to people just like “Wisdom,” but her words are a voice that guides people in the opposite direction from “Wisdom.”
So let us listen to the words of “wisdom.” First, let’s read up to verse 23.
1. The True Identity of Wisdom (20-23)
20 Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares;
21 at the head of the noisy streets [1] she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech:
22 “How long will you simple ones [1] love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?
23 If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you.
The true identity of personified wisdom becomes clear when we read this passage. It is a voice that is sung with joy in our daily lives, and at the same time, it is a voice that speaks from the top of the city walls and at the entrance to the city gates. In other words, it is God Himself speaking to us. And the people of Israel could hear it all the time. However, not many people took this message to heart and tried to live their lives in accordance with it. And Israel became desolate. This is because they did not listen to wisdom, but instead listened to another woman, who I mentioned in verse 9.
It was the voice of pagan gods, the voice of idols. For example, King Ahab of the northern kingdom of Israel married a woman from a nation that worshipped the god Baal, bringing idolatry to Israel. King Ahab was a king during the time of the prophet Isaiah. This was possible if they had listened to and obeyed God through prophets such as Isaiah. But they didn’t dare listen.
These words in verse 22 well express God’s frustrated dejection, spoken as words of wisdom. Verse 23 contains words of hope. Even now we are able to listen and obey, and if we do, the spirit of wisdom, that is, the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, will be poured out upon us. It says that God’s word will be poured out into us and will bring good results.
The prophet Isaiah not only experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon himself, but he also repeatedly prophesied that the Spirit of the Lord would be poured out on many people. However, eventually Israel did not obey God’s word and fell into decline, and by Jesus’ time it was under the rule of the Roman Empire. Early in His ministry, Jesus read Isaiah chapter 61 to the people, as recorded in the Gospel of Luke chapter 4.
16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read.
17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him,
21 and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus declared that his ministry would fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy. It was a sharp criticism against the ruling class of the time and the religious leaders who colluded with them, who had Jesus crucified three years later. If that were the end of it, Jesus would have remained a man of the past, recorded as one of the many rebels in the history of Israel. Why has this not been the case, and instead those who listen and follow have been raised for over 2000 years?
Because Jesus was resurrected, the disciples were encouraged, and the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them. And that was the beginning of the Christian church.
All of you who believe in Jesus and follow him are those who are listening to and obeying the voice of God, the voice of “wisdom” as referred to here. Be confident that you are qualified to receive God’s Spirit in abundance.
2. Our sinful nature refuses to listen to wisdom (24-31)
Now let’s read verses 24-31.
24 But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand,
25 since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke,
26 I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you–
27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me.
29 Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD,
30 since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke,
31 they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.
The horrible words follow one after the other. This is not a threat to people of other religions or to atheists. However, sometimes we still see people trying to make people become Christians by using such threatening phrases.
A long time ago, at an event called an evangelistic meeting, I heard the following words: “If you don’t decide to have faith here, leave the venue, and if you get into an accident on the way home and lose your life, you will have no choice but to go to hell.” This is more of a threat than a preaching or evangelism of the gospel. It is like saying, “My boss is a scary person who will do terrible things to you if you don’t obey him, so it would be better for you to obey him as well.
Have you ever scolded your child by saying, “If you do that, God will make you suffer?” That, too, is not education but intimidation. We are Jesus’ disciples, not his minions.
So how should we understand this part? First of all, we must not forget that these words were spoken to the young people of Israel, who had obeyed God, been led out of Egypt, and over a long period of time had settled in the land of Canaan and built a nation.
It was not just “certain” people who turned their backs on God’s ways despite knowing His grace, but the entire society had turned its back on God’s will, and the country was heading down the path to destruction. At first glance, the society appeared to be a devoutly religious nation, but in reality, contrary to appearances, it was an unbelieving state.
These words, almost like a curse, spoken by God through wisdom personified, had already become a reality among them.
You may have heard that Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was recently sentenced to nearly five years in prison for illegally gambling with Ohtani’s money and ordered to pay 2.6 billion yen in compensation to Ohtani. Even before he began working as an interpreter for baseball player Ohtani, he was said to be an excellent interpreter, sincere and caring. Still, perhaps he succumbed to the tempting voice speaking to his heart.
heard this news, I felt sorry for him, thinking that if he had had a chance to hear a word of wisdom from God, this would not have happened.
However, there are many people in this society who, like him, have never had access to God’s wisdom and yet go through life committing evil deeds without being caught. Speaking of unfairness, it is certainly unfair.
However, the misery of not being connected to God is the same whether one is serving time in prison as a criminal or living a comfortable life in society, in the sense that it is not connected to God. Their life is like walking a tightrope between skyscrapers without a safety net. Some people are lucky enough to make it across, but if they slip it’s all over.
So, what is the life of someone who listens to and obeys the word of wisdom, the word of God? That is what the rest of the passage says. Let’s read it.
３. Life Prepared for Those Who Listen and Obey (32, 33)
32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them;
33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”
The life that the Bible speaks of does not only refer to human’s life in this visible world. All religions have asserted that physical death is not the end of life, even if they express it differently.
The Bible calls it eternal life, and eternal life continues in the “Kingdom of God.” It means we are connected to GodThe life of one who listens to God’s wisdom can be as thrilling as walking a tightrope. But there is one crucial difference: we are protected by a lifeline.
Because this lifeline is invisible, it may seem like we are walking an equally dangerous tightrope. We may stumble and lose our footing, but we will never be pushed into the abyss. God holds on to this lifeline and never let it go. It is a lifeline to God that will not be cut off unless we stop listening and turn away.
Let us remember that God’s Word is a lifeline to our souls, be grateful, and keep walking forward without letting it come loose on us.
(Prayer) God, thank you for protecting and guiding each and every one of our lives.
Fill our minds with your wisdom as we simply listen to and follow you.
And help us to have the right attitude towards the events that occur.
We pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Summary
The speaking of personified wisdom is God’s own speaking to us. We hear it in worship, in prayer, in our daily lives, directly in our hearts, through the words of others, through the Bible, and through other written sources. By listening to and following this message, we can live in peace and security without fear of disaster.
For Discussion
1. What is wisdom?
2. What will you gain by listening to wisdom?