A Collection of Solomon's Proverbs

INTRO

Solomon, the son of David, wrote many proverbs. Collectively, from the book of Kings (1 Kings 4:32), we know Solomon wrote at least 3,000 proverbs and 1,000 songs. While Solomon was a prolific writer, many of his proverbs are pithy sayings, little nuggets of wisdom, strung together. As we read through each chapter, sometimes it just doesn’t flow in our minds and the way we teach. Tom Constable broke Chapter 11 into two sections, with verses 1–15 describing “Wise Living,” and verses 16–31 describing “Wise Investments.”¹

TEACHING

Proverbs 11:1: The word “detestable” isn’t used frequently. This wasn’t on the earlier list of the seven things God finds detestable, so this seems to say there are other things that God really hates. One of those is dishonest scales; using inaccurate weights in order to cheat people. Compare this with Proverbs 16:11, which also emphasizes God’s concern with honest balances and scales. God has set the standard, so wise living depends on His scales. Doing business with honesty and integrity delights God. Proverbs 20:10, 23 also emphasize that God detests differing weights and dishonest scales. Scripture says cheating the system to get ahead is unacceptable.

Proverbs 11:2–3: This theme of wise living is based on integrity.

Proverbs 11:4: Let’s say you cheat the system by earning money in an unethical way. That wealth won’t save you on the day of judgment, the day when God’s wrath comes. Wealth won’t allow you to escape the penalty of death. But righteousness rescues from death. Ezekiel 7:19 also said silver and gold will not be able to save the unfaithful on the day of the Lord’s wrath. Solomon said you have to be humble to understand this (v. 2).

Proverbs 11:5–7: Wise living says don’t put your hope in your resources, because you can’t bring it with you.

Proverbs 11:8–11: People celebrate when the wicked die (v. 10). This verse brings to mind Saddam Hussein and Iraq. When he died and his statue was toppled, do you remember how Baghdad rejoiced? There’s something in us that rejoices when the wicked get caught. Think about situations where a dictator runs a country and takes things from its citizens; everyone rejoices when the dictator is taken down.

Proverbs 11:12–13: There are times when we just should not say anything.

Proverbs 11:14: When you surround yourself with good counsel, you can experience deliverance from things that hold you in bondage. Everyone can be delivered from something that holds them back. Counselors speak truth into your life to help you examine your life to identify those things that hold you back. You cannot hold a “lone ranger” mentality—you need people to run with you in this life. Proverbs 15:22 and 20:18 emphasize the importance of having many good counselors or advisors in our lives. Proverbs 24:6 says the same thing. Maybe this is the problem with the American church—we’re afraid of counsel and guidance, so we fall into sin. Scripture says victory comes when we surround ourselves with many counselors. Counselors should not be people who are “yes” men—people who say yes to everything you propose. John MacArthur said, “The more crucial the decision, the more appropriate is corporate wisdom.”² You are never above counsel, so humble yourself to this part of wise living. Always seek the Lord first, then consult wise counsel (the Davids, the Solomons, the Nathans) to ask them what they think about the path to take. Things get messed up when we seek counsel from others before first seeking the Lord.

Proverbs 11:15: Basically, if you put up money to vouch for a neighbor, you’re in trouble. But if you hate these kinds of agreements, then you’re safe.

Proverbs 11:16: Now we’re switching to wise investments. MacArthur explained, “While evil people may grasp at wealth, they will never attain the honor due a gracious woman.”³ Money won’t gain you honor and respect, and it won’t last long either.

Proverbs 11:17-19: “The wicked man earns an empty wage” (v. 18a) probably refers to one who used dishonest scales to gain wealth by cheating others. There are two clear paths—righteousness leads to life and evil leads to death.

Proverbs 11:20: “Those with twisted minds are detestable to the Lord.” Where does that fit into the seven things God detests? Twisted minds could refer to someone who schemes, who has innocent blood on his hands. “But those with blameless conduct are His delight” (20b). That statement goes back to the very beginning, to the one who functions with integrity and who delights to honor God.

Proverbs 11:21–23: All continue to emphasize that the wicked will be punished.

Proverbs 11:24–26: When you give freely, your storehouses will be overflowing. When you keep giving it away, God says He’ll keep giving to you. Finally, you have this picture: People who live with a spirit of poverty even if they’re rich, hoard what they have because they’re afraid they will become poor. Instead of hoarding, open up the doors and give it away. This is the way of wise investing. God gave you the skill or talent to earn the money in the first place, so if you give it away, He’ll give you more. Why? Because God wants the kingdom to advance. He wants the people of God to have what they need to continue to work.

Dr. Ligon Duncan described ten principles of giving.⁴ Jesus expects and requires us to give. Jesus wants us to give for the right reasons. Jesus wants us to practice benevolent or charitable giving. Our giving is ultimately to the all-seeing Father. Christian giving is an act of worship. Giving should be done in light of the incarnation. (Because Christ gave of Himself, why are we holding back?) Giving should be in accordance with our means. The liberality of God’s blessings to us is connected to our liberality in giving. Giving ought to be done with a cheerful heart. Giving should be done willingly because we freely received.

CLOSING

In this proverb, we see wise living. God blessed us with the finances to get to this point. Now we need to take it one more step to wise investment. What is my wise investment? How can I keep giving this wealth away for the kingdom of God? This is an incredible nugget of truth because Solomon, who was the wisest man ever, didn’t ask for money, fame, or wealth; he asked for wisdom. When he got wisdom, guess what else he got? Everything else.