Wisdom Warns 

Proverbs 1; I die daily devotional.

 ³³ “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

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Finally… the climactic verse that quiets the soul after the storm of hard verses prior to receive, but necessary for an experience of discernment between good and evil nonetheless. It might prove wise to refresh yourself with the previous disciplining verses of this chapter to then experience a feeling of understanding by it. After all, as children of a Heavenly Father that loves us, means to teach us in a way that prepares us for eternity with Him. And because our Eternal Father is Holy, we experience the consequential nature of sin by the Spirit of Wisdom at work in the soul of death—that we would find life in Christ. This verse reflects on the secure life we have in Jesus Christ, and no evil can cause us to fear, but rather… we’re equipped with a profound confidence to press on into the maturity of eternity.

LIVE SECURELY

So if we listen to Wisdom as she reminds us like a mother teaching her children to behave; she reminds us of the wisdom gifted us through her presence and yet, in the same breath, warns us of those who choose otherwise. And even though her children of disobedience, our siblings in the flesh, are not listening; she will still respect us as adults to make our own decisions that will inevitably experience the consequences thereof.

Just as a human mother knows by instinct how to nurture and care for the wounds of the innocent and guilty children, so too does mother Wisdom know how to spiritually address each of us.

Just as a child might experience a swaddling by their earthly father by disobeying his instructions, so too does our Heavenly Father know how to save His Child from death by His Word. Wisdom of which is presently speaking in our souls the words of the gospel, is also gracing us with a conscience equipped to heal from the pain of what was once wrong.

Now, here we are, in a place of silence, we can bow our heads, close our eyes, and pray on; we’re now more learned children, more prepared to face the dread of evil.

And when we open our eyes to see the world of the dead, we’ll know more how to understand the nature of respect and honor, but most importantly… the LOVE of our Eternal Father in Jesus Christ.

• After the refreshed memory of the previous verses, how does this verse affect you?
• Is there any part of your life where you’re not wanting to receive the counsel of Wisdom on, and why?
• How do you feel about seeking a trusted person (in Christ) as a means to practice listening to counsel?
• Do you experience the dread of evil?
• Will you pray for clarity of conscience, and as you are guided through the Word of God for that clarity, seek cleansing and confidence through the Holy Spirit alive in you?

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RECOURCE

Proverbs 1 (NASB)—blueletterbible.org
¹ The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: ² To know wisdom and instruction, To discern the sayings of understanding, ³ To receive instruction in wise behavior, Righteousness, justice and equity; ⁴ To give prudence to the naïve, To the youth knowledge and discretion, ⁵ A wise man will hear and increase in learning, And a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel, ⁶ To understand a proverb and a figure, The words of the wise and their riddles. ⁷ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.  ⁸ Hear, my son, your father’s instruction And do not forsake your mother’s teaching; ⁹ Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck. ¹⁰ My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. ¹¹ If they say, “Come with us, Let us lie in wait for blood, Let us ambush the innocent without cause; ¹² Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, Even whole, as those who go down to the pit; ¹³ We will find all kinds of precious wealth, We will fill our houses with spoil; ¹⁴ Throw in your lot with us, We shall all have one purse,” ¹⁵ My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path, ¹⁶ For their feet run to evil And they hasten to shed blood. ¹⁷ Indeed, it is useless to spread the baited net In the sight of any bird; ¹⁸ But they lie in wait for their own blood; They ambush their own lives. ¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence; It takes away the life of its possessors. Wisdom Warns ²⁰ Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts her voice in the square; ²¹ At the head of the noisy streets she cries out; At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: ²² “How long, O naïve ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge? ²³  “Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. ²⁴ “Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; ²⁵ And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof; ²⁶ I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes, ²⁷ When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. ²⁸ “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me, ²⁹ Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD. ³⁰ “They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof. ³¹ “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices. ³² “For the waywardness of the naïve will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them. ³³ “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

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COMMENTARY

Matthew Henry (P1-V33) Commentary
4. He concludes with an assurance of safety and happiness to all those that submit to the instructions of wisdom (v. 33): “Whoso hearkeneth unto me, and will be ruled by me, he shall,’

• (1.) “Be safe; he shall dwell under the special protection of Heaven, so that nothing shall do him any real hurt.’
• (2.) “He shall be easy, and have no disquieting apprehensions of danger; he shall not only be safe from evil, but quiet from the fear of it.’ Though the earth be removed, yet shall not they fear. Would we be safe from evil, and quiet from the fear of it? Let religion always rule us and the word of God be our counsellor. That is the way to dwell safely in this world, and to be quiet from the fear of evil in the other world.