to know wisdom and instruction; to discern the words of understanding;
The book of Proverbs states its own purpose before it gives a single proverb. Verse 2 is the first half of that aim, and its three words — wisdom, instruction, understanding — are easy to blur, though each means something different.
The opening verses are not the proverbs themselves. They are the doorway into the book:
Proverbs 1:1-6 is the preface. To value it rightly, we still need a short explanation of terms that many readers fail to tell apart.
Why does a king put his name at the head of such a collection?
Solomon then introduces himself by his known family and position, as the channel of these sayings that God gave. He does not do it to glorify man, as Greece honoured its seven wise men. Still less does he do it to make much of himself, for he testifies to his own humbling. He does it to exalt Jehovah, who guards from folly and from every trap the person who heeds these words. For the stated end is man's moral profit by what God gave for His own glory — to know wisdom and instruction, to discern, and to receive.
The Hebrew word behind "wisdom" is not abstract. It belongs to the world of craft and practice:
"Wisdom" here comes from a word that means "practised" or skilful. It is applied very widely, from crafts of all kinds to powers of the mind and philosophy. The verb for being "wise" runs all through the Hebrew scriptures... It seems to be based on experience.
So wisdom is not the same as knowing facts. Anyone can collect facts. What you do with them is another matter:
Still, wisdom is greatly to be desired. Solomon wrote down his proverbs "to know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding" (Prov. 1:2). And what is wisdom? It is the right application of knowledge. Without it, knowledge is a dangerous thing.
The second word is softer in English than in Hebrew. It includes being corrected:
"Instruction," linked with "wisdom," is expressed by a word that also means discipline, correction, or warning. So the moral aim is held steady all through, and not turned into mere exercise or display of intellect.
The two words point in two directions at once — outward and inward:
The first object is to know wisdom and instruction. That is the full, general object of the book. It is the experience of a wise man, and of a man corrected and disciplined, wherever he needs it, away from will in any form. Wisdom has more to do with what is outside us, instruction with what is inside.
The second half of the verse adds a third capacity — and it is a sorting capacity:
Next in its place comes to "discern the words of understanding." This is of great value for the soul: understanding built on careful thought, so that we can tell apart things that differ.
Darby points to the ear. Most of what we must weigh is what we hear:
And, he adds, to discern things that differ, words of understanding — "perceive" and "understanding" have the same force — that is, to get a discerning mind about what passes before us, and above all about what is said.
So how does anyone reach this goal? By asking God, and by waiting:
If we want to understand the book of Proverbs rightly, we would do well to act on the advice James gives in his letter (ch. 1:5), "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him." But this does not mean we shall know everything at once. It takes time and energy of faith to learn from the Word of God, "to know wisdom and instruction," and "to perceive the words of understanding."
Order matters, too. Wisdom comes first, and instruction follows:
Wisdom is the first thing to gain, and instruction, or warning, follows it — to receive the instruction, the discipline of wisdom... So wisdom comes by the Word of God, and it produces understanding and a moral character in the man who trusts in the Lord and obeys Him.
- Purpose. Verses 1-6 are a preface. Their declared end is the reader's moral profit, not a display of Solomon's genius.
- Wisdom. The word means practised and skilful, built on experience. It is knowledge rightly applied, and without it knowledge is dangerous.
- Instruction. This word also covers discipline, correction and warning. Wisdom handles what is outside us; instruction deals with the will inside us.
- Understanding. To perceive words of understanding is to weigh what is said and distinguish things that differ.
- Progress. Ask God for wisdom, then expect it to take time. Wisdom comes first, instruction follows, and understanding and moral character grow from both.
to receive the instruction of wisdom, righteousness and judgment, and equity;
Solomon's opening lines say why the book exists. Verse 3 names what it gives: instruction that shapes how a person behaves. The aim is not clever sayings but a life marked by righteousness, justice and fairness. So what do those words mean, and how does anyone receive them?
The word translated "instruction" carries more weight than teaching. It includes the sting of being put right.
"Wisdom" here comes from a word that means "practised" or skilful. It covers a wide range, from crafts of many kinds to powers of mind and philosophy. It seems to rest on experience. "Instruction," joined with "wisdom," is a word that also means discipline, correction, or warning. The moral aim is kept up in a striking way, in contrast with mere exercise or display of intellect.
One word runs through this whole book. The order of gaining wisdom matters too.
"Wisdom" is the characteristic word of this book. It occurs in the original language 42 times, which is 6 times 7. Six in Scripture is the human number, while 7 is the divine number. Wisdom is the first thing to gain, and instruction, or warning, follows it — to receive the instruction, the discipline of wisdom. The instructions are in justice, judgment and equity.
Verses 2 and 3 look at the same wisdom from two ends: what Solomon set out to give, and what it looks like once someone takes it in.
Wisdom, instruction, and discernment were the aim of Solomon's proverbs; but what was its character when a person had to receive it? It was good or wise conduct, righteousness, judgment, and uprightness... There was the giving of the sum of wisdom and instruction, and the means of receiving it, in conduct, righteousness, judgment, and uprightness. This is not merely a complete system. It is we ourselves learning the things that ought to be, when they are needed.
"Wise dealing" is not only about being right. It is about handling people well. One writer points to David, who served a king eaten up with jealousy.
Then we have "to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity." Careful watchfulness has a large place in learning to behave with proper courtesy and tact. David behaved that way when Saul was tortured by jealousy.
Knowledge on its own is not what verse 3 asks for. Two related words are distinguished, and the last term of the verse gets a short, practical definition.
It takes time and the energy of faith to learn through the Word of God, "to know wisdom and instruction," and "to perceive the words of understanding." Wisdom is the proper application of knowledge. Understanding is the right perception of knowledge. When we have these, we are ready to receive the instruction of wisdom in verse 3. That includes proper judgment, justice and equity. Equity is the virtue of being well balanced.
The purpose stated in verse 3 has a fixed starting point. It also meets resistance at once.
Proverbs 1 points out the purpose of the proverbs: that people might receive instruction in wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity. The fear of the Lord is the starting point. Satan would of course oppose this, so warnings are at once given to avoid the enticements of sinners.
Some might think a book of practical experience is beneath Christian teaching. Commentators answer that the two differ in character while both remain necessary.
These are the aims set out in Proverbs. They come not by man's cunning, but by beginning with the fear of the Lord and so growing up in discernment. We always need to be "not as unwise but as wise." A true Christian may act without discretion, and that may put him in difficulty all his life. No doubt there is carelessness in it; still he may be very sincere.
- Begin — the fear of the Lord is the starting point. Opposition comes at once, through the enticements of sinners.
- Receive — verse 3 describes an exchange. Someone gives instruction, and you must take it in. Wisdom comes first, then its discipline.
- Correct — "instruction" includes discipline, correction and warning. The aim is moral, not a display of cleverness.
- Conduct — what you take in shows up as wise behaviour, righteousness, judgment and uprightness. It is not a system held at a distance. It is a person being formed.
- Balance — equity is the virtue of being well balanced. Wisdom applies knowledge in the right way. Understanding perceives it in the right way.
to give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.
Solomon opens his book by saying what it is for. Verse 4 names two readers it aims at — the person who is easily fooled and the young person — and it offers each of them not just facts, but the good sense to use them.
One writer explains the key words in plain terms. He works from an older translation that says "subtilty" where the ESV says "prudence."
The instruction here is in justice, judgment and fairness, and it gives "subtilty" to the simple. The word "subtilty" means prudence. The word "simple" means "guileless" — free of trickery. Solomon was a young man when the Lord answered his prayer for a wise and understanding heart, and in these proverbs given to him he received "knowledge and discretion" — that is, thoughtfulness.
Both gifts named here can be twisted. Each one has a good use and a bad one.
"Prudence" in verse 4 can sink into cunning or sly ways, as in Exodus 21:14 and Joshua 9:4. But as in Proverbs 8:5 and 12, so here and in related forms, it has the good meaning of practical common sense... "Discretion" at the end of the verse is the opposite of carelessness, but like the word before it, it can also be put to a bad use. Used well, it means good judgment that comes from thinking things through.
Each gift answers a different weakness. One reader is open to deception. The other has a fault of his own.
Valuable as it is for everyone, the first aim is to give prudence to the simple, who are so open to deception in this world, and to give knowledge and discretion to the young man, who tends to be headstrong and quick to form opinions.
The simple one is not wicked. His problem is that he believes whatever he is told.
In a world like this, few things are more foolish than believing everything you hear. Believing God is the real safeguard. "The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps." We are told to test everything, but to hold fast what is good.
Notice that the young man is given two things, not one. The second guards the first from turning sour.
Verse 4 adds prudence, which the simple need, because prudence means care in how we act. Here the verse singles out the young man as needing knowledge and discretion. Knowledge without discretion can make us proud and overbearing toward others. Discretion keeps us from treating people in a hasty way.
Verse 4 is the point where the book's general aims narrow onto specific people. The purpose is not to make them clever, but to make them able to handle what they meet.
So the simple and the young are brought forward here. The aim was to make them understand what was going on around them, and what they had to deal with, so that no one could mislead them... In the end, the simple and the young are made to understand and to know what they are doing, able to go through the world without being deceived by it.
There is a simplicity that gets you hurt and a simplicity that keeps you safe. The difference is whether it comes from knowing nothing or from being full of good.
The world may be prudent, knowing evil. The heart may be simple through ignorance and find itself betrayed. The Christian may be wise or prudent by the wisdom of God who directs him, and simple because he walks according to the life that is in him... The two things are connected. Because a person really possesses what is good, he discerns evil, and traps do not succeed; the motives that make people reach for them have no influence on his heart... It is not the simplicity of ignorance, but of good, which avoids anything that would make a person leave his true position before God.
- Simple — the word means guileless, not evil. The danger is not wickedness. It is believing every word you hear.
- Prudence — the cure for that openness. It is practical good sense and care in how you act, though the same word can slide into cunning.
- Young — the second reader, with a different weakness. He is headstrong and quick to form opinions.
- Discretion — thoughtfulness, the opposite of carelessness. It goes with knowledge, because knowledge on its own can make a person proud and hasty toward others.
- Undeceived — the aim of the verse. Not clever people, but people who can walk through this world knowing what they are about, and not be fooled by it.