“To trust God in the light is nothing, but trust him in the dark—that is faith.” Charles Spurgeon
The proverbs refer to wise sayings that are passed down through generation and are generally considered for their application to general life. King Solomon was a wise man. His wisdom was not from man but rather from God. Solomon understood the importance of Wisdom and it as such is repeated in the book. We shall be studying Proverbs 10 and extending our understanding to the rest of the book. The book is nothing other than a guide to our understanding of what is helpful and harmful to our walk in Christ Jesus.
The book of Proverbs is largely a study of contrasts. King Solomon draws various contrasts to signify the importance of knowledge, righteousness and integrity. The proverbs continuously make a contrast of two starkly different estates. This kind of comparison is a natural order given that light is identified with respect to darkness and thereby separated (Gen 1:4).
And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. (Gen 1:4)
Separation is a major theme of the Bible and often takes a violent streak. Let’s take into consideration the separation of the Israelites and the Canaanites (Num 33: 51-52)
“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their figured stones and destroy all their metal images and demolish all their high places. And you shall take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given the land to you to possess it. (Num 33:51-53)
God separated/ consecrated the people of Israel to be holy because they were to be the origin of the promise that was to come in the form of the Messiah. In another way the separation existed as long as the Israelites were spiritually immature. When they attained spiritual maturity however they were made into the ambassador of Christ to every nation.
In the book of proverbs, Solomon draws out the comparison on the basis of a set of virtues and vices. I shall be shining light on a few of them.
(Pro 10:1) The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
(Pro 10:8) The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.
(Pro 10:13) On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found, but a rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.
(Pro 10:14) The wise lay up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.
(Pro 10:23) Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool, but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding
(Pro 10:3) The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
(Pro 10:6) Blessings are on the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
(Pro 10:7) The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.(Pro 10:11) The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
(Pro 10:16) The wage of the righteous leads to life, the gain of the wicked to sin.
(Pro 10:21) The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense.
(Pro 10:28) The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.
(Pro 10:30) The righteous will never be removed, but the wicked will not dwell in the land.
(Pro 10:32) The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.
(Pro 10:4) A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
(Pro 10:5) He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
(Pro 10:9) Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.
(Pro 10:17) Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life, but he who rejects reproof leads others astray.
Ultimately when it comes to the study of the Proverbs it all comes down to a study of the positives and negatives. Wisdom, Righteousness, Diligence, Integrity, Obedience they are often used interchangeably. Similarly folly, wickedness, corruption, sloth, insolence are used as a contrasting element. A similar contrast is seen between the first and the last Adam. Sin entered the world through the first Adam and left it through the last Adam (Jesus).
Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.
(1Co 15:45-49)
The first Adam was the father of all mankind but was also the one who perpetrated the fall and introduced spiritual death and original sin. That is the reign of darkness in the world which was eradicated on the Cross by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Sin was defeated on the cross.
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man's sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.
(Rom 5:12-18)
Light was however introduced through Christ. Anyone who follows Christ is a child of light.
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (Joh 8:12)
We are in need of this light. This light has the property to cleanse us from out sins. That cleansing allows us to be a part of a great inheritance which is the promise of new heaven and new earth.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
(1Jn 1:7-9)
Despite all the division and contrast God's grace and mercy is limitless. You cannot distinguish eternal light and perpetual darknesss. There is nothing the God cannot illuminate. At the same time one must steer clear of anything that tries to separate us from the light of God. For that we must hold fast to what is righteous, wise and truthful with obedience and diligence. But ultimately it all comes down to a simple analysis. Is it harmful or helpful in our walk with God. The division or distinction of God is very simple.
But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.” (Luk 9:50)
Any other fear of corruption and infection is worldly and pointless.
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Rom 8:35-39)