1. Proverbs 1:32
Wisdom’s Warning

2. Proverbs 1:32 (NIV)
"For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them."

3. I. BACKGROUND A. Wisdom literature B. Authors: Solomon, Lemuel, Agur
C. Literary form and meaning of proverbs
Proverb, oracle, discourse, parable, or taunt
D. The meaning of wisdom
Ability to live life skillfully
Discern and follow a proper course of action
Because we have not yet had a series of sermons on Proverbs, it might be good to give a little context and background.
A. Wisdom Literature:
The book of Proverbs is part of the “wisdom literature” of the Old Testament. Other Old Testament books that are considered wisdom literature are the book of Job, some Psalms, the book of Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon. As wisdom literature, the book of Proverbs contains wise principles for godly living; it is not a book of law, and it is not a book of history.
B. Author:
Proverbs is also known as the Proverbs of Solomon. Although Scripture tells us King Solomon collected 3,000 proverbs during his life, only some of them are captured in the Biblical book of Proverbs. Chapter 1 is explicitly attributed to Solomon, and its references to what his father taught him are therefore references to what King David taught Solomon.
C. The literary form and meaning of “proverbs”:
The Hebrew word which is rightly translated “proverb” here is also translated elsewhere in Scripture as “oracle,” “discourse,” “parable,” and “taunt.” So the Hebrew word’s meaning is considerably broader than the English term “proverb.”
Proverbs were and are a popular and effective form of teaching and communication in cultures all over the world, but that includes ancient Israel and its surrounding cultures. Early in the history of the United States, in Poor Richard’s Almanac, Benjamin Franklin made good and popular use of proverbs. Even today, effective political speeches include proverbs, and they are closely related to a very modern term, “sound bytes.” One famous writer has gone so far as to say, “The world is governed by proverbs.” Many feel one of the better ways to judge the character of a culture or a people is to examine their proverbs. If that is true, consider this evaluation: “In grandeur of scope, internal complexity and theological profundity, the Biblical texts of Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes are in a class by themselves.” (Archaeological Study Bible, p. 960)

4. E. A little history on the wisdom of Solomon
1 Kings 3:5-14 "Wisdom given"
God asked Solomon what he wanted
Solomon asked for wisdom
God responded big-time
1 Kings 4:29-34 "Wisdom displayed"
Very great, vast wisdom
Exceeded that of all the wise men
The world came to listen to Solomon
1 Kings 3:5-14 (NLT):
5 That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”
6 Solomon replied, “You showed faithful love to your servant my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued your faithful love to him today by giving him a son to sit on his throne.
7 “Now, O Lord my God, you have made me king instead of my father, David, but I am like a little child who doesn’t know his way around. 8 And here I am in the midst of your own chosen people, a nation so great and numerous they cannot be counted! 9 Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great people of yours?”
10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for wisdom. 11 So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies— 12 I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have! 13 And I will also give you what you did not ask for—riches and fame! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life! 14 And if you follow me and obey my decrees and my commands as your father, David, did, I will give you a long life.”
1 Kings 4:29-34 (NLT):
29 God gave Solomon very great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge as vast as the sands of the seashore. 30 In fact, his wisdom exceeded that of all the wise men of the East and the wise men of Egypt. 31 He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite and the sons of Mahol—Heman, Calcol, and Darda. His fame spread throughout all the surrounding nations. 32 He composed some 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs. 33 He could speak with authority about all kinds of plants, from the great cedar of Lebanon to the tiny hyssop that grows from cracks in a wall. He could also speak about animals, birds, small creatures, and fish. 34 And kings from every nation sent their ambassadors to listen to the wisdom of Solomon.

5. II. The Context of Proverbs 1:32
A. The book is wisdom from God, via Solomon.
B. As a whole: The book of Proverbs is designed to impart God's wisdom in order to prevent and remedy ungodly lifestyles.
C. Chapters 1-9 are designed to create a felt need for wisdom (thus, motivational).
A. Wisdom from God, via Solomon: In the book of Proverbs we have collected for us the sayings of Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived. Solomon was given God’s wisdom by God Himself in a special, unique way, with only Jesus Christ Himself being declared greater than Solomon.
B. As a whole: The book of Proverbs as a whole is designed to impart God’s wisdom in order to prevent and remedy ungodly lifestyles.
C. Chapters 1 through 9 are designed to create a felt need for wisdom, and therefore are intended to be motivational for the acquisition of wisdom.

6. II. Context, continued D. Proverbs 1:20-33
Wisdom is personified and speaking in 1:20-33
Both Wisdom and Folly are personified as women in Proverbs; the purpose is contrast.
Here, Wisdom appeals using reason and warnings.
Later, Folly entices using seduction, not reason.
Incidentally, the word “wisdom” in Hebrew is a feminine noun. (As is true in many languages, but not in English, Hebrew nouns had gender. They could be masculine, feminine or neuter. “Wisdom” happened to be a feminine noun.)

7. II. Context, continued E. To whom is Wisdom speaking?
To those who have rejected her or ignored her.
It sounds like a last and final warning (done for emphasis).
Similarly, God sent Jesus as His final, last warning to mankind, who are being bad tenants, as in the parable of Matthew 21:33-44.
E. To whom is Wisdom speaking in Chapter 1? To those who have rejected her or ignored her. In fact, starting in v. 22, it sounds like Wisdom is complaining and giving what appears to be a final, last warning to those who have been ignoring and rejecting her. In the same way, God sent Jesus as His final, last warning to mankind, who are being bad tenants, as in the parable of Matthew 21:33-44.
Personification is a literary device where inanimate objects are endowed with human qualities. This is done often for the purpose of better communicating: personification can communicate truths better than any other literary method.

8. II. Context, continued F. Who is this person, Wisdom personified?
God's wisdom, present at creation, later given to Solomon more than all other men*
Now present in Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3)
*Embodied and incarnated in Christ, “who became to us wisdom from God” (1 Cor. 1:30)
See Proverbs Chapter 8 for even more answers

9. II. Context, continued
G. Verses summarize Wisdom's entire speech (which began in v. 22).
Proverbs 1:20-33 is one Hebrew “proverb.”
Proverbs 1:32-33 are a summary of the entire proverb.
Proverbs 1:20-31 is wonderful context for interpreting 1:32.

10. III. Four Key Words meshuba’ (waywardness) pethiy’ (simple)
shalwa’ (complacency)
kesil’ (fool)
For the meshuba’ of the pethiy’ will kill them, and the shalwa’ of the kesil’ will destroy them.
“In concise sayings, where everything depends on the exact point being touched, the rendering of a single word makes all the difference.” – J. R. Dummelow, p Therefore, it is useful to compare multiple translations of a proverb, and it is often fruitful to do a word study of key words in the proverb.
Four key words: waywardness, simple, complacency, fools.
These are wimpy, puny English words, because they don’t begin to convey the richness and power implied in the original Hebrew. Let’s transliterate the original Hebrew words:

11. III. A. meshuba' (waywardness)
Turning away, apostasy, backsliding
The context here is not backsliding or apostasy in doctrine; instead, it is apostasy in practice, in how we live, reverting back to ungodly, unwise life practices.
Waywardness is the refusal to listen to and respond to wisdom, as mentioned in verses
So, waywardness in this context summarizes all the “mistreatment” that wisdom complains about in verses 22-31:
)refusing to follow Wisdom and her reproofs (1:23,1:24);
)paying no attention to, not wanting, and instead neglecting Wisdom’s instruction (1:24, 1:25);
)hating knowledge and spurning Wisdom’s reproof (1:29, 1:30);
)not choosing the fear of the Lord and not accepting Wisdom’s counsel (1:29, 1:30).

12. III. A. meshuba' continued
meshuba' (waywardness) is not teachable to Wisdom.
To be teachable, we must be, or become, reflective.
To be teachable, we must be, or become, humble.
.Be teachable to Wisdom in all the every-day settings where she tries to teach you (noisy streets and public squares), rather than limiting your teachableness to just the times and places you prefer (the engraved invitations, the sources you find easy to learn from, the sources you are comfortable listening to).
To be teachable like this, we must be, or become, reflective. A first glance alone, without reflection, will allow us to overlook and miss Wisdom’s instruction. It is upon reflection that we notice Wisdom has been telling us something.
To be teachable like this, we must be, or become, humble. We must be willing to accept instruction from Wisdom in the settings, places, and people that Wisdom chooses to use to instruct us, not in the settings, places, and people we prefer to learn from. God has a sense of humor, and He loves to turn the tables on us, and teach us through our children, and our enemies, and through those we have difficulty accepting.

13. III. B. pethiy' (simple)
One who is open to the instruction of wisdom or folly, but inclined to folly, because no preference for the moral good has been formed.
One lacking moral judgment and moral direction, therefore easily enticed, misled and turned back from the good and true.
So this “simple one” is gullible to the deceit of sin, but there is an extra dimension to this that we learn from the context of Proverbs 1:20-33: the “simple one” is gullible to the deceit of sin, but deliberately so. We can say that, because Wisdom personified has been complaining that the person has been warned numerous times, but the warnings have been ignored. Prudence was offered to, but rejected by, the “gullible” one. This person is conveniently, cooperatively, and complicitly gullible, gullible on purpose, and easily straying because of that. This is not a case of “innocent” imprudence, naïve and not knowing any better, but deliberate, accountable, on-purpose gullibility. This is not pretty and cute, little-kid kind of naivete, where one doesn’t know any better, but it is ugly, misshapen, corrupted, and stinking deliberate gullibility. Furthermore, this is the natural and universal human condition.

14. III. B. pethiy' continued
We must discern good from evil, but we must also prefer (value) good over evil. Important because preferences shape behavior more than discernment.
Do not value openness to bad things; instead, hide from bad things. Be teachable to Wisdom; do not be teachable to Folly; instead, hide from Folly.
It is a dangerous world out there. It is no fun to find that out the hard way. And there is no shortage of people willing to mislead others.
Know your weaknesses. Are you too easily influenced by certain bad things? Just because you are not easily influenced in some areas does not mean you are impervious to bad influence in every area. Some of us have weaknesses in one area, while others are strong there, but weak in other areas, where we ourselves are not weak. For example, some are more prone to anger, others to fear, others to selfishness, others to laziness, others to drugs or alcohol, others to overeating, others to craving excitement, others to pride, lust, jealousy, deceit, and so on. To identify your weakness is necessary to be armed in preparation against it. (To put it in the form of a very old proverb, “Forewarned is forearmed.”)

15. III. C. shalwa' (complacency)
False security that comes from living an easy or comfortable life apart from God.
It robs a person of motivation to change or repent.
It deadens the feelings of need for God and His Wisdom.
Irony of complacency: the real danger goes unrecognized.
The key concept here is that not all perceived security is good; there is such thing as FALSE security. Wisdom in Proverbs is telling us that it is actually a very common human failing to have false security. Specifically, it is WRONG to believe you have no need for God, and it is ERRONEOUS to think all is well if you are not right before God. The irony is that the complacent person here, the very one that Wisdom complains about, is exactly the one who should NOT be complacent: he is in very great danger, and he does not even know it! How dumb can I be? I can be so dumb that I am complacent when I should be terrified that Wisdom might give up on me and not teach me when I really need it. According to verses 20-31, calamity and anguish and dread and distress WILL come, and if I ignore Wisdom, I will have to “eat the fruit” of my own stupidity, and be “satiated with my devices,” which I will very much dislike. How strange to think that Wisdom actually warned me about this, and I ignored it. It is a rotten shame to suffer due to my own stupidity, my own bad choices and decisions, yet that is exactly what will happen to me if I continue to ignore Wisdom. And the danger is not just in this life; it is also in the life to come. If in this life we do not have the wisdom to respond to Jesus’ invitations to salvation through his sacrifice, we will mourn our stupidity for all eternity.
Another important application for “complacency”: The easy life that leads to complacency is sometimes the object of our envy, but we would be well-advised not to envy or long for it. Ps. 37:1,7 – Don’t fret or envy the prosperous evil-doer. Instead, value the difficulties in life that God uses for our discipline and correction; they come from the hand of our loving Father in heaven, and He means it for our eternal well-being.

16. III. D. kesil' (fool) Typically translated as “fool.”
kesil’ has a root meaning of “fat,” specifically one who is “fat” with self-satisfaction and thus feels no need for God.
Because this is precisely the opposite of the biblical concept of wisdom, there is no one more unwise or stupid than the kesil’.
Wisdom personified makes at least one principle very plain in Proverbs 1:20-33: When Wisdom reproves us, and it does so all the time, there is an action to be taken: Take the action of turning when Wisdom reproves you. We are not making right use of reproofs if we do not change and turn from evil to that which is good. This action is what we usually refer to as repentance. Refusal to repent is ultimately the defining act of a biblical fool: the absence of repentance is exactly that which defines the fool as a fool.

17. IV. Summary A. Expanded Paraphrase
Waywardness can be described more fully as "backsliding abandonment of God's wise ways."
Simple can be described more fully as "those who are deliberately gullible, willingly seduced, easily misled and straying."
Complacency can be described more fully as "the easy life and false security."
Fools can be described more fully as "those who are 'fat' with self-satisfaction and leave God out of the equation."

18. IV. Summary, continued B. Comparison of multiple translations:
“For the (sin/turning away/turning back/backsliding/waywardness/rejection of wisdom)
of the (simple/naïve/gullible/immature)
will kill them,
and the (prosperity/careless ease/complacency/ smugness/indifference/lack of concern/trust in themselves/self satisfaction)
of (fools/stupid people)
will destroy them.”
Note how many different ways are used to translate the four key words. This is further evidence of how great a challenge it is to take these rich Hebrew concepts and express them in concise English translations. Much is lost without careful, comparative study.

19. IV. Summary, continued C. Key actions to take
Waywardness: reflect, be teachable, aim for Christ-likeness
Simple: repent of failure to value godliness; accept prudence from God
Complacency: don't fail to recognize true dangers; don't be content with waywardness
Fools: don't fail to respond; repent and change when warned; turn to Christ
1. Waywardness: Reflect on the warnings of Wisdom. Don’t be picky in how you learn from Wisdom. Strive for the correct practice of correct doctrine, which requires wisdom from God. Ultimate correct practice is to fall into line with Christ, and to learn continually from Him, growing in Him, obeying Him. Don’t abandon the pursuit of Christ-likeness.
2. Simple: Repent and accept prudence from God to be on guard in areas where you easily stray or are easily misled.
3. Complacency: Don’t fail to recognize the true dangers. Don’t fall into a sense of false security. True security is found in a right relationship with God. Don’t fail to value a right relationship with God. Especially don’t be happy with your “waywardness” and your “simplicity” or “naivete”.
4. Fools: Don’t fail to respond when Wisdom reproves you. Be responsive, change, turn from evil and error, turn to Christ for both eternal salvation (from the penalty of sin) and every-day salvation (from the power of sin).

20. IV. Summary, continued D. New Year's Resolutions:
Prov. 1:32a is a call to a renewed pursuit of Christ-likeness and personal holiness. Avoid the "backsliding abandonment" done by the "deliberately gullible."
Prov. 1:32b is a call to repentance from foolish complacency and self-satisfaction. Avoid the "false security" of the "self-satisfied."