Warren W. Wiersbe - Proverbs: Gods Guidebook To Wise Living

THE WIERSBE BIBLE STUDY SERIES: PROVERBS

Published by David C. Cook

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All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes,

no part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form

without written permission from the publisher.

All Scripture quotations in this study are taken from the New International

Version of the Bible. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International

Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

In the Be Skillful excerpts, all Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are

taken from the King James Version of the Bible. (Public Domain.) Scripture

quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright

1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved;

and NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright

1960, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

All excerpts taken from Be Skillful, second edition, published by David C.

Cook in 2009 1995 Warren W. Wiersbe, ISBN 978-1-4347-6733-2

ISBN 978-1-4347-6511-6

eISBN 978-0-7814-0378-8

2010 Warren W. Wiersbe

The Team: Steve Parolini, Karen Lee-Thorp, Amy Kiechlin,

Sarah Schultz, Jack Campbell, and Karen Athen

Series Cover Design: John Hamilton Design

Cover Photo: Veer Inc.

First Edition 2010

Contents

M

Introduction to Proverbs

How to Use This Study

Lesson 1

Listen Carefully (Proverbs 1:733; 89)

Lesson 2

Wisdom and Life (Proverbs 24)

Lesson 3

Folly and Death (Proverbs 57)

Lesson 4

People, Wise and Otherwise (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 5

Rich Man, Poor Man (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 6

Family, Friends, and Neighbors (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 7

Speaking of Life and Death (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 8

Gods Guidance (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 9

Familiar Sins (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Lesson 10

Our God (Key Verses from Proverbs)

Bonus Lesson

Summary and Review

Introduction to Proverbs

One Word: Wisdom

What is the major theme of the book of Proverbs? One word answers the question: wisdom . In Proverbs, the words wise and wisdom are used at least 125 times, because the aim of the book is to help us acquire and apply Gods wisdom to the decisions and activities of daily life.

The book of Proverbs belongs to what scholars call the Wisdom Literature of the Old Testament, which also includes Job and Ecclesiastes. The writers of these books wrestled with some of the most difficult questions of life as they sought to understand lifes problems from Gods point of view.

Wisdom was an important commodity in the ancient Near East; every ruler had his council of wise men whom he consulted when making important decisions. We also need wisdom in order to smartly use our knowledge as well as to listen to others and, of course, to God.

What Wisdom Does

Biblical wisdom begins with a right relationship with the Lord. The wise person believes that there is a God, that He is the Creator and Ruler of all things, and that He has put within His creation a divine order that, if obeyed, leads ultimately to success.

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for wise ( hakam ) is used to describe people skillful in working with their hands, such as the artisans who helped build the tabernacle. Wisdom isnt something theoretical; its something very practical that affects every area of life. It gives order and purpose to life, it gives discernment in making decisions, and it provides a sense of fulfillment in life to the glory of God. Wisdom keeps us in harmony with the principles and purposes that the Lord has built into His world so that as we obey God, everything works for us and not against us.

The Author

In Proverbs 1:1; 10:1; and 25:1, were told that King Solomon is the author of the proverbs in this book. God gave Solomon great wisdom (1 Kings 3:515) so that people came from the ends of the earth to listen to him and returned home amazed (1 Kings 4:2934; Matt. 12:42). He spoke three thousand proverbs, most of which are not included in this book. The Holy Spirit selected only those proverbs that the people of God should understand and obey in every age.

A Note about How This Study Is Arranged

The first nine chapters of Proverbs form a unit in which the emphasis is on wisdom and folly, personified as two women. Chapters 1015 form the next unit and present a series of contrasts between the life of wisdom and the life of folly. The closing chapters of the book (1631) contain a variety of proverbs that gives us counsel about many important areas of life.

In the first three lessons of this study, well look at specific sections of Proverbs from the first nine chapters of the booklargely treating the passages in order. However, in the seven lessons that follow, well examine a variety of passages in Proverbs arranged by topic.

It will be helpful for you to read through the entire book of Proverbs before beginning this study.

Warren W. Wiersbe

How to Use This Study

This study is designed for both individual and small-group use. Weve divided it into eleven lessonseach references one or more chapters in Warren W. Wiersbes commentary Be Skillful (second edition, David C. Cook, 2009). While reading Be Skillful is not a prerequisite for going through this study, the additional insights and background Wiersbe offers can greatly enhance your study experience.

The Getting Started questions at the beginning of each lesson offer you an opportunity to record your first thoughts and reactions to the study text. This is an important step in the study process as those first impressions often include clues about what it is your heart is longing to discover.

The bulk of the study is found in the Going Deeper questions. These dive into the Bible text and, along with helpful excerpts from Wiersbes commentary, help you examine not only the original context and meaning of the verses but also modern application.

Looking Inward narrows the focus down to your personal story. These intimate questions can be a bit uncomfortable at times, but dont shy away from honesty here. This is where you are asked to stand before the mirror of Gods Word and look closely at what you see. Its the place to take a good look at yourself in light of the lesson and search for ways in which you can grow in faith.

Going Forward is the place where you can commit to paper those things you want or need to do in order to better live out the discoveries you made in the Looking Inward section. Dont skip or skim through this. Take the time to really consider what practical steps you might take to move closer to Christ. Then share your thoughts with a trusted friend who can act as an encourager and accountability partner.

Finally, there is a brief Seeking Help section to close the lesson. This is a reminder for you to invite God into your spiritual-growth process. If you choose to write out a prayer in this section, come back to it as you work through the lesson and continue to seek the Holy Spirits guidance as you discover Gods will for your life.