Proverbs 2:9
"9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity [and] every good path.”
The word translated as “understand” here is the same word as we highlighted in a previous section. It is Hebrew word #995- “biyn”. It means to perceive, to observe, have discernment and it means to stand apart and be separate. It is phenomenal that our Lord states that once we can hear Him with the right intent in our hearts, then we will perceive and “observe” righteousness, justice, equity and every good path because the term observe here does not refer to seeing with the eyes only, but it means to obey. We use it in terms of “observing” holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Therefore, it is certain that when we are “observing” righteousness, justice, equity and every good path, then we will appear to the world as someone who is separate, who stands out from the crowd. That is what God wants for if we blend, no one will know that we are different or to whom they can turn to direct them to God.
Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25 state that there is a way that seems right to a man, but that its end is the way of death. When we take the steps outlined in Proverbs 2, we will not be deceived into thinking that our way is right because what we will be hearing and responding to will be the way of God.
God builds upon the promises He has made in Proverbs 2 by continuing to say that :
"10 When wisdom enters your heart, And knowledge is pleasant to your soul, 11 Discretion will preserve you; Understanding will keep you,”
This verse acts as a bridge, not only in the chapter, but also in the life of the believer. In the first half of the chapter, we were learning how to properly approach the Word of God, what would happen when we finally begin to hear and obey Him and how He helps us stay the course. In this half of the chapter, we are learning to navigate around temptations. The first revelation from verse 10 to point out is that all you have to have is wisdom enter your heart …. You don’t have to be fully mature in walking in wisdom in every situation perfectly all of the time!! God jumps at the chance to direct and protect you so all He is looking for is the “entrance” of wisdom- for that is all that He needs to begin to manifest. Proverbs 9:10 states that the “fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” You see, it is not even possible to avoid temptation until you have wisdom and you don’t have wisdom until you have the fear of the Lord- or more accurately, until you are walking in the fear of the Lord- doing what He tells you to do. God is the perfect teacher and He always builds lesson upon lesson, line upon line, here a little there a little… we can see that he has maintained this pattern in Proverbs 2.
Wisdom only needs to enter your heart in order to build the capacity to resist the wicked one. Notice the next line, “knowledge is pleasant to your soul.” Remember the word soul means your mind, will and emotions. Often when a person is immature, both spiritually and naturally, they will not be teachable. They will hear the correct direction, but they will rebel in their hearts to it. The reason they do this is because they believe that they already know the answer. This is a sign of spiritual and natural immaturity. Therefore God has added the second half of Proverbs 2…. wisdom enters the heart- we know that it does because we have set it up to enter by the first steps outlined in Chapter 2. Then we must be teachable… we must be able to take what we hear and be happy about it. We cannot hear the instructions and directions of God and become sour at them… as if we are only doing them because we feel we have no choice. This is doing things begrudgingly. 2 Corinthians 9:7 tells us that God loves a cheerful giver. In context, that statement refers to giving monetarily, however the precept is maintained throughout God’s heart. God loves when we give of our selves cheerfully. When we give our time, our attention, our action cheerfully to Him. At this point the knowledge is pleasant to our minds. It is at this exact moment that discretion preserves us and understanding keeps us. But what do they preserve us from and where do they keep us? I’m glad you asked…
According to Proverbs 2:12-14, Discretion and knowledge will deliver us from the way of evil. They will literally extract us from perpetuating the evil in which we are prone to, drawn to, or participating in. As well, there is a list outlined of very specific personality types that we will be delivered from when wisdom enters our hearts and knowledge is pleasant to our soul… we will be delivered and kept from :
The man who speaks perverse things- They pervert the Word of God or speak directly against it.
Those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness- Those who were formerly following God but have turned away
Those who rejoice in doing evil, [And] delight in the perversity of the wicked
Those whose ways [are] crooked
Those [who are] devious in their paths
The immoral woman {or man}
The seductress {or seducer} [who] flatters with her {or his} words, 17 Who forsakes the companion of her youth, And forgets the covenant of her God.- This can be a person who leaves their husband or wife to be with you or who has no loyalty in relationships.
In conclusion, we have seen that Proverbs 2 gives a clear and direct path to hearing God, obeying God, receiving from God, completing the call and purpose of our lives, and avoiding the traps of those who would attempt to dissuade us or take us off course!
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