The sad story of Solomon and his son
The Book of Proverbs hides a sad story. Solomon was a wise king for most of his life. When he became old, Solomon forgot his wisdom. He had many wives. His wives tempted him to serve false gods. He did not remember God, who gave wisdom to him. He served false gods. The real God was angry with Solomon (1 Kings 11:1-10).
Solomon wrote Proverbs 1:1 to Proverbs 9:18 for his son. He wanted his son to learn wisdom. Solomon tried to teach his son. Solomon’s son was called Rehoboam. Rehoboam became the king when Solomon died. Rehoboam never followed wisdom. When he became king, his first decision was to refuse wisdom. He refused to obey the advice of Solomon’s wise advisers. Instead, he chose advisers who knew nothing (1 Kings 12:1-19). Rehoboam’s first decision was a terrible decision.
Most of the people refused to serve Rehoboam. There was a revolution and a war. The nation split in two.
Solomon led a great nation. His nation was always at peace. His son, Rehoboam, led a small nation. Rehoboam was always at war (1 Kings 14:30).
The Proverbs (wise words) of Solomon
(Proverbs 10:1 to Proverbs 22:16)
The second major section in the Book of Proverbs is Proverbs 10:1, to Proverbs 22:16. This section contains 375 short poems. Most poems have two lines, and each poem is one verse long. Each poem is called a ‘proverb’.
The structure of this section is unusual. Solomon did not separate the proverbs into groups. The proverbs change from one subject to another. However, their order does matter. Solomon uses an ‘organic’ (that is, ‘natural’) order. This order is similar to a conversation. For example, one proverb might explain the previous one. Another proverb might contrast with the previous one.
Together, these proverbs are like a conversation. Imagine that a group of wise people are talking about wisdom. Each person in the group speaks briefly. They all listen to each other. Then, each person tells his thoughts or ideas to the other people. The conversation would be similar to this section of the Book of Proverbs.
Because of this structure, you cannot split these proverbs into smaller sections. Proverbs 10:1 to Proverbs 22:16 belong together. To help us to understand their meaning, I have separated the proverbs into smaller groups. (The chapter numbers are not part of the original book. Sometimes, they are in the wrong positions. Proverbs 22:17 should really start a new chapter.)
The proverbs describe our lives. Often, they describe good things in our lives, for example, wisdom. Sometimes they describe bad things. They do not always explain whether something is good or bad. You need to use your own wisdom to decide. For example, Proverbs 10:15 says, ‘Great wealth protects a rich man. Lack of wealth ruins a poor man.’ This does not mean that we should try to get great wealth. Proverbs 8:10 told us that wisdom was better than wealth. Proverbs 10:15 describes our lives. We should want wisdom more than we want wealth.
These proverbs discuss many different subjects. However, all these subjects start with the first proverb. This proverb is about the difference between a wise son and a foolish son. The difference is (of course) wisdom.
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