The Lord's Sovereignty and Human Folly

we took a one month break

from the Proverbs series

and during that time I also took my paternity leave

so it's been a while since I've been back

to preach and I want to thank you all for being so supportive

and releasing during that time

and we definitely needed that time for him to recuperate

and for us to get used to the new rhythm of our family

even though we're still not quite used to it

it's a joy and an honor to preach God's word to you this evening

we're in Proverbs chapter 17

Proverbs 17 · chapter mention

so please turn with me there

Proverbs 17 verse 7 to 28

Proverbs 17:7–28

fine speech

is not becoming to a fool

still less is false speech to a prince

a bribe is like a magic stone

in the eyes of the one who gives it

wherever he turns he prospers

whoever covers an offense seeks love

but he who repeats a matter separates close friends

a rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding

than a hundred blows into a fool

an evil man seeks only rebellion

and a cruel messenger will be sent against him

let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs

rather than a fool in his folly

if anyone returns evil for good

evil will not depart from his house

the beginning of strife is like letting out water

so quit before the quarrel breaks out

he who justifies the wicked

and he who condemns the righteous

are both alike an abomination to the Lord

why should a fool have money in his hand

to buy wisdom when he has no sense

a friend loves at all times

and a brother is born for adversity

one who lacks sense gives a pledge

and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor

whoever loves transgression loves strife

he who makes his door high seeks destruction

a man of crooked heart does not discover good

and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity

he who sires a fool gets himself sorrow

and the father of a fool has no joy

a joyful heart is good medicine

but a crushed spirit dries up the bones

the wicked accepts a bribe in secret

to pervert the ways of justice

the discerning sets his face toward wisdom

but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth

a foolish son is a grief to his father

and bitterness to her who bore him

to impose a fine on a righteous man is not good

nor to strike the noble for their uprightness

whoever restrains his words has knowledge

and he who has a cruel spirit is a man of understanding

even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise

when he closes his lips he is deemed intelligent

this is God's holy and authoritative word

let's pray

heavenly father we come to your word

to which is before our face

which the word the wisdom of God that you have revealed to us

and we want to humbly listen

to hear your voice

to align ourselves to it

so please God

speak to us

address us as your people

as your children

that we might wise up

and live in accordance with your will

in Jesus name

we pray

amen

biblically speaking

a fool

is someone who does not

acknowledge God

someone who lacks sense

with regard to God

so the fool says in his heart

it says in Psalm 14 1

there is no God

that's the definition

Bible's definition of a fool

and that fundamental folly

of not acknowledging God

makes them foolish

in all their dealings with other people

it's like a crossword puzzle

in a crossword puzzle

the vertical and horizontal lines

are interrelated

so that if you get a word

a vertical line wrong

it's going to throw off the entire puzzle

all the horizontal lines

that come off of that vertical line

you're going to get wrong

similarly if we don't get

our vertical relationship

right with God

you're going to get

the horizontal relationship

with other people

wrong

and that's what this passage is about

it's about human folly

and some variation

of the word fool

occurs nine times

in this passage

and it teaches us

that human folly

because it is anti-God

it's profoundly anti-social

anti-humanity

and our world

teams with

fools

we were all once fools

but how should a wise person

relate to them

and interact with them

that's the question

this passage answers

and it teaches us

that those who trust

in the sovereign judgment

of the Lord

can be loving

and self-controlled

even in the face of folly

even in the face of human folly

that's the main point

we're going to look at

folly in speech

and folly in justice

and folly in relationships

and learn how to deal

with each situation

so first

verses 7 and 9

introduces us

to three different kinds

of fools

that I just mentioned

that the rest of the passage

will expand upon

so first

folly in speech

then justice

then relationships

and the three are interrelated

as we'll see

it says in verse 7 and 9

fine speech is not becoming

to a fool

still less is false speech

to a prince

a bribe is like a magic stone

in the eyes of the one

who gives it

wherever he turns

he prospers

whoever covers an offense

seeks love

but he who repeats a matter

separates close friends

so first on this list

is the following speech

it says fine speech

is not becoming to a fool

still less is false speech

to a prince

fine speech

eloquent speech

well spoken speech

it doesn't fit

a fool

it's like a gold ring

in a pig's snout

as one proverb

puts it

or it's like tying

a garbage bag

with a little bow tie

it doesn't fit

the fool

is better suited

for silence

but that's not all

it says still less

is false speech

to a prince

if fine speech

is not becoming

of a fool

then it's even more

the case

that false speech

is not becoming

of a prince

a prince

doesn't necessarily

refer to a monarch

it's someone

who has a noble bearing

a noble character

so later in verse 26

the same Hebrew word

is translated as

the noble

which is parallel

to a righteous man

so Solomon is assuming

here that it's

insufficient

for a member

of the royal family

or the aristocracy

or a ruler

to be noble

simply by virtue

of their birth

or heritage

rather they should be

noble in their character

his noble character

should match

his noble station

and it's unbecoming

of a noble person

to lie

even more

than fine speech

is unfitting

for a fool

false speech

is unfitting

for a wise person

brothers and sisters

we must remember this

as the children of God

we are children

of the God

who never lies

as Titus 1-2 says

false speech

is beneath your dignity

whenever you are

tempted to lie

in order to

get the better

of a situation

or someone

remember how degrading

it is for you

to lie

we ought to instead

live in a manner

worthy of our identity

in Christ

and if the fact

that false speech

is unbecoming

of our character

and it isn't enough

that if that's not enough

of a motivator

for us

verse 20 warns us

of the consequence

of false speech

a man of crooked heart

does not discover good

and one with a dishonest tongue

falls into calamity

usually people lie

in order to get

out of trouble

right

or to avoid trouble

but this

is short sighted

because this proverb

tells us

that in the long run

in light of God's

sovereign rule

it's the dishonest tongue

that falls

into calamity

verses 27 and 28

continue to address

folly in speech

it says

whoever restrains his words

has knowledge

and he who has

a cool spirit

is a man of understanding

even a fool

who keeps silent

is considered wise

when he closes his lips

he is deemed intelligent

so these verses

call for

a cool spirit

and closed lips

in the engineer east

as we do now

people often use

the words hot

and cool

to refer to

people's temperaments

a hot spirit

person

is a short

tempered

and hot headed

person

and a cool

spirit

person

is a patient

and even

keeled person

and so a cool

spirit

and closed lips

together represent

self control

and restrained

speech

and we have to

understand this

proverb in context

because this passage

throughout speaks

of fools

who lie

to get their way

fools who pervert

justice

fools who bring

grief to their

parents and

others in authority

their close friends

as well

and even in the face

of such human

folly

it says

we are to be

restrained in our

words

and self controlled

but where does

such restraint

come from

according to

verses 27 and 28

this restraint

is the characteristic

of the person

who has

knowledge

a person

who has

understanding

and what is

knowledge

and understanding

proverbs chapter 2

Proverbs 2 · chapter mention

5 to 6

said that if we

heed the words

of this book

then you will

understand

the fear

of the lord

and find

the knowledge

of god

for the lord

gives wisdom

from his mouth

comes knowledge

and understanding

so what is

knowledge

and understanding

then they are

in proverbs

the knowledge

and understanding

of god

and his word

it begins

with the fear

of the lord

living before

the presence

of under the

authority of

and for the glory

of god

that's what it

means to live

with the fear

of the lord

this knowledge

of god

and expectation

of his

sovereign judgment

is what

restrains

our words

and makes us

self controlled

even in the face

of human folly

we don't need

to vent

because of

god's vengeance

we don't need

to fight

because god

defends us

we don't need

to win the

argument

because of

god's

judgment

and he says

even a fool

who keeps silent

is considered wise

this proverb

might be behind

the aphorism

often misattributed

to abraham lincoln

quote

it is better

to remain

silent

at the risk

of being

thought a fool

than to talk

and remove

all doubt

of it

if even a fool

can be thought

wise by being

silent

how much more

should a wise

person

hold his tongue

in the face

of folly

this doesn't

mean

that we should

never speak up

of course

verse 10

qualifies this

it says

a rebuke

goes deeper

into a man

of understanding

than a hundred

blows into a fool

it implies

that we should

rebuke

a man

of understanding

the bible

calls us

to exhort

one another

to correct

one another

in god's

people

among god's

people

so the person

who will

listen

and gain

knowledge

we ought

to offer

rebuke

because wise

person is

suited for that

but a fool

on the other

hand

is suited

it says

only for

a beating

it says

a hundred

blows

that's

hyperbole

of course

the old

testament

never stipulates

such

steep

punishment

but even

when a fool

receives

the proverbial

hundred blows

the teaching

does not

penetrate

it doesn't

go very

deep

into the fool

one

the

19th century

English

pastor

Charles Bridges

illustrated the

comparison

this way

he says

a simple

word of

rebuke

was enough

to make

king David

repent

in 2

Samuel 12

just a

look from

Jesus'

eyes

was enough

to make

Peter repent

after his

denial of

Jesus

in Luke

Luke 22 · chapter mention

chapter 22

but the

hundred

blows

a hundred

blows

wasn't

enough

to teach

the Egyptian

Pharaoh

in Exodus

Exodus 9 · chapter mention

chapter 9

the wise

person

knows

not to

waste

his breath

he knows

better than

to rebuke

a fool

in his

folly

this is

what verse

16

is speaking

of

why should

a fool

have money

in his

hand

to buy

wisdom

when he

has no

sense

Proverbs

sometimes

uses

the imagery

of buying

wisdom

to tell us

to cherish

it more

than silver

and gold

it's asking

us why

should a fool

be able

to buy

wisdom

when he

has no

mind

to learn

it

what's

the use

of giving

Shakespeare

to an

illiterate

person

what's

the use

of playing

Mozart

for a

deaf

person

a fool

will not

grasp

wisdom

so the

wise

person

knows

when to

spare

his

words

so that's

what

Solomon

has to

say

about

folly

in

speech

but in

verse 8

he introduces

a second

kind of

folly

folly

in

justice

a

bribe

is like

a magic

stone

in the

eyes

of the

one

who

gives

it

wherever

he

turns

he

prospers

like it

or not

bribes

are an

integral

part

of how

society

runs

throughout

much

of the

world

and it

works

works

like a

charm

money

talks

to

the

one

who

gives

it

it's

like

a

magic

stone

but

note

the

important

phrase

in

the

eyes

of

a

bribe

is

like

a

magic

stone

in

the

eyes

of

the

one

who

gives

it

that

phrase

reveals

Solomon's

true

attitude

toward

bribes

because

frequently

throughout

Proverbs

that phrase

in the

eyes

of

is

used

to

describe

the

fool

it

warns

us

in

chapter

3

verse

7

not

to

be

wise

in

our

own

eyes

it

says

that

the

way

of

a

fool

is

right

in

his

own

eyes

Proverbs

12

15

it

says

in

Proverbs

16

2

all

the

ways

of

a

man

are

pure

in

his

own

eyes

but

the

Lord

ways

the

spirit

the

briber

is

wise

in

his

own

eyes

he

thinks

he

knows

a

secret

that

others

are

ignorant

of

his

ways

are

pure

in

his

own

eyes

and

he

is

unaware

that

the

Lord

will

bring

his

actions

to

judgment

the

Bible

consistently

condemns

bribery

verse

23

later

says

in

our

chapter

the

wicked

accepts

a

bribe

in

secret

to

pervert

the

ways

of

justice

justice

is

perverted

when

someone

who

can

afford

to

give

a

bride

and

is

willing

to

stoop

to

giving

a

bride

is

able

to

manipulate

justice

because

then

people

who

cannot

afford

it

and

people

who

are

too

principled

to

give

it

are

deprived

of

justice

there's

a

reason

why

bribes

are

given

in

secret

even

the

apostle

Paul

in

Acts

Acts 24 · chapter mention

chapter

24

when

he

was

being

held

in

prison

by

governor

Felix

it

says

that

Felix

hoped

that

money

would

be

given

by

Paul

so

he

sent

for

him

often

and

conversed

with

him

in hopes

that

Paul

would

pay him

a

bribe

bribery

was

normal

and

expected

in that

culture

but

Paul

never

pays

that

bribe

instead

he

stays

in

prison

for

two

more

years

and

instead

you

know

what

Paul

does

he

says

in

Acts

24

25

he

says

that

Paul

reasoned

with

Felix

about

righteousness

self

control

and

the

coming

judgment

a

bribe

is

often

effective

when

it

is

used

but

this

doesn't

make

it

right

verse

26

says

to impose

a fine

on a

righteous

man

is

not

good

nor

to

strike

the

noble

for

their

uprightness

the

briber

ignores

the

sovereignty

of

God

over

human

folly

he

does

what

he

sees

fit

with

his

own

eyes

and

not

what

is

fitting

before

the

eyes

of

God

and

for

that

he

will

pay

a

much

dearer

price

than

his

bribe

on

judgment

day

so

this

is

how

we

are

to

deal

with

fools

who

pervert

justice

verses

11

to

15

go into

greater

detail

about

that

so

please

follow

along

with

me

verses

11

to

15

an

evil

man

seeks

only

rebellion

and

a

cruel

messenger

will

be

sent

against

him

let

a

man

meet

a

she-bear

robbed

of

her

cubs

rather

than

a

fool

in

his

folly

if

anyone

returns

evil

for

good

evil

will

not

depart

from

his

house

the

beginning

of

strife

is

like

letting

out

water

so

quit

before

the

quarrel

breaks

out

he

who

justifies

the

wicked

and

he

who

condemns

the

righteous

are

both

alike

in

abomination

to

the

Lord

these

verses

inform

one

another

a

fool

in

his

folly

says

like

a

she-bear

robbed

of

her

cubs

in

other

words

there

is

no

reasoning

with

the

fool

think

about

it

when

you

meet

a

raging

she-bear

robbed

of

her

cubs

you

don't

stand

there

and

reason

with

her

saying

hey

I

was

just

petting

your

cute

cub

hey

I

was

actually

just

trying

to

save

your

cub

from

extinction

that's

a good

way

to

get

mauled

by

a

bear

likewise

there's

no

reasoning

with

the

raging

fool

there's

no

need

to

fret

however

because

it

says

though

an

evil

man

seeks

only

rebellion

against

God

and

his

appointed

authorities

a

cruel

messenger

will be

sent

against

him

this

is

a

messenger

of

judgment

from

God

God's

justice

will

prevail

in the

end

and

overtake

the

rebellious

fool

so

don't

fret

when

someone

returns

the

good

that

you

do

for

that

person

with

evil

even

when

they

repay

evil

for

good

we

are

not

to

repay

evil

for

evil

as

Romans

12

17

to

19

says

it

says

here

in

this

proverb

God

will

repay

and

evil

will

not

depart

from

his

house

from

the

house

of

the

person

who

repays

good

with

evil

evil

will

become

a

permanent

unwelcome

guest

in

his

household

so

verse

14

says

the

beginning

of

strife

is

like

letting

out

water

so

quit

before

the

coral

breaks

out

the

beginning

of

strife

is

like

a

hole

in

a

dam

though

the

seepage

is

negligible

at

first

the

pressure

mounts

up

quickly

and

it

bursts

open

the

dam

causing

an

uncontrollable

torrent

so

it

says

quit

before

the

coral

breaks

out

don't

can

be

consumed

with

confronting

a fool

in his

folly

who

is

like

a

she

bear

robbed

of

her

cubs

quit

before

the

coral

breaks

out

and

we're

able

to

do

this

because

we

trust

in

God's

sovereign

judgment

verse

15

says

he

who

justifies

the

wicked

and

who

condemns

the

righteous

are

both

alike

an

abomination

to

the

Lord

in

this

sinful

upside

down

world

fools

might

get

their

way

at

times

wicked

people

might

be

justified

and

righteous

people

might

be

condemned

but

such

perversion

of

justice

is

like

an

abomination

to

the

Lord

the

Lord

detests

them

both

letting

a

wicked

person

go

free

and

punishing

an

innocent

person

they're

equally

abominable

to

God

because

his

justice

is

perfect

and

because

we

know

this

we

can

avoid

quarrels

and

not

repay

evil

for

evil

because

we

trust

in

God's

sovereign

judgment

so

this

is

how

we

are

to

deal

with

fools

who

pervert

justice

and

the

third

kind

of

folly

in

relationships

verse

nine

says

whoever

covers

an

offense

seeks

love

but

he

who

repeats

a

matter

separates

close

friends

an

offense

in

this

passage

an

offense

has

been

committed

between

friends

and

there

are

two

contrasting

responses

that

we

can

take

first

it

says

whoever

covers

an

offense

seeks

love

this

is

similar

to

Proverbs

10

12

which

said

that

hatred

stirs

up

strife

but

love

covers

all

offenses

but

there's

a

slightly

different

emphasis

in

chapter

10

verse

12

the

covering

up

of

the

offense

was

motivated

by

love

but

here

in

chapter

17

verse

9

the

covering

up

of

the

offense

happens

with

the

goal

of

love

whoever

covers

an

offense

seeks

love

or

fosters

love

as

the

NIV

the

new

international

version

translates

it

the

offense

caused

has

already

threatened

the

friendship

once

if

you

cover

the

offense

the

relationship

will

survive

and

love

will

continue

but

if

you

go

and

repeat

the

matter

it

will

sever

even

a

close

relationship

the

expression

repeat

the

matter

is

wonderfully

ambiguous

it's

like the

similar

Greek

expression

which

means

double

tongue

or

to

speak

twice

it

means

to

repeat

something

that

shouldn't

be

repeated

whether

it's

betraying

someone's

confidence

and

revealing

a

secret

or

berating

someone

by

harping

on that

person

over

and

over

again

about

something

that

person

did

wrong

when

you

repeatedly

remind

your

friend

of

how

he

offended

you

when

you

retell

something

that

they

have

confided

in

you

or

the

way

they

have

offended

you

to

others

you

are

jeopardizing

your

friendship

if

all

of

us

keep

this

proverb

in

mind

we

can

greatly

strengthen

our

community

because

offense

is

not

unusual

if

you

live

in

close

relationship

with

anyone

whether

it's

your

housemates

other

church

members

or

your

family

members

you're

going

to

cause

offense

and

you're

going

to

be

offended

but

what

will

you