1. SEEKING WISDOM’S WAY
Proverbs 1:1-7
March 2, 2014
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA
Question for the Class?
What is some of the best advice given to you?
Who gave you that advice?
SEEKING WISDOM’S WAY
Proverbs 1:1-7
One Man Who Prayed for Wisdom and Got It
- Solomon becomes King
The 7 Pillars in The House of Wisdom
- The framework for understanding the wisdom of God
Reference
SEEKING WISDOM – FINDING GOD
A Study Guide By
Dr. David Jeremiah
THE BOOK OF PROVERBS
Proverbs 1:1
The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
Mashal [mah SHAWL] – ancient Israelite saying
Book of Proverbs – collection of wise sayings used as a textbook for
Solomon’s royal academy

2. KING SOLOMON
Spiritual Influences that Impacted His Life:
1. Blessed before he was born
2. Blessed upon his birth
3. Pointed out as Israel’s king
4. Prayed for God’s blessing
5. God’s special blessing
6. Prepared for the challenges
SOLOMON
1. Blessed Before He Was Born
1 Chronicles 22:9-10
9 But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest, and I will
give him rest from all his enemies on every side. His name will be Solomon,
and I will grant Israel peace and quiet during his reign. 10 He is the one
who will build a house for my Name. He will be my son, and I will be his
father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’
2. Blessed Upon His Birth
2 Samuel 12: 24-25
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and
made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon.
The Lord loved him; 25 and because the Lord loved him, he sent word
through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.
(Jedidiah means “loved by the Lord”)
3. Pointed Out As Israel’s King
1 Chronicles 29:1a
1a Then King David said to the whole assembly: “My son Solomon, the one
whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced.
1 Chronicles 28:5-7
5 Of all my sons—and the Lord has given me many—he has chosen my
son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel.
6 He said to me: ‘Solomon your son is the one who will build my house and
my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. 7 I
will establish his kingdom forever if he is unswerving in carrying out my
commands and laws, as is being done at this time.’

3. 4. Prayed For God’s Blessing
David’s prayer for Solomon
1 Chronicles 29:19
19 And give my son Solomon the wholehearted devotion to keep your
commands, statutes and decrees and to do everything to build the
palatial structure for which I have provided.”
5. God’s Special Blessing
1 Chronicles 29:25
25 The Lord highly exalted Solomon in the sight of all Israel and bestowed
on him royal splendor such as no king over Israel ever had before.
6. Prepared For The Challenges
1 Chronicles 28:10-12
10 Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the
sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.”
Then David gave his son Solomon the plans for the portico of the temple,
its buildings, its storerooms, its upper parts, its inner rooms and the place of
atonement. 12 He gave him the plans of all that the Spirit had put in his
mind for the courts of the temple of the Lord and all the surrounding
rooms, for the treasuries of the temple of God and for the treasuries for the
dedicated things.
11
1 Kings 3:5-12
5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream,
and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”
Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my
father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in
heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him
a son to sit on his throne this very day.
6
“Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my
father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out
my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a
great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a
discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right
and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”
7
The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 11 So God said to
him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for
10

4. yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for
discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will
give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been
anyone like you, nor will there ever be.
1 Kings 3:5-12
GOD BLESSES KING SOLOMON
1 Kings 4:29-34
29 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of
understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. 30 Solomon’s
wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, and
greater than all the wisdom of Egypt. 31 He was wiser than anyone else,
including Ethan the Ezrahite—wiser than Heman, Kalkol and Darda, the
sons of Mahol. And his fame spread to all the surrounding nations 32 He
spoke three thousand proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and
five. 33 He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop
that grows out of walls. He also spoke about animals and birds, reptiles
and fish. 34 From all nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom,
sent by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom.
1 Kings 4:29-34
WISDOM FROM PROVERBS
What is wisdom?
• “The right use of knowledge” Spurgeon
• “Common sense in an uncommon degree”
• “Pursuing the best ends by the best means”
• “Wisdom is knowledge using its head” Twain
THE BEHAVIOR OF BELIEFS
by Spiros Zodiates
“Wisdom is a synonym of the Word, and it refers to the perfection and
eternity which is to be found only in God the Father, manifested to the
world through His Son, the Lord Jesus, and existing in the world today only
through the Holy Spirit…The wise man is he who has given himself to Jesus
Christ, and who, by the help of the Holy Spirit, keeps his intellect in
submission to the will of God.”
WISDOM
by Dr. David Jeremiah
In Scripture, wisdom always refers to knowledge of the course of action
that will please God and make life what God wants it to be. When God
promises wisdom, He promises a way of life that is superior to the way of

5. the world. He guarantees that we will find “that good and acceptable and
perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2)
How Does Wisdom Come To Us?
1 Corinthians 1:30
30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us
wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.
•
•
Jesus Christ is our wisdom from God.
He (wisdom) dwells in us through the Holy Spirit.
SEVEN PILLARS IN THE HOUSE OF WISDOM
Proverbs 9: 1
1 Wisdom has built her house; she has set up its seven pillars.
•
•
•
Proverbs 1: 1-7 describes the pillars
7 Pillars indicates wisdom is a “large” house
The 7 pillars provide the “framework” or “supporting principles” for
understanding the wisdom of God
THE 7 PILLARS OF WISDOM
Proverbs 1:1-7
1. Wisdom is Development.
2. Wisdom is Discipline.
3. Wisdom is Discernment.
4. Wisdom is Dignity.
5. Wisdom is Discretion.
6. Wisdom is Depth of Understanding.
7. Wisdom is Devotion to God.
7 PILLARS OF WISDOM:
DEVELOPMENT
1. Wisdom is Development.
Proverbs 1:1-2
1
The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2
To know wisdom …
• It is a developed skill or knowledge learned over time.
• This “known wisdom” is a learned skill set.
• Other translations: for attaining, for gaining

6. Proverbs 9:9
9
Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and
they will add to their learning.
Luke 2:52
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
DISCIPLINE
2. Wisdom is Discipline
Proverbs 1:1-2
1
The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2
to know wisdom and instruction; …
• Other translations: discipline
• Translated as “reproof or correction”
• Discipline for true wisdom involves Bible study, memorizing and
prayer.
2. Wisdom is Discipline - Intentional Pursuit
Proverbs 2:1-5
1
My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within
you,
2
turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to
understanding —
3
indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,
4
and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden
treasure,
5
then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge
of God.
DISCERNMENT
3. Wisdom is Discernment
Proverbs 1:2
2
for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of
insight;
• Other translations: to perceive the words of understanding
(KJV)
• Root word from which we get “between”
• Ability to make wise choices and decisions

7. Solomon’s Prayer to God for discernment
1 Kings 3:9
9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to
distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great
people of yours?”
• Wisdom from God is the ability to make proper choices
Paul’s Desire for the Philippians
Philippians 1:9-11
9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in
knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern
what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled
with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory
and praise of God.
DIGNITY
4. Wisdom is Dignity
Proverbs 1:3 NIV
3
for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and
just and fair;
• KJV – To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgment,
and equity
• Learning to behave with propriety and tact
• Wise people reveal their wisdom through their dignified
actions.
Titus 2:2
2 Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled,
and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.
Ecclesiastes 3:1
1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the
heavens:
“to do the right thing at the right time”
DISCRETION
5. Wisdom is Discretion
Proverbs 1:4
4
for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and
discretion to the young—

8. •
•
•
•
The quality of having or showing good judgment
The quality of being discreet
Be careful of what you say and do
Think before you speak
Jesus’ instructions when sending out the 12 disciples
Matthew 10:16
16 “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as
shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
DEPTH OF UNDERSTANDING
6. Wisdom is Depth of Understanding
Proverbs 1:5-6
5
let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning
get guidance—
6
for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of
the wise.
• Listen to the wise counsel of others and learn from them.
• “Learning the ropes”
2 Timothy 2:1-2
1 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the
things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust
to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.
DEVOTION TO GOD
7. Wisdom is Devotion to God
Proverbs 1:7
7
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Knowledge, but fools despise
wisdom and instruction.
Proverbs 9:10
10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
• FEAR OF THE LORD = reverential trust in God
• This FEAR includes commitment to His revealed will (Word).
Fear Of The Lord
Deuteronomy 6:1-2
1 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed
me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to

9. possess, 2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear
the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and
commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.
•
•
•
•
Fearing God is the starting point for godliness.
This fear includes commitment to His revealed will (Word).
Fearing God means that we keep Him and His statues as
the focus and center of our attention.
Matthew Henry: “Where no fear of God is, no good is to
expected.”
WISDOM IS DEVOTION TO GOD
Romans 3:18
18
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
• Paul describes man’s sinful nature as ‘no fear of God’
Psalm 36:1
1 I have a message from God in my heart concerning the sinfulness of the
wicked: There is no fear of God before their eyes.
QUESTION?
Proverbs 9:10
10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of
the Holy One is understanding.
In your view, why is the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom?
NEXT SUNDAY’S LESSON
WHEN WISDOM WAS NOT ENOUGH
– Solomon loses his “fear of the Lord”.
THE FOUR KEYS TO WISDOM
– A Humble Spirit
– A Hungry Soul
– A Hearing Heart
– A Heeding Mind