Proverbs 1:1, A Great Preacher Who Failed to Practice
January 5, Proverbs 1:1
1 Kings 4:29-34; 11:1-13 “He spoke three thousand proverbs.”
A Great Preacher Who Failed to Practice
The king of Jerusalem, we might think from what follows, was hardly qualified to be the teacher of morality to mankind. Yet, in the Providence of God, does it not make what he taught all the more remarkable, and at the same time provides the most fearful warning to all who read this book. Remember, a greater than Solomon is here, for Christ speaks to us by His Word and Spirit.
- His Fame: William Arnot put it biblically when he said, “Every writer was chosen of God as well as every word.” Of this we may be sure. Solomon could not have written the Twenty-Third Psalm, but neither could David or any of the prophets have written the Proverbs or the Preacher.
“The heights of human prosperity he had reached; the paths of human learning he had trodden further than any of his day; the pleasures of wealth, and power, and pomp he had tasted in all their variety. No spring of earthly delight could be named, of whose water he had not deeply drunk. This is the man whom God has chosen as the schoolmaster to teach us the vanity of the world when it is made the portion of a soul, and He hath done all things well. The man who has drained the cup of pleasure can best tell the taste of its dregs” (Arnot).
- His Shame: Herbert Lockyer referred to Solomon as “the Man Who Was Full Yet Failed.” Campbell-Morgan said, “I do not know of a more disastrous failure in all the pages of the Old Testament than that of Solomon.” How magnificent his beginning! How miserable his end! Alexander Whyte summed up Solomon’s shame.
“The shipwreck of Solomon is surely the most terribly tragedy in all the world, for if ever there was a shining type of Christ in the OT it was Solomon,… but everyday sensuality made him in the end a castaway. Solomon’s early life gave every indication of great promise. The bulk of his proverbs likely come from this period. His despair of life without God in Ecclesiastes [The Preacher], may be from his later years proving the truth of his own proverb (4:23).”
His start was brilliant, but his end was blight, because he wandered into forbidden-paths. Alas, he failed to practice what he preached. Profoundly Wise (1 Kings 4:10); yet he heeded neither the warnings of God (1 Kings 9:7, 11:11), nor of conscience. He became more concerned for his own glory than God’s, or his people’s welfare. He became extremely foolish (1 Kings 11:1, 6, 9). Sensuality, pride, and wealth all brought about Solomon’s own tragic downfall.
Thought: “Not a line of Solomon’s writings excuses Solomon’s sins” (Arnot).
Prayer: Lord, keep my walk right with Thee in all things.