Solomon, the wisest human king, wrote most of the book of Proverbs. To whom was this book given? First to his son, and then to any who would read it and apply its truths. God’s purpose for man is first mentioned in Genesis 1:26, “And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” He made man to have dominion over all the earth.
But God’s intentions didn’t stop with man ruling the earth. His ultimate goal for man is to make us “kings and priests unto God” (Rev. 1:6). The Scriptures give us a path to follow which takes us through this life into the next, preparing those who follow that path for the day of rule and perfection. Proverbs 4:18 says, “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”
Wisdom, the key word in Proverbs, is the core of the following simple outline:
1. Wisdom for young men 1:1-9:18
2. Wisdom for all people 10:1-24:34
3. Wisdom for leaders 25:1-31:31
Proverbs is a portrait of a young man starting out in life. His father, who is a king, desires that one day his son will also become a wise king. This book covers at least ten subjects which the son is to master in this school of wisdom.
Two schools advertise and work hard to enroll this young man into their institution of higher learning. They are the school of wisdom and the school for fools. Ten of the subjects offered in the school of wisdom are:
1. A Good Name (10:7; 22:1)
2. Youth (13:24; 19:18; 22:6, 15; 23:13-14)
3. Business affairs (6:6-11; 10:4; 11:1)
4. Marriage (5:15, 18; 11:22, 29; 12:4; 14:1; 19:13; 21:9, 19; 31:10)
5. Morality (5:3-5; 6:24-32; 7:4-27)
6. Wisdom (3:13-18; 8:35)
7. Self-control (16:32; 25:28)
8. Temperance (20:1; 23:29-32)
9. Companions (17:17; 18:24; 25:6)
10. The tongue (15:1, 23, 26; 16:24; 17:27; 18:21; 25:11; 26:17, 20)
However a greater than Solomon has come, the Lord Jesus Christ (Mt.12:42) and He has revealed to us through His Word a higher heavenly position for those who become His sons by receiving Him. (Jn. 1:12). “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6). Our schooling here on earth is the preparation for rulership in the future.
The Holy Spirit teaches us as we study and apply the book of Proverbs how to pass the final exam and what to shun in studying each one of these ten subjects. He wants us to graduate with an “A.U.G.” degree. “Study to show thyself approved unto god, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness” (2 Tim. 2:15-16).