So that your trust may be in the LORD, I have taught you today, even you. Proverbs 22:19

The reason we need to heed the call to wisdom is because by living a life according to God's wisdom - we will be led to trust in the Lord in all that we do.  Seeing life from God's perspective will inevitably lead us to a point where we trust His worldview rather than any other one that is put before us.  This is what the father is seeking to teach his son.  It is what the wise man is seeking to teach those who lack wisdom.  They are trying to make it clear that God's ways are infinitely superior to those of man.  They are attempting to show the young and the old that there is a radical difference between the ways of the world and the ways of God. 

Trusting in God means having a confidence in Him.  It means standing firm in the principles we see taught in Scripture - even when many others are turning to worldly principles.  From what we've already seen in this section of verses - this is a far better way to live - one that is pleasant and good.  But ultimately to live this way we will also have to be able to speak this way - even at times defending the way that we live to those who think it is foolish and stupid.  This is why the father has taken the time to call his son to apply his heart to wisdom and knowledge.  It is why he is trying to get his son to think and to reason according to what God says in His Word.  It is why he is so adamant in getting his son to meditate and ponder the truth of God deep in his thoughts.

The man teaching either this son, or the unlearned one in God's wisdom - is teaching in a very concrete direction.  When he tells his son that he has "taught" him each day - the word he uses means not just to impart information.  He is teaching with a purpose.  "Yada" is the Hebrew word he uses - and it means to know something.  The knowledge though is not just information to pass a written test.  It is to know so as to perceive, disciern, and eventually experience something.  Thus this teaching is meant to bring his pupil to a point of experiencing God at work in his life.  One of the things that this type of teaching moves toward is that people would consider what is said.  This means they are doing far more than hearing and doing it.  They are considering what is said - it makes them think and reason.  They begin to perceive that God is at work in the world - and that He has specific wisdom for them which will teach them how to live in this world.  They begin to discern things around them.  They see that things are different - choices lead different directions - actions and attitudes lead to a way of living - a lifestyle.  They see that God wants to meet them in their everyday experiences - that He is interested in ALL that they do. 

God wants to move us from merely practicing a religion or holding religious views - to a life that considers God when they make decisions and live their lives.  He wants us to see ALL of life in His way - which we will learn is the way of Life itself.  He desires for us to see His way in the midst of all our choices - and to see His way as the very best way.  Oh that we would teach our sons - teach those around us such wisdom.  That we would call them to so much more than just a Sunday morning religion.  We need to call them to see and experience God in all of life - all that they do - all that comes their way.  This is the call to wisdom - in effect it is a call to know, love, and experience God in every day.  May we not only heed such a call - but also learn wisdom so that we may call others as well.

All the days of the afflicted are bad, But a cheerful heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15

Your attitude often will make  all the difference in how you experience the events of your life.  For some, their mindset is that if anything bad can happen, it will.  For others, they take everything that comes to them - and somehow make even the worst of things beneficial.  Their mindset is to take the proverbial lemons and life and turn them into lemonade. 

We first read of the pessimist.  "All the days of the afflicted are bad."  This is the person who not only sees the glass as half empty - but who also figures that there are people who are working to make sure that it eventually empties further.  They consider themselves afflicted - CONSTANTLY!  They see themselves as "the afflicted" - which here is the word "aniy."  This word means to be poor, oppressed, miserable, in constant want and need.  It is a sad thing to watch someone like this because like the proverb states - they see every day as a bad day.  These are the constant complainers.  In church we would be tempted to ask them to lead in a word of complaint or criticism - rather than to ask for them to lead in prayer.  They always seem to have a sad story to share - a problem that seems overwhelming - a way that they have been treated horribly - or something they see wrong.  Don't misunderstand, there is a place for these things - and we do not need to squelch people's ability to share in difficult times.  But the "afflicted" here never ceases to have something like this.  To find them content and grateful for their lives - is next to impossible.  They are always ready to be the grand marshall in the bummer parade!

The second half of this proverb contrasts another person.  This is the one who has a "cheerful heart."  Hebrews called this a "good" heart.  It was someone who was happy, who was glad.  They often chose to be happy, glad, delightful, and pleased.  Their choice to be this way was a matter of their own heart.  This is the person who simply chooses to be happy in their lives.  They will look at difficulties and problems as opportunities to grow - or even better ways that God is working to conform them to His image.  They see every situation as a potential wonderful thing God is working in their lives.  They grasp that not eveything in life is going to be pleasant - but they take the same hard knocks that make the afflicted see every day as bad - and turn them into a reason to be thankful, grateful, and filled with joyeous expectation of what God is going to do to glorify Himself in every situation.  They truly do understand that, "all things work together for good to those who love the Lord, and who live according to His purposes." 

The Bible says that these folks - the cheerful ones - have a continual feast.  They tend to be happy no matter what happens to them.  They see God's providential hand in everything that happens to them.  They are thrilled to watch Him do what only He can do - and are willing to wait for Him to act - even if it means a prolonged period of difficulty and trial.  They take whatever God's sovereign hand gives them - and make it into a gourmet feast. 

To be a cheerful, grateful person is far better than to be one of the continually afflicted.  People want to be around the first person - and honestly - struggle with the second.  It is not hard to be around someone who genuinely needs encouragement because they are having a tough time, but when someone is always seeming to have a tough time it becomes hard to know what to say.  What often needs to be said is that the "afflicted" needs to see God as sovereign in all their affairs.  They need to hear that God does work these things out for good - if they will allow Him to conform them to the image of His Son.  They need to hear from the book of James that they are to consider it pure joy when they encounter various trials.  God wants us to be joyful people - not miserable ones.  Paul admonished the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord - and that to say that same thing to them was not a burden to him - but was indeed a protection to them.  Joy is part of the inheritance given to every believer.  This does not mean that we can never have hard times - but it does mean that if we see ourselves as the continually afflicted whose every day is bad - something is wrong with our perspective.  The Lord does not want us living on the scraps of misery - but wants us to enjoy His presence, His perspective, and the continual feast that comes by being in His presence.

 "All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverted in them. "They are all straightforward to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge. Proverbs 8:8-9
 
Ah yes, that sticky doctrine of infallibility of Scripture rises again with a statement made by Wisdom.  God is speaking in this passage as wisdom is personified.  God is calling out to men and women everywhere to listen and to open their hearts to receive the wisdom that God wants to grant to them.  Wisdom is awaiting them at home, in the workplace, in the market, where the two roads diverge in the wood (with thanks to Robert Frost).  But the question should rightly be asked, "Can we trust what Wisdom says to us in all these situations?"

ALL the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness!  Well there is an answer for us.  Wisdom cannot lie to us - cannot mislead us - will not deceive us!  Every utterance - every word from the mouth of God given in wisdom is righteous (that means they are all in a state of being RIGHT!).  What is even better is that we next read, "There is nothing crooked or perverted in them."  Crooked here means to twist something - and it speaks of those who are shrewd and cunning - those who are devious and who wrestle the truth in a direction that is to their liking.  God does not work like this.  Holiness means that God's motives are utterly transparent.  He may speak things in a mystery - but He never speaks things with devious or cunning intent.  What drives Him is His love - and His passion for righteousness and for His own glory.  Perverted here is the Hebrew word "iqqesh" which means something crooked and perverse.  It describes one with a deceitful, perverse, and evil heart.  The person like this perverts morals, social graces, even religious things for underhanded purposes.  Once again - God knows nothing of this kind of mindset or motive.  We read further of His heart in verse 9.

All God's utterances - His Word - are straightforward.  In the vernacular of our day - God shoots straight with us.  The idea behind this word is honesty.  It also has with it the idea of someone who is incapable of being perverted or being partial in their judgment.  Something we all need to grasp is that ultimately God is worthy of all glory - therefore - what He does is ultimately to display His own glory.  What we don't grasp is that God is not being in any way conceited by doing this.  To be conceited, God would have to be gaining or seeking glory that is not rightfully His.  The truth is - all glory is rightfully His - all the time - in every situation - and from every person that has ever lived or ever will live - period!  Therefore God speaks the truth - and He does so with absolute honesty - and with a view to the absolute best at all times. 

Now there is something that would be nice to have.  Someone Who will never be partial to anything but the very best.  Someone Who knows what needs to happen, what needs to be said, what needs to be addressed - and does so every single time with wisdom, with tact, and with razor sharp accuracy.  But we need to note that this ability to see God in this way is for those who "understand."  There is a discernment that takes us beyond fleshly, earthly wisdom that is necessary for men to understand the straightforwardness of God at all times.  You see all the time in liberal circles men and women who don't understand - and who accuse God of the most horrific sins and the most terrible motives.  The fact is that they DON'T udnerstand and are blind the true nature of God.  This understanding comes from the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds.  Without Him and without God's gracious work in us - we will never understand.  Our minds and hearts are perverted and twisted by sin.  It is only when God's grace is manifest to us that we are transformed - and that our sinful tendencies are no longer dominant in our thinking. 

God is offering wisdom to us every day - in a myriad of situations where we need it.  The truly wise man is the one who submits himself to God - and learns to listen at the crossroads as God instructs him in how to live and how to walk.  May we be such men and women - and may we be blessed by the wonderful straightfoward words of God!