The fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge and wisdom. We must acknowledge that we creatures lack the knowledge and wisdom of the Creator. Thus, it only makes sense to follow the Creator of life’s instructions for life. We are to trust in the LORD entirely and exclusively, not in our feeble understanding. In everything we do, we are to submit to Him, and He will make our paths straight (morally). Let us not rely on our own moral compass and ethical judgments, for it is the LORD who is the ultimate Judge. First shared 6.5.19

1. TRUST IN THE LORD
WITH ALLYOUR HEART
PROVERBS 1:7, 3:5-6, 21:2 BIBLE STUDY | 6.5.19 | ALPHA BAPTIST CHURCH
DANNY SCOTTON JR

2. WOULDYOU SIT IN ON THESE? /
HASTHIS EVER HAPPENEDTOYOU?

3. PROVERBS OVERVIEW
THE BIBLE PROJECT:

4. THE FEAR OF THE LORD:
THE FOUNDATION
• 1The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: | 2 for gaining wisdom and
instruction; | for understanding words of insight; | 3 for receiving instruction in
prudent behavior, | doing what is right and just and fair; | 4 for giving prudence to
those who are simple, d | knowledge and discretion to the young— | 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. | 7 The
fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, | but fools despise wisdom
and instruction. (Pr 1:7, NIV)
• 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, | and knowledge of
the Holy One is understanding. (Pr 9:10, NIV cf. Job 28:28; Ps 111:10; Longman,
101). Brackets Proverbs 1 – 9 (Wilson, 61)

5. FEAR OFTHE LORD:
THE FOUNDATION
• Pr 1:7 is the motto of the Book of Proverbs (Kidner, 56;Wilson, 61; Murphy, 18; Longman, 100)
• The first principle (Kidner, 56;Waltke, 180; Longman, 101), the starting point (Wilson, 61), foundation
(Wilson, 61;Waltke, 180; Longman, 101). If one doesn’t have a proper attitude and relationship to the
LORD, one doesn’t really know nothin’ – one misses the big picture! (cf. Longman, 100-01)
• Fear = worshipping submission (Kidner, 56), giving God the respect He deserves (Wilson, 61),
acknowledge one’s subservience and dependence on God – the Creator and Sustainer of all things
(Longman, 101)
• Here, fear does not mean to be terrified (Wilson, 61), but a reverence and awe that leads to
obedience (Goldingay, 587)
• Knowledge entails relationship and is “inseparable from character” (Kidner, 56)

6. WHY FEAR THE LORD?
• 39 When all the people
saw this, they fell
prostrate and cried,
“The LORD—he is
God! The LORD—he
is God!” (1 Ki 18:39,
NIV)
• Our All-Powerful,All-
Knowing, Ever-Present
Creator deserves it!

7. THE CHOICE ISYOURS
• Fools – not merely unintelligent people, but those who stubbornly go their own ways
(Waltke, 181; Goldingay, 586-7) & ignore God’s path of wisdom (Wilson, 61; Murphy, 474)
• Wisdom and instruction pertain to “skill in living” and “the shaping of character” (Wilson,
61).Wisdom is practical (Murphy, 18)
• Fundamental choice in Proverbs: the way of the wise (righteous, etc.) vs. the way of the
fool (wicked, etc.) (Wilson, 62; Garrett, 68; Schwab, 474; Murphy, 18)
• If you are wise and teachable, keep reading, if you are foolish and set in your ways, you
might as well stop! (Schwab, 474)
• Regardless of how much secular knowledge one has, the most important thing to know is
the fear of the LORD

8. PROVERBS 3:5-6
• Very popular passage
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.

9. TRUST INTHE LORD
• Heb. Trust (‫ח‬ ַ‫ט‬ ָ‫בּ‬ | bāṭaḥ) may have originally meant “lying helplessly face downwards” (Kidner, 61)
• 9Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust (bāṭaḥ) in you, even at my mother’s breast.
(Ps 22:9, NIV cf. Kidner, 61)
• The LORD =YHWH, the name of the God (Wilson, 82) – not some impersonal force (Waltke, 243)
• 13 Moses said to God,“Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them,‘The God of your fathers has sent
me to you,’ and they ask me,‘What is his name?’Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses,“I
AM WHO I AM.This is what you are to say to the Israelites:‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also
said to Moses,“Say to the Israelites,‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God
of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ “This is my name forever, | the name you shall call me
| from generation to generation. (Ex 3:13-15, NIV)

10. TRUST INTHE LORD
(NOT ANYTHING ELSE)
• Trust can be misplaced (TWOT, 101).What we think is trustworthy is often
deceptive (Waltke, 243).
• 28Those who trust in their riches will fall, | but the righteous will thrive like a green
leaf. (Pr 11:28, NIV cf.Waltke, 243;TWOT, 101; NIDOTTE, 645-46)
• 10The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; | the righteous run to it and are safe.
11The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; | they imagine it a wall too high to
scale. (Pr 18:10-11, NIV cf.Waltke, 243)
• People can also trust in extortion (Ps 62:10), oppression (Is 30:12), beauty (Ezek
16:15), even their own righteousness (Ezek 33:12) (Waltke, 243); powerful people (Ps
146:3), fortified cities (Dt 28:52; Jer 5:17; NIDOTTE, 645-46)

11. TRUST INTHE LORD
(NOT SELF OR ANYTHING ELSE)
• 5 This is what the LORD says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, | who draws strength from
mere flesh | and whose heart turns away from the LORD. | 6 That person will be like a bush in the
wastelands; | they will not see prosperity when it comes. | They will dwell in the parched places of the
desert, | in a salt land where no one lives. (Jer 17:5-6)
• 7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, | whose confidence is in him. | 8 They will be like
a tree planted by the water | that sends out its roots by the stream. | It does not fear when heat
comes; | its leaves are always green. | It has no worries in a year of drought | and never fails to bear
fruit” (Jer 17:7-8 cf. NIDOTTE, 645-46)
• All good things should be used in service to the LORD, but nothing should serve as a substitute for
the LORD (NIDOTTE, 645-46)
• The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jer 17:9, NIV)

12. TRUST INTHE LORD
(NOT IN SELF)
• Trusting in the LORD: trusting in God’s promises and
especially “renouncing confidence in oneself”
(Waltke, 243)
• 26 Those who trust in themselves are fools, | but
those who walk in wisdom are kept safe. (Pr 28:26, NIV
cf. Ps 52:7; Jer 9:23-24;Waltke, 243; cf. Murphy, 23;
Longman, 133)
• 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; | fear the LORD
and shun evil.(Pr 3:7, NIV cf.Waltke, 243)

13. WITH ALLYOUR HEART
• 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your strength. (Dt. 6:5, NIV cf. Schwab, 485; cf. Mt 22:37-40; Mk 12:29-30).
• “An entire commitment entails an exclusive commitment” (Waltke, 244)
• Can someone be wholeheartedly committed to multiple people?
• Your total personality – especially mind and will (Garrett, 80)
• Wholehearted trust in God rather than reliance on self (Wilson, 81)
• Pursue God’s agenda, not our own (Schwab, 485)

14. WITH ALLYOUR HEART
(AT ALL TIMES)
• If your foundation is built on the fear of the LORD, it is only natural to depend on the LORD
(Wilson, 81)
• Even when times are rough (Waltke, 243).
• 16 Better a little with the fear of the LORD | than great wealth with turmoil. (Pr 15:16, NIV)
• 17 Better a small serving of vegetables with love | than a fattened calf with hatred. (Pr 15:17, NIV)
• 8 Better a little with righteousness | than much gain with injustice. (Pr 16:8, NIV)
• 19 Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed | than to share plunder with the proud. (Pr
16:19, NIV)
• It can be tempting to do our own thing when things don’t go our way, but we must trust in the
LORD at all times – not just when things are working out for us

15. CANYOU FEEL IT?
• Ever seen something that made you sick to your stomach?
• Ever heard about something that was truly gut-wrenching?
• Ever had a crush on someone who gave you butterflies in your belly?
• It seems that we feel some of our most intense emotional reactions in
our guts.We have gut feelings
• When it comes to describing the seat of one’s inner emotions, this is the
metaphor that the biblical authors typically used – the bowels (Ryken,
425)

16. FOR WHAT DID KING SOLOMON ASK?
• 8Your 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 [lēb]to govern your people and
to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of
yours?” (1 Ki 3:8-9, NIV cf.TWOT, 467)
• Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern
between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?” (1 Ki, 3:9, NRSV cf. ESV,
JPS 1985)
• HCSB: obedient heart, NASB95 understanding heart (cf. KJV, NLT, JPS 1917)
• Biblically speaking, your heart refers to your emotions, desires, and thoughts. In Scripture,
it is the richest metaphor used to describe the totality of one’s inner self (TWOT, 466;
Ryken, 368)

17. LEAN NOT ONYOUR
OWN UNDERSTANDING
• Lean = “support yourself… rely” (Kidner, 61) like leaning on a staff (Ezk 29:7), a spear (2 Sam 1:6) (TWOT, 945) or
a crutch (Waltke, 24). Reminder for when our personal instincts points in a different direction than God’s
instructions (Wilson, 81)
• Foolish to rely on our limited insight rather than the wisdom of our omniscient God (Waltke, 244).We
creatures have to acknowledge our own lack of resources, etc. and rely on that of our Creator (Longman, 133).
• 12 Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? | There is more hope for a fool than for them (Pr 26:12, NIV cf.
Waltke, 244; Murphy, 23; Longman, 133)
• The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge (Pr 1:7), wisdom (Pr 9:10). Secular searches miss this
(Garrett, 80)
• All ethical beliefs and decisions are to be submitted to the LORD (Garrett, 81)
• “One’s private vision of right and wrong must be submitted to God” (Garrett, 81)

18. IN ALLYOURWAYS, KNOW HIM
• Way = how one conducts oneself
• Know means more than “acknowledge” (Kidner, 61)
• Knowing God entails fellowship with God (Kidner, 61;Waltke, 244), and obeying His instruction
(Wilson, 82;Waltke, 244)
• 2 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. | 6 For
the LORD gives wisdom; | from his mouth come knowledge and understanding (Pr 2:1-6, NIV cf.
Waltke, 244)

19. KNOW THE LORD
• 31 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD,“when I will make a new
covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. 32 It will not
be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a
husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “This is the covenant I will make with
the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in
their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my
people. 34 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another,
‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to
the greatest,” declares the LORD.“For I will forgive their wickedness and will
remember their sins no more.” (Jer 31:31-34, NIV cf.Waltke, 244)

20. AND HE WILL
MAKEYOUR PATHS STRAIGHT
• More than guidance (cf. Isa 45:13, Is 40:3; Kidner, 61)
• Not necessarily smooth sailing in life; but straight morally (Wilson, 82)
• Right, upright, honest conduct that does not go out of bounds (cf. Pr 2:13;Waltke,
245) (i.e., transgress)

21. OURWAYS ARE WEIGHED
BY THE LORD
• All a person’s ways are right in their eyes, but the LORD weighs hearts (Proverbs, 21:2,AT)
• “Weighs hearts” imagery is likely from ancient Egyptian theology: they thought when you died,
your heart was balanced on a scale opposite a feather that symbolizedTruth.
• During this final judgment – or final exam – your heart had to answer questions. If you answered
correctly, the heart did not outweigh the feather, and it avoided being eaten by a crocodile
demon (Matthews, et. al., Pr 21:2)
• Weigh = evaluate, judge (Wilson, 235). Regardless of what people think, God is the final judge
(Longman, 390)
• People can rationalize and justify all their motives, desires and actions (Waltke, 168).We can
even “fool” ourselves into thinking what is wrong is actually right! (Garrett, 179; Murphy, 104)
• Secular Doctrine: follow your heart

22. AMERICANS FOLLOW THEIR
HEARTS
• A 2015 poll conducted by the Barna Group suggests that 57% of American adults believe that
“knowing what is right or wrong is a matter of personal experience.”
• Moreover, 74% of Millenials – those born between ‘84 and 2002 – agree or strongly agree with
the statement:“whatever is right for your life or works best for you is the only truth you can
know.”
• The study also suggests that only 35% of American adults believe that moral truth is absolute.
• 51% of Millenials believe that moral truth is relative – it can vary from person to person, culture
to culture, etc. Some people like vanilla, some people like chocolate

23. “ME” MORALITY
• The Barna poll also suggests that the majority of American adults somewhat or completely agree
with the following statements:
• “The highest goal of life is to enjoy it as much as possible” (84%).
• “To be fulfilled in life, you should pursue the things you desire most” (86%).
• And,“the best way to find yourself is by looking within yourself” (91%).
• The poll suggests that a majority of practicing Christians agree with these statements, as well!
• It can be tempting to baptize our own desires and say “God told me to ____”
• But we must trust in the LORD with all our heart… he will make our paths straight

24. CONCLUSION
• The fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge and wisdom
• We must acknowledge that we creatures lack the knowledge and wisdom of
the Creator
• It only makes sense to follow the Creator of life’s instructions for life
• We are to trust in the LORD entirely and exclusively, not in our feeble
understanding
• In everything we do, we are to submit to Him, and He will make our paths
straight (morally)
• We cannot rely on our own moral compass and ethical judgments, it is the
LORD who is the ultimate judge

25. BIBLIOGRAPHY
• Garrett, Duane A. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Vol. 14.The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993.
• Goldingay, John E.“Proverbs.” In New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, edited by D.A. Carson, R.T. France, J.A. Motyer, and G. J.Wenham, 4th ed., 584–608.
Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994.
• Harris, R. Laird, Gleason L.Archer Jr., and Bruce K.Waltke, eds. TheologicalWordbook of the OldTestament. Chicago: Moody Press, 1999.
• Matthews,Victor Harold, MarkW. Chavalas, and John H.Walton. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: OldTestament. Electronic ed. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity
Press, 2000.
• Murphy, Roland E., and O. Carm.“Proverbs.” In Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, edited byW.Ward Gasque, Robert L. Hubbard Jr., and Robert K. Johnston.
Understanding the Bible Commentary Series. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2012.
• Kidner, Derek. Proverbs:An Introduction and Commentary. Vol. 17.Tyndale OldTestament Commentaries. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1964.
• Longman,Tremper, III. Baker Commentary on the OldTestament: Proverbs. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2006.
• Schwab, George M.“The Book of Proverbs.” In Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 7:The Book of Psalms,The Book of Proverbs. Carol Stream, IL:Tyndale House
Publishers, 2009.
• VanGemeren,Willem, ed. New International Dictionary of OldTestamentTheology & Exegesis. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1997.
• Waltke, Bruce K. The Book of Proverbs, Chapters 1–15. The New International Commentary on the OldTestament. Grand Rapids, MI:Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
Co., 2004.
• Wilson, Lindsay. Proverbs:An Introduction and Commentary.Edited by David G. Firth.Vol. 17.Tyndale OldTestament Commentaries. London: Inter-Varsity Press, 2017.