It is never too late to turn to the call of truth and wisdom. Proverbs 6 presents us with competing voices—competing “truths.” This beautiful chapter reminds us that even if we get caught up in the world’s lies, we can still find freedom by trusting and submitting ourselves to God’s revealed truth.
With the depth of wisdom presented in this chapter, there are multiple lessons and themes to draw out. We can see the structure of the chapter from a variety of perspectives, holding it up like a jewel and seeing it sparkle from different angles. (Scroll to the footnote to see two commentaries’ guides for the structure of Proverbs 6.)
One way to view Proverbs 6 is as a structure of competing voices.
This organization continues the type of back-and-forth calls we see in other chapters, emphasizing the unity of the first 10 chapters as an introduction of Proverbs.
We see this structure of competing voices very clearly even from Proverbs chapter 1. In chapter 1, the father is asking the son to listen to the instruction of both his mother and father. The father directly pits his advice against the call of peers who want the son to join them in mischief and even violence. Then, the chapter ends with the voice of wisdom, also calling out to people and issuing deep warnings against refusing to listen.
When we view chapter 6 through this same kind of lens, it helps us to see an overarching theme: it is never too late to turn back and submit yourself to wisdom. Hear its call and be delivered.
The voice of a spiritual mentor is powerful.
So many sections in Proverbs begin the same way: “My son.” The best forms of teaching are woven into a relationship. As a parent myself, and as a teacher for nearly 20 years, I’m convinced that teaching is, in fact, primarily about a relationship. If deeper learning were just about information, then we would all just read books for our education. But the best kind of learning—the kind people are profoundly influenced by—involves a teacher who helps a student learn information and skills while patterning the kind of behavior and character that the student should imitate.
Relationships are messy, and no teacher is perfect, but we ought to be students who are looking for people in our lives whom we can learn from and trust to teach us and show us wisdom. We shouldn’t give up on the communal nature of learning wisdom when we experience bad teachers. There are bad teachers, but God also will provide us with good ones. We can look for spiritual parents if we personally don’t have parents who are trustworthy teachers of the truth. In the best case scenario, we will connect with multiple godly older people who can pattern truth to us.
We also ought to be teachers to the next generation; and as such we need to recognize that it is not just about the words we share with them. It is about patterning wisdom and walking alongside them in patience and love.
Together, teachers and students should both look to the perfect pattern of wisdom, the embodiment of truth and life: Jesus Christ. His life and His words show us how we can live and be reconciled to God.
In Proverbs 6, verses 1 to 5 show us one particular piece of advice about finances and debt, and this advice fits a larger theme—it is not too late to find deliverance. You may have entangled yourself in a foolish debt, but you can and should humbly and diligently find a way to free yourself. This advice is both a warning against such foolish agreements and an optimistic urging to find relief.
Nature also proclaims truth to all.
The next section of the chapter is ultra-famous: “Go to the ant, you sluggard!” Most of us are familiar with this lesson. But have we considered how very positive this message is?
Although still couched in instructions of a parent to a child, the real message is coming from nature. And nature is teaching a sluggard, someone who has already fallen into the trap of laziness and embraced these habits.
Sometimes we can become discouraged when our children, or other people in our lives, refuse to listen to godly counsel. Let’s recognize that God has other methods of teaching them, even after they have started down the wrong path. If ants can teach a sluggard, what can other parts of nature do? We know that nature is actively proclaiming truth to all who will stop and listen.
1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
Psalm 19:1–3
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Nature’s message in Proverbs 6 is one of hope—it is not too late. You may have fallen into habits of laziness to an extent that you can be labelled a sluggard, but you can still “be wise” (v. 6) if you are willing to humbly listen and submit to God’s wisdom.
However, competing voices want to deceive, scheme, flatter, and seduce
The voices of the father and of nature are followed by two other voices that are competing with the truth: voices of dishonest schemers and flattering seducers. These people will lie to us, and so the pleasure or plans they offer will not immediately appear as devastating as they are.
Foolish people will not accurately draw the lines between the actions and the consequences, so Proverbs spells it out very clearly: following these voices will lead to devastating brokenness (v. 15) and shameful destruction (v. 32-33).
In the midst of these deceptive voices, God makes His voice clear.
Right between the descriptions of the violent, worthless liar and the flattering seductress, there is a short and very poetic list. The numbered list starts with a seemingly odd “6…, no 7,” which is actually a signal in Hebrew poetry used to draw our attention and to indicate that the list is specific but not exhaustive. Most of the items on the list parallel aspects of the descriptions of the wicked man and the seductress.
In this list of 7 things that God hates, God Himself reveals that these behaviors are despicable, even when they display a veneer of respectability. God is the measure of all things, the right and just Judge. While norms may be redefined around us, this stark list offers clarity.
In the midst of dire warnings, hope remains.
Again, in the middle of these two voices trying to draw people away from the truth, we have a reminder that God’s truth remains.
20 My son, keep your father’s commandment,
Proverbs 6:20–23
and forsake not your mother’s teaching.
21 Bind them on your heart always;
tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk, they will lead you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
and when you awake, they will talk with you.
23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life
We may have children who have wandered away from the truth. We may have wandered from the truth. But the truth remains. It isn’t extinguished. It is still a guide, a protector, a counselor, and a light to show the way.
We can plead with our children and others we are mentoring not to forsake the truth. We instruct them—and ourselves!—to memorize the truth and cling to it when our way becomes unclear. But even when people forsake the truth, its power has not been extinguished.
It is not too late for anyone to turn to the truth and find rescue. God is a Father who stands, holding out His arms to prodigal children who humbly ask to be reconciled to Him. Through Jesus Christ, He has already prepared the way to make this possible. We can trust and turn to Him.
What voice is holding the microphone right now in your life?
This article is part of a series through the book of Proverbs. You can read more meditations on Proverbs on other pages of this site. Also, please consider joining the Proverbs Reading Challenge!
Footnote:
Here are two fantastic commentaries on Proverbs and how they summarize the chapter.
Matthew Henry’s Commentary on Proverbs 6 gives the following structure of the chapter:
In this chapter we have,
I. A caution against rash suretyship (v. 1–5).
II. A rebuke to slothfulness (v. 6–11).
III. The character and fate of a malicious mischievous man (v. 12–15).
IV. An account of seven things which God hates (v. 16–19).
V. An exhortation to make the word of God familiar to us (v. 20–23).
VI. A repeated warning of the pernicious consequences of the sin of whoredom (v. 24–35).
In Proverbs: An Introduction and Commentary, Derek Kidner entitles this entire chapter “Pitfalls of the Unwary,” dividing it up into the topics Unlimited liability, Sloth, The Mischief-maker, Seven abominations, and Adultery.
Each of these commentaries identifies the key subjects of the chapter, revealing the structure as a kind of reference for different topics.
Suggested Reading:
Derek Kidner has not only provided a running commentary on the whole of Proverbs, but has also included two helpful study aids: a set of subject guides that bring together teaching scattered throughout the book, and a short concordance that helps locate lost sayings (in territory notoriously hard to search) and encourages further subject studies. In short, this volume is a wise person’s guide to wisdom. (Amazon description)
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