Proverbs 2:1-5(KJV): "My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee.

2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; 3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; 4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; 5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God."

Thought for the Day

Verses 1-3 If we desire to understand the fear of the Lord, and discover a little of what He knows, we must do certain things; the most important of which is to receive Gods words and act on them, by making Bible study an important part of our lives. As we study His Word and ask Him for understanding, it will come alive to us. Often while I am reading Scripture, the words suddenly seem to leap off the page and into my heart. Other times, I read a portion repeatedly without understanding, and ask the Lord to show me what it means. In this way, I am lifting up my voice for understanding. Later, while reading that same passage, I suddenly understand it. Often the Holy Spirit brings to mind another verse that sheds light on it. Whenever God grants me understanding, I find that just knowing His Word is not enough; I must also obey it. Verses 4-5 If we seek knowledge from God as if searching for silver or hidden treasures, we will find it. Searching for treasure requires one to:

Inquire where the treasure might be found

Find a map to help in the search

Gather tools for digging

Find the right people to help in the search

Dig!

I think we can see the spiritual application. We must realize that the Bible cannot be read as a common novel. It is a holy book granted to mankind, inspired by the Holy Spirit. It cannot be read with simply our natural eyes, nor studied with intellect alone. We must bring our hearts to God and ask Him to enlighten us; to give us spiritual ears to hear what He is saying. If we earnestly seek the Books treasures in this way, we shall indeed find truth and gems of knowledge, like un-mined gold within its pages.

Proverbs 2:6-7(KJV): "For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. 7 He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

Verse 6 If we wish to be wise, we must read the Bible, which records the things that God has spoken. As we read His Word, we will receive knowledge and understanding from Him regarding any issue that we desire to know about. When dealing with a problem we should do two things immediately: seek God in prayer, and search what the Bible says about it. After prayer, the Holy Spirit may speak to our heart concerning what we should do. He may bring a person to mind that will have the answer, or we may recall something that sheds light on our question. However, if we do not hear a direct answer from God in our spirits, many times we will find the answer by studying what the Bible says about it. A concordance or search engine on the Internet, such as the one found at Bible.com, can assist in finding verses on the topic in question. Verse 7 God lays up sound wisdom for us. This means it is available, but we must go and get it and not leave it in its storehouse. We are responsible for gaining wisdom by searching the Bible for it. This verse also mentions that the Lord is a buckler to those who walk uprightly. The Hebrew word for buckler means shield.[1] God promises to protect us from harm when we obey Him and walk in His ways. This is only one of the many rewards that come from finding and walking in Gods wisdom. Proverbs 2:8(KJV): "He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints." When we look at this scripture, we find that God keeps the paths (plural) of judgment. This reveals that there are two paths of judgment and that judgment is two-fold: The Judgment of the Wicked: The wicked will be punished for their deeds; if not in this life, then certainly in hell. Those who refuse to accept Christ as Savior will pay the penalty for their sins. They will reap what they have sown. But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the LORD God (Ezekiel11:21). Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting (Galatians 6:7-8). We shall all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ to be judged (2 Corinthians5:10). The Judgment of the Righteous: The righteous will be rewarded for their faithfulness. Whoso despiseth the word shall be destroyed: but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded (Proverbs13:13). But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him (Hebrews 11:6). We must all one day stand before the judgment seat of Christ.Americas system of justice provides a picture of Gods judgment. Defendants are brought to court to stand trial. Some are convicted of crimes and sentenced to death or imprisonment for their deeds. Others go to court to contest injustices, and are awarded settlements

of money. Mistakes are often made in our system of justice, but we can trust God to judge all things fairly and righteously. If we have been wrongly judged or treated unfairly, God will eventually prove our innocence and properly reward us. Our greatest reward is living with Jesus eternally in heaven. Todays verse also says that God preserves the way of the righteous, meaning that He protects and cares for His own. He will make a way out of our problems for us if there is no way out in the natural. The Lord delights in answering our prayers, even if a miracle is needed to do so. Remember: miracles are Gods specialty! Proverbs 2:9(KJV): "Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path." Thought for the Day
To understand verse 9, we must look back to Proverbs 2:1: My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee Todays verse rests upon this condition. If we receive and treasure Gods words, then we can understand righteousness, judgment, and equity and know the right path in which to walk. Let us consider the words righteousness, judgment, and equity: The Biblical definition of righteousness is to be in right standing with God. There is only one way for us to be in right standing with Godwe must accept Jesus as our Savior, and repent of our sins and receive Gods pardon for them through what Jesus did on the cross. The moment we yield our lives to Christ, we become righteous, we come into right standing with God. In Gods sight, we are as pure as His own Son, Jesus. This is a gift of God, and has nothing to do with what we have or have not done. The only requirement to maintain this righteousness is staying in right relationship with Christ by faith. We are not saved by works, but by grace. Good works are the fruit of salvation, but do not attain eternal life for us. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7 NIV). Judgment, simply put, is a legal decree or sentence given by a judge. One day, God will judge every man by his deeds. Herein lies the most wonderful truth of Christianity. Anyone who accepts Jesus as Savior is judged to be righteous and will not be sentenced to hell, because the penalty for his sin was paid by Jesus. If we belong to God, we can boldly approach the Father through Jesus and ask for the things we need. We are accepted as righteous and our prayers are heard because of Him (Hebrews4:16). To practice equity means to be fair, straight, or right.[1] When we trust God and obey His commandments, we will reap good from what we sow. However, because there is evil in the world, we will endure injustices. Although we may not always be treated fairly in this life, we can be sure that God will see that we receive fair and just rewards in the world to come.

Proverbs 2:10-15(KJV): "When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; 11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: 12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;

13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; 14 Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked; 15 Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths."
Verses 10-11 Gods Word imparts wisdom, which can deliver us from evil men. When His knowledge is pleasant to us, we receive discretion, which keeps us in many ways; one of which is replacing any desire to associate with wicked people or to speak froward things. Froward means contrary or adverse. Verse 12 If we obey Gods wisdom, even people who speak wrongly of us will be unable to hurt us. We all face the temptation to retaliate when someone speaks against us. Answering ugly words with ugly words destroys many marriages. 1 Peter 3:8-11 advises this when others accuse or rail against us: Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. We must ask the Lord to empower us to obey these instructions. We need His help to be kind to those who are unkind to us and to overcome evil with good. If we do not choose to obey God when tempted to enter into strife, we will become as heartless and evil as those who would persecute us. Verses 13-15 Those who leave the path of Gods love to walk in darkness are blinded to the truth. This causes them to take the next step into evil and delight in their own and others evil ways. Their ways become crooked, and that is why we call such people crooks. By choosing the wrong path, they become lost. We must pray for those who are walking in wrong ways; especially for Christian brothers and sisters who fall into the trap of speaking wrongly against us. We must attempt to walk in peace and kindness regardless of their conduct. They may be guilty, but we will be guilty in a different way, if we retaliate. We must choose to walk in love.

Proverbs 2:16-20(RSV): "You will be saved from the loose woman, from the adventuress with her smooth words, 17 who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; 18 for her house sinks down to death, and her paths to the shades; 19 none who go to her come back nor do they regain the paths of life. 20 So you will walk in the way of good men and keep to the paths of the righteous." Verses 16-17 Yesterdays devotional told us that if we hide Gods Word in our hearts and obey Him, we will not fall into the snare of the enemy. Todays verses warn against the snare of immorality, and they are as applicable today as when first written. Many men have ruined both their reputations and lives by having sexual affairs. This has been demonstrated in recent decades inAmericain the lives of political and religious leaders. Dishonorable role models have left our nation and churches weakened; our young people disillusioned. God will forgive

illicit affairs if one repents, but most people are not as forgiving. They remember them. A loose woman is unfaithful to her husband and forgets her covenant with God. She becomes ensnared with lust, and the devil incites her to flirt with men to lead them astray. Verse 18 This verse describes her house as sinking down to death. This is a picture of sin which carries the death principle (meaning that it releases those things that eventually lead to death). Sin always brings a curse. Our nation today is cursed with many painful and incurable sexually-transmitted diseases. At this writing, there are over 42 million people worldwide, who are living with AIDS/HIV, and this number continues to grow.[1] Many of these are children, born from infected mothers. This illustrates that one persons life of sin does not remain as an island to himself, but will eventually infect others, even the innocent. Verse 19-20 Those who are unfaithful cannot return to the paths of righteousness without Gods help. The warning of Proverbs to men to stay pure is also applicable to women who would be tempted by lustful men. We must pray that our young people and nation return to the Biblical virtues of virginity and chastity before marriage and faithfulness to the marriage vows after wedlock. Fornication, adultery, and other sexual sins divide our homes and destroy the very heart of our nation, as well as the nations of the world. Verse 21 These verses hold a wonderful promise of protection for Gods people. The upright and the perfect will dwell in the land, and Satan cannot drive us from where the Lord places us. What makes a person upright and perfect? The Bible calls us righteous or upright when we have accepted the Lord Jesus as our Savior and walk in His will. Perfect speaks of our becoming like Jesus and our heavenly Father. When we read Matthew 5:48, where Jesus commanded Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect, we may think that there is no way that we can be perfect. The Lord, however, would never tell us to be what we cannot be. Perfect is better rendered as mature. The Lord does not wish us to remain immature, walking in the flesh (our old, unregenerate nature) and doing what is unbecoming to His followers. He desires that we grow up into Christ, standing in His righteousness and not our own. Verse 22 This verse tells us that the wicked will be cut off (removed) from the earthnot the righteous. Psalm 24:1 says, The earth is the LORDs, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Eventually only God and His people will inhabit the earth; the devils followers will be removed. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear (Matthew13:41-43). Jesus prayed, Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven. The Lord wishes to demonstrate His will and His Kingdom on this earth to all people

through the lives of each of His children. He desires our light to shine in this dark world.