The Bible’s book of Proverbs is often said to represent a collection of “human wisdom” and is frequently regarded as a book of practical rather than spiritual insights expressed in short, catchy sayings. Yet this viewpoint vastly underestimates the book.
The value of Proverbs can be seen in the degree to which Jesus and the apostles quote and echo this remarkable book – some thirty-five times. Jesus not only quoted the book directly, but it appears to have connections to even some of his most profound teaching.
At times Jesus built his teaching directly around Proverbs – as we find in Luke 14:7–11 where, at the dinner in the Pharisee’s house, he reminded those present of Proverbs 25:6–7 which shows it is better to take the lower places of honor, and then to be invited to the head of the table. We even find important examples of Jesus’ use of Proverbs in one of the most spiritual of his teachings – the Sermon on the Mount.
The Proverbs on the Mount
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus quotes from or alludes to Proverbs numerous times. For example, we can see the reflection of the proverb “… those who seek me find me” (Proverbs 8:17) in his words “seek and you will find” and “…the one who seeks finds” (Matthew 7:7–8). But the connections are more than incidental. When we look at many of the Beatitudes themselves, we find a remarkable inverse similarity to what Proverbs 6 tells us about the seven things God hates:
| What God Hates – Proverbs 6:16-19 | The Beatitudes – Matthew 5:3-12 |
| A proud look | The meek |
| A lying tongue | Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness |
| Hands that shed innocent blood | Those who mourn |
| A heart that devises wicked schemes | The pure in heart |
| Feet that are quick to rush into evil | The poor in spirit |
| A false witness | The merciful |
| A person who stirs up conflict | The peacemakers |
This comparison does not include the final, eighth, beatitude “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness …” (vs. 10) because only the first seven beatitudes, like the seven evils mentioned in Proverbs 6, are actual characteristics of the person. And although the Beatitudes cover many of the same ideas found in Proverbs 6:16-19 in a positive manner, we should remember that it was often typical of Jesus’ teaching to recast “negatively” worded concepts in a positive manner (Matthew 22:35–40, etc.). We should also not forget that Jesus compared himself to Solomon and stressed that his own God-given wisdom was greater than that of the ancient king (Matthew 12:42).
Wisdom certainly figures frequently in Jesus’ mountainside sermon, and he ends it by telling his hearers that: “… everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man …” (Matthew 7:24). In the minds of Jesus’ listeners, such a “wise man” would have been no different from the individual held up as an example of right and godly living throughout the book of Proverbs.
This comparison is not to lower the Sermon on the Mount to the level of “human wisdom” or to elevate Proverbs to the level of Jesus’ highest teaching. It simply stresses that Proverbs contains ideas that were clearly part of the scriptural background and thinking of Jesus – ideas that are certainly worthy of our attention and that are often deeper than we may realize.
* For much more information on the book of Proverbs, download our free e-book – Spotlight on the Proverbs – here.
