Opening Prayer
Speak, Lord, in the stillness, speak your word to me; hushed my heart to listen in expectancy.
Read PROVERBS 1:20–33
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Wisdom’s Rebuke
20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
she raises her voice in the public square;
21 on top of the wall[a] she cries out,
at the city gate she makes her speech:
22 “How long will you who are simple love your simple ways?
How long will mockers delight in mockery
and fools hate knowledge?
23 Repent at my rebuke!
Then I will pour out my thoughts to you,
I will make known to you my teachings.
24 But since you refuse to listen when I call
and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,
25 since you disregard all my advice
and do not accept my rebuke,
26 I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you;
I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer;
they will look for me but will not find me,
29 since they hated knowledge
and did not choose to fear the Lord.
30 Since they would not accept my advice
and spurned my rebuke,
31 they will eat the fruit of their ways
and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.
32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them,
and the complacency of fools will destroy them;
33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety
and be at ease, without fear of harm.”
Footnotes
- Proverbs 1:21 Septuagint; Hebrew / at noisy street corners
Reflect
How would you distinguish between hearing and listening?
In the days when the BBC was entirely a radio broadcaster, at its most basic level, it referred to the listeners of radio. However, it also promoted a kind of approach, a posture of listening, that appealed to an audience who thought of themselves as open to learning new things. I am interested in the idea of a truly listening audience and in the posture of listening as one to which we might aspire.
Listening seems to be at the very heart of the wisdom that Proverbs is seeking to inculcate. ‘Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square; at noisy street corners she cries out’ (vv. 20, 21a). Here, Wisdom is personified as a woman of high standing. The question is, will anyone listen? Will anyone notice her voice, give her the time of day, and pay attention to her?
We might reply that this is all too easy for the imagined audience of a personified Wisdom, but wisdom does not really cry out in the street. Her doing so here is just a literary device to help us think about the wise and the foolish. Yet, I think a little more is intended. The passage suggests that true wisdom is not esoteric. It is not reserved for a special group with a secret code or special knowledge. It can be found in ordinary, everyday, public places, and is available to all at the price of opening our ears and paying attention: ‘whoever listens to me’, says Wisdom, ‘will live’ (v. 33).
Apply
Is there someone you are not really listening to? Take some time to listen deeply to them; it might advance your relationship and spread a little wisdom in the process.
Closing prayer
Forgive me, Father, when I am too busy, too distracted, or even too willful to listen to you. Give me a heart that is open to hearing all that you say to me.
Last Updated on January 2, 2025 by kingstar
