[ 1 minutes to read ]

To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.
– Proverbs 1:6

[V]erse 6 comes back to the purpose of the book of Proverbs, which is to increase our wisdom or our ability to understand. Proverbs, words of the wise, and dark sayings are such that require interpretation. Dark sayings refers to riddles or puzzles. They require thought and study. The richness of their meaning is not always immediately obvious. This is a form of teaching that is more difficult to grasp than a simple step-by-step instruction.

Solomon gives us an example of the kind of interpretive wisdom he endeavors to teach us in Proverbs 24:30-34. He went by a field and was able to study and think and learn wisdom from what he saw. This example shows us that wisdom is equipment for life. Not everything comes to us in the form of step-by-step instructions. We need wisdom to be able to learn and interpret what we see around us all the time.

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