Wisdom for Fathers & Sons

Scripture

13 Do not hold back discipline from the child,
    although you strike him with the rod, he will not die.
14 You shall strike him with the rod
    and rescue his soul them Sheol.

19 Listen, my son, and be wise,
    and direct your heart in the way.
20 Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine,
    or with gluttonous eaters of meat,
21 for the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty,
    and drowsiness will clothe one with rags.

22 Listen to your father, who begot you,
    and do not despise your mother when she is old.

24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,
    and he who sires a wise son will be glad in him.

Notes

During this Father’s Day, we shall seek the wisdom of Scripture. We shall discuss selected proverbs found in Proverbs 23. Our message is both for fathers and their children. May the good Lord grant us wisdom to be the fathers and the children that He wants us to be.

1. Wisdom expects the father to discipline his children with the rod. The rod can be both literal and symbolic. Literal, when kids are very young; symbolic, when children grow in years.

   13 Do not hold back discipline from the child; although you strike him with the rod, he will not die.
   14 You shall strike him with the rod
       and rescue his soul them Sheol.

   The strike must not be one that kills, but enough to inflict some pain. The father must associate pain with wrong in the mind of the child. Yet wisdom does not tell fathers to discipline with anger; only with the rod.

2. Wisdom expects children to listen to their fathers and not to despise their mothers when they are old. Scripture implied that fathers should instruct their children in the ways of wisdom and righteousness.

   22 Listen to your father, who begot you,
       and do not despise your mother when she is old.

   24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,
       and he who sires a wise son will be glad in him.

   The father will rejoice because he raised a righteous child. His heart will be glad if he has a wise son. One can presume the opposite. The father of the unrighteous and the unwise will grieve.

3. Wisdom is setting one’s heart in God’s way. One thing that is clear in the way of righteousness is the type of association. Father must advise their children to avoid association with the wrong people.

   19 Listen, my son, and be wise,
       and direct your heart in the way.
   20 Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine,
       or with gluttonous eaters of meat,
   21 for the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty,
       and drowsiness will clothe one with rags.

   The wrong association will lead to wrong living. The heavy drinker and the glutton will become poor or ruined. They represent morally wrong people, lovers of pleasure.

Application

1. Fathers, let us discipline our children. Set the boundaries and make them explicit. Let us impart the wisdom of Scripture to our children through lives and words.

2. Children, listen to the wisdom of your fathers and do not despise your mother. Instead, give them joy by living in the righteousness of Christ and the wisdom of Scripture.

3. Avoid the lovers of pleasure that are unrighteous and unproductive, especially heavy drinkers and the overindulgent, including any who are addicted to pleasure.

4. Fathers and children must have faith in the gospel. The gospel is the central message of God’s word. Faith in the gospel should lead to wise living, according to His word.