Proverbs and Politics

“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding” (Prov. 4:7). By these words Solomon exalts wisdom and calls us to do all in our power to attain wisdom. But where to we find wisdom? “For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh understanding” (Pr. 2:6). As the text says, the Lord is the source of true wisdom and knowledge, and that He reveals His wisdom unto us in His Word. So then if man is to find true wisdom for living, he must seek it in the pages of Holy Scripture. The source of wisdom is not man’s autonomous reason, “natural law,” or experience. The source of true wisdom, according to Proverbs, is the revealed Word of God. The Scriptures instruct us in the ways of truth, wisdom, and righteousness, and are able to equip us for every good work in every sphere of life (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

The focus of this article is “getting wisdom” for the sphere of politics. If we are to honor the Lord and be successful in our political actions, “wisdom is the principal thing” that we must obtain. A particularly rich fountainhead of political wisdom is the book of Proverbs. This portion of God’s Word contains significant teaching on civil justice, the civil magistrate, and the duty of citizens. In this essay we will discuss the purpose, motto, and scope of Proverbs and apply each of these to the issue of politics.

Politics and the Purpose of Proverbs

Proverbs is part of the Hebrew wisdom literature and, as such, its fundamental purpose is to enable us “to know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity. . .” (Prov. 1:2-3). Wisdom, in the Hebrew sense, dealt with the art of being successful in life from God’s perspective. The goal of Biblical wisdom is to provide man with the knowledge on how to rightly live in accord with the principles of God’s moral law. Proverbs is a book of practical morality and it teaches man how to apply the moral law to a wide variety of situations. As Toy observes, “Proverbs may be described as a manual of conduct. Its observations relate to a number of forms of life, to affairs domestic, agriculture, urban (the temptations of city life), commercial, political, and military.”1 Proverbs is an important Biblical source of wisdom for politics. First, in a general sense, the book teaches principles for human conduct, interpersonal relationships, morals, economics, etc., which can be applied to any sphere, including politics. These general principles must be obeyed if we are to be successful in our political dealings. Secondly, in a more specific sense, Proverbs reveals wisdom that directly addresses the political sphere. There are scores of verses in the book that teach on the issues of civil government: the standards of justice, the proper conduct of magistrates, penology, conduct of citizens, and national blessing and cursing.2 When you combine the general principles of Proverbs with its specific instruction on civil affairs, it becomes apparent that Proverbs is an excellent and indispensable manual for politics. By following God’s wisdom as revealed in Proverbs, any person or nation can become skillful in politics and be equipped to build a righteous and just social order.

It is imperative that the church begin to teach the wisdom for politics that God has revealed in His Word. For too long now the church has failed to show how the Scriptures define and regulate civil government. Proverbs rebukes the pietistic, antinomian rejection of the Christian’s responsibility to glorify God in the political realm by setting forth wisdom for righteous political action. If it is God’s purpose in Proverbs to give us wisdom for politics, then it is clear that He intends for His people to teach that wisdom and to follow that wisdom! If the Scriptures speak to every sphere of life (and Proverbs most certainly indicates that they do), then we must conclude that the church must apply the Scriptures to every sphere of life, including politics.

Proverbs not only instructs us in God’s wisdom for politics; it also points us to the only true source of wisdom: “the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding” (Pr. 2:6). God’s Word is the only infallible source of wisdom and truth for politics! Yet many Christians play the fool and either minimize or outright scorn the idea that the Bible is the only infallible source of wisdom for civil law and government. These Christians would rather get their political “wisdom” from natural law theorists and conservative think tanks than from the Bible. However, Proverbs will allow for no such folly; it points us to the wisdom of God as revealed in His law-word.

Politics and the Motto of Proverbs

The motto of the book of Proverbs is that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Pk 1:7; cf. Pr. 9:10). This declaration strongly affirms that the fear of the Lord is the starting point for all true wisdom and knowledge. To fear God is to honor Him as Creator and Lord, and to humbly submit to His authority. As Payne states, “‘Fear’ is faith, as it submits to His will.”3 The man who fears God will see God’s Word as the revelation of God’s wisdom and truth and will believe and obey all its precepts and teaching. On the other hand, the “fool” rejects the wisdom of God and, following Satan’s lie, accounts his own “wisdom” as superior to God’s Word.

The motto that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” establishes that all the moral instruction in Proverbs is based on the law of God. The concept of the fear of the Lord brings together law and wisdom because both are rooted in the holy nature of God, and both are the revelation of God’s will for man. Biblical law sets forth the essential principles and precepts of righteous living and action, and Biblical wisdom applies these righteous standards to various circumstances. Since wisdom is the proper application of Biblical law, the wisdom of God is as binding upon men as the law of God.

Furthermore, the idea of the fear of the Lord establishes the close relationship between the law of Moses and the wisdom of Solomon, between Deuteronomy and Proverbs. The command to “fear the Lord thy God” is central to the teaching of Moses in Deuteronomy (Dt. 6:13, 24; 8:6; 10:20; 13:4). In fact, the fear of the Lord is set forth as the essential starting point for whole-hearted obedience to God’s law (Dt. 10:12-13). Solomon continues this same emphasis and makes the fear of the Lord the motto and constant theme of Proverbs (Pr. 1:7; 2:5; 3:7; 8:13; 9:10; 10:27; 13:13; 14:2, 16, 26, 27; 15:16, 33; 16:6; 19:23; 22:4; 23:17; 24:21; 31:10). In both Deuteronomy and Proverbs to fear the Lord is to depart from evil and to love and obey God’s law (Dt. 10:12; Pr. 16:6; 8:13), because both books are based on the same unchanging standard of righteousness—the holiness of God. The relationship between Proverbs and God’s law is expressed by Kaiser: “The counsel given in this book was applied to the more practical situations in life, but its aim was to command the same standard of righteousness commanded in the law of Moses.”4 If the fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom, then we must conclude that the fear of the Lord is the first principle of true political knowledge and understanding. Why is this so? The fear of the Lord leads men to believe that God is Lord over all His creation and that every aspect of life is to be governed by God’s law. Therefore, those who fear God look to the Bible for their wisdom for politics. In the Scripture they learn the truth that civil government has been instituted by God, that the civil magistrate is a servant of God, and that the standard of civil law and justice is the law of God! No one can be a truly wise citizen or ruler who does not believe these truths and take them as his starting point in politics.

Those who reject the fear of the Lord make their own wisdom the foundation for their politics. Proverbs requires that we consider such political thinkers and politicians to be “fools.” The motto of Proverbs requires that we understand that all who do not fear God are devoid of true political wisdom! How can anyone be wise who does not even know the first principle of wisdom? According to Scripture, all non-Christian political thought is foolish because it is based on the lie that the one true God does not exist (Ps. 14:1); all non-Christian political thought is rebellious because it seeks to suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18); and all non-Christian political thought is idolatrous because it worships the creature rather than the Creator (Rom. 1:25). Now it is true that the work of the law has been written in the hearts of all men (Rom. 2:15), and that this accounts for any truth or justice that may surface in non-Christian cultures and politicians. However, since the unbeliever is in rebellion against God, his political system is based on the lie. The unregenerate politician begins his thinking with the false presupposition that man does not need the Word of God but is able to determine good and evil for himself. That such a blasphemous premise can lead to true wisdom is a dangerous error. The sad thing is that many Christians do not understand this, and they continue to drink at the polluted springs of humanistic political doctrine.

The motto of Proverbs also establishes the centrality of God’s law for politics. If the fear of the Lord is to depart from evil and keep God’s commandments, then the fear of the Lord requires that we have God’s law as the standard of civil government. The written law of God is the measure of true justice; true political wisdom is fully theonomic in orientation. The relationship between Proverbs and Deuteronomy that is established by the mutual emphasis on the fear of the Lord points us to the civil law of Moses for the revelation of political justice and equity.

Additionally, the motto of Proverbs helps us understand the Biblical qualifications for the office of civil magistrate. Throughout Scripture the fear of the Lord is set forth as an essential requirement for any man who would serve as a governor, ruler, or judge (Ex. 18:21; Dt. 17:19; 2 Sam. 23:3; 2 Chr. 19:7; Neb. 7:2; Ps. 2:10-12). As Proverbs indicates, all who reject the fear of God are fools who are wise in their own eyes; and they are fools because they reject the wisdom and authority of God’s Word! If Christians would heed the political wisdom of Proverbs then they would only support for political office men who fear God and they would stop seeking to place “fools” into positions of authority over them.

Politics and the Scope of Proverbs

The book of Proverbs expresses the moral law in terms of wisdom for living in the world created by God. As is the rest of the Old Testament wisdom literature, its teaching is “generally divorced from Hebrew national life and ceremony (with but few exceptions, as in Pr. 3:9). The Proverbs are timeless, separated from the limits of localization.”5 Bahnsen rightly contends that Proverbs has universal application and authority, saying, “It is generally conceded that the scope of the wisdom literature opens up onto the whole world and is not restricted to what is true only in Israel; thus we find axiomatic and categorical truths throughout a book like Proverbs, truths which lack distinctive national traits ... it is concerned with all nations.”6 Even the Jewish commentator Cohen says that the teaching of Proverbs “is applicable to all men everywhere and is true of life generally and not of any particular people or land.”7 Through the Proverbs God instructs all nations that true wisdom is to fear Him and obey His Word. So then, Proverbs indicates that God’s wisdom is for all men in every nation. Though the book was primarily written by Solomon the king of Israel, its teaching covers all aspects of life, transcends national boundaries, and is universally applicable. The universal scope of Proverbs shows that God intends for all nations to fear Him and to live according to the principles of justice and righteousness revealed in His law-word. Therefore, the fact that Proverbs contains a wealth of instruction on politics and civil government leads to some important conclusions concerning politics.

First, it reveals that God intends that our politics be regulated by His wisdom and not by our own. Human reason and natural law are not enough; all men need the Word of God to instruct them in true political wisdom. Second, Proverbs demonstrates that God holds Israel and the Gentile nations to the same measure of political righteousness. Proverbs makes absolutely no distinction between Jewish magistrates and Gentile magistrates when it reveals the duty of kings; both are held to the same standard of conduct and of justice (cf. Pr. 8:15-17; 16:12; 17:15').The clear message of Proverbs is that all nations and rulers are responsible to God’s law, and that they will be blessed or cursed according to their obedience to God’s law (Pr. 14:34).There is not even the slightest hint in Proverbs that God judges the nations by a different (or lower) standard than He judges Israel! Proverbs helps to establish the truth that there is only one rule of justice and equity for all nations and that every magistrate in every land is to govern by that single righteous standard. Third, if Israel and the nations are held to the same standard of civil justice in Proverbs, and if the standard of civil justice in Israel is the law revealed by Moses, then we are driven to conclude that God binds the nations to the standards of civil justice revealed in Israel’s civil law! The inescapable message of Proverbs is that true political wisdom is to build one’s civil laws on the civil laws of the Old Testament.

Conclusion

The book of Proverbs contains a wealth of wisdom for politics. However, Proverbs also declares that “fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Sadly, in regard to politics, the church has often played the part of the fool. The evidence that this is the case is too strong to deny. The church has largely rejected the cultural mandate and the authority of God’s Word over the political sphere, and has substituted a pietistic and antinomian worldview. In many cases the church has shamefully retreated behind its own walls and has virtually conceded the control of politics to men who do not fear God; thus the humanists are now in power. In other cases Christians have been involved in politics, but they have not made the fear of the Lord and the authority of His law-word the first principle of their political wisdom. Hence, their politics is driven by a vision of pluralist democracy which dishonors the Lordship of Christ and by an adherence to a “conservatism” that is as godless as modern liberalism in its presuppositions. Because of the church’s failure, our nation has departed from the fear of the Lord and is fast heading to a day of judgment at the hands of the great King of the nations (Ps. 2:9-12).The time has come for the church to repent. The call to obey God’s wisdom for politics is upon us. Will we hear it?

1. Crawford H. Toy, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Proverbs (Edinburgh, 1981), x.

2. I have personally identified about 125 such verses. If the reader would like a copy of the listing of these verses (written out), he may obtain them by contacting me at the address at the end of this article.

3. J. Barton Payne, The Theology of the Older Testament (Grand Rapids, 1962), 307.

4. Walter Kaiser, Towards an Old Testament Theology (Grand Rapids, 1978), 174.

5. J. Barton Payne, op. cit. 55-56.

6. Greg L. Bahnsen, Theonomy in Christian Ethics (Phillipsburg, 1977), 343.

7. A. Cohen, Proverbs (London, 1946), xiv.