Being able to impart words of knowledge and experience to one’s children is certainly one of the many advantages that come along with taking on the role of a parent. It is a tremendous blessing to be entrusted with the responsibility and authority to guide children in a manner that we are confident will be to their advantage. The author of the book of Proverbs makes a reference to passing on one’s legacy through the transmission and instruction of words of wisdom in this passage. He also reminds us that although the parent is greatly blessed when they instruct their child in the ways of wisdom, the child is the one who receives the greatest and most enduring blessing from the experience.
“Listen, my son, to the lesson that your father has given you, and do not forsake the teaching that your mother has given you; in fact, they are a beautiful wreath for your head and decorations for around your neck.”
I can still recall the day when my grandfather shared with me 4 words of wisdom about his atheist and anti-religious father. He shared with me that his father had encouraged him to “bed as many women as possible, live it up, and get all you can since life is short.” My young ears were taken aback by the news. Because I was raised in a household in which the exact reverse of what you describe was encouraged, I found it difficult to comprehend what you were saying. After living many more years after that period, I came to the conclusion that his father’s guidance was based on lies, but what I had been taught was founded on reality. In addition to this, I came to the conclusion that the person described in this chapter was not at all like my great-grandfather.
It is almost a given that a parent will want to provide the very best life for their children, whether they have one or several. The love of a parent is almost unconsciously felt by their offspring. And despite the fact that a lot of people would not take this to mean wisdom, I think it’s safe to say that everybody would agree that they want their kid to be successful, happy, and influential. Even the most self-absorbed parents never want anything bad to happen to their kids.
It is on the basis of this fundamental assumption about humanity that the author instructs us to “hear” our parentsMotivational 4 wordinspirational quotes short. Hear is a somewhat nebulous word in the English language. The Hebrew word shama is translated as “hear” in this context. The concept of shama can be expressed in a variety of ways, but generally speaking, it refers to attentive listening, discernment, comprehension, and total submission. This is far more than simply picking up sound; rather, it is the concept of taking in the significance of the sound being picked up.
We are able to hear a lecturer giving a lecture. She is able to impart wisdom, information, and teaching into our minds and hearts. But this is not true hearing if we simply “hear” it in the sense that it can be audibly perceived. We need to “hear” the instruction and put it into practise in order for it to have any significance or impact.
And this is also the case in the passage. The author is giving his audience very specific instructions, which can be summarised as follows: “what you hear with your ears is what you must absorb into your life so that it becomes obvious in your life.” Then and only then will you have understood what you have heard.
He instructs us to pay attention to the counsel of our parents and to hear what they have to say since doing so will bring about a blessing. Just as a parent would not ignore the danger posed by cars barreling down the street, but she would instruct her son to watch and wait, so the author is reminding us not to forsake the instruction but to hear the instruction in order to save ourselves from the disaster that follows ignoring the instruction.
This idea might strike some people as really elementary; others would find it to be difficult. In what ways is it difficult? You need only take advice and you will receive rewards. OK. Got it. On to the next step.
Really?
Why is there so little evidence to support this idea, if it is so straightforward and obvious? If hearing and obeying instructions is so easy. Why does the world (our job, or neighbourhood, or house) seem to be filled to the brim with examples of disastrous outcomes that can be attributed to people’s refusal to heed basic and essential advice?
The truth is… dealing with it is not easy. In point of fact, it is rather challenging. And this is precisely the reason why we need to study, listen to, and comprehend this reality on a consistent basis throughout our entire lives. We need to be reminded again and over again because, in the ivory towers we’ve built for ourselves, we think we already know the answer to everything. We have faith that we can find our own solution to this problem. We have reason to assume that it was the actions of others, not ourselves, that caused the problem. We hold sway over the situation.