The Ignorance of Those Who Forsake God’s Wisdom

Solomon was a man who governed his people by the wisdom God had given him and handed down judgments famed for their insight. Yet as his power grew, he took foreign women as wives and lent his ear to flattery, until his wisdom came to smell of pride and lust.

This was the result of mistaking grace for his own righteousness. The moment a person sets the heart on human praise, grace is pushed aside, and where God has been abandoned, greed and idols move in where discernment once stood. Solomon himself later came to see that those years had been in vain.

God’s people must not set their hearts on what others say, but look to God alone. Whoever pleases God can escape what is evil, while the one who forsakes wisdom is caught in a snare of their own making. Before frost settles on their heads, now that they have heard the word, they need to turn back.