We are continuing our study in the book of Proverbs. Turn with me there, if you will, in your scriptures to Proverbs chapter 1. We are in that portion of the introduction where Solomon has gone from the voice of the father to the son, encouraging and training to a poetic device personification, where wisdom is presented as a person with a voice, described poetically. And as we've worked through that, we've seen wisdom calling out vigorously, eagerly, not hidden and disguised, but rather openly calling. And yet, in that extended personification in this poetic portion, we see that that call is ordinarily rejected, and Solomon describes that, again, in beautiful poetic form, but with startling language. We are in that section. Let's stand together, and I'll read in your hearing, at verse 28, through the close of chapter one, where we have a final word of encouragement. Let us hear and heed this, the very word of Almighty God, holy, infallible, inerrant in all its parts. Let us hear and heed. Chapter one, the book of Proverbs at verse 28. Then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, They would have none of my counsel, and despised my every rebuke. Therefore, they shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled to the full with their own fancies. For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them. But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure without fear of evil. Let's ask God's blessing on His Word. Holy Father, feed us upon the riches of wisdom, we pray, and train us in that wisdom for all godliness. We ask it for the glory of Christ. Amen. Here, where wisdom is personified in this poetic device, concept of wisdom is represented in a human form as a person and wisdom which is in fact an attribute of God by which he created the world and built into his creation his wisdom in such a way that we should see it and be called to it as his human creatures that bear his image, God's design for us. as his image bearers is to grow in wisdom, to reflect his glorious design back to him in how we live in his created order. Wisdom in this section from verse 20 on is described as crying out, indeed with urgency, vigorously calling to the simple, the scoffer, the fool. And we noted how these are our natural conditions We are naive as the simple until we're trained. And if we yield to our naivete, if we remain simple, we will get worse. We will be like the mocker. We will ridicule what is godly and what is wise. Indeed, we may become hardened in that rejection and become the fool. We considered how wisdom, though, calls out, and in a redemptive tone, wisdom says, I'll pour out my spirit on you and make my words known to you. How we need that light, that revelation, that transformation. If we will but hear and heed, Christ, indeed, is the embodiment of wisdom and calls out to us to be filled with his knowledge. In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, Colossians 2, verse 3. But we see in this poetic device that wisdom's call is refused with, in fact, an utter rejection. The urgency with which wisdom called out is met with hostility by the ordinary response of the sinful heart. Wisdom's call is said to be rejected, ignored. As wisdom was calling with urgency, the simple response is to have no urgency, simply to ignore the call. At best. At worst, the call is rejected with disdain, as something unworthy of our attention. Wisdom's rebukes, rather than turning the simple, is met with mockery. And so, Wisdom rejected then rejects those who had been called. There are consequences to the rejection of wisdom, and we see wisdom's condemnation in the text. Condemnation is experienced by those rejecting wisdom as they experience calamity, terror, as in the language used as like a severe storm, a tempest, or a tornado. Their lives become like that, torn up with calamity and with disaster. because of their rejection of wisdom, utter and complete anguish and distress of body and soul. And we don't have to look far to see those who reject wisdom experiencing that kind of turmoil, that kind of disaster in body and in soul when they refuse to turn at wisdom's rebuke, when they feel the smart, the sting of foolish actions and instead ignore wisdom's rebuke and continue on. They experience exactly what wisdom's condemnation says they'll experience. All comfort and hope is removed as a result. Wisdom, which had generously offered insight at the rebuke, turning away from disaster and calamity, will stop calling. And the result for those who have continued on into disaster is that when they cry out, the response is not one of wisdom providing what they now need, what they now recognize that they need. Rather, wisdom laughs, wisdom mocks. And we mentioned that we're reminded of the language of Psalm 2, that those who set themselves as enemies of Christ think that they have a powerful position, think of themselves as maneuvering and managing their lives quite well until all disaster falls upon them. And in fact, they receive in turn the laughter, and ridicule of wisdom. And Psalm 2-4 sounds just like that, in the rule of Christ, who is the embodiment of all the wisdom of God. When they reject, when they refuse, the end will come as a disaster to them. And in their crying out, they don't receive what they would wish for at that time. We should note how That description of the rejection is so universal. The call was wide and unhidden and generous, and yet the ordinary response of the sinful heart everywhere you turn is such rejection. The one who, in fact, has the power to calm the tempest also has the power to enforce that tempest as a just judgment on the hatred of wisdom. But the description is not done in the description of all of that condemnation. Wisdom continues on. Wisdom continues to describe the consequences of rejection as she brings strong accusations. We have wisdom's condemning accusations before us here. There are additional consequences, not only that turmoil, calamity, a tempest, as it were, in life, destruction of soul and body. There are further consequences. In the midst of terror, anguish, and distress, these who have rejected wisdom cry out. In the midst of that anguish, verse 27, that's where it ends, verse 28 before us this afternoon, then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will seek me then. Diligently. Now I need help. Now I need to figure out how to get out of this mess. Now I need wisdom. And now it's too late. Then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Wisdom was calling before, and they would not heed. Now they call on wisdom in their desperation. What does wisdom say? I will not answer. We tend to think that we can deal with wisdom on our own terms, as we, in a very lax way, go through life. If we are not taking heed to wisdom's call, we're not doing what we're guided to do, As Solomon personifies wisdom and describes that call and urges the hearer to turn at the rebukes and to be well-trained, we should make that our daily study. But we tend to think that we can take our own time, that we'll deal with wisdom and grow in that knowledge when we're ready for it, but not now. Right now, we feel like pursuing other animals. that satisfy the flesh or that are careless of what wisdom would say. We'll do it when we see fit, if we do it at all. This is an error especially for us and those of us who have passed well beyond the days of youth. Remember the temptations of youth to be lazy about the pursuit of wisdom and that call is a warning to us at every age, but we should heed it in our youth. Remember what Solomon says when he's recording the problems of seeking satisfaction in life under heaven apart from serving God, even when he had wisdom. The outcome of that, he says in chapter 12, is a warning. He urges the young to pursue their creator in the days of their youth, before you start to reap the outcome of age and you no longer have the opportunities that wisdom would have afforded if you had heard it and heeded it when young. Oh, let us be warned. That's why we have this gracious word to warn us. that we will heed, and yes, even in the days of our youth. Wisdom says that their seeking, now that they are under the affliction and anguish of their foolishness, their seeking will be diligent. They'll pursue some way out of their trouble diligently now. Well, the time for diligence was before the disaster, to avoid the disaster, now that Diligence-seeking will not bear fruit. This diligence, the word means an eager and early pursuit, an earnestness, a seriousness in diligence. Wisdom, before, was vigorously pursuing them. Consider the generosity of the way wisdom was calling in every public and private place, loudly, clearly, flagging down anyone who would see. There was a vigorous diligence described on the part of wisdom, and it was not heeded. When the disaster falls, diligence will not help. Now, their diligence will be fruitless. They will not find wisdom. Two important things to notice here. First, see how equitable, albeit frightening, The results are in terms of justice. When the light finally dawns on the one who was ignoring and rejecting wisdom, it's too late. And what befalls them is just. It's commensurate to their hatred of wisdom before, hatred of godliness. Now that they desperately need the help, no diligence will help. It is a just end, though frightening. Second, notice the turn that Solomon gives in the poetic language. Previously, wisdom was talking in the second person, making a direct appeal to you. Wisdom was speaking directly to the ones who rejected, your terror, giving warnings, your terror comes like a storm. Your destruction comes like a whirlwind. There is still some hope as those fools, those mockers, those simple, are being addressed with warnings. You should be warned, wisdom says. You will have terror as an outcome. Now it's too late. Wisdom's no longer even speaking to them. The language changes to the third person. Wisdom now talks about them and no longer to them. What a horrifying thing. We don't want wisdom to become more distant. We don't want wisdom to become less accessible. We want wisdom to be ministered to us and to hear it and receive it. Wisdom says, they will call. They will seek. Wisdom's now talking about them. and not to them. The distance has grown. The language of wisdom is what Charles Bridges in his commentary calls a solemn denunciation. Wisdom rejects them solemnly. And now wisdom brings accusations, addressing exactly what the nature of the sinful refusal was. Wisdom says they, again, speaking in that distant and solemn denunciation, the third person talking about them, they hated knowledge. This word speaks of their treating knowledge as though it were an enemy, finding it to be utterly odious. Wisdom says they did not choose the fear of the Lord. That language of choosing means showing preference and giving priority. This would be what is the rightful due to the Lord. Preference should be given to the ministry of the Lord's wisdom. Instead, again, thinking time was on their side. They didn't need to hear when wisdom was vigorously calling They showed preference to everything else. Wisdom should have had the priority. They gave it no priority. Wisdom says, they did not choose the fear of the Lord. There's an outcome to that. Refusing counsel, despising rebuke. Remember, wisdom had said, turn at my rebuke. They refused the rebuke. It's not that they didn't have the opportunity. It's not that there wasn't some pain experienced from foolishness. They made no use of it. They refused it and despised it. The consequences continue. Wisdom goes on, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way and be filled to the full with their own fancies. All they've got left is everything that they were pursuing, which now is the means of their destruction. They don't want it anymore. and it's all they have, is the stuff that's destroying them. They'll be full with their own fancies. How horrifying. The assessment by wisdom of these who are condemned is that the simple who turned away from wisdom will go on to death. The turning away of the simple will slay them. For the simple, there was some hope. They were naive. They needed training. But they turned away from that opportunity and will end up in death. And that turning away will be the means by which they're destroyed. The turning away of the simple will slay them. And get this, remember, there was laziness, there was inattention, there was disdain. The complacency of fools will destroy them. Their rejection becomes their destruction. How frightening. But thankfully, we can use these words as warning. And wisdom, personified, gives a word of assurance to close. Does not leave us in the terror of the threats of destruction, but leaves us, verse 33, with these words of hope. In contrast to everything wisdom has described there, whoever listens to me, wisdom says, will dwell safely. Oh, isn't that exactly what we want? Now that we've heard all that will befall those who do not heed, all that will befall those who, in their simplicity and mockery and foolishness, rejected everything wisdom offered, in laziness said, I've got time. The tempest, the storm, the destruction comes. While we still have the opportunity, we want the shelter. From that, whoever listens to me will dwell safely and will be secure without evil. Oh, what a word of hope, having heard the terror that befalls the rejection. We're not left with just terror. It's, as it were, a second chance. Do we see that we need wisdom, that the promise is still there? Now, turn at the rebuke now. Take the time now. Do not do, as wisdom described, the simple and the fool, rejecting in every way, taking their own time, and ending up in disaster. Rather, listen. Whoever listens, we have this, the promise of safety. and security. That's what we want. We want wisdom's shelter from all those disasters. And here's the thing. Wisdom is still, as described earlier in this poem. While we are not in that just destruction, we have hope. Wisdom is still there. Wisdom is still flagging us down. Wisdom is still saying, come to me now. I'll rescue you. Isn't that the nature of grace in Christ Jesus? And we who belong to him, may we never be living out the way of the sinful who turn away and are slain, the way of the mocker and the fool, but rather, we are those given ears to hear, just as Jesus cried out in the public places, he who has ears to hear. so wisdom cries out. And whoever listens will dwell safely and will be secure without fear of evil. Let's beg Messiah for these wonderful things. Let's pray. O Lord Christ, in whom dwells all the fullness of wisdom and knowledge, Give us ears to hear. We have heard the warnings, and we are rightly trembling, as it were, at the outcome of being foolish, taking our own time, not heeding the rebukes that wisdom gives. We do not want the destruction that befalls such ungodliness. Rather, we hear that word of hope when wisdom says that if we'll listen, we'll be kept from such evil. We'll be sheltered and secure. Oh Lord Christ, shelter us and secure us in your wisdom. We ask this in thankfulness for your gift. Your holy name. Amen.