FAMILY VALUES

We hear a lot of politicians, especially around election time, speaking about family values. We, as a nation, need the type of family values handed down by Solomon to his children. He received them from his parents and sought to pass them along to future generations. In Proverbs 4:1-4 he wrote, "Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law. For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother. He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live." Solomon mentions both parents when discussing what he learned from them. The ultimate source was God the Father, (see Deuteronomy 6:4-10).

When the values spoken of by Solomon in Proverbs are handed down and practiced (Proverbs 3:1; 4:20-23) good will result. Some of the many advantages of heeding are: "He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints" (2:8); "For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee...So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man." (3:2,4); "Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths. When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straightened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life" (4:10-13). The life which follows these values is truly an abundant life, one which is meaningful and a blessing to the individual and society. But what are some of the values Solomon taught: For one thing he taught a responsible work ethic. Listen to his words in Proverbs 6:6-11: Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man. To rephrase it, he said to his children, be like the ant who needs no one to prod and push, but through self-motivation and self-discipline goes to work when the opportunity arises. Do not roll over for a few more minutes of sleep, get up and get busy.

Another thing Solomon emphasized is sexual purity. He warned against premarital and extra-marital sexual relationships. He wrote positively about the marriage relationship in Proverbs 5: "Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well (verse 15); "rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love" (verse 18,19). Negatively, He wrote in Proverbs 5: "For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil: But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell...Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth. Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house" (verse 3-5,7,8). He went on to describe the results of not heeding the warning in verses 9-14.

One more thing Solomon emphasized regards the people one associates with. He strongly taught his children to avoid those who speak evil, plot and plan evil, and practice evil (see 1:10-19; 2:10-22 as two examples).