“Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)
In 1 Kings 3:4-15, we see that God granted the gift of wisdom to King Solomon, from whom we have a multitude of wise sayings and proverbs. Many are directed to young people, and we can gain a great wealth of knowledge from them. Proverbs 3:5-6 is one of those, and it holds a principle which is prevalent throughout scripture. We have manifold examples of people who trusted in their own understanding, as well as people who allowed God to direct their paths. Let’s look at some of those examples.
Jonah
Most people know the story of Jonah, who disobeyed God and was swallowed by the great fish. In Jonah 1:1-3, we read about the command God gave Jonah, and how Jonah chose not to follow it.
“Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.”
You can continue reading to see Jonah’s punishment, as well as his returning to God in the end. To summarize, in chapters two and three, he is swallowed by a great fish prepared by God. In the belly of the fish, Jonah prays, and God returns him to dry land. God then commands Jonah to go teach in Nineveh again, and Jonah obeys Him.
There are countless lessons to be learned from Jonah. However, the one we want to focus on is that Jonah determined that it would be better to avoid teaching in Nineveh. He did acknowledge God, but trusted his own understanding
The People of Israel
Time and time again, God’s people ignored His words, and lead themselves rather than allowing God to direct them. Since the very beginning, it was a vicious cycle of rebelling, then repenting, rebelling, then repenting, on and on. In Exodus chapter thirty-two we read the account of the golden calf, in which the people cry out for Aaron to make them gods because Moses has not returned from the mountain. The people had barely escaped Egypt, and they were already rebelling against God’s wishes for them. When we read about the prophets such as Jeremiah, we see that the people did what they thought was best for them, instead of what God said was best. This resulted in attacks, captivities, and poverty just to name a few consequences. You can read numerous accounts of this, such as Isaiah 8, Ezekiel 23, and practically the entire book of Jeremiah.
Now let’s look at some example of those who did listen to God’s understanding.
King Josiah
King Josiah is known for being one of the best kings of the old testament. He became king at the tender age of eight and reigned for thirty-one years. During his rule, the Book of the Law, which had been lost for many years, was found. When Josiah heard the Book of the Law read, “he tore his clothes” (2 Kings 22:11) he was showing a tremendous amount of sorrow at these words because he realized that he and his people were not following God’s commands. Josiah promptly made a covenant with the Lord that he would follow Him and keep His commandments. Then Josiah tore down the idols and high places, removed and burned the bones of the priests of the false gods, and eradicated everything related to idolatry. Reading through 1 Kings 22, there are terms like “pulverized,” “defiled,” “crushed to powder,” “broke down,” and “tore down.” All of which clearly show the passion he had for heeding God’s will and trusting in God’s guidance. Josiah then commanded the people to follow God’s Law, and lead by example for the majority of his life.
Jesus
Jesus is the ultimate example of listening to God’s will. During his time on this earth, living as a man, He was tempted in all things as we are (Hebrews 4:15). He gave His life on the cross, more than any of us will ever have to give, to an undeserving people. In Matthew 26:36-46, we read about Christ’s prayer in the garden. He prayed “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” He prayed these words three times, and God’s answer was no. Jesus accepted this, and peacefully went through one of the most merciless deaths the Romans and devised. In Psalm 22, we read a prophecy about Jesus’s crucifixion, the first half of this Psalm is devoted to a cry for mercy, that He might not have to endure the cross. In the middle, there is a turning point, “You have answered Me.”, and the latter half is devoted to praise toward God. Although God answered no, Christ would still praise Him. Although God would require Him to go through one of the most burdensome trials ever conceived, Jesus would continue to praise God. That shows complete devotion to God and complete respect for His will. Through this, He granted no credence to the understanding of man.
We can learn from these accounts that even though leaning on our own understanding may seem better, trusting in God is always the best option. Often our finite minds can’t think of all the possibilities, God knows every situation, and he always knows what is best. We can find many more accounts throughout scripture of people who followed and did not follow God, and the theme is all the same. We can read about Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. We can read about Noah in Genesis 7-9. I would encourage you to seek out more accounts like these and note that the common theme will hold throughout.