“A wise son makes a father glad, But a foolish [stubborn] son [who refuses to learn] is a grief to his mother.”

Proverbs 10:1 AMP

Now we leave the building of a foundation upon God’s way of wisdom and remembering the consequences for abandoning them. We now start the presentation of short and contrasting proverbs for life! Although they may be short in length, they are weighty and true for consideration. In these two sentence bites, one line illustrates the other best understood as independent from the proceeding verses. There is seldom a coherence between the verses as we have seen in the past. There is however a clear contrast between good and evil, blessing and cursing, success and failure. Our journey brings us to the first of these short contrasts for consideration.

The word “wise” here is the Hebrew word which means “to have a capacity for understanding and discernment;” “to apply knowledge and discernment as a craftsman applies his trade.” We have seen that the wise and discerning person fears (respects) the Lord and follows His ways. The book of James reminds us that,

“But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth].”

James 1:20 AMP

There is no other way in which one can prove themselves wise than putting into practice the ways of the Lord. A parent’s desire is to see their children succeed and prosper. The word “Glad” is actually an imperfect verb combining the past tense and imperfect aspect. This indicates the result of an action which has gone on over a period of time or has happened frequently. A good substitute would be the word gladdening. There is nothing more rewarding to a parent than to see their child succeed. If you ever attended a sports match, you will see this on display as the parent cheers and encourages the child. You would think that they themselves were playing the game! The action of the child is the result of what has been planted in their life. That’s why it is so important that parents model the Word of God in their lives so the child can see the reality of God’s Word. The contrast then is the child who foolish in their way.

The word “foolish” is the Hebrew word meaning “to be insolent, or in complete lack of understanding leading to rebellion; to rebel against a standard or person.” Notice that the result here is “grief.” A more appropriate word could not be used. The word grief in the Hebrew means “to have sorrow or deep anguish.” Solomon doesn’t say embarrassment as that would be a reflection of the parents’ image. A parent who is struggling with the behavior of their child will always love them and do everything they can to help them see the error of their way. I remember before I got saved, my mother came into the house one day and found me drunk and passed out on the living room floor. As she got me up, I saw tears in her eyes as she helped me to bed. As she looked at my in this drunken stupor, she said with tears in her eyes, “I don’t know how to how to help you!” I will never forget that moment. It wasn’t embarrassment that she felt but a deep anguish over the condition of my life! 

Let me encourage you today if you are in that place of struggling with a child. God is in control! Remember that it is sin that is destroying their life and not themselves. The Scripture says after doing everything stand! Continue to stand in the gap and pound the heavenlies for His assistance! 

Have a blessed day, Pastor Ken