I want us to turn to the book
of Proverbs the book of Proverbs and I'll read in the opening
verses of chapter 30 the book of Proverbs chapter 30 the words
of Agor the son of J.K. even the prophecy the man spake
unto Ithiel even unto Ithiel and Uchel Surely I am more brutish
than any man and have not the understanding of a man. I neither
learned wisdom nor have the knowledge of the holy." The word Agor we're told literally
means the gatherer and the word JK means hearkening. the gatherer, and the person
who is hearkening. And it is said that the reference
here is still to King Solomon, who is the human author of the
book, as we see in the opening verse, the Proverbs of Solomon,
son of David, king of Israel, the words of the gatherer, the
son of the hearkener. Solomon heard, and as Solomon
heard, so he gathered. He's one of those holy men of
whom Peter speaks. how those holy men of God spake,
as they were moved by the Spirit of God. He was moved by God's
Spirit to be a man who hearkened. And as he hearkened, so he gathered
those things that the Spirit of God directed him to. See how he speaks in the following
book, the book of Ecclesiastes. And there, at the end of that
book, in chapter 12, and verse 9, and moreover, because the
preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge. Yea, he
gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. The preacher sought to find out
acceptable words, and that which was written was upright, even
words of truth. He was a gatherer, a gatherer
of these things, as he hearkened under the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit. We're told in the book of 1 Kings
and chapter 4 how he spoke 3,000 proverbs and his songs were 1,005. Well, we have many of the proverbs
recorded in this book We only have one song, the song of songs,
which is Solomon's. But he was a man, obviously,
who was very diligent in his hearkening, his listening. Hearken, an old English word,
it's a stronger word really than listen. How he hearkened, how
he was diligent in giving his ear to these things that he might
gather these things together. Well, I want us tonight to consider
what Solomon is saying here as we come to the end of the book.
Here in this 30th chapter, he makes his confession in verses
2 and 3, Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the
understanding of a man. I neither learned wisdom, nor
have the knowledge of the Holy. Now, he He speaks in all humility, in
spite of all that he would hearken to, and all the diligence of
that listening, and all that he had gathered together, yet
this is the confession that he is making. Surely I am more brutish
than any man, and have not the understanding of a man. I neither
learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the whole. But what
do we see here? First of all, We see something
of that sinful ignorance that is the mark of all men. That
sinful ignorance that is the mark of the natural man. Notice this reference to man. I am more brutish, he says, than
any man. any man, that man whom God created,
and created in such a perfect condition. You're familiar with
the Biblical account of man's origins, whilst God created all
things out of nothing, simply by divine fiat. He spoke and
it was done, He commanded. and it stood fast, simply speaking
His word by the word of the Lord, where the heavens made and all
the host of them by the breath of His mouth. But then, when
we come to that man who stands at the very apex of all the works
of creation, now that God enters into counsel, There is a council
of the Trinity there in Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26 when God
says, let us make man in our image after our likeness. Instead of merely commanding
man into being and saying, let there be man just as he had said,
let there be light. No, God now speaks with himself
as a council. Let us make man, he said. man
the most noble of all God's creatures. And then, following that, we
see something of man's position in that that God had created. We have, in verse 28, that's
often referred to as the cultural mandate. How that man is to make
use of all that God has created. It's all created for the man.
God blessed him. And God said unto them, Be fruitful,
and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it, and have
dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the
air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. All
this most noble of all God's creatures. And when God makes
the animals, we see how these animals are brought before the
man. And it is Adam who names them. In chapter 2 and verse 19, out
of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and
every fowl of the air and brought them unto Adam to see what he
would call them and whatsoever Adam called every living creature,
that was the name thereof. He gave appropriate names to
everything. What knowledge! Oh, what knowledge
this man has! And yet, here is the confession
of the wisest of all men Solomon who'd asked for that
gift of wisdom surely says Solomon I am more brutish than any man
and have not the understanding of a man I neither learned wisdom
nor have the knowledge of the holy here we see that man is
a fallen creature now he has fallen from that tremendous position
that he occupied there at creation. Lo, says Solomon
in Ecclesiastes, the significance of that little word lo, behold,
all consider this, fix the eye on this, lo, this only have I
found, that God made man upright, and they have sought out many
inventions. Oh, I know how soon man fell,
how soon man fell. We have that word in Psalm 49
verse 12, man being in honor abides not. And some say that
that word indicates that the man fell on the very first day
of his creation. The word for man in Psalm 49
and verse 12 is in fact the Hebrew word for Adam, which means man. and the word abideth literally
means to abide for one night, to lodge a night. Adam being
in honour lodged not one night. And so there are those commentators
who say that that indicates that it was upon the very day that
he was created. How quickly! man transgressed,
disobeyed the commandment of God, and fell. And here is the
consequence, as the wisest of men confesses, surely I am more
brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man."
We read the words of the 73rd Psalm. I'm much struck by what
we have there in verse 22 of Psalm 73. Asaph says, so foolish was I
and ignorant, I was as a beast before thee. Now we do well,
as I've said so many times, to examine God's words closely and
to take advantage of what the authorized version translators
have done, where they've brought in additional English words to
bring out the proper sense as they understood it in the original
Hebrew, where they've brought in those additional words, they've
indicated that by the use of the italics. And we discover
therefore that Psalm 73 and verse 22 is not really a similar That's how it reads in the Authorized
Version. So foolish was I and ignorant
I was as a beast before them. But the force of the original
is much stronger than that because the word as is not really there.
It says I was a beast before them and in fact the The word,
the noun for beast is in the plural. I was beast before them. It's so superlative. What is
Asaph confessing? He is making the same confession
as we find here in Solomon. So foolish, so ignorant. I was as beast before them. In fact, man is worse than the
beast, is he not? Remember the language that we
have in the opening chapter of the prophecy of Isaiah? The ox knoweth his master, but
the ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib. But
my people doth not know, Israel doth not consider. Worse, worse
than the animals. The animals know who their master
is, that master who cares for them, who attends to them, looks
after them. Oh, but Israel does not know. All my people, God
says, they do not consider they worse than beasts. And yet, oh,
God speaks to men, and addresses men, and exhorts men. Again, in the Book of Psalms,
and there in that 32nd Psalm, be ye not as the horse or as
the mule that hath no understanding, whose mouth must be held him
by bait and bridle, lest he come nigh unto We're not to be like
brute beasts. Why, when God created the man,
he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and he became
a living soul. Man is different to the rest
of the beasts. The most noble of all God's creation. And yet, here is man now, he's
fallen. He's fallen from that position
that he occupied. when He came so pristine from
the hand of His great Creator, made in the image, created after
the likeness of God Himself. Now we see it time and time again,
men being spoken to as those who are so brutish. Look at the
words again of a Psalm, Psalm 94 and verse 8. Understand, it
says, understand ye brutish among the people and ye fools. When will ye be wise? And what is that wisdom? Oh,
the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. But what do men know
of the fear of the Lord? Oh, men deny God, and we see
it all around us. Men discount God. They follow
their first parents. They embrace the lies of the
devil and reject the truth of God. He refused to bow to his
authority. Oh, understand ye brutish among
the people, and ye fools, when will ye be wise? Why, man, he
is now in a sad condition, is he not? He is a fallen creature.
And how great is the fall of man! And Solomon, the wisest
of men, confesses that, surely. I am more brutish than any man
and have not the understanding of a man. I neither learned wisdom
nor have the knowledge of the holy as man is fallen. So that fall results in what
we say is total depravity. That's the confession that we
make, is it not? In the five points of the canons
of Dutrecht The first of those points is man's total depravity. We remember it by that little
mnemonic tulip, of course, total depravity. Unconditional election,
limited atonement, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of
the saints. But there at the head of those
five points stands that awful truth, that terrible doctrine
of man's condition as a sinner and he is totally deprived that
means that sin has permeated every part of his being and so
by nature he is dead in trespasses and in sins and so we come to
this that man is impotent man is impotent he can do nothing
to to help himself again there in that 73rd psalm
in that 22nd verse so foolish was I and ignorant I was as a
beast before thee or I was a beast or beast before thee but if you
look at the verse there you might see in the margin that there's
an alternative reading the word ignorance we learn literally
means I know not so foolish was I and I knew not I knew not every
man you see is brutish in his knowledge As sinners, this is
our condition, we have no innate ability to know anything. With
regards to God and the things of God, it's an impossibility.
We are unable, because of our fallen condition, because of
our total depravity, we are unable to know anything. That is man's
condition, the natural man. The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God. they are foolishness to him neither
can he know them because they are spiritually discerned we
are familiar with these scriptures and we can often trot them off
our tongues but or do we feel these things do we feel this
sinful ignorance that belongs to us as fallen creatures the
natural mind of man he is not only ignorant but he is in that
awful condition of alienation from God he is at enmity with
God The carnal mind is enmity against God, it is not subject
to the law of God, neither indeed can be. And again, we do well
to observe the strength of the language of the word of God,
the pointedness of it. The carnal mind is not only enmity
against God, but man is not subject, it says, to the law of God. And he doesn't go on to say neither
can be, but that word indeed is introduced. Neither indeed
can be. It's an impossibility. It's an
impossibility for the natural mind of man to change. Or we can do nothing, you see,
we're impotent. And so what does Solomon confess? I neither learned wisdom nor
have the knowledge of the whole. We are not sufficient of ourselves
to think anything as of ourselves. We cannot even begin to think
a right thought. It's not wrong for us, is it,
when we come to the Word of God, to pray to God that He would
help us, and as we read His Word that we might begin to think
a right, that we might be able to think the thoughts of God
after Him. that we might receive instruction.
We want more than a clear mind, but let us not despise
a clear mind. How the Apostle speaks of the
importance of a sound mind. We need to be instructed in the
truth of God. We need that knowledge of the
Holy One. well yes we want something more
than that we don't just want a notion or religion we don't
just want to be those who have an intellectual understanding
we want to feel these things in the depths of our being we
want to know these things in our hearts but how God deals
with us you see he deals with us as he has made us and he has
made us these rational beings and he has given us his word
and we to recognize the truth of what God says to us concerning
our condition and to bow to that we're fallen sinful creatures
we're impotent we have no ability at all of ourselves and so if
we're going to be saved why it is so evident that salvation
must be altogether of the grace of God the Lord Jesus says no
man can come to me except the Father which hath sent me, draw
him." It must be the drawings of God, not ourselves. The work is altogether the great
work of God. Here is the important thing then,
we must be those who have a true knowledge of God, of ourselves,
in our natural condition, It is but a state of sinful ignorance. But let us turn to say something
in the second place of man's knowledge of God. Look at what
Solomon says in this third verse, I neither learned wisdom nor
have the knowledge of the Holy. Ah, but you see when God comes
and does his great work of salvation in the soul of the sinner when
that work that was accomplished by the Lord Jesus when he was
obedient unto that death even the death of the cross when he
made that great sacrifice for sins when that work of the Lord
Jesus Christ is brought home and applied and becomes a reality
in a man's soul he has an experience of the grace of God when he's
born again by the Spirit of God, he's a new creation. And remember
the language of the Apostle in Colossians 3.10, he says, "...and
have put on the new man." That is the new man of grace. That is the new creation which
is in Christ Jesus. That's the seed. The seed of
the new birth. that put on the new man, he says,
which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created
him. Renewed in knowledge, or the
man born again as a knowledge. And what is that knowledge? It's
a twofold knowledge, as we've said many a time, when Calvin
opens his great work on theology, the Christian Institutes, that's
where he begins in the opening sentence he speaks of that twofold
knowledge that a man must have, that is the knowledge of God
and that is the knowledge of himself. There must be that knowledge
of ourselves, the knowledge of ourselves as sinners and See
how Solomon is so very conscious of these things? Again, the language
that we have in the book of Ecclesiastes that
follows us, that follows his book of Proverbs, chapter 3 and
verse 18 of Ecclesiastes, I said in mine heart concerning the
estate of the sons of men that God might manifest them, and
that they might see that they themselves are beasts." Here
we have it you see, that God would manifest them that they
might see, that they might see what they are. I was a beast
before he says Asa. The knowledge of ourselves a
sad, solemn condition, the consequence of sin. Again, think of the language
that we find so often in the book of Psalms. Psalm 92 and
verse 5, O Lord, says the Psalmist, how great are thy works, and
thy thoughts are very deep. A brutish man knoweth not, neither
doth a fool understand this. or what do we understand, what
do we know of the works of God the thoughts of God what a mystery
to God or what a mystery to all the ways of God we know nothing
of these things but there is that ministry that God brings
to us that ministry of his Holy Lord when he deals with us in
terms of his commandments When he applies that law to the soul
of the sinner, it was Saul's experience, was it not? He was
once that self-righteous man, that pharisee, who boasted that
touching the righteousness that is of the Lord he was blameless.
But he knew not the Lord of God until there was that application
by the Spirit of God in terms of the commandment thou shalt
not covet. And then he saw that he was full
of all evil desire, full of all covetousness. Then he saw that
the Lord of God is spiritual and that he was but a man carnal. Now the Lord Jesus in the course
of his ministry opens up the truth of that Holy Lord of God
that it is a spiritual law that it doesn't just have to do with
a man's actions it has to do with the very attitude of the
man's heart if the man looks wantonly upon a woman he's an
adulterer he's a transgressor of the commandment thou shalt
not commit adultery if a man hates his brother and has no
cause for such hatred, why he is a murderer. He transgressed
the law that says thou shalt not kill. The Lord Jesus unfolds
these things. There is that ministry of the
Lord of God. Paul says now, we know that what
things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under
the law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world
become guilty before God. Every mouth stopped. There was
another sense here in which we see that there was that time
when Solomon's mouth was stopped. Surely I am more brutish than
any man, and have not the understanding of a man. His mouth is stopped. He's brought in guilt. He's made
to see what he is. And that was Paul's experience. He was the self-righteous Pharisee
before the Lord took him in hand and taught him. And then what
was it? He was the chief of sinners.
He was the chief of sinners, he knew it then. No self-righteousness
then. But first there must be that
knowledge of God. I was struck by this in reading
a piece of Jonathan Rankin Anderson's some weeks ago. And he says,
man must first know what God is and then what he himself is
as a sinner. That is the first and the greatest
of all knowledge, to know God. It's as we know God, that we
come to know ourselves. And that, in a sense I suppose,
is obvious, because when God made man, He made him in His
image, He created him after His own likeness. If we see what
God is, and the Bible of course is a wonderful revelation, it's
a revelation of God. And yet, as we have this revelation
and we look into it, is it not like a mirror? And so James speaks
of it, the man who looks into this looking glass, and he sees
himself, then he goes his way, says James, and forgets what
manner of man he is. Well, God forbid that that should
be us, that we might see God and that we might see ourselves.
There is that knowledge of self. We have to have a knowledge of
self as a sinner. But this is first the knowledge
of God. And that knowledge of God as
we have it revealed to us ultimately in the person and the work of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember those questions that
are put in the book of Job, in Job chapter 11. Those searching
questions. Canst thou by searching find
out God? Can so find out the Almighty
unto perfection? It is high as heaven, what can
so do? Deeper than hell, what can so
know? The measure thereof is longer
than the earth and broader than the seas. For all our searchings,
we can never know God. God is unknowable really, except
except God is pleased to reveal himself and God is pleased to
reveal himself. And this is what we see Solomon
coming to here in the following verse. Verse 4 he says, when
he asked the question, Who hath ascended up into heaven? or descended? Who hath gathered the wind in
his fist? or who hath bound the waters
in a garment? Who hath established all the
ends of the earth? What is his name? and what is
his son's name if thou canst tell? Oh, what questions are
these and especially that question that we find at the end of the
verse what is his son's name? He is speaking of God and he
is speaking here then of the Son of God all this wisdom literature
of Solomon, these books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes and the Song
of Solomon. All these Scriptures point us
to the Lord Jesus Christ. There's no exception to any part
of the Old Testament when the Lord utters those words that
we read this morning in John chapter 5. He says to the Jews,
search the Scriptures. In them you think that you have
eternal life and these are they that testify of me. that includes
the book of Proverbs. The book of Proverbs is full,
full of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at the opening chapter and
what we read there in chapter 1 at verse 20. Wisdom crieth
without, she uttereth her voice in the street, she crieth in
the cheap place of concourse, In the openings of the gates,
in the city, she uttereth a word, saying, How long, ye simple ones,
will ye love simplicity? And the scorners delight in their
scorning, and fools hate knowledge. Turn you at my reproof. Behold,
I will pour out my Spirit unto you, I will make known my words
unto you. Now observe the words. Here is
wisdom, and wisdom cries where? in the streets, the chief place
of concourse, where the people are gathered. And what does wisdom
speak of? Wisdom speaks of the Spirit,
I will pour out of my Spirit unto you. Says wisdom there at
verse 23. Now that word is a prophetic
word and that word we see fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ in the
Gospel. In John chapter 7 John chapter 7, the Lord Jesus
now at Jerusalem, the Feast of Tabernacles. And here are the
people. It's a great place of concourse.
There are a multitude. It's one of the great feasts.
Three great feasts of the Jewish year that they were to diligently
observe in accordance with the Lord of Moses. That was the the Feast of the Passover, the
Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles.
So this is a great feast and those three feasts, all the males
were to be at Jerusalem. Remember the great Feast of Pentecost,
there were many at Jerusalem, Jews and proselytes from every
nation. And so it would have been at
the Feast of Tabernacles here in John chapter 7. And then at
verse 37, in the last day That great day of the feast,
Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come
unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the
Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water. But this spake he of the Spirit,
which they that believe on him should receive. For the Holy
Ghost was not yet given, because of Jesus was not yet glorified."
It's the fulfillment, I say. of those words that we read in
the opening chapter of this book of Proverbs concerning wisdom's
cry and how wisdom speaks of the Spirit of God. This book,
the book of Proverbs, sets before us the person and the work of
the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Of Him are ye in Christ Jesus
who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification,
and redemption. Christ is the wisdom of God.
And here we have what is often referred to as the wisdom literature
of the Old Testament Scriptures. He is that one who has come to
reveal God. Or canst thou by searching find
out God? No, God must reveal Himself.
God must make Himself known. He does reveal Himself, we know,
in His works of creation and providence. How the heavens declare
His glory. How the firmament shows His handiwork. It's all the work of His fingers.
Day and night speak. The line of God is worked. written in creation, written
in providence goes out to the ends of the world and men are
without any excuse even those who know not the scriptures they
are without excuse, there is a revelation of God the wonderful
revelation in his in his providence who so is wise says the psalmist
and will observe these things that is the providence is with
God they shall understand the loving kindness of the Lord All
but what a revelation we have when we come to the Holy Scriptures. Here God has granted to us this
special revelation and it all centers in Christ, it all builds
up to this, as God in these last days has spoken unto us by His
Son. No man hath seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, which
is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared. Why? He is the image of the invisible
God. He is the image of God. Now look
at the language here. In the opening verse I said that
Agor and J.K. The one who hearkens, the one
who gathers, that's a reference to Solomon. The man spake unto Ithiel, even
unto Ithiel and Uchel. Interestingly, Dr. Gill makes the point here that
Ithiel literally means God is with me. God is with me. Who does Solomon speak with?
He speaks to the one who is God's. with me behold a virgin shall
conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel which
being interpreted means God is with us here is the Lord Jesus
Christ He is Ithiel God is with me, Ukal Gil says this means
the Mighty One or the Lord Jesus Christ He is the Mighty One Yes,
he is the one who we see in that great mystery of godliness, as
God manifests in the flesh. We see him there in that state
of humiliation, our God contracted to a span, incomprehensibly made
man, and a man that's a real man, and yet never anything less
than the mighty one, always the deity, the deity of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Do we not see him as that one
who speaks in that great eighth chapter of the book? Our Proverbs
chapter 8 is such a tremendous portion. It speaks of Christ's
eternal sonship. The eternal generation of the
Lord Jesus Christ is witnessed here. Verse 22 of chapter 8, The Lord
possessed me in the beginning of His way, before His works
of old. I was set up from everlasting,
from the beginning, whatever the earth was. When there were
no depths, I was brought forth. When there were no fountains
abounding with water, before the mountains were settled, before
the hills, was I brought forth. He was eternally brought forth.
That's what He is saying. That's what he declares here
in these verses. And we have it twice, verse 24
and again in verse 25. He is eternally begotten. He goes on, verse 30, Then I
was by him as one brought up with him. I was daily his delight,
rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the habitable part
of his earth and my delights. were with the sons of men. This
is Christ the wisdom of God. All his delights, his delights
are with the sons of men. Why unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given. This is the eternal Son of God.
The eternal Son of God who is made of a woman. He is that blessed
seed of the woman. And what does the Lord Jesus
Christ do? Why He comes just where His people are. That is
the great wonder of the incarnation, the revelation that we see in
Christ coming into this world. He comes where His people are. We read of God sending His own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin. He identifies
with man in his sad condition as fallen, And Solomon says,
Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding
of a man. I neither learned wisdom, nor
have the knowledge of the holy. And Christ comes just where that
man is. Just where that man is. Look at what we are told concerning
the ministry of the prophet, Ezekiel. And where Ezekiel must
go, if he's going to minister to the people. In Ezekiel 3 verse 15, Then I
came to them of the captivity at Tel Abib, that dwelt by the
river of Caibar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there
astonished among them seven days. I sat where they sat. That's
what the Lord Jesus has done. He came and He sat where the
sinners sat. why he received the sinners and
he would eat with the sinners. How he identifies with man. What
does he say in the great 22nd Psalm, that Messianic Psalm,
I am a worm and no man. The reproach of men and despise
of the people. Does Solomon say of himself,
I am more brutish than any man? Why the Lord likens himself to
a worm, I am a worm. or he comes just where his people
are and he comes to give that revelation of God he comes to
save the sinner out of all his terrible state his fearful condition
lost in the fall of Adam the language of what's in the hymn
he says till God in human flesh I see my thoughts no comfort
find the holy just and sacred three are terrors to my mind
all but when we see God and we see him in the face of the Lord
Jesus Christ or when he comes just just where we are this is
what he delights to do he comes and he visits the sinner with
his salvation he makes God know what a what a wonder it is when
we know God then we know ourselves then we know something of the
greatness of our need or then we have that precious gift that
gift of eternal life it's life eternal he says it's life eternal
to know Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast
sent or Solomon would direct us to Him Solomon himself, of
course, is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. No wonder then
that he directs us to Christ. Here in the book of Proverbs,
how this wisest of men makes his confession concerning his
own sinful ignorance, but all his desire for that knowledge
of God. Surely I am more brutish than any man and have not the
understanding of man. I neither learned wisdom, nor
have the knowledge of the Holy. We ought to have that knowledge
of the Lord God in the face of our Lord Jesus Christ. May He
please the Lord to grant it to us for His name's sake. Amen. 748. God buried his glorious King in darkness,
for all I went astray, and wandered from the Gospel way. And since
the Saviour gave me sight, I cannot see without His light. It makes
me feel my ruin still. It lays my soul at mercy's use. and Jesus smiles at such a guest
and cheers him with a heavenly feast in 748.