Proverbs 11:3 Commentary and Bible Study

A guide was very often needed in society. Here you are, back in the ancient East and here are the people, they are largely farmers and small tradesmen and then they need to get about and the people who make things need to interact with other cities not so very far away. A lot of trading and travelling was done. But there were not clearly illuminated roads and signposts in many places as there are today, and you would get into the mountains and you would have to have somebody who knew the passes and knew the alternative routes. You were no expert, you were just a traveller, so you wanted a reliable guide and not an unscrupulous one. Solomon describes integrity within us almost as if it is a separate entity which we can consult. It is of course our integrity and has become part of us through the renewing work of the Holy Spirit, and yet it is there as a guide that helps us to make choices about life. This is strange for we are on a journey to heaven and we have not passed this way before, but it is as if our guide already knows the way. Integrity seems to have a wisdom of its own, and that wisdom comes from the Lord and equips us for all the dangers and difficulties that we face in life. We might expect wisdom to be the guide, but instead it is integrity. If we focus on complete honesty and truthfulness before the Lord, it is he that will ensure our path is smooth and he will help us to make wise choices simply on the basis that they are in conformity with his commandments. Integrity guides us both negatively and positively. Negatively, it warns us that we are about to leave the path, and this is busy work, since for every true path, there are many false paths. Positively, it helps us when the way is obscure; we focus on pleasing the Lord in all areas that he has made clear. Integrity is given to us at conversion but it must be maintained; every right choice further strengthens it. At times it whispers quietly, and he must listen very carefully because otherwise our sinful nature will drown out its voice.But perversity is also deep within the heart. It makes men treacherous and utterly untrustworthy. We may find ourselves involved in elaborate justification of our conduct, not because we are convinced that it is the will of God, but because that is the way we wish to go. When challenged about their choices, some respond by saying that they have prayed about it and that seems to be enough regardless of whether those choices involve the transgression of God’s already revealed will. The end result will be eternal destruction.