The Cure for Stupid: Practical Principles from Proverbs

By Wayne Page

What is "stupid"? Are people born with it? Is it a mental disease? Can stupid be cured? According to Solomon, the ancient king of Israel, yes! Solomon was said to be wiser than anyone else in the world. If you could get personal advice from the wisest person on earth, would you listen? Proverbs is thirty-one chapters filled with Solomon's priceless nuggets of wisdom. Ours for the taking!

Solomon wrote extensively about a subject that surprised me--stupid people. Stupidity is not a modern problem. Stupid people were around back when the world was flat! And they were just as annoying back then as they are now.

We have all heard the statement, "You cannot cure stupid!" Solomon argues to the contrary. He says there is a cure for stupid. Solomon wrote, "Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise." Join me as we take a walk with Solomon through the pages of Proverbs. I dare say that this journey could be life-changing!

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098087739

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The Cure for Stupid

Practical Principles from Proverbs

Wayne Page

Copyright © 2021 by Wayne Page

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

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All scripture references are from the New International Version (NIV), Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®, unless otherwise stated.

All scripture references are taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) taken from the Amplified® Bible, Copyright© 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture quotations marked (CEV) are taken from the CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH VERSION (CEV): Scripture taken from the CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH VERSION copyright© 1995 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (GW) are taken from the GOD’S WORD (GW): Scripture taken from GOD’S WORD copyright© 1995 by God’s Word to the Nations. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (MSG) are taken from THE MESSAGE: THE BIBLE IN CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH (TM): copyright© 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Scripture quotations marked (NASB) are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright© 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (NKJ) taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright© 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, IL 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (VOICE) are taken from THE VOICE™. Copyright© 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Other Bible versions used are as follows:

AMP—Amplified Bible, Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631.

CEB—Common English Bible, Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible

CEV—Contemporary English Version, Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society

CJB—Complete Jewish Bible, Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern.

ERV—Easy-to-Read Version, Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International

ESV—The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

EXB—The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc.

GNT—Good News Translation, Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society

GW—GOD’S WORD Translation, Copyright © 1995 by God’s Word to the Nations. Used by permission of Baker Publishing Group.

HCSB—Holman Christian Standard Bible, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee.

ICB—The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible®, Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.

KJV—King James Version, Public Domain

MSG—The Message, Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

NASB—New American Standard Bible, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

NCV—New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

NET—New English Translation, NET Bible®, Copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.

NKJV—New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.

NLT—Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

NLV—New Life Version, Copyright © 1969 by Christian Literature International

NOG—The Names of God Bible (without notes), Copyright 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.

Phillips—The New Testament in Modern English by J.B Phillips, Copyright © 1960, 1972 J. B. Phillips. Administered by The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England. Used by Permission.

TLB—The Living Bible, Copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

TPT—The Passion Translation®, Copyright © 2017 by BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ThePassionTranslation.com

VOICE—The Voice Bible, Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc, The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society

Introduction

The biblical book of Proverbs is perhaps the greatest work of wisdom literature in the history of the world. It is a collection of proverbial statements written mostly by Solomon, King of Israel. But what is a proverb? The English word proverb is made up of two Latin words pro (instead of) and verba (words). A proverb is a concise sentence given instead of many words—a short statement that summarizes a wise principle—one that could take many words to fully explore and express.

Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser. Let those with understanding receive guidance by exploring the meaning in these proverbs and parables, the words of the wise and their riddles. (Prov. 1:5–6 NLT)

Notice how the wise get wiser and those with understanding receive guidance: by exploring the meaning in these proverbs and parables. To obtain the full meaning of Solomon’s writings, they must be explored. There is more than what appears on the surface. Of course, it starts with listening—we will never glean the benefit of Solomon’s wisdom until we at least take the time to read what he wrote. But to get the full benefit, we must explore what he wrote. Go deeper. Consider the proverbs from varied perspectives. Compare them to other sources of wisdom.

While the book of Proverbs is an amazing source of wisdom, studying it can be a challenge due to the seemingly random layout of its subject matter. It jumps from subject to subject to yet another subject. Years ago, I realized the benefit of learning the wisdom of this amazing book. But I often got lost in the trees as I read through it. In writing this study, I looked at the book of Proverbs from a topical perspective. Rather than going through the book chapter by chapter, I studied it subject by subject. I pray this study will help all of us discover more of the amazing wisdom within the book of Proverbs and help implement more of it into our daily lives.

Why Should We Listen to Solomon?

Solomon was brilliant. God had blessed him with insight and understanding. He was wiser than anyone else in the world, including the wisest people of the East and of Egypt. (1 Kings 4:29–30 CEV)

The Bible describes King Solomon as one of the wisest people who ever lived. If you could get personal advice from the wisest person in the world, would you listen? That is the gift that God has given us in this great book called Proverbs.

The key word in the book of Proverbs is wisdom. The Bible teaches that there is more than one kind of wisdom, and they are not always equal in value. There is a wisdom of this world (1 Cor. 2:1–8; James 3:13–18), and there is divine wisdom from God. And of course, Jesus Christ is the ultimate personification of godly wisdom (1 Cor. 1:24, 30; Col. 2:3). But sometimes, wisdom must be sought before it can be caught.

I [wisdom] love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. (Prov.