Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
There is so much to unpack in the four short lines of text that make up these two verses.
Proverbs 3 is all about the wisdom that comes from trusting in the Lord.
In fact, the whole book of Proverbs is a wisdom book. In Proverbs 1:1, we learn that the Proverbs come from Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived.
Until Jesus.
If you’ve seen how he handled the Pharisees when they tried to trap him, you know what I mean.
Jesus himself claimed to be wiser than Solomon and his actions showed it.
Proverbs give us wisdom, understanding and insight. By contrast, Proverbs 1:7 tells us that fools despise knowledge.
But here in Chapter 3 we focus on the wisdom of trusting in the Lord.
And this wisdom has many, many benefits. But trust -the first word of this passage- also has many benefits.
“Trust in the Lord” is so important that there’s a whole section on it coming right up.
The four verses that went before this (Proverbs 3:1-4) were all about walking rightly with God and valuing his word.
These verses remind us of the many benefits of walking with God. He gives long life and peace to those who keep his commands.
We know his commands are for our benefit, so we gladly follow them. This way, we find favor and esteem with God and man.
Now we build on that foundation by adding trust.
And why not trust? The many obvious benefits are more than enough reason for a strong and active trust.
Trust is an interesting word, because it is closely related to faith and belief.
We know that Abraham believed God and look at all the blessings he received from it:
“And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
Genesis 15:6, ESV
Proverbs 3 5 and 6 Meaning
The traditional source of Proverbs is King Solomon.
He asked the Lord for wisdom and he received wisdom. Solomon wrote thousands of proverbs, but we don’t know exactly how they all got recorded in the Bible.
It’s interesting that Proverbs (chapter 8) gives Wisdom a feminine gender. Wisdom is a “she.”
It’s not that common to see gendered words in the English language. But many other languages assign gender to nouns. In Hebrew, wisdom is given the feminine gender.
The Christian Church is also feminine. She’s the bride of Christ and you can read about how she is the bride of Christ here.
The main point behind these two verses is to trust the Lord. This is in contrast to trusting yourself.
We all have a strong tendency to trust ourselves, don’t we?
If we encounter a tough situation, how many times do we obsess over it and spend so much time and energy on it?
What if we trust the Lord instead? What if we let him resolve it? What if we seek his wisdom for it?
If we -as the church- are the bride of Christ, shouldn’t we be looking to him as our head, our protector, our bridegroom for our sustenance? (people also ask “Who is Jesus’ Wife in the Bible?”)
Our God is the one who created and sustains all things. He continues to do great and mighty things! (many people ask “Who Created God?”)
When we really think about it, doesn’t it make more sense to trust him with our problems rather than going it alone?
8 who alone stretched out the heavens and trampled the waves of the sea; 9 who made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the chambers of the south; 10 who does great things beyond searching out, and marvelous things beyond number.
Job 9:8-10
Our God is the only true God. He made all of creation from nothing, just by speaking it into existence. (Genesis 1:3, ESV)
He was there at the beginning of time. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
By him all things were made.
If he made all things, isn’t he big enough to depend on? Well God’s word says so right here.
***
If you live in a big city, you might be familiar with those traffic helicopters. The helicopter crew flies around during rush hour and looks for traffic problems to report on.
They spy out the places where traffic is getting backed up on the highways and they report it so drivers so they can reroute their trip or adjust their plans.
How much better does the God of heaven see our paths? How much better does he understand the way we should go?
Many times the best route for us isn’t so obvious because of our limited vision here at ground level. That’s when we need to call upon the Lord for wisdom.
For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. (1 Cor 1:25)
One of the most frequently asked questions among believers is, “How can I know the will of God?”
In principle, Solomon gave a wonderful answer in Proverbs 3:5-6. When we:
· Decide to put our trust in the Lord.
· Decide to not trust in our own understanding, but give attention and priority to God’s revealed word.
· Decide to acknowledge and honor God in all that we do. (Guzik)
It’s amazing how much God will honor our trust in him. We might not understand the journey he’s taking us on, but if we just hold on tightly to him, he is always faithful.
It’s like the law of sowing and reaping.
We reap what we sow. If we sow corn, we reap corn. If we sow barley, we do not reap soybeans.
So if we want to reap trust, we should sow trust. What better way to sow trust than by trusting in God?
Our God is a loving and wise God who wants us to live a good life.
The book of Proverbs is designed by God to show us a better way to live so we will get more enjoyment out of life.
Proverbs 3 5-6 Trust in the Lord
The Bible has many examples of trusting in the Lord. Trust in the Lord is very important for the believer, and it comes with many benefits!
We see in the verses below, that trust comes with quietness, peace, rest and strength.
Trust also comes with love, joy, peace, gladness, and faithfulness.
Isn’t Jesus himself the perfect example of trust?
He trusted the Father in Matthew 26:39: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
But there are also many who did not place their trust in the Lord, and that was to their detriment.
Sometimes, they put their trust in the opponents of God, and that didn’t go so well.
Here are a few Bible verses about trusting in the Lord:
Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. Isaiah 26:4
For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, Isaiah 30:15, ESV
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord. Jeremiah 17:7, ESV
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Matthew 6:25, ESV
And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9:10, ESV
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. Psalm 20:7, ESV
O my God, in you I trust;
let me not be put to shame;
let not my enemies exult over me. Psalm 25:2
But I trust in you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.” Psalm 31.14, ESV
That your trust may be in the Lord,
I have made them known to you today, even to you. Proverbs 22:19
Is your Faith Founded on Fact?
Have you committed to follow Jesus?