Solomon ruled Israel for 40 years around 1000 B.C. It was during his experience as king that he wrote much of the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Proverbs are short, concise statements teaching an important aspect of truth. Proverbs should be studied for their practical application to becoming skillful in life. Ecclesiastes was written to show how wrong decisions lead to an empty life.

Points to build on

Some proverbs are simple and direct statements like Proverbs 20:21: "An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning will not be blessed at the end." Here Solomon conveys that a person will tend to squander something he hasn't earned.

Many proverbs are written in one of three different forms of couplets.

Contrasting statement(look for the word "but"). Proverbs 10:4: "He who deals with a slack hand becomes poor, but the hand of the diligent makes one rich." Meaning: A person must work hard and plan ahead to make a living. The contrast is a person who doesn't commit to hard work or diligence in planning for the future and becomes poor.

Comparing statement (look for words "as/so", "better/than"). Proverbs 10:26: "As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to those who send him." Meaning: A lazy person is an annoyance to his employer.

Complementing statement (look for the word "and"). Proverbs 17:17: "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity."

The book of Proverbs can be divided into five basic segments:

1. Proverbs 1-9: Solomon's instructions for young people.

2. Proverbs 10-24: Solomon's instructions for everyone.

3. Proverbs 25-29: Proverbs of Solomon copied by the men of Hezekiah.

4. Proverbs 30: Proverbs of Agur.

5. Proverbs 31: Proverbs of King Lemuel's mother.

Application

There is an old saying that experience is the best teacher. It is even better to avoid costly mistakes by learning from the experiences of others. Wisdom reveals that the difficult and fickle path of self experimentation isn't always the best method of learning.