Proverbs 7:7 (Mini Sermon)

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1.      Pro 7:7 – “And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,”

1. And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths,
   1. This parallelism identifies young people as simple.
      1. Simple adj. – 1. Free from duplicity, dissimulation, or guile; innocent and harmless; undesigning, honest, open, straightforward. II. 4.  a. Of persons, or their origin: Poor or humble in condition; of low rank or position; undistinguished, mean, common.   9. Deficient in knowledge or learning; characterized by a certain lack of acuteness or quick apprehension:  a. Of persons (and animals).  b. Of mental powers, etc.  10. a. Lacking in ordinary sense or intelligence; more or less foolish, silly, or stupid; also, mentally deficient, half-witted (now dial.).
      2. The context of the verse makes it clear that definitions 9&10 are the senses in which simple is to be taken in this verse.
      3. Youth n. – 1. a. The fact or state of being young; youngness. (Often blending with sense 2.) a. The time when one is young; the early part or period of life; more specifically, the period from puberty till the attainment of full growth, between childhood and adult age.
         • Youth can extend into young adulthood when a man is of marrying age (Pro 5:18; Mal 2:14).
         • Youth are old enough to commit whoredom (Eze 23:3, 8, 19, 21).
         • A man can be a young man even after the days of his youth (adolescence) (Mat 19:20).
         • Timothy was said to have youth even as a pastor/elder (1Ti 4:12).
      4. Oftentimes, young people in their teens and early 20s (and some older than that) are deficient in knowledge, lack common sense, are mentally deficient, half-witted, and often downright stupid.
      5. The young man that denies this about himself when others clearly see it manifests his foolishness.
   2. This passage also teaches us that in order to discern we must behold.
      7. Behold v. – I. To hold by, keep, observe, regard, look. trans.  a. To hold or keep in view, to watch; to regard or contemplate with the eyes; to look upon, look at (implying active voluntary exercise of the faculty of vision). arch. This has passed imperceptibly into the resulting passive sensation:  b. To receive the impression of (anything) through the eyes, to see: the ordinary current sense.
      8. Discern – 1. trans. To separate (things, or one thing from another) as distinct; to distinguish and divide. 2. To recognize as distinct; to distinguish or separate mentally (one thing from another); to perceive the difference between (things).
      9. If we are not looking, watching, and paying attention to our surroundings, both literally and figuratively, we will not discern what is happening and distinguish right from wrong and truth from error.
      10. If we are to be wise men, we must be circumspect (Eph 5:15).
      11. Circumspect – 1. Of things or actions: Marked by circumspection, showing caution, well-considered, cautious. 2. Of persons: Watchful on all sides, attentive to everything, cautious, heedful of all circumstances that may affect action or decision.
   3. a young man void of understanding,
      1. As stated above, young men are often void of understanding.
         1. Void adj. – 1. a. Of a see, benefice, etc.: Having no incumbent, holder, or possessor; unoccupied, vacant.  4. Not occupied by visible contents; containing no matter; empty, unfilled:
         2. Understanding n. – 1. a. (Without article.) Power or ability to understand; intellect, intelligence. of understanding, intelligent, capable of judging with knowledge. Similarly of some, of no, understanding.
      2. The whore goes after young men because they lack understanding (Pro 6:32) and can be easily seduced with flattery (Pro 6:24).

• In this state of foolish youth, young men often commit grievous sins which they will regret for the rest of their lives (Job 13:26; Psa 25:7; Psa 79:8; Jer 31:19).

This is why it’s so important for young men and women to seek God in the days of their youth in order to be delivered from the strange woman and sin in general (Ecc 11:9-10; Ecc 12:1; Lam 3:26-27; 2Ch 34:3).