King of Salem

Why Christians Are Stupid to Bash the Proverbs

“Solomon Wasn’t Righteous”

I. The Problem

It’s common. Modern Lutherans take up arms against the Book of Proverbs. Their argument? “Solomon worshiped Molech, so why should we trust his wisdom?”

This is Ahab at the Fuller’s field—not discernment, but theological suicide disguised as moral pride. It is an attack on the Word of God that does not arise from faith but from a failure to understand the Spirit of wisdom who comes to us in the Way, the Truth, and the Life of Jesus Christ. It is to scorn the mouth of the prophet for the life of the prophet, and thus, the design of Scripture itself—no curated list of perfect men. The Bible is a scroll of incarnate revelation through sinners.

II. Solomon: Not Righteous. So What?

Yes. He married foreign wives.

So did David.

Yes. He built altars to Molech.

So did Manessah.

Yes. His heart turned from the LORD.

So does yours.

But Scripture preserves his seal not in his works but in his confessions.

❗ The King in Jerusalem, the Son of David, left his reign as the Word of God, and that is why it is in the Bible: these are Jesus Christ’s Proverbs, which the most perfect imperfect Man of Peace there ever was wrote so that the King’s Church might see them, repent, and live.

If that scandalizes you, then you are scandalized by the entire Bible—because God never once limited His speech to perfect men or only latter books. If He did, we would have no Psalms (David), no Torah (Moses the murderer), no Gospel (Peter the denier), and no Gentile Church (Paul the persecutor). We are not saved by the moral record of the prophet, but by the righteousness of Jesus Christ imputed to the faith of men who learn to walk by God’s wisdom rather than the animal man’s reign (Matt 12:42).

III. Solomon Is Melchizedek’s Echo

When Solomon sat on the throne of Jerusalem, he was echoing Melchizedek, the King of S(h)alem-(Peace), priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18). He reigned and judged with wisdom, and offered sacrifices from Zion, where Christ would die.

Where did Melchizedek’s line fail? Shall we reject bread and wine now? His generations broke under the weight of glory and the Jebusites became no better than the Cain-like denizens of Canaan.

And that is the whole point.

Ecclesiastes is Solomon’s confession of error, a repentant man returning from the madness of eating grass and worshiping folly. Proverbs is his instruction to Rehoboam, which, if the histories are true, he must have read after his repentance. They are also his jurisprudence, his courtroom law for the lords of 100s and lords of 1000s among Israel. Song of Songs is romance, his secret garden, his magnum opus, misunderstood and overlooked by fools who shout “righteousness” but scorn “wisdom.”

IV. Proverbs: Holy, Inspired, and Wise

The Book of Proverbs is not a philosophical journal. It is canon:

• Every word is fire-tested

• Every line is fitted for the training of kings

• Every “my son” is divine father-speech for the common man to reign

Rejecting Proverbs because of Solomon’s sin is rejecting fatherhood that repents, kings that learn from their errors, and good goads given by One Shepherd.

V. Wisdom Is Not Just for the Righteous—It is His Righteous Results

Proverbs is not a reward for being good—it is a contemplative for making men wise. It’s a training for the naive. It rebukes the fool within you. It disciplines the young in thought. It does not require a righteous reader, only a willing one.

If Solomon failed to become what he preached, the fault lies not in the proverbs—but in the man. If he preached it after he learned what he’d lost, how much more valuable his repentance and insights. He wrote:

“The fear of Jesus Christ is the beginning of knowledge.” (cf. Prov 1:7)

If you do not believe that YHWH is Jesus Christ, you have much bigger issues.

Solomon was not righteous—but it is wisdom that makes a man repent.

Solomon was not faithful—but his proverbs are the reign of God’s Word.

Solomon failed—but the Holy Spirit does not.

VI. Rebuke the Wise

To every Christian who casts scorn on the Proverbs because of Solomon’s sin: do not be wiser than the Holy Spirit. Do not be holier than the Bible. Do not more righteous than the Son of God who quoted Solomon with readiness (Luke 11:31).

Do not be overly righteous, nor overly wise at all! Why should you destroy yourself?

As lamp-posts on the road to Zion, as training for sons of the kingdom, as wisdom cries in the gate, so the voice of the King in Jerusalem is not bound by our sins but triumphs over them, by daily contrition and renewal, of which, even in Babylonian Anglish, the Proverbs are still the best bang for your common man’s buck once you’ve been instructed in the righteousness of the cross of Jesus Christ.

“Wisdom calls aloud outside; she raises her voice in the open squares.”

“Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, and give attention to know understanding.”