Two Paths, Two Destinies Text: Proverbs 22:3
Introduction: The Great Divide
The book of Proverbs is not a collection of quaint, inspirational refrigerator magnets. It is a book of applied theology. It is the Word of God teaching us how the world actually works, according to the grain of the universe that God Himself established. And at the heart of this wisdom is a great and fundamental divide. It is the divide between the wise and the foolish, the righteous and the wicked, and, as our text today puts it, the prudent and the simple.
We live in an age that despises such distinctions. Our culture wants to believe that all paths lead to the same destination, that all choices are equally valid, and that the only real sin is the sin of judging someone else's choices. But this is a lie from the pit. It is the lie that says there is no evil to be seen, no danger to be avoided, and no penalty to be paid. It is the lie that encourages men to be "simple." And as we will see, the Bible has a very different definition of "simple" than our modern therapeutic sensibilities might prefer.
Proverbs 22:3 presents us with a stark contrast, a fork in the road of life. On one side, you have the prudent man, who is characterized by foresight and defensive action. On the other, you have the simple, who are characterized by a kind of oblivious, headlong momentum. And the outcomes are as different as life and death. One finds refuge, and the other finds ruin. This is not just good advice; it is a description of spiritual reality. It is a call to see the world as it is, not as we wish it were, and to act accordingly.
This proverb is a diagnostic tool. It forces us to ask ourselves: which man am I? Am I the kind of person who sees trouble coming and takes steps to mitigate it, or am I the kind of person who whistles past the graveyard, assuming everything will just work out? The answer to that question reveals a great deal about our relationship to God and His created order.
The Text
A prudent man sees evil and hides, But the simple pass on, and are punished.
(Proverbs 22:3 LSB)
The Prudent Man: Seeing and Hiding (v. 3a)
The first half of the verse describes the wise man, the prudent man.
"A prudent man sees evil and hides..." (Proverbs 22:3a)
The word for "prudent" here carries the idea of being shrewd, sensible, or cunning in a godly way. This is not a man with a high IQ, necessarily, but a man whose mind is rightly oriented to reality. And what is the first mark of this prudence? He "sees evil." This is crucial. The prudent man is not an optimist in the modern, sentimental sense. He is a realist. He understands that the world is fallen, that sin has consequences, and that danger is a real feature of the landscape.
He is not paranoid; he is perceptive. He has what we might call sanctified foresight. Because he fears the Lord, which is the beginning of knowledge, he is able to discern the moral and practical consequences of certain actions and situations. He sees the "evil," which can mean calamity, danger, or moral wickedness. He sees the slick salesman's pitch for what it is. He sees the trajectory of a nation given over to licentiousness. He sees the danger in the "one more drink" or the "harmless flirtation." He sees the cliff edge long before the simple man even realizes he has left the path.
But seeing is not enough. The prudent man does not simply see the evil and then write a letter to the editor about it. He "hides." He takes refuge. He acts on what he sees. This is not cowardice; it is wisdom. When God warned Noah of the coming flood, Noah didn't form a committee to study climate change; he built an ark. When Pharaoh's soldiers were coming for the Hebrew infants, Moses' parents hid him in a basket. When God warned the Magi in a dream not to return to Herod, they went home by another way. When you see the train coming, the prudent thing to do is get off the tracks.
This hiding is an act of faith. It is acknowledging that we are creatures, vulnerable and in need of protection. The ultimate hiding place, of course, is God Himself. "The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe" (Proverbs 18:10). But this running to God often takes very practical, concrete forms. It means avoiding the foolish company that leads to sin. It means establishing a family budget to avoid the evil of debt. It means catechizing your children to protect them from the evil of worldly philosophies. Prudence is faith in shoe leather.
The Simple Man: Passing On and Paying the Price (v. 3b)
In stark contrast to the prudent man, we have the simple.
"...But the simple pass on, and are punished." (Proverbs 22:3b LSB)
Now, we must be very clear about what the Bible means by "simple." This is not a reference to those with mental deficiencies or a lack of formal education. In Proverbs, the "simple" man is the naive man, the gullible man, the man who is morally obtuse and open to any and every suggestion. He is the fellow who "believes every word" (Proverbs 14:15). He is willfully ignorant, not because he can't know, but because he doesn't want to know. He loves his simplicity (Proverbs 1:22).
The prudent man sees the evil, but the simple man "passes on." He just keeps going. He is characterized by a thoughtless momentum. He walks straight into the snare, strolls into the bad business deal, wanders into the adulterous relationship. Why? Because he is blind. He does not see the evil. He has no category for it. His worldview is flat, two-dimensional. He operates on the assumption that things are basically fine, that warnings are for other people, and that consequences are for the overly anxious.
He hears the sermon warning against gossip and passes on, continuing to slander his brother. He sees the red flags in his child's behavior and passes on, assuming it's "just a phase." He is warned by his elders about a particular course of action and passes on, confident in his own judgment. He is the epitome of the modern mantra, "You do you." He is the captain of his own soul, and he is steering it directly onto the rocks.
And the text is brutally clear about the outcome: they "are punished." The Hebrew word means to be fined, to suffer a penalty. This is not bad luck. It is the law of the harvest. It is the universe, which runs on moral principles, rendering its verdict. When you ignore the warning signs on the high-voltage fence, the shock you receive is not an unfortunate accident; it is the necessary consequence of your foolishness. The punishment is the logical, baked-in result of passing on when you should have hidden.
The Ultimate Prudence
This proverb operates on every level of life, from the mundane to the eternal. It is prudent to look both ways before crossing the street. It is prudent to save for retirement. It is prudent to avoid entangling alliances in business. But the principle finds its ultimate expression in the gospel.
The greatest "evil" any man faces is not financial ruin, or social disgrace, or even physical death. The greatest evil is the coming wrath of a holy God against sin. The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is a flashing warning sign of this impending judgment. "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men" (Romans 1:18).
This is the great calamity, the ultimate danger. And God, in His mercy, has not been silent about it. He has sent prophets, apostles, and ultimately His own Son to warn us. The prudent man, therefore, is the one who hears this warning, sees this evil, and "hides."
And where does he hide? He hides in the only place of refuge God has provided. He hides in the Rock of Ages, cleft for him. He hides in Jesus Christ. Christ is our ark, our city of refuge, our strong tower. On the cross, He absorbed the full penalty that was due to the simple who passed on. He took the punishment so that we, by faith, could find shelter in Him. To flee to Christ in repentance and faith is the ultimate act of prudence.
Conclusion: Are You Simple or Shrewd?
The simple man, in this ultimate sense, is the one who hears the gospel and "passes on." He hears of the coming judgment and dismisses it as fear-mongering. He is told of his need for a Savior and insists he is a good person. He is offered the free gift of grace and walks on by, too busy, too sophisticated, or too proud to receive it. And the Bible says he will be punished. He will pay the penalty himself, because he refused the refuge offered to him.
So the question comes to each one of us. The warning has been issued. The evil of God's righteous judgment against sin is real and it is coming. The place of refuge, Jesus Christ, has been plainly revealed. Will you be prudent? Will you see the danger and hide yourself in Him?
Or will you be simple? Will you hear this word and just pass on, continuing down the broad road that seems right to a man, but ends in destruction? The prudent man sees the cross as his only hiding place. The simple man passes on by, and is punished.