I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who had no sense. – Proverbs 7:7

Today’s Scripture Reading (September 26, 2019): Proverbs 7

In the story of “The Lion King,” the struggle between Simba and his father, Mufasa, and Uncle Scar is really that between those who know the ways of the world and a child who doesn’t understand. The core plot point is that Uncle Scar takes advantage of his nephew’s youth and inexperience, making the cub complicit with the death of his father, and then convincing the young lion that the death of his father fell squarely on his young son’s shoulders. And so Simba goes into exile believing that he killed his dad, and missing how severely Scar had manipulated the circumstances that caused Mufasa’s death.

But the problem is not that Simba lacked mental capacity. Simba was not stupid, but he was inexperienced. He was gullible. Where Mufasa had learned a long time ago that his brother, Scar, could not be trusted, that was something that Simba was not wise enough to know. Simba’s problem is that he did not have the wisdom to understand that not everyone wanted the best for him. Some people are selfish and only chase after the things that they desired. And the needs or desires of others are rarely considered.       

We are not born wise. And that is okay. The lack of wisdom in our youth allows us to dream of the impossible, to conceive of things about which the wise have long ago given up. I don’t want my grandchildren to lose their childhood naiveté and grow into wisdom too soon. But that lack comes with a danger, and that danger seems to increase as we move into the future. My grandchildren do not understand the real dangers that lie out there in the real world. They do not see the people who want to take advantage of them and hurt them. But right now that is okay because their parents and grandparents are there to protect them from those hidden dangers.

The youth that Solomon sees falls into this category. The person is not stupid, but he lacks the wisdom needed to protect himself from those who wish to take advantage of him. Maybe this is because he was young, but it seems more likely, in this context, that his maturity is delayed. And it is that delay that concerns Solomon. While we don’t want our children to grow up too fast, it is dangerous for them to grow up too slowly. And when Solomon looks at his sons, he does not want them to be numbered among the simple who have no sense. He needs them to understand that there are those, and in this case, “women,” who want to take advantage of them. It is time for his sons to grow up and protect themselves from those who only want to hurt them and take advantage of them.  

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Proverbs 8