The wisdom of God is a manifold wisdom. While it centres bodily in Christ, and thence issues as from its source, it is reflected and re-echoed from every object and every event. Every law of nature and every event in history has a tongue by which wisdom proclaims God's holiness and rebukes man's sin. Three classes of persons seem to be singled out here, and to each is administered an appropriate reproof:
I. The simple, who love simplicity. Probably we should not be far from the truth if we should accept this term in the Proverbs as intended to indicate that class of sinners whose leading characteristic is the absence of good rather than positive activity in evil.
II. The scorners, who love scorning. This class meet the threatening realities of eternity not by an easy indifference, but by a hardy resistance. They have a bold word ever ready to ward solemn thoughts away: a sneer at the silliness of a saint, an oath to manifest courage, or a witty allusion to Scripture which will make the circle ring again with laughter. Scorners love scorning. The habit grows by indulgence. It becomes a second nature.
III. The fools, who hate knowledge. Fools are those who have reached the very highest degrees of evil. Here it is intimated that they hate knowledge; and knowledge has its beginning in the fear of God. "How long shall fools hate knowledge?" Unless they learn to love it soon, they will hate it for ever.
W. Arnot, Laws from Heaven,1st series, p. 64.
References: Proverbs 1:20-23. R. M. McCheyne, Additional Remains,p. 9. Proverbs 1:20-33. H. W. Beecher, Christian World Pulpit,vol. xxiv., p. 291; R. Wardlaw, Lectures on Proverbs,vol. i., p. 38.