Proverbs 10:1

The proverbs of Solomon:
A wise son makes a glad father,
But a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
-Proverbs 10:1

We now enter into the wise sayings of Solomon portion of Proverbs. To begin, Solomon introduces the role of the child to heed their parents. A part of me laughs when I read this as the first listed proverb in this book due to the fact that Proverbs is written to the son of Solomon. All the same, this is very important for us to understand. There are two roles at play here. There is the role of the parent and that of the child. It is the responsibility of the parent to train their children, but it is the responsibility of the children to heed their parents. The mother grieves the direction of the child when the child strays, but it is the child that suffers the foolishness.

Parents, walk yourselves in wisdom and train up your children in such matters. Children, heed the wisdom of your parents and keep yourself from foolishness. If you do this, you will do well.