PROVERBS MEMORY CHALLENGE

Transcription

1 PROVERBS MEMORY CHALLENGE THEME: Godly Wisdom: Providence through Precept OUTLINE: I. PROLOGUE (PROVERBS 1:1-7) II. THE WISDOM DISCOURSE OF SOLOMON (PROVERBS 1:8-9:18) III. THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON (PROVERBS 10-29) IV. APPENDICES (PROVERBS 30-31) KEY CHAPTERS: The Benefits of Wisdom (Proverbs 2) The Value of Wisdom (Proverbs 3) The Safety of Wisdom (Proverbs 4) God s Wisdom in Marriage (Proverbs 5, 7) A Call to Wisdom (Proverbs 8) The Excellent Wife (Proverbs 31) KEY PASSAGES: Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction. see also Prov. 9:10; 15:33 Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 6:16-19 There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, a false witness who utters lies, and one who spreads strife among brothers. Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death. Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling. Proverbs 18:10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe. Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 25:21-22 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; For you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you. Proverbs 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth. Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. Proverbs 28:13 He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion. Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, but happy is he who keeps the law. Proverbs 30:5-6 Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to His words or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar. Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised. KEY PEOPLE: Solomon 3 rd king of Israel; writer of some 3000 proverbs and 1005 songs (1 Kgs. 4:32) The Wise and the Fool these two groups are regularly compared and contrasted in the Book of Proverbs so that foolish people will start acting wisely and so that wise people will not act foolishly. Six different Hebrew words are translated wisdom; three words translated fool. 42

2 I. INTRODUCTION: I. OVERVIEW: It is likely that many of us would not consider King David as the world s greatest dad as his life was constantly marked by war, fighting from within and without, and overt sin with extreme consequences. Yet, as he lay dying, he gave this advice to his son, Solomon: I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. And keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, so that the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel' (1 Kgs. 2:2-4). In other words, David is saying to Solomon, Don t be a fool! Don t turn away from God! Obey Him and follow all that He has to say, and if you do, He will bless you and honor His promise to keep the kingdom secure! In a similar way, Solomon, through the book of Proverbs, is giving words of wisdom to his son. This book is a collection of statements from a fatherly perspective. This is wisdom from dad, if you will, proven statements teaching critical lessons without the pain that comes from failing in these particular areas. If we were to poll everyone here, I would wager that all of us want to live wisely, and everyone here desires to benefit from the wisdom of those who have gone before us. You see, there is great benefit from this. For example, if someone accidentally sits down in wet paint, and they notice you about to do the same, do you not want them to inform you of this truth. This is precisely at the heart of the book of Proverbs. These key sayings from the life experience of Solomon, if studied, will make one wise! These are undiluted, concentrated, intense, unchanging facts of life, guidance for almost every situation, especially the nonspiritual. Proverbs specifically speaks of issues in the gray areas of life: work ethics, time management, social issues, economics, etc. II. BACKGROUND: The setting of the book of Proverbs is not unlike that of the most of the Psalms. This is to say, David s psalms and Solomon s proverbs were both written during a time of kingdom was at its greatest point of unity and blessing. The Psalms thus serve to give us a vivid view of the worship of God s people prior to the kingdom s decline and captivity, and the book of Proverbs reflects the zealous concern of believers for a righteous walk with God during this pre-exile period. Still, there are some noteworthy distinctions between these monumental books of Hebrew poetry: PSALMS In the Psalms, the believer is on his knees in reverence and awe of God The Psalms are for the Christian s devotions The Psalms are for the prayer closet and corporate worship PROVERBS In Proverbs, the believer is on his feet, walking in the way of godliness. Proverbs are for the Christian s walk Proverbs are for the business place and home 43

3 The message of the prophets (Thus says the Lord!) would come later to the nation of Israel, during the years of her apostasy and idolatry, to call the people back to a saving knowledge of God. Thus, God inspired the writing of the Book of Proverbs partly as an antidote to the spiritual apostasy of His people, Israel, which was soon to come. The book of Proverbs is, thus, filled with commands and exhortations regarding daily conduct. God in His infinite wisdom knew that His people would need to be reminded again and again regarding how they were to think, speak and act. So, He inspired the writing and collection of Proverbs. In the Old Testament there are six different Hebrew words utilized to communicate a specific aspect of godly wisdom, namely, discernment, knowledge, meditation, prudence, etc. In this, wisdom among the Hebrew nation differed from wisdom among other nation in that it rested firmly upon the conviction of a personal and holy God. True, godly wisdom (used 115 times in Proverbs) thus refers to a skill in living, intelligent choices made. By this, wisdom is applied, activated knowledge!!! It is the right use of knowledge as for someone to have knowledge does not necessarily mean that they are wise. Charles H. Spurgeon said, Many men know a great deal and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool than a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is wisdom. For example, a young child may can tell you what a car is, they have knowledge of it, but they lack true understanding of this knowledge, how to use it, and the consequences of its poor use. So, the wise man, according to Proverbs, is one who not only has knowledge of God, but walks in the way of the Lord, which is the way of truth and righteousness. As a result, his life is consequently blessed by God, and is a benediction to those within his family and circle of influence, and brings contentment to his own heart. III. TITLE: The common title of the book is Proverbs, which is taken from the opening phrase of the book, the proverbs of Solomon (1:1). The Hebrew word for proverb, mashal, comes from a root meaning to be like, or to represent. By this, the word conveys a wide range of meanings including the idea of comparison, a code of behavior, and the discovery of hidden truth. This is appropriate since most of the proverbs use comparison and analogy as a means to convey truth. Hence the Hebrew title for the book of Proverbs Mishle Shelomoh indicates that it is an anthology, or collection, of analogous sayings of Solomon. At there very basic level, proverbs are terse maxims for life concerning conduct and character in the social, moral, and spiritual realms. Essentially, the book of Proverbs is a collection of comparisons based on observation and reflection that seeks to instruct us in right behavior. Although Solomon did not invent the proverb as a literary form, he did advance it as one. The first appearance of the word proverb in the Bible is in Num. 21:27, Therefore those who use proverbs say, "Come to Heshbon! Let it be built! So let the city of Sihon be established. Additionally, the first citation of a proverb in Scripture occurs in 1 Sam. 10:12, A man there said, "Now, who is their father?" Therefore it became a proverb: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" Further, a New Testament citation of a biblical proverb is 2 Peter 2:22, It has happened to them according to the true proverb, 44

4 "A DOG RETURNS TO ITS OWN VOMIT," and, "A sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire." In addition, Scripture testifies of other known proverbs of proverb-type writings of antiquity: Egyptian (Acts 7:22; 1 Kgs. 4:30; Isa. 19:11-12), Edomite/Arabian (Jer. 49:7; Obad. 8; Job 1:3; 1 Kgs. 4:30), and Babylonian (Isa. 47:10; Dan. 1:4, 20). Archaeologists have even discovered collections of these proverbs from other nations as this was not a literary type exclusive to the Hebrew nation. To the contrary, there is strong evidence that pagan writers of this age were relying heavily, even borrowing, from the canonic Proverbs for their own purposes. For example, compare the following proverbs: Do not lean on the scales, nor falsify the weights, nor damage the fractions of the measure (an Egyptian Proverb) Differing weights and differing measures, both of them are abominable to the Lord (Prov. 20:10). What is the notable difference between these two proverbs, one by a pagan author, the other by Solomon? The important distinction lies in our recognition that the proverbs are instructions from the Lord, not mere secular maxims. It is significant that the name Lord (YHWH), appears eighty-six times in the book of Proverbs. Still, it is remarkable that even unbelievers recognize the value and literary genius of Proverbs. How much more, then, should we as Christians, cherish this inspired book as it serves as a practical guide for godly living through the power of the indwelling Spirit of God. IV. AUTHOR: According to 1 Kings 4:32, Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs in his lifetime. Astoundingly, the book of Proverbs does not even contain a third of what Solomon wrote. Still, it is believed that most of the biblical proverbs we have in this book originated with Solomon. In fact, the opening verses of three of the largest sections of the book (1:1; 10:1; and 25:1) attribute Solomon as author, though the latter section were proverbs of Solomon that were collected and compiled by King Hezekiah s men approximately 250 years later (25:1). With this said, early rabbinical tradition and early church fathers such as Origen and Jerome posit Solomon as the author of Proverbs in its entirety. Still, scholars point to the section 22:17-24:34 as being attributed to the wise men, possibly those referenced in 1 Kings 4:31. Solomon could have thus, been the one to assemble portions of their writings and add them to his own. Additionally, there is some debate as to the identities of the assigned authors of Prov. 30 and 31 (Agur and Lemuel). If these two names are references to real persons, then their identities are unknown. It could be that they were members of the northern Arabian tribe of Massa, one of the sons of Ishmael (Gen. 25:14; 1 Chron. 1:30). However, a more likely possibility is that both of these names are poetic references to Solomon himself similar to how he references himself as the preacher on seven occasions in the book of Ecclesiastes. The name Agur, means gatherer or compiler, which would be appropriate given that the book is a collection of Solomon s proverbs. Furthermore, the enigmatical names and words that follow, the son of Jakeh, the oracle. The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal, when translated means, the one who spat out/despised the words of God exclaiming I can transgress the law against marrying many wives without fear 45

5 of being misled by them. In this, Solomon is reflecting upon his own life and personal tragedy of allowing adultery and multiple, mixed marriages to harm his faith and relationship with God. The godly wisdom and counsel in this chapter (Prov. 30) draws from the deep well-spring of personal experience of Solomon s life stating that supplementing God s Word with man s speculations and philosophy is sheer folly. Likewise, the name Lemuel, means belonging to God. In this chapter (Prov. 31) we witness the author recounted proverbial truth that was given to him by his mother, warning him against giving his strength unto women, that is, fornication and immorality. Therefore the primary maxim being stated in Prov is concerning adultery, ungodly women in contrast to an excellent wife. This was exactly Solomon s problem in his latter years of life, which eventually led to his decline (1 Kings 11:1-4). As such, it is logical to reason that Solomon would have composed these final two chapters/proverbs later in his life, around the same time as the composition of the book of Ecclesiastes. Herein, Solomon is now offering godly, fatherly counsel to his son from the vantage point of his own personal experience, the proverbial school of hardknocks. In essence, Solomon is saying, heed my tried and tested counsel and learn from my mistakes in life. Additional information in these chapters that points to Solomonic authorship, it the observation that the mother mentioned here in Prov. 31 is in reference to Bathsheba, Solomon s mother, as verse 2 indicates that the author was a son of my vows. This is important because the first son between David and Bathsheba was a son of broken vows, who because of the broken vows died. However, by David s confession of his sin with Bathsheba, forgiveness was attained and Solomon was now a son of godly vows. Thus, when Solomon was born, Scripture says that the Lord loved him (2 Sam. 12:24 - Then David comforted his wife Bathesheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah for the Lord s sake). Though David named his son Solomon, Nathan gives him the name Jedidiah, which means beloved of God, which is the same meaning for the name Lemuel mentioned here. V. DATE: As noted above, most of the Proverbs, if not all, were composed by Solomon. As such, it is thought that the majority of the book of Proverbs was written while Solomon was middle aged (with the possible exception of Prov ), whereas the Song of Solomon was written when he was younger, and Ecclesiastes and Job when he was older. This would date the writing of Solomon s proverbs sometime between B.C. This dating is confirmed as the historical background of chapters 1-29, though sparse, corresponds very closely to the conditions and time of Solomon s reign as king. Still, it would not be until the time of Hezekiah s reign and reform ( B.C.) that the collection of Proverbs would have been compiled in its entirety (approximately 700 B.C) by Hezekiah s men (Prov ). It is even possible that the instruction of these proverbs would have been used to supplement the religious reforms of the godly kings of Judah, Hezekiah and Josiah, in a similar way in which the Psalms (Books II & III) were used and compiled during this same period of time. 46

6 VI. THEME: In our English Bibles, Proverbs is the third of five poetical books, the second of three books in the Bible designated as Wisdom Literature, the other two being Job and Ecclesiastes. As such the wisdom theme of the Book of Proverbs is a message concerning the fear of God. Wilbur Smith states, The book of Proverbs contains the distilled essence of wisdom which is based upon a fear of God, setting forth in remarkable figures of speech, with innumerable contrasting clauses, what is right and what is wrong, in the sight of God, pertaining to man s conduct The basic truth constantly affirmed in Proverbs is expressed in the famous statement, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (1:7, 9:10, 15:33; ref. also Ps. 111:10; Job 28:28). By this, Smith asserts that the chief purpose of not only Proverbs, but all of Old Testament wisdom instruction, is desiring and choosing to learn and apply the fear of the Lord to daily living. Essentially, then, the fear of the Lord is a worshiping, reverent submission to God, a relationship of total obedience to His covenant stipulations that prompts right method into our thoughts and right behavior into our actions. This means that there is a forsaking of the way of darkness, evil and death (2:11-15) and a walking in the path of integrity, righteousness, justice, and life (2:1-10). Herein is the way of true, godly wisdom. Furthermore, Proverbs is unique in that it states these purposes from the very outset of the book (Prov. 1:2-7). By this, the goal of reading Proverbs is: (1) to know wisdom and instruction. This wisdom, however, is not mere head knowledge, but divinely enlightened understanding of what is good and what is evil (1 Kgs. 3:9), as well as a personal experiential knowledge of the Lord. (2) to receive teaching in wise dealing, righteousness, justice, and equity. (3) to help the simple gain prudence and the youth to gain knowledge and discretion. (4) to increase learning and to acquire skill in understanding. (5) to understand hard sayings, namely, proverbs, parables, wise sayings, and riddles, and (6) to learn the fear of the Lord. Solomon reiterates these truths concerning the purpose of proverbs at the close of the book of Ecclesiastes (Ecc. 12:9-14). VII. LESSON: Proverbs is very practical because of its concern with the believer s daily walk. In this, it is not as much doctrinally oriented as it is in emphasizing faith in practice. One commentator states, While other parts of Scripture show us the glory of our high calling, this [Proverbs] may instruct in all minuteness of detail how to walk in a manner worthy of it. In other words, when we look into this book we see the details of our Christian obligations; that there is not a temper, a look, a word, a movement, the most important action of our day, the smallest relative duty that we undertake, in which we do not either deface or adorn the image of our Lord. By this, Proverbs truly shows us as believers how to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things (Titus 2:10). In short, Proverbs separates everyone into two categories: the wise and the foolish. It is written so that foolish people will start acting wisely, and so that wise people will not act foolishly. Regardless of how wise we are, every now and then, we will do something utterly stupid. Consider the author, Solomon, who is the quintessential 47

7 model of wisdom. Was he not prone to foolishness at times within his life. Well, the exact same can be said of us, and this is precisely where Proverbs fits. It presses and spurs us on all the more to wise and godly living. VIII. SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS: One of the greatest challenges to the book of Proverbs is interpreting its maxims. This is so, primarily because of the book s style and arrangement. For example, Proverbs is filled with a variety of styles and forms to include poetry, brief parables, sharp questions, detailed stories, monologue, sonnet, and epigram. Additionally, the book incorporates such literary devices as antithesis, comparison, imagery, personification, analogy, symmetry, parallelism, and antagonism. Moreover, the book is constructed in an arrangement of unit proverbs (Prov ), one to four verse maxim of which there are 375 of, as well as proverb clusters (Prov. 26:3-12), larger groupings of proverbs with a single, unified thought. For this reason, it may be necessary to refer to more distant verses, sometimes in another chapter, because of the miscellaneous character and ordering of the many proverbs. For example, the phrase strange woman found in Prov. 20:16 is explained by Prov. 2:16 (reference the outline below for a detailed listings of like proverbs). Thus, when reading Proverbs, it is helpful to follow these general principles for interpretation: (1) let the key verses (1:7; 15:33) guide your interpretation. (2) interpret wisdom as meaning righteousness or holiness, which is used by Solomon to describe the heart of a person who truly knows and follows God. In this same way, interpret fool or folly as meaning wickedness, that is, unbelief. (3) recognize that the proverbs are instructions from the Lord, not mere secular maxims. (4) remember that proverbs are often parabolic statements, figurative in their language and pointing beyond themselves. (5) consider that proverbs are intensely practical by nature, not weighted heavily in theology, doctrine, and history. (6) contemplate the fact that proverbs are not guarantees from God, but poetic guidelines for godly living. In short, proverbs are worded to be short, memorable axioms for life; they are not necessarily technically precise. They give good and godly advice for wise approaches to certain aspects of life, but they are not exhaustive in their coverage. And used wrongly, proverbs might justify a crass, materialistic lifestyle if these maxims are not lived in pursuit of the glory of God. The relation of Proverbs to Christ is deeper than may appear on the surface. Many biblical scholars see Christ as being foreshadowed in such explicit passages such as Prov. 8:22-31; 23:11; and 30:4. Regardless, a foundational connection exists between the wisdom spoken of in Proverbs and Christ. This is to say, the fullness of this wisdom, the fulfillment of these proverbial truths, is found completely in Christ (1 Cor. 1:30). In fact, the aspiration of the book of Proverbs is for wisdom to become incarnate (Prov. 8) as it indeed did when all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge became flesh in Christ (Col. 2:3). Furthermore, the wisdom of Proverbs is synonymous with righteousness as over and over again the wise man is equated as being a righteous man. And we know that no man is righteous apart from being clothed with the 48

8 righteousness of Christ. In this, the true wise man is one who believes upon Christ and loves the Lord God with all of his heart, mind, and soul. New Testament writers quote and allude to the book of Proverbs on several occasions. For instance, PROVERBS NT CITATION 3:7 Romans 12:16 3:11-12 Hebrews 12:5-6 3:27 Galatians 6:10 3:34 James 4:6 4:26 Hebrews 12:13 10:12 1 Peter 4:8 11:31 1 Peter 4:18 16:7 1 Peter 3:13 22:9 2 Corinthians 9:7 24:21 1 Peter 2:17 25:6-7 Luke 14:10 25:21-22 Romans 12:20 26:11 2 Peter 2:22 II. OUTLINE OF PROVERBS: The book of Proverbs contains at total of 915 verses and is a collection of some 503 wise sayings or proverbial statements. Yet, when it comes to outlining this book FORGET IT!!! You may be able to group a few common statements in chapters 1-9 and 30-31, but after this, it becomes increasingly difficult. The reason is, the book of Proverbs is a compilation of pithy insights that are stacked together for the sole benefit of our learning them. The proverbs are God s detailed instructions and exhortations to His people concerning their thought-and-deed life, especially to the younger generation (1:4, 8), so that they may live a life in pursuit of godly wisdom. With this in mind, the list of subjects written about in Proverbs is endless: wisdom, sin, the tongue, pride, idleness, love, success, temperance, morals, marriage, servitude, parenting, foolishness; God and man, time and eternity, truth and falsehood, wealth and poverty, purity and impurity, justice and injustice, pleasure and misery, obedience and rebellion, industry and laziness, prudence and presumption, and so on. Unfortunately, the book is not arranged topically, which means that although one verse may concern marriage, the verses that precede and follow may relate to work ethics or anger. In other words, Proverbs is principally organized in units of one-four verse sayings that may or may not have relation to the unit before or after it. For this reason, I have constructed an outline that is based around the central themes of the book in order to aid in our interpretation and understanding of this unique portion of inspired Scripture. 49

9 CENTRAL THEMES IN THE BOOK OF PROVERBS Anger 14:17,29; 15:18; 16:32; 19:11 Borrowing 6:1-5, 20:16; 22:7, Bribes 17:8, 23; 18:16; 21:14; 28:21 Business Matters 11:1; 6:6-11; 10:4,26 Children, Correction of 13:24; 19:18; 22:6-15; 23:13-14 Death and Sheol 5:5; 7:27; 8:36; 9:18; 11:17; 14:32; 15:11, 24: 23:14; 30:16 Family 1:8-9; 11:22, 29; 17:2, 6, 21, 25; 19:13-14, 26; 20:20, 29; 21:9, 19; 23:22-25; 27:15-16 Fear of God 1:7; 3:7; 9:10; 10:27; 14:26-27; 15:16,33; 16:6; 19:23; 23:27; 24:21 Fools Slanderous 10:18 Short-lived 10:21 Mischief-makers 10:23 Self-righteous 12:15 Irritable 12:16 Scoff at sin 14:9 Talk nonsense 15:2 Insensible 17:10 Dangerous 17:12 Visionary 17:24 Meddlesome 20:3 Despise wisdom 23:9 Stupid 27:22 Self-confident 14:16; Garrulous 29:11 Friendship 17:17; 18:24; 26:6; 19:4; 27:10, 17 Generosity 3:9-10; 11:24-26; 14:21; 19:17; 22:9 A Good Name 10:7; 22:1 Hard Work 6:9-11; 10:4, 26; 12:24, 27; 18:9; 19:15, 24; 21:17, 25-26; 24:30-34; 26:14-15; 28:19 Honesty 10:2; 11:1; 12:20; 13:5, 11; 15:27; 16:11; 17:8, 23; 20:10, 17, 21, 23; 23:10-11; 26:18-19 Human Sexuality 2:16; 5:1-6, 15-23; 6:20-35; 7:1-9, 14-27; 18:22; 19:13; 23:26-28; 27:15; 30:20; 31:

10 Integrity 3:33-35; 10:3, 9, 22, 24-25; 11:21, 27, 30-31; 13:6; 14:14, 22; 15:26; 16:7; 17:13; 18:3; 19:29; 21:8, 12, 16, 21; 22:8; 24:8-9; 26:1, 3, 27; 28:18; 29:10 Justice 12:17; 14:5, 25; 17:15, 26; 18:5, 17; 19:9, 28; 21:15, 28; 24:11-12, 23-25; 25:18; 28:5; Knowledge, Divine 15:11; 21:2; 24:12 Laziness 6:6-11; 10:4-5; 12:27; 13:4; 15:19; 18:9; 19:15-24; 20:4,13; 22:13; 24:30-34; 26:13-16 Leadership 16:10, 12-15; 20:2, 8, 26, 28; 23:1-3; 24:21-22; 25:1-7, 13; 28:2-3, 15-16; 29:4, 12,14 Marriage 5:15-18; 11:22,29; 12:4; 14:1; 19:13; 21:9-19; 31:10 Money 3:9-10; 10:15; 11:4, 28; 13:8; 14:20; 15:16; 17:16; 18:11, 23; 19:4, 6-7; 23:4-5; 28:20-22 Oppression 14:31; 22:22; 28:16 Pride 6:17; 11:2; 13:10; 15:25; 16:18-19; 18:12; 21:4,24; 29:23; 30:13 Prudence 12:23; 13:16; 14:8,15,18; 15:5; 16:21; 18:15; 27:12 Righteous Living 10:6-7, 16, 28-30; 11:5-10, 18-20, 23; 12:2-3, 5-8, 12, 21, 28; 24:15-16; 28:12, 28; Scoffers 3:34; 9:7; 14:6; 19:25; 24:9 Self-Control 16:32; 25:28 Sharing 3:27-28; 11:24-26; 13:22-23; 14:21, 31; 15:15; 16:8; 22:9, 16, 22-23; 28:27; 29:7, 13 Strife 3:30; 10:12; 15:18; 16:28; 17:1,14,19; 18:6,19; 20:3; 22:10; 25:8; 30:33 Strong Drink 20:1; 23:29-32 Temperance 20:1; 21:17; 23:1-3,20; 23:29-35; 25:16; 31:4-7 Tempters 4:14; 9:13; 16:29` The Tongue 4:24; 10:11-32; 12:6,18,22; 13:3; 14:3; 15:1-7,23; 16:13,23,27; 17:4; 18:7,21; 19:1; 20:19; 21:23; 26:28; 30:32 Trusting God 10:13-14, 23; 13:14-16; 14:6, 8, 15, 18, 24, 33; 15:14, 21, 24; 24:3-4, 7, 13-14; 26:4-11 Unjust Gain 10:2; 13:11; 21:6; 28:8 Women, evil 2:16-19; 5:3-14, 20, 23; 6:24-35; 7:5-27; 9:13-18 Women, good 5:18-19; 31:10-31 Wisdom The call of 1:20-23; 8 The source of 2:6 The preciousness of 3:13-26 The principal thing 4:5-13 The richest treasure 8:11-36 The feast of 9:1-6 Youth and Discipline 13:24; 19:18; 22:6,15; 23:13,14 51

11 III. KEY CHAPTERS: I. GOD S WORD IN YOUR LIFE (PROVERBS 2-4) Scripture is crystal clear in its teaching that those who know Jesus Christ, know true wisdom (1 Cor. 1:24, 30); and through His Word, we receive continued wisdom and instruction for daily, sanctified living. In these three chapters of Proverbs, which are part of a larger section known as the Discourses of Solomon (Prov. 1:8-9:18), Solomon is urging the young man ( my son is repeated five times) to lay hold of divine wisdom because of its blessings it will bring to his life (2:8, 13, 15, 18-20; 3:6, 17; 4:11, 14, 18, 26). This portion of Proverbs is similar to Ps. 119 in both its content and reverence of the Word of God. a. WISDOM PROTECTS OUR PATHS: (Prov. 2) i. God s command to His own (vv. 1-9) 1. Note what we as believers are to do with our Bible: receive it, hide it in our heart, incline the heart toward it, apply it to our lives, cry out to God for wisdom, and search the Word to find God s will. 2. Solomon is not simply offering a proverbial statement like, a chapter a day keeps the devil away. Rather, he insists that we must live in the Word of God, be saturated by its timeless truths, so that it lives within us. In this supernatural empowerment are we then able to avoid temptation and endure adversity. 3. Similar to the wisdom poem of Job 28, the imagery used here reminds us of the priceless, precious nature of Scripture, its worth being more valuable than gold or silver, its depths being endless, its breadth expansive, deserving of our mining in order to find rare gems of biblical truth. ii. God s care for His own (vv ) 1. Solomon sees two great dangers in the world: a. The evil man (10-15) the evil man is known for his big talk (v. 12); he always has some big deal for the young man to consider. But he is walking in the paths of darkness and being controlled by the prince of darkness himself, Satan. Instead of walking in a straight path, the evil man walks on a crooked path. The evil man wants us as Christians to believe that there are short-cuts to wealth and success, and that there are occasions where it is okay to profit by disobeying the Lord. b. The strange woman (16-22) the strange woman uses flattery and appeals to the appetites of the flesh. She has forsaken her own husband and broken her marriage vows (v. 17) and in so doing, leads the foolish young woman to death and hell. 52

12 b. WISDOM DIRECTS OUR PATHS: (Prov. 3) Trust and Obey!!! i. Listen to the Word (vv. 1-4) 1. The will of God is not some secret knowledge (Gnosticism) that we must uncover through hidden codes. Rather, the will of God is found clearly, plainly in the revelation of Scripture, which is God revealing Himself to man. The better we know our Bibles, the better we will know God s will for our lives. ii. Obey the Word (vv. 5-10) 1. The reality is, if we genuinely trust God, we will obey Him! A willingness to obey God is the first step toward knowing God s will (Jn. 7:17). 2. Note that faithful giving is viewed by Solomon as part of being obedient. iii. Submit to the Word (vv ) 1. Sometimes God has to chasten us in order to bring us into His perfect will (Heb. 12:5-11). If we submit, God will turn the chastening into blessing. iv. Treasure the Word (vv ) 1. Matt. 6:33 summarizes this truth perfectly: Put Christ first! Solomon lists in vv the blessings that come to the believer who lets the Word guide and direct his path. 2. Note that every part of the body should be controlled by the Word (Rom. 12:1-2). c. WISDOM PERFECTS OUR PATHS: (Prov. 4) Here Solomon gives us several instructions to follow if God is to perfect our paths as He desire to do (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 2:12-13) i. Seek After Wisdom (vv. 1-13) ii. Avoid Temptation and Sin (vv ) iii. Guard Your Life (vv ) II. THE GODLY WOMAN (PROVERBS 31) This chapter serves as an appendix, along with chapter 30, to the book of Proverbs. As previously mentioned, it is likely that Lemuel is the poetic name for Solomon and that this chapter represents wisdom given to him by his mother Bathsheba (31:1). Verses 1-9 serve as a discourse, or cluster proverb, and verses are an alphabetical/acrostic poem in that each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet (ref. Psalms 9, 10, 25, 34, 111, 112, 119, 145). Moreover, this acrostic poem that concludes the book of Proverbs maintains a chiastic structure, which further points to the literary skill and genius of the author. The chiasmus is as follows: A: High value of a good wife (v. 10) 53

13 B: Husband benefited by wife (vv ) C: Wife works hard (vv ) D: Wife gives to poor (v. 20) E: No fear of snow (v. 21a) F: Children clothed in scarlet (v. 21b) G: Coverings for bed, wife wears linen (v. 22) H: Public respect for husband (v. 23) G : Sells garments and sashes (v. 24) F : Wife clothed in dignity (v. 25a) E : No fear of future (v. 25b) D : Wife speaks wisdom (v. 26) C : Wife works hard (v. 27) B : Husband and children praise wife (vv ) A: High value of a good wife (vv ) Note that the center point of the poem is verse 23 and seems almost like an intrusion or interruption to the poem with the shift from the excellent wife now to the husband. In other words, all of the other verses praise the godly woman, but this verse alone focuses on the esteem the husband commands in the public arena. Thus, rather than being an intrusion to the poem, the structure identifies this verse as the prominent point, the central message of these verses. By this, the main purpose of the poem, of this proverb, is to provide wisdom to young men regarding what mind of wife a man needs in order to be respected in the community. The point is this, next to making a decision for Christ, the most important decision a Christian will make is the choosing of a spouse. Behind every great man is a great woman! Thus, Solomon is passing on the wisdom his mother gave him, wisdom that he did not always follow in life, to his own son. The description of the worthy woman in this poem is exalting the honor and dignity of womanhood. The chapter describes the virtuous woman and her excellent qualities: a. HER SPIRITUALITY: (Prov. 31:1-9) b. HER LOYALTY: (Prov. 31:10-12) c. HER INDUSTRY: (Prov. 31:13-22) d. HER MODESTY: (Prov. 31:23-26) e. HER PIETY: (Prov. 31:27-31) 54

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