The Book of Proverbs. Practical Wisdom for Everyday Life

Transcription

1 The Book of Proverbs Practical Wisdom for Everyday Life A Study by Jeff Stewart, June August, 2012

2 The Book of Proverbs Practical Wisdom for Everyday Life A Study by Jeff Stewart, June August, 2012 Introduction If you look at the world around you today, what do you see? Contentiousness, anger, greed, sexual promiscuity, fraud, despicable parents, disrespectful children, envy, deceit... The list of ills could go on and on. We might like to think that society has advanced tremendously since the days of Solomon, and it has in many ways. The explosion of knowledge especially in the last half century is incredible. However, the basic problems people deal with have changed very little. In our advanced society, we are populated with a bumper crop of brilliant failures. We probably do not have more fools than other nations, but as Jane Adams once said, In America, fools are better organized. i Just as it was in ancient times, knowledge is not enough to solve the problems of everyday life. We need wisdom the ability to handle life with skill. The Book of Proverbs is truly a gem in our Bible. Perhaps one that is too often overlooked. This book is a very practical answer to the problems rampant in the world yesterday and today. The book is unlike any other in our Bible, and might be considered the least theological. However, it is in many ways the most practical. As Robert Alden wrote: It is a book which seldom takes you to church. Like its own figure of Wisdom, it calls across to you in the street about some everyday matter, or points things out at home. Its function in Scripture is to put godliness into working clothes; to name business and society as spheres in which we are to acquit ourselves with credit to our Lord, and in which we are to look for his training. ii I like the phrase he uses, Godliness in working clothes. That s really what you will find in the study of Proverbs. I trust you will find our class this quarter to be very enlightening and beneficial in a most practical way. Lesson Plan and Book Outline Proverbs is truly a collection of sayings with no arrangement, outline, order, or progression. When you think about it, however, life is like that. We try to bring order to life, but opportunities, crises, and unexpected intrusions come. Sometimes life is boring while other times its many activities almost overwhelm us. We seek order and coherence, but often are driven to despair because our efforts fail. Perhaps that is why Proverbs comes to us in the form it does. iii This workbook is essentially a copy of the text of Proverbs; it is divided into 13 lessons that we will study this quarter. You ll notice that the first four lessons cover the first nine chapters of Proverbs in order. The other lessons are topically organized covering the rest of the book. Different approaches to studying the book have been taken over the years and it is difficult to Introduction to Proverbs 2

3 find one that is ideal. I ve taken a mixed approach. Since the first nine chapters are basically a series of discourses, we ll study them in order to maintain their context. The rest of the book is made up mostly of short proverbs with no obvious order or themes as they are recorded in our Bibles. We ll study these in a topical fashion. Here is an outline of Proverbs that you might find helpful by Robert L. Alden iv : In praise of wisdom (1:1 9:18) Prologue (1:1-7) Warning against joining thieves (1:8-19) The call of wisdom (1:20-33) The rewards of wisdom (2:1 4:27) Warning against adultery (5:1-23) Warnings against cosigning, laziness, and deceit (6:1-19) Warning against adultery continued (6:20 7:27) In praise of wisdom (8:1-36) The two choices: wisdom or folly (9:1-18) The proverbs of Solomon (10:1 22:16) Contrasting proverbs (10:1 15:33) Synonymous proverbs (16:1 22:16) The sayings of the wise (22:17 24:34) Thirty wise sayings (22:17 24:22) Further sayings of the wise (24:23-34) More proverbs of Solomon copied by Hezekiah s men (25:1 29:27) The words of Agur (30:1-33) The words of Lemuel (31:1-9) The noble woman (31:10-31) Authorship The book of Proverbs is really a collection of Proverbs from different writers over several centuries. Solomon certainly wrote most of them as his name appears at the beginning of several sections (Chapters 1 9; 10 22:16; 25 29). However, he was not likely the one that compiled this collection of Proverbs. Most likely, men under the direction of Hezekiah did so (see 25:1). Other writers include Agur (30:1), Lemuel (or his mother 31:1), and the wise men (22:17). The book of Proverbs is almost unanimously accepted as being part of the canon of Scripture. There are about twenty quotations or allusions found in the New Testament. What is a proverb? The word translated proverb in our Bible is the Hebrew mashal which meant a comparison, to be similar to, resemble. It came to have a broader meaning than this, basically standing for any kind of sage pronouncement. A number of definitions and descriptions have been offered. Some of these are noted below: Introduction to Proverbs 3

4 Websters: a brief popular epigram or maxim Oxford: a short, pithy saying in common use Archer Taylor: a proverb is anonymous, traditional, epigrammatic, and is characterized by shortness, sense, and salt Lord John Russel: the wisdom of many and the wit of one R.B.Y. Scott: a proverb sums up in compact and easily remembered form an observation or judgment which is widely held to be true Robert Harkrider: a proverb always intends to express in a few words what is a well-known truth Studying Proverbs You will find that reading the book of Proverbs is unlike reading anything else in the Bible. The first nine chapters are not that much different since they are discourses and short poems that generally flow together. However, the rest of the book reads much differently. You will probably find it difficult to just sit down and read a chapter in 15 minutes and walk away with the basic point of it all. Each proverb requires some pause and reflection, so the book reads very slowly. As Robert Alden observed, The Book of Proverbs is like medicine. You cannot live on medicine alone, but few of us go through life without some medicine now and then. At least we take a vitamin. Likewise, a spiritual diet of Proverbs alone would be most unbalanced, but how sick a person might be that didn t occasionally ingest some of these potions and antidotes for the sake of his mental, spiritual, and even financial well-being. v One thing you will find helpful in your study is to understand the various styles and structures of the proverbs. R.B.Y. Scott vi explains some of the types or styles and Robert Harkrider vii has a similar list: 1. Equivalence or association: this is identical with that Where no oxen are, the trough is clean (14:4) 2. Paradox or contrast: this is not really that a gentle tongue breaks a bone (25:15) 3. Similarity, analogy, or type: this is like that Like one who takes away a garment in cold weather, and like vinegar on soda, is one who sings songs to a heavy heart. (25:20) 4. Futility or absurdity: contrary to right order Why is there in the hand of a fool the purchase price of wisdom, since he has no heart for it? (17:16) 5. Classification or characterization: classifies persons, actions, or situations The lazy man buries his hand in the bowl; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. (26:15) Also, see 30:15-31 showing numerical classification. 6. Relative value or degree: this is worth that A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches. (22:1) 7. Consequences: this will cause that to occur Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him. (26:27) Introduction to Proverbs 4

5 A technique that most proverbs use is a fourfold structure. Atkinson describes this in more detail. viii You will usually see this in positives and negatives in proverbs. For example, A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is the grief of his mother. (10:1) Here, you see positive/positive and negative/negative. The patterns vary: (+/+, / ), ( /+, +/ ), etc. Noticing this pattern can often help unravel the meaning of a particular proverb. You may want to note such patterns in the margin of some as you are studying them. References I will be using a number of references to aide in my teaching. I ve listed a few of these here in case you would like to purchase some for your own study. The workbook by Harkrider is good if you like to have some commentary as well as some questions to answer ahead of time. Proverbs The Wisdom for Modern Man, by Robert Harkrider Proverbs A Commentary on an Ancient Book of Timeless Advice, by Robert L. Alden The Message of Proverbs: Wisdom for Life, by David Atkinson Learning From the Sages: Selected Studies on the Book of Proverbs, edited by Roy B. Zuck I really look forward to our study together this quarter. You will benefit the most if you read and contemplate the text before our class each week. Take some time to write down the key points you observe. When we get into chapters 10 and following, outline the structure of some proverbs especially the more difficult ones. Utilize a workbook or commentary to aide in your study. Let s make it a great quarter! The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Proverbs 9:10) i Alden, Robert L. (1995), Proverbs A Commentary on an Ancient Book of Timeless Advice, [Grand Rapids, MI : Baker Book House], p. 7. ii Atkinson, David (1996), The Message of Proverbs: Wisdom for Life, [Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press], p. 170, quoting Kidner. iii Alden (1995), p. 10. iv Alden (1995), pp v Alden (1995), p. 9. vi Zuck, Roy B. (2003), Learning From the Sages: Selected Studies on the Book of Proverbs, [Eugene, OR : Wipf and Stock Publishers], pp vii Harkrider, Robert (2001), Proverbs: The Wisdom for Modern Man. [Russellville, AL : Impressive Image Production], pp viii Atkinson (1996), pp Introduction to Proverbs 5