Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 14-17.

When I started reading the Book of Proverbs this year I became convinced that the link between foolishness and moral depravity which is implied by the Hebrew words used for “fool” and for “the simple minded” provided a key understanding of this book.  The wise build up, the foolish tear down.  Many of the ideas expressed in the proverbs in today’s passage relate to that idea.  Fools use their words to lash out at those whom they perceive as being in their way, while the wise choose their words in order to build others up.  Throughout today’s passage the writer contrasts the ways in which wise and righteous people speak to the ways in which foolish and wicked people use words.  I want to point out that to the writer saying wise and righteous is redundant, as is saying foolish and evil.  Being evil is foolish and wisdom teaches us to do what is right.  There is another word which the writer uses that our society views differently from the writer.  That word is “mocker”.  The writer considers a mocker to be a wicked person and a type of fool.  Whereas our society often admires those who mock others.  Mockers hold people up for scorn, while the wise seek to teach those who have made foolish decisions.  Wisdom teaches us to choose our words with care and to be silent when unsure of what to say.  The temptation to speak when we should remain silent sometimes leads us to say things which make matters worse.   There is one other important, and related, point which the writer brings up in today’s passage.  The wise seek to avoid quarrels and settle quarrels which come up between others.  Fools like to stir up quarrels between others and sometimes find amusement in angering others.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 9-13.

The writer tells us that both wisdom and folly invite the simple, the gullible, those inclined to evil, to come to them.  Wisdom offers discipline and hard work leading to insight.  Folly offers stolen water and secret pleasures.  Wisdom tells us that those who mock others and the wicked get angry when told that they have made, or are about to make, a mistake, while the wise welcome such advice.  In fact, the wise welcome being rebuked.  Those who seek righteousness listen to those who seek to correct their behavior, even when their behavior did not need correcting.  Wisdom recognizes that they can always gain more wisdom and listen to the advice of others, even when that advice seems foolish.  The wise embrace discipline and being disciplined while the foolish resent being corrected.  The writer also tells us that we find in others what we seek in them.  If we look for good in others, we will find it, but if we seek evil, we will find that.  In part this means that people will tend to respond to what we expect of them.  If we expect people to respond with goodness, and treat them accordingly, most of the time they will do so.  On the other hand, if we expect people to respond maliciously, they often will do so.  More importantly, if we expect people to be good, we will usually find ourselves around those who are good, while if we expect people to be evil, we will usually find ourselves around those who do evil.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 5-8.

The writer warns against adultery.  He speaks of the lure of an adulterous woman, but the same thing holds true of adulterous men.  He writes about how they offer what a pleasurable experience which disguises pain, hurt, and a loss of dignity.  The writer contrasts getting involved with an adulterer to acting with discipline.  He tells us how much better living a disciplined life is than living one of instant gratification.  Instead, the writer tells us we should reserve our most intimate activities to one to whom we have committed ourselves and who has committed themselves to us.  Our ways will be examined by God, and the wicked will be destroyed by their lack of discipline.  The writer speaks of how wisdom calls out to us.  As he does so, he reminds us once again that  being inclined to evil and/or being morally deficient leads one to act foolishly.  Those who give in to temptation have failed to exercise wisdom and have allowed themselves to be deceived by foolishness.  Those who act righteously and seek justice (and not justice in the abstract, but specific case by case justice) learn wisdom.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 1-4.

The purpose of the Book of Proverbs is to help us gain wisdom and understanding.  It gives instruction on prudent behavior and how to do what is good and right.  Here in the introduction it tells us that these writings give prudence to the simple.  Then a little later it tells us that fools despise wisdom and instruction.  Both the word “simple” and the word “fool” have translator notes which tell us something important about them.  The translator note for “simple” says that the word translated there means someone who is gullible.  That is not that significant, since that is how we understand the word.  But, the note also says that it denotes someone who is without moral direction and inclined to evil.  Then the note for “fool” tells us that the word so translated implies someone who is morally deficient.  In our society today, we have a tendency to give the word simple, and to a lesser degree the word fool, the opposite connotation.  Our society thinks that someone who has clear moral direction and is inclined to do good is “simple” and that those who have moral principles are fools.  Once we understand that our society gets the meanings of those words exactly backwards we are on our way to true wisdom.  Doing so starts us well on the way to realizing the truth of the statement that fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.  There is much more in this passage, but I am going to leave you with this quote from the passage:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 29-31.

Today’s passage wraps up the Book of Proverbs with more single verse proverbs followed by the Sayings of Agur and the Sayings of King Lemuel, perhaps the last bit about a wife of noble character is part of the Sayings of King Lemuel, or perhaps it is a separate piece of its own.  Both the individual proverbs and the Sayings of Agur contain a warning against arrogance and pride.  While the passage gives general warnings that being proud will lead to your downfall, the passage also warns against bragging on yourself.  The writer tells us that we should not praise ourselves, rather we should let others honor us based on their own observations.  The writer contrasts the benefits of being humble against the dangers of being arrogant.

However, I was truly struck by this proverb for an explanation of our society today:

Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint;
but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.

I think this refers more to acknowledging the revelations which God has already made than it does to receiving new revelations from God.  I believe we are seeing that around us today.  People refuse to acknowledge that God has revealed Himself, or refuse to accept what He has revealed about Himself, so that they can justify doing what they please.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 25-28.

Today’s passage contains some of my favorite advice from Scripture.  In several different ways the writer tells us to avoid excess and instead do things in moderation.  Perhaps one of my favorite passages is Proverbs 26 verses 4 and 5

Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
or you yourself will be just like him.
Answer a fool according to his folly,
or he will be wise in his own eyes.

These two verses seem to contradict one another, but with some thought they make sense.  Verse four tells us not to allow those we are arguing with to set the terms of the debate, while verse five tells us to take the fool’s argument to its logical conclusion in order to demonstrate its foolishness.  The writer also warns us against those who will misuse wise sayings to support foolish ideas or Scripture to support ungodly behavior.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 22-24.

Today’s passage continues the pattern of those from the last two days, starting out with each verse being a single stand alone proverb.  It then transitions into a series of more complex sayings which each take several verses.  Nevertheless there are several ideas which the writer refers to several times.  The writer repeatedly writes about the importance of disciplining children.  In particular, he points out the need for negative reinforcement to train children to avoid foolish behavior, and that corporal punishment is one of the most efficient forms of negative reinforcement.  On what I consider a related theme, the writer warns us against making friends with those who cannot control their tempers, or who engage in other foolish behavior.  He warns that such behavior might rub off on us.  I consider it related because it is a lesson which children often struggle to learn.  I also find this challenging because Jesus calls on us to associate with sinners in order to show them His love.  I believe that the contradiction between these two teachings (the proverb writer teaching us to avoid those who act in undesirable ways and Jesus teaching us to spend time with those who demonstrate a need for His love with their actions) can be resolved by thinking about the reason the proverb writer gives for his warning.  He warns us that such behavior might rub off on us.  We learn from this that the behaviors of those we spend time with will influence our behaviors.  Therefore, we must make sure that we spend large amounts of time around those who model the types of behavior which Christ encourages us to imitate, while not excluding those who fail to do so.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 18-21.

Today’s passage continues the collection of short proverbs.  It continues to give examples of the importance of controlling both your temper and your tongue.  It also reiterates that we make plans, but only those plans which fit into God’s purpose will come to fruition.  Today’s passage contains several proverbs which speak to me.  He tells us that a good wife is a gift from God.  Every time I read this passage I am reminded to thank God for the wife He gave me.  For me, the writer’s exhortations for patience runs right into that, as it took me a long time to find my wife.  However, seeking a life mate is only one area where patience is essential.  The proverb writer warns that being hasty leads us to make poor decisions.  Seek counsel and patiently consider your options before making any important decision.  The proverbs in today’s passage cover many more subjects.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 14-17.

I found today’s passage challenging to write on because it is composed entirely of some of the proverbs for which this book is named (I know, I write this every year).   For the most part, these proverbs do not have a theme and are all useful lessons in wisdom.  However, there are a few ideas which the writer comes back to again and again.  The writer tells us that wisdom teaches us to control our tempers and not allow ourselves to let anger, or other emotions, control our actions or our tongues.  For that matter, the writer reminds us that wisdom teaches us to choose our words carefully.  Throughout the Book of Proverbs, the writer uses the word “mocker” as a synonym for fool.  It is worth noting that other translations use the word “scoffer” where the NIV uses “mocker”.   In this particular passage, the writer tells us that those who mock others, or scoff at them, have trouble finding wisdom, but those who seriously listen to others gain knowledge and wisdom easily.

The writer tells us that while we may plan our course, God determines how things work out.  If we plot evil, we will find everything going astray.  On the other hand, if we plan to do good, good will come of what we do, even if our plans do not work out as we intended.  Throughout the Book of Proverbs the writer teaches us that we should seek wise counsel when making plans, but here he reminds us that the wisest counsel includes allowing for God to direct us down a different path than what we planned to take.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Proverbs 9-13.

Both Wisdom and Folly sit in places of prominence and call to every passerby, “Let all who are simple come to my house!”  So, since both advertise themselves and call to us, how do we tell the difference?  Well, the writer informs us that righteousness and wisdom go hand in hand: righteous acts display wisdom, wicked behavior displays folly.  Further, the wise accept instruction and correction, while the fool resents anyone who makes them aware of their mistakes.  Further, the writer says that Folly promotes dishonesty and deceit.  The writer goes on from there to list a bunch of proverbs which help us act both wisely and righteously.  He tells us that the wise choose their words with care and think before they speak, while the fool allows their emotions to control their mouth.  The writer reminds us that we find what we seek.  If we seek good we will find it, and if we seek evil that is what will come to us.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.