Outline of Proverbs
Title And
Purpose 1:1–7
Introductory
Instructions 1:8–9:18
The Proverbs Of
Solomon 10:1–22:16
The Words Of The
Wise 22:17–24:22
The Words Of The
Wise 24:23–34
The Proverbs Of
Solomon 25:1–29:27
The Words Of
Agur 30:1–14
Numerical Sayings 30:15–33
The Words Of
Lemuel 31:1–9
The Ideal Woman
31:10–31
There are two
main types of text in this book.
In chaps. 1–9,
And
22:17–24:35. are discourses on wisdom, poetry and prose to express the wisdom
of the wise.
The ch 10-22:16; 25-30 are a series of proverb/saying is usually a two-line composition, characterized by literary parallelism, that normally forms a world unto itself: “A wise son gives joy to his father / a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother” (10:1). It is best to understand “saying” as a neutral term that has given rise to specific types.
There are about 375 two liners in the book.- Just over one a day for a year. Now that’s the way to get to know these proverbs as they seem a random collection, so reading one a day gives you the chance to savour them individually. Some are a bit of a shock 17:8 “ A bribe is a charm to the one who gives it; wherever he turns, he succeeds.” Some we use in worship Prov.18:10 “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” They are a mixture of ‘how it is’ and ‘what we should be like’ but without any labelling. The reader is challenged to think about what is right and what is wrong. Proverbs challenges ‘the end justifies the means’ approach and often looks at consequences. But get reading them! They will do you good. That is if you are prepared to listen to wisdom!
Terms used.
lvm (maµsűaµl) is the most general term of all. It is commonly translated “proverb,” as in the title of the book. However, its usage is so far-ranging that it is of little use for classification.
rbd (daµbaµr) normally means “word” or “thing,” and it is used to refer to the individual sayings, as in “the words of Agur” (30:1; cf. Eccl 12:11). In English usage, “saying” and “aphorism” are practically equivalent to “proverb.” It should be noted that sometimes the saying is experiential. It tells it “the way it is.” At other times, and very often, the biblical saying goes beyond mere observation, and it urges a course of action, either implicitly or explicitly. Thus we read in Prov 13:12: “Hope deferred sickens the heart / but a wish fulfilled—a tree of life.” This simply registers the reality of the various ways humans are affected. Such self-knowledge is helpful in coping with life. But in Prov 12:19 a definite value is intended: “Truthful lips last forever / the lying tongue, but a moment.”
The parallelism between the lines of the sayings is a well-known phenomenon in biblical poetry, especially in Proverbs, and is not absent from prose. A literal translation of the saying in 28:3: “Poor oneself, and an oppressor of the poor—a devastating rain and no food.” Most translations insert the copula “is/like” between the two half-lines. This may be required in formal English, but it lessens the impact of the saying.
Note that parts
of the body, have significance.
dy yaµd, “hand,” is a metaphor for power;
bl leµb, “heart,” frequently connotes “mind.” The punch of a saying may be lost if the literal meaning is abandoned. There are limits, however. The frequent phrase “lacking in heart” connotes in English more the idea of weakness and discouragement. In Hebrew it denotes “lacking in understanding,” or “senseless.”
The “good” and “better” sayings (bwf t\oµb) are frequent.
“good” occurs usually in the phrase “not good” (19:2).
“better” There is some kind of comparison: “A is better than B.” This is the simplest form, “Better a near neighbor than a distant relative” (27:10). But the most frequent form is: “Better A with B than C with D.” This form gives a paradoxical twist to reality. Although possession is better than lacking something, the form can be used to indicate the opposite: “Better a little with justice than large income with injustice” (16:8). There are twenty of them in Proverbs, mostly in the early strata (chaps. 10ff.),
acrostic
Another literary feature is the use of the Hebrew alphabet, either loosely (an “alphabetizing poem”) or in strict acrostic fashion. In these cases the structure is determined by alphabetic considerations. Each line of an acrostic begins with a successive letter of the alphabet (aleph, beth, etc.), as in Prov 31:10–31. The alphabetizing poem (e.g., Prov 2:1–22) is so-called because it consists of twenty-two lines (the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet) or also twenty-three lines. This use of the alphabet may imply that everything, from A to Z, is present; a certain perfection seems to be indicated.
The numerical saying takes various forms, but the most common is x and x plus 1 (e.g., 3/4 and 6/7). Usually the emphasis is on the final item or number (Prov 30:18–19;
“blessed”
Another style popular is the “blessed” saying (yrva <asűreĆ) as in 28:14, “Happy the person who is ever cautious, but the one who hardens his heart falls into evil.”
This book is only part of the Proverbs of Solomon . 1Kings 4:29-34 tells us of 3000 proverbs 1005 songs and a vast knowledge of science.
Title And
Purpose 1:1–7
Introductory
Instructions 1:8–9:18
An instruction of the father to the son, 1: 8–19, is mainly a warning against the vividly described temptations posed by the wicked, who will be undone by their wickedness
Wisdom’s speech 1: 20–33 Wisdom is personified as a woman who delivers a condemnatory speech in the style of a prophet denouncing the failure of the people;
A poem 2:1-22 What catches the eye is not the form (an instruction), but the structure. It is unique in chaps. 1–9: a twenty-two line poem, exactly the number of the letters in the Hebrew alphabet, and it constitutes one continuous (and conditional) sentence. v1-4, is a series of ‘if’s followed by “then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.” . The remaining verses expand this statement. Parts of this poem are taken up and expanded in chapters 3-4.
(1) In 2:1–8, the seeker after
wisdom is promised to be drawn close to the Lord—the relationship to the Lord
is taken up again in 3:1–12.
(2) The relationship to Wisdom in 2:9–11 is taken up again in 3:13–26 and 4:1–9.
(3) The relationship to wicked men in 2:12–15 is taken up again in
4:10–27.
(4) The relationship to a woman in 2:16–19 is taken up again in 5:1–23
and 6:20–7:27.
3:1–35 has no clear structure but has
short sections on a whole variety of aspects of wisdom.
So how are we meant to read this literature. Where does it fit into to
our gospel? We must start where Solomon starts – the fear of the Lord is the
beginning. It is the lack of respect for God, the abandonment of his laws which
destroys the individual, breaks up the family and sends a nation on a downward
spiral. As mentioned last week. Our relationship with God is number one. It
affects everything in our lives, even our intellectual ability to understand
the world and respond to it. This book deals with almost every aspect of human
behaviour. God is not interested in our religiosity, he is deeply concerned in
our relationship with Him and our relationship with the people around us.
John describes Jesus as the Word. We interpret that as the revelation of
God or the wisdom of God. 2:6 says “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his
mouth come knowledge and understanding.” This should be our starting point.
That is not to say that the only knowledge is what is in the Bible but that ALL
true knowledge or truth comes by revelation not primarily by research. A
scientist can explore the world and gain great understanding of the mechanism
but he cannot understand the purpose or moral framework in which to study
without listening to what God says. Humanism does not stand up because there is
no consensus in ethics and morality. The human conscience is victim of the
pressures of the immediate issues not the long term. So true wisdom comes only
from what God has to say. But it is more than that. Solomon writes the fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Not just knowledge. Knowing God’s law
never stopped anyone breaking it. Only when one comes to recognise that God is
God does obedience become urgent. And for those who do not know Jesus, that
fear is a terror. A fear of the consequences of disobedience. For those who
have put their faith and trust in Jesus, the fear is different. It is that of
not wishing to offend the one who loves you. Not wishing to add to the
punishment he bore on the cross for my sins.
So Solomon, writes “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…..
The key to good healthy knowledge comes from an
act of faith. ‘Trust God.’
… with all your heart needs a little
explanation as we tend to associate the heart with emotion. In Hebrew thinking
the heart includes both emotion and intellect. To the antithesis of trusting
with all your heart is leaning on your own understanding. Looking at the world
from our perspective is fatally flawed. Only relying on God – acknowledging him
– will lead us into good ways. Jesus is the only way, the only truth and the
only life.
What follows shows the extent of this
knowledge. It hits your economics and your pocket v 9-10, your reaction to
trials v 11-12 , your valuation of life v 13-18, your understanding of science
v19-20, your commitment to care for others v 27-28, your reaction to men of
violence v 31-32. In simple terms it affects the way you interpret all the
events that surround you and those you watch on TV. We do not come here to do service to God. We come together as
those that serve God in our homes, our workplaces, our neighbourhoods, our bank
balances and our relationships to fellowship together doing together what we do
all week. That is the message of Proverbs. ALL of your life is a response to
the love of God and the salvation he gave you so freely and you received by
faith in him. So you are going to read these 375 proverbs with a view to
learning to live as God wants you to live. They are not Old ideas for past
people. They are part of the revelation of God in Christ. They matter today
because the fear of the Lords is the beginning of wisdom. Wise up, Trust God.
Proverbs
has something to say about the consequences of trusting God. It is good and
healthy. That does not mean that Christians will be healthy and wealthy and not
have trouble. Jesus, in fact, promised trouble for his followers. But in
essence following God’s way will lead to a joy and peace that enables us to
thrive in adversity and be humble in success. The average Christian is poorer
than the average non-Christian in human terms, because we of the value system
we are used to. Once you value joy and peace and hope and love then the work of
the Holy Spirit is all profit and no loss. But even in human valuation, a
Christian is better off because the wisdom of God is better than the wisdom of
man and leads to greater health, and wealth and safety. In fact becoming a
Christian can transform a drug-addict to leave his or her addition, the drunkard to be sober, the sex-mad to have
life of purity. Jesus takes our poor self – view and says “I love you!” He
takes our guilt and says “I forgive you”, he takes our weakness and pours in
his Holy Spirit to transform us from the inside out. He takes our hopelessness
and says “I am going to prepare a place for you….I will come and take you to be
with me”. Wise up, Trust God. It’s good
for you!