PROVERBS - NUGGETS OF TRUTH FOR WISE LIVING

Lesson 1 Understanding & Interpreting Proverbs

OT 3 Approaches to Spirituality
1. Prophets - direct word from God (law) 2. Priests - regulate services of the temple and the sacrificial system (worship) 3. Wise Man (Sages) - dealt with the matters of everyday life and how to live well (wise living) This three-fold approach to God is reflected in Jeremiah 18:18: for instruction shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet."

What Are Proverbs?

Hebrew mashal - any kind of verbal comparison. Most of the mashal are two to four-line sayings in the form of Hebrew poetic parallelisms. Written in short sentences drawn from long experiences. The most practical book in the Bible: 1. Vertical wisdom for horizontal living. 2. A collection of God-given wisdom (look at life from God's perspectives). Every waking moment of our lives, we operate from one of two viewpoints: human or divine.

Purpose of the Book

Central Concern - Live life in REVERENTIAL AWE of God. This call opens the book (Prov. 1:7), pervades it (Prov. 9:10), and brings it to a close (Prov. 31:30). It is intended to form Gods (or godly) character in those who read & apply it. This is the reason many of the proverbs are grounded explicitly in Gods character (Prov 6:16; 11:1 & 15:3).

Wisdom Literatures
The books of Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon are often called Wisdom Literature by biblical scholars. These books deal with our everyday human struggles and real-life experiences. They specially communicates with people who need only a few, well-chosen words & speaks of wisdom as skills in life.

Wisdom in Proverbs
Forming Godly Character. Masterful understanding of how to live a Godly life & living it well before God & others. Making good and Godly decisions. Wisdom comes from God The Lord gives wisdom, from His mouth come knowledge & understanding (Prov 2:6).

Proverbs & The Psalms

Psalms v Proverbs:
1. Psalms deals with worship. Proverbs deal with life - everyday living. 2. Psalms is to be read on ones knees. Proverbs is to be read on one's feet. 3. Psalms is man talking to God. Proverbs is God talking to man. 4. Psalms stresses a walk before God, the emphasis of Proverbs is on a walk before others. The Book of Proverbs is written to take us not only to Church but also to our jobs, to our schools, to our homes & to our personal relationships with others.

Understanding Proverbs
Behind each proverb lays a philosophy of life, steeped in pragmatism, giving it powerful influence in our daily living. Proverbs are designed to: 1. Arrest the readers attention [listen] 2. Awaken responsive thought [think] 3. Adhere to the memory [remember] 4. Apply to life [practice]

Understanding Proverbs
Most proverbs are short, compact statements that express truths about human behaviour. Often there is repetition of a word or ideas that aids memorization. In the longest section of the book (10:1 to 22:16) most of the proverbs are two lines long, and those in chapters 10 - 15 almost always express a contrast. Sometimes the writer simply makes a general observation, such as "A bribe works wonders in the eyes of its giver; wherever he turns he prospers" (17:8; 14:20), but usually he evaluates conduct: "he who hates bribes will live" (15:27).

Understanding Proverbs
Many proverbs, in fact, describe the consequences of a particular action or character trait: "A wise son brings joy to his father" (10:1). Since the proverbs were written primarily for instruction, often they are given in the form of commands: "Do not love sleep or you will grow poor" (20:13). Even where the imperative form is not used, the desired action is quite clear: A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness breathes out lies (14:5).

Understanding Proverbs
A common feature of the proverbs is the use of figurative language: "Like cold water to a weary soul so is good news from a distant land" (25:25). Equally effective is the use of metaphors: "The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life" (13:14), and "the tongue that brings healing is a tree of life" (15:4). In order to develop a proper set of values, a number of proverbs use direct comparisons: "Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a rich man whose ways are perverse" (28:6).

Interpreting Proverbs
Part of the appeal of proverbs is that they are down-toearth and practical. That does not mean that they are easy to interpret. In fact, because Proverbs is so true-to-life it is possible to find contradictions (eg. Prov 20:13 & 3:24). A. Proverbs are not to be understood as unconditional promises but rather as practical principles to follow as one seeks to fear God and live wisely. In other words, they are poetic guidelines for behaviour, not legal guarantees from God, for proverbs state what generally will takes place in certain circumstances, not what always takes place in those circumstances (generalizations about life, not atomized promises).

Interpreting Proverbs
For Example: Proverbs 10:4: Lazy hands make for poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. Proverbs 15:1: A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Is this true in every case? So rather than unconditional promises from God, proverbs often consist of generalizations of what is likely to happen if a certain course of action is taken. In this way, they are intended to exhort people to walk the path of wisdom, not offer iron-clad assurances that A will always produce B. On the other hand , some proverbs are unconditionally true, those connected to an attribute or action of God (e.g., 11:1; 12:22; 15:3; 15:8; 16:2, 4, 33; 17:3; 22:2).

Interpreting Proverbs
B. Proverbs are also worded to be poetic, using figures of speech, vivid comparisons, and other rhetorical devices. To correctly understand proverbs one must sometimes use imagination to enter the world created by the figures of speech. For example, Proverbs 25:24, "It is better to live in a corner on the housetop than in a house shared with a contentious wife." The point is not for husbands or wives to go to the roof to escape their spouse but to be the right kind of spouse so we dont drive our loved ones away.

Understanding Proverbs
C. Interpret individual passages in light of the overall theme of Proverbs. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (also see 9:10) - This motto serves as the compass that provides orientation to the entire book, for Proverbs is designed to teach believers how to fear God in every area of life.

Understanding Proverbs
D. Recognize the two basic literary forms in Proverbs. The admonition and the wisdom saying. a. The Admonition: The admonition consists of either a positive command or a negative prohibition. b. The Wisdom Saying: A wisdom saying is an observation based on experience.

Interpreting Proverbs
E. The book of Proverbs is completely in poetic form (not on rhyming words but on parallel ideas) - the technical term is parallelism. Hebrew poetry is constructed of two-four lines with some pre-designed relationship between each line. The dominant characteristic of poetry in the Old Testament is Hebrew parallelism in which one line corresponds with the other. There are four main types of poetic parallelism used in the book of Proverbs - synonymous parallelism, emblematic parallelism, antithetical parallelism, and synthetic parallelism (SEAS).

Interpreting Proverbs
1. Synonymous Parallelism (Repeating or Amplifying Idea) - in this form the second line repeats or amplify the idea of the first line, but uses different words without making any significant addition or subtraction. The second line is usually joined to the first by the word and. Proverbs 5:3 provides a good example: Listen, children, to a fathers instruction and be attentive, that you may gain insight.

Interpreting Proverbs
Sometimes it could be just a two-line statements: Prov 2:11: Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Prov 1:20: Wisdom shouts in the street, she lifts her voice in the square. The interpreter should not read too much into the semantic variation between the two lines, for that could be intended more as a stylistic change for effect. In other words, the student of Proverbs should guard against the common error of seeing anything more than a subtle difference in meaning between two words/lines being used as synonyms.

Interpreting Proverbs
2. Emblematic Parallelism One line is figurative and the other is literal, and together they form a simile with the word like or as introducing one of the lines. Proverbs 11:22 & 17:14 are biting example: As in water the face is reflected as a face, so a person's heart reflects the person (Prov 27:19). Starting a quarrel is like opening a floodgate, so stop before the argument gets out of control (Prov 17:14).

Interpreting Proverbs
Like a gold ring in a pigs snout is a beautiful woman without good sense (Prov 11:22). The fundamental question for the interpreter is: How is A like B? In answering this question, he must determine the common denominators in the comparison as well as the overall point being made by the proverb.

Interpreting Proverbs
3. Antithetical Parallelism - (Contrasting Idea) the most common form in Proverbs- the second line is set in contrast to the idea of the first line, and usually by means of the conjunction but. This often consists of a restatement of the idea of the first line by asserting its opposite (i.e., both lines state the same idea but in antithetical ways): Prov 10:1: A wise child makes a glad father, but a foolish child is a mothers grief. Prov 12:5: The thoughts of the righteous are just, but the counsels of the wicked are deceitful. Many other examples can be seen from chapters 1015.

Interpreting Proverbs
This type of parallelism emphasizes the importance of choosing the way of wisdom and avoiding the fate of a fool by setting before the reader the choice between the wise and profitable way versus the foolish and disastrous way.

Interpreting Proverbs
4. Synthetic Parallelism (Follow-up on Idea) it is a form of synonymous parallelism in which the second line completes, advances, or develops the thought of the first line by supplying additional ideas. If the second line provides no further clarification of the first, the parallelism should be classified as synonymous, but if it does bring forth clarification or expansion, it is synthetic.

Interpreting Proverbs
Examples: Prov 15:3: The eyes of the Lord are in every place, watching the evil and the good. Prov 16:4: The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil. The goal of the interpreter is to determine the contribution of that second line, as well as the point of the two statements taken together as a whole.

Interpreting Proverbs
Sometimes the second line gives a preference over the first (eg. Better than; how much worse; even, so etc). Prov 15:17: Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it. Prov 11:31: If the righteous receive their due on earth, how much more the ungodly and the sinner! Prov 16:4: The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Interpreting Proverbs
Because synthetic parallelism usually takes the form of a wisdom saying, the interpreter will need to determine the unstated exhortation implied by the proverb by wrestling with the question: How am I to live in light of this truth? To fail to take this extra step is to miss the point of the verse.

Discussion Questions
1. What were the most significant new insights you received? How have they raised your interest in studying Proverbs? 2. List some areas of your life that you want God to help you with this year from our study of Proverbs tonight.

Home Work
Please read a chapter a day of the book of Proverbs, beginning with Proverbs 1. 1. Take a colour marker and mark a verse or two from each chapter that you can apply in your life and will benefit you. For example, in my Bible I've marked the following verses from chapter 1: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction (Prov 1:7). But whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm (Prov 1:33). 2. Identify the various parallelism used.