The Book of Proverbs holds a special place in my heart. God had blessed me in my career with being
placed in positions beyond my training and natural abilities. I knew I needed help in order to satisfy the
demands of these offices. To do my part
I knew I needed not only knowledge, but also wisdom, as these positions
involved dealing with all types of people.
ALL types. I had been
taught from my own Bible study plus other sources that God was the Author of
all wisdom, much of which He placed in the Book of Proverbs. Therefore, during much of my career, my daily
devotions were from Proverbs. It
helped. Not only did it help, but I
believe my life would have taken a different course had I not given time and focus
to these precious words from God, given to us through His servant Solomon and
other chosen vessels. I hope you get as
much out of this book as I have through the years. {Years ago I had this small container shaped
like a loaf of bread, titled “Our Daily Bread”.
Placed in the top of it were small cards (about 1”X 3”) on which were
printed Proverbs from this holy book. I
kept it in my office. I would read one
or more of these little cards every day at work. I felt empowered by them. I don’t remember whatever came of this little
“bread loaf”, but I sure wish I still had it.}
I’m not certain how I am to teach this book, but I was
uncertain about Psalms as well. It may
seem a bit choppy, but much of it is written that way, maintaining no theme
within many large and small sections. I
will again be careful not to jump around out of the order of the book, as a
thematic study would make me so inclined.
The Book of Proverbs has long been considered being authored
by Solomon. I agree that he wrote most
of it, but we know that there were at least two other writers, Agur and Lemuel. These two men wrote chapters 30 and 31
respectively. Little else is known about
them. The focus of this book is wisdom;
common sense dealing with a multitude of subjects in hopes to give the reader
guidance in all walks of his/her life.
Proverbs is a series of short statements. You will find these statements profound,
sensible, and easy to understand. As you
read and hopefully reflect on these simple statements, you will realize that
although these proverbs deal with common problems, the solutions are Godly, not
secular. One can glean little from them
if he/she does not acknowledge the power and glory of our Creator, Who has
blessed these sayings as a part of His Holy Scripture.
Wisdom has been defined differently by different groups
throughout civilization. The Egyptians
defined it as acquired social and political skills, used to influence people. The Greeks defined it as learned systematic
thought processes taught and handed down through generations. The Babylonians defined it as a methodology
used to gain favor of the various gods they worshiped. But the Hebrews defined it as stable use of
knowledge based upon experience and an abiding respect for God and His
commandments.
All of us need wisdom and the sense enough to yield to
it. We need to pray for it and also pray
for the ability to recognize wisdom from others when we hear it. We need wisdom because of the level of
difficulty in life. If you have a job
dealing with people in this complex society, you need wisdom and a lot of
it. If you are trying to raise children,
you need even more. If you are trying to
navigate through these difficult economic and political times, again you need
wisdom to make discernments, as knowledge and advice are often conflicting. Simple knowledge of facts is not enough. You need to know how to place that knowledge
into the best course of words and actions.
I have observed some very highly educated people who say and do some
extremely foolish things. On the other
hand, I have observed some not-so-learned people impart or practice very high
levels of wisdom, yielding much fruit.
I urge you to read the entire Book of Proverbs and to read
ahead of this study. Look closely at the
first seven verses of this wonderful book.
These verses are actually an introduction to the entire book. These verses attempt to pay tribute to wisdom
and its importance. After the first six
verses herald wisdom, the seventh verse is the actual beginning, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge…..” The word “fear” in this
context is a wholesome reverence for God and His commandments. {We are not to live our lives being afraid of
God and what He might do to us. So when
we see the word “fear” in the Bible, we must make ourselves aware of the
particular context.} The last part of
verse seven is a contrast to the first part, “……..but fools despise wisdom and
instruction”. You will see the “fool”
referenced often in this book. The fool
is defined as a person lacking in awareness of God and His character, and
consequently lacking in common sense.
Additionally, the fool is a person who rejects knowledge, either out of
pride or stupidity. The fool will
generally grow in his disrespect for Godly wisdom unless he makes an effort to
repent and change his life in the sight of God.
Next post – Precious Proverbs
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