We live in a world where cleverness is all the rage, but wisdom is scarcely to be found. Our “computer-information-media” age has seen awesome, seemingly miraculous advances in all sorts of technology, but with so much “running to and fro” and “increasing of knowledge” there seems so little time to pause and consider, and to understand the real meaning of life.
The Book of Proverbs, thousands of years old, presents in condensed form much of the wisdom of the ancients — of wise people, inspired by God, who sat and observed and pondered the most meaningful aspects of human existence, and the Divine Power that controls all human affairs. The Proverbs, like the rest of Scripture, teach us two basic, elemental lessons upon which all true accomplishment by man must be built — “It is not in man himself to direct his way rightly”… And — most importantly — “The fear of God is the BEGINNING of wisdom.”
The great revelation of the Bible is that man is naturally evil and foolish, that God is all wisdom, and that man’s wisdom lies in seeking God with the whole being, and learning the teachings of His Word.
The more we see the “wise of this world” rejecting the eternal Word of God, and building on the shifting sands of their own man-made, man-centered philosophies, and the more we observe the tragic results of this in corruption, immorality and violence, the more we ought to be impressed with two things:
- the infinite value of God’s Word, and
- the infinite superiority of God’s way.
We see this dichotomy: God’s way of truth and holiness — as compared with man’s natural way of lust, pleasure, emptiness, greed and death.
The wisdom of Proverbs may be seen in its many totally practical pieces of advice: how to conduct a business, how to build a family, how to nurture a marriage, how to raise children. But the underlying spirit of Proverbs is more than MERELY PRACTICAL advice. It is awe and reverence for the Divine in this world, and the profoundest recognition of man’s real relationship to the Divine. Outstanding among its eternal truths are these:
- In the long run, good and prosperity are the destiny of the righteous.
- Sin and selfishness and materialism, however temporarily successful, are revealed to be nothing but stupidity and self-destruction. This way ends in eternal death.
- God’s correction indicates His love. Education, discipline, and self-restraint, in harmony with spiritual law, are the way of wisdom and life.
The Proverbs emphasize — perhaps more than any other book of Scripture — the truth that the gospel of salvation is a WAY OF LIFE. It concerns and must control
ALL activities of the mind and body, if it is to mean anything. Being “in the Truth” is infinitely more than just believing a set of doctrines. If our whole life — everything we are or think — is not consciously working toward harmony with God, we are on the road that leads to death. There is no real middle ground.
Many people who are conventionally “religious” (perhaps including many of us Christadelphians also) fall into the trap of thinking that their belief system and worship is a once-a-week thing, or maybe something that is kept in a separate “box” apart from daily life. God is to be thought of periodically, but not continually. He is a benevolent “father-figure”, but not a regular Counselor. The writer Robert Deffinbaugh (www.bible.org) comments on this very thing, particularly in relation to Proverbs:
“Fallen man will always seek to establish a dichotomy between the sacred and the secular, between religious ceremony and practical righteousness. The Old Testament prophets frequently addressed this misconception by warning Israel that religious ritual had no value when divorced from righteous living, such as caring for the poor and oppressed (cf. Isa. 1:10-17; Jer. 7:20-29). Jesus, likewise, addressed this kind of dualism (cf. Matt. 23:23,24). Later, James had a similar word on this subject (cf. James 1:21-27).
“The Book of Proverbs will not allow Christians to linger in the land of the theoretical. We love to keep Christianity on an abstract level, rather than on an applicational one. Our greatest failing as Christians is not that we know too little (while this is often regrettably true), but that we fail to do what we know we should. The emphasis of Proverbs is both on the acquisition of wisdom and the application of it. Seldom do we find ourselves ‘in church’ in this book, but rather in the home, on the job, and dealing with the mundane matters of daily living…
“Proverbs instructs us in [very] specific terms: ‘Diverse weights and diverse measures, are both alike abominations to the Lord’ (Prov. 20:10). The Book of Proverbs commands the butcher to be righteous by taking his thumb off the scales.”
The Wisdom Writings
The Wisdom literature (which includes Proverbs) is a distinctly different category from the rest of the Old Testament. The differences between the “wisdom” of Proverbs and the “wisdom” of other portions of the OT has been concisely set out in Proverbs, by Bro. Aleck Crawford, in the following chart (slightly adapted):
SUBJECT PROPHETS THE LAW PROVERBS
- Why sin is wrong: It is disobedience. It defiles. It is foolish.
- Why righteousness is right: It is just. It is command It is wise
There are many reasons why we should reject the evil and choose the good. The power of Proverbs (and, indeed, of all the Wisdom literature) is that it puts this choice in the simplest of all possible terms:
(a) Sin is wrong because it is folly — sheer foolishness — and it will lead man
down wrong roads and drown him in swamps of despair and depravity.
(b) Righteousness is to be desired because, ultimately, it is the only true wisdom; the way of God is the way of wisdom; and wise men will choose it — for its practical benefits as well as for its eternal benefits.
For the same reason, many of the individual proverbs are true on several different levels: they are true in the literal sense, and often constitute a primer of how to succeed in public and private relationships, business, domestic affairs, and the day-to-day conduct of daily life. Second, they are true in the metaphorical sense: that is, the simple, straightforward literal meaning can be carried forward as a guide in other walks of life. And third, the proverbs are often true in the most spiritual sense: for the “natural” is, in God’s wisdom, the pattern of the “spiritual”.
It is true of the Bible as a whole, but it is especially true of Proverbs: The Bible student ought to tremble before the Word of God and rejoice at the opportunity of finding great resources from the Mind of God. His or her intention should be acquiring knowledge for the sake of application and obedience, not in any sense acquiring knowledge for the sake of pride, or to impress others. If the Truth is merely of academic interest to us, then we are altogether on the wrong track. Every time we read a chapter, or hear an exhortation or a Bible talk, we ought to conclude with the question: “What are you going to DO about it?”
“ ‘Make the bad people good, and the good people nice,’ is supposed to have been a child’s prayer: it makes the point, with proverbial brevity, that there are details of character small enough to escape the mesh of the law and the broadsides of the prophets, and yet decisive in personal dealings. Proverbs moves in this realm, asking what a person is like to live with, or to employ; how he manages his affairs, his time and himself. This good lady, for instance — does she talk too much? That cheerful soul — is he bearable in the early morning? And this friend who is always dropping in — here is some advice for him… and for that rather aimless lad…
“But it is not a portrait-album or a book of manners: it offers a key to life. The samples of behaviour which it holds up to view are all assessed by one criterion, which could be summed up in the question, ‘Is this wisdom or folly?’ This is a unifying approach to life, because it suits the most commonplace realms as fully as the most exalted. Wisdom leaves its signature on anything well made or well judged, from an apt remark to the universe itself, from a shrewd policy (which springs from practical insight) to a noble action (which presupposes moral and spiritual discernment). In other words, it is equally at home in the realms of nature and art, of ethics and politics, to mention no others, and forms a single basis of judgment for them all” (Derek Kidner, Proverbs: Tyndale Commentaries).
Years ago, I embarked on a detailed study of the Psalms, to what I believe was great personal benefit. The Psalms are the hymnbook of Israel, the music of the soul, the very thoughts of God expressed poetically, and exalted insights not only into the mind of Israel’s sweet psalmist but also into the mind of our Lord Jesus Christ. Meditation, prophecy, spiritual vision, all rolled up in one book.
In my mind’s eye, I see Psalms as a young man with his harp on the hillside, singing — beautifully — of the glories of God and His creation and His eternal purpose. Most inspiring and uplifting. And surely it is!
On the other hand, and carrying on this analogy, Proverbs comes off as distinctly second-best. It is mundane. It is repetitive. It is bothersome. It deals with the fabric of daily life. It can even be — dare we say it? — “dull”! Besides which, we already know all this stuff! We’ve heard it a hundred times. If Psalms is a handsome young man with a harp, then Proverbs is a nagging parent; the listener or reader wants to pull the pillow over his head, to drown out the incessant words: ‘Did you remember to do such-and-such? And don’t forget so-and-so!’ On and on.
But it is the function of the Bible not just to tell us what we don’t know, and to inspire us to greater heights, but also to TELL US WHAT WE DO KNOW — to knock on our doors, and if necessary batter them down, until we have to pay attention to what we might easily forget, or to that which we may fail to give proper weight!
With this the great lawgiver Moses would surely agree as well. At the end of a long and exciting life, in which he had witnessed and participated in the greatest miracles imaginable, he devotes himself, not to telling the children of Israel “new things”, but to reminding them, again and again, of the simple truths they should already know:
“Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them…” (Deut. 4:9,10).
“Be careful not to forget the covenant of the LORD…” (v. 23).
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up… be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt…” (Deut. 6:4-7,12).
“Remember this and never forget…” (Deut. 9:7).
A final thought: Proverbs is an eternal book. There is no mention of the Law of Moses, of the Sabbath, of tithing, of sacrifices. Though it was written in the midst of Old Testament times, it scarcely takes any notice of Jewish ritual and tradition and background. It might just as well be a New Testament book.
And surely this is by God’s design. Proverbs is timeless; it is out of all time, and in all time; it is not held in check by a historical context. It is intended by God to speak to all people in all times, about the most important matter in the world: what each person does with each of his or her days, every day.
In the “race” for eternal life, the plodding but steady tortoise beats the swift but easily distracted hare every time. The sum of all our days is a life, and a life is the result — as well as the cause — of character, and character (a distillation of faith, hope, and love, practically applied every day in one’s life) is, in the last analysis, the only thing that remains.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One