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<\/a><\/p>\nSome of the proverbs involve interesting analogies, for instance Prov. 19.12-13\u2013 \u201cA roar like a lion, the wrath of the king, but like dew on the grass, his favor.\u2019\u00a0 Disaster to his father, a foolish son\/ and a maddening drip, a nagging wife.\u2019\u00a0 \u00a0Or in some cases personification gets a point across\u2014 \u2018Wine is a scoffer, hard drink is rowdy; all who dote on them get no wisdom.\u201d (20.1).<\/p>\n
Sometimes one gets the impression that the author of these proverbs, while acknowledging human wickedness, does not think that humans are inherently sinners or fallen creatures.\u00a0 But then one runs into a saying like Prov. 20.9\u2013\u2018Who can say \u2018 I declare [or I have made] my heart pure, I am clean of my offense.\u2019\u00a0 Later Jewish theology taught the notion of the yetzer hara<\/em> and the yetzer tov<\/em> being in all persons, that is the inclination to do either evil or good is in all humankind.\u00a0 The problem with idea is it does not explain why all human beings choose sin at various points in time.\u00a0 If they have equal inclinations in either direction, why is it true \u2018that all have sinned\u2019.\u00a0 \u00a0The theology in Rom. 1.18-32 and 5.21ff. makes better sense.<\/p>\n\u2018Laying bare secrets,the gossip goes around; don\u2019t trust yourself to a blabbermouth.\u2019 (20.19).<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not say \u2018Let me pay back evil; Hope for the Lord, that he gives you victory.\u2019 (20.22).\u00a0 This proverb is similar to \u2018Vengeance is mine says the Lord, I will repay\u2019.\u00a0 So the sage is teaching that one should trust in the God of justice, rather than taking matters into one\u2019s own hands.<\/p>\n
There is a repeated theme warning against unfair business practices, like using cheating scales, or two different weighing stones (20.23).<\/p>\n
\u2018The splendor of young men is their strength\/and the glory of elders their gray hair.\u2019 (20.29).\u00a0 This is also a repeated theme in Proverbs.\u00a0 \u00a0 The other day I was at the car wash, in line and an attractive young lady was taking my credit card. When I thanked her for her service, she said \u2018well its a pleasure to serve a silver fox like you\u2019.\u00a0 \u00a0This not only surprised me, it made my day.\u00a0 The elderly don\u2019t often get such compliments.<\/p>\n
At 21.3 we hear another repeated theme: \u2018Doing righteousness and justice is choicer\/more important to the Lord than sacrifices\u2019.\u00a0 This is a theme the prophets like Amos will pick up and amplify, and for that matter so does Jesus in his critique of the Pharisees.<\/p>\n
\u201cBetter to dwell in the corner of a roof, than in a spacious house with a quarrelsome wife.\u2019 (21.9). Lest we see this as an unkind caricature of all women, which it isn\u2019t (its more like Shakespeare\u2019s The Taming of the Shrew) there are also various proverbs praising a wife as in Prov. 31.\u00a0 \u00a0But notice the parallel to vs. 9 in vs. 19 \u201cBetter to dwell in a desert land\/than with a quarrelsome angry wife.\u2019<\/p>\n
On the sovereignty of God, \u201cA horse is readied for the day of battle\/but victory is the Lord\u2019s\u2019 (21.31).\u00a0 \u00a0In light of other proverbs this cannot be taken to mean\u2013 \u2018don\u2019t go to war, let God sort things out.\u2019<\/p>\n
Prov. 22.6 is one of the most well known of the proverbs \u201cTrain up a lad in the way that he should go [or according to his ways]\/ and when he grows old, he will still not swerve from it\u201d.\u00a0 \u00a0As I have noted before, these proverbs are generalizations that are often true, but they are not always true.<\/p>\n
There are a couple of interesting sayings that remind us of the rules of those societies.\u00a0 Exod.22.25-26 makes clear that one is not to confiscate a poor man\u2019s bedding just because he can\u2019t pay a debt.\u00a0 The proverb is \u2018If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bedding be taken from under you?\u00a0 (22.27).<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not shift the age-old boundary stone\/that your forefathers set up\u201d. (22.28).\u00a0 This reminds us that owned property should be inalienable and not be taken away by subterfuge.\u00a0 \u00a0Cf. 23.10 which adds to this injunction \u201cand do not enter the field of orphans, for their redeemer is strong, he will argue their case against you.\u201d\u00a0 Redeemer here is a translation of goel, which could refer to a kinsman redeemer who comes to protect the orphan and his property, but it could also refer to the Lord.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not be with the guzzlers of wine\/with those who gorge on meat. For the guzzler and the gorger will lose all\/and slumber will cloth him in rags.\u201d (23.20-21).<\/p>\n
There are numerous exhortations in the proverbs about using physical punishment on one\u2019s son (vss.13-14). The reason is to prevent the child from going morally astray or engaging in dangerous activities which could land him in Sheol\u2013 the land of the dead.<\/p>\n
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Some of the proverbs involve interesting analogies, for instance Prov. 19.12-13\u2013 \u201cA roar like a lion, the wrath of the king, but like dew on the grass, his favor.\u2019\u00a0 Disaster to his father, a foolish son\/ and a maddening drip, a nagging wife.\u2019\u00a0 \u00a0Or in some cases personification gets a point across\u2014 \u2018Wine is a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":71080,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[15526],"class_list":["post-71182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-how-long-will-you-lie-there-o-sluggard"],"yoast_head":"\n
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