SESSION 6C PROVERBS

1. TITLE to be likecompared with A)The Hebrew word for proverb (masal – singular; mesalim – plural), from which the book is named, “is derived from a root meaning “to be like” or “compared with.” I)Thus, a proverb originally may have been a comparison of a type found in the Old Testament.” Example: (1)“Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.” (Prov. 16:24) (2)“Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it.” (Prov. 15:17) put forth words B)The English word ‘Proverb’ comes from the Latin proverbium meaning “put forth words”. C)The title simply tells us that the book is a collection of proverbs or wise sayings.

3. DATE A)Solomon reigned from 971 to 931 B.C. so we may assign the proverbs written by him to the 10th century. B)The proverbs in 25:1-29:27 were also written by Solomon but were collected by Hezekiah’s men (25:1). Since Hezekiah reigned from 729 to 686 B.C., those proverbs must have been collected and transcribed during that time period. 700 C)So, the earliest date for the book would be around 700 B.C. D)If Agur or Lemuel wrote subsequent to Hezekiah’s reign, the date of the compilation and recording of the book must be put later.

4. PURPOSE OF THE BOOK fivefold A)The introduction to the book describes a fivefold purpose to the book (Prov. 1:2-4, 6): attaining I)for attaining wisdom and discipline understanding II)for understanding words of insight acquiring III)for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life giving IV)for giving prudence to the simple understanding V)for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise young right livingright relationship B)The purpose may be summarized as: to instill in others, especially the young, the knowledge and skill necessary for right living, which begins with a right relationship with the Lord.

5. THE STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK A)Proverbs contains 8 separate collections. introduction B)1:1-7 General introduction to the book of Proverbs Prologue C)1:8–9:18 Prologue: A father’s exhortation to acquire wisdom first D)10:1–22:16 The first collection of the proverbs of Solomon wise men E)22:17–24:34 The sayings of the wise men

5. THE STRUCTURE OF THE BOOK second F)25:1–29:27 The second collection of the proverbs of Solomon as compiled by Hezekiah’s men Agur G)30:1-33 The words of Agur King Lemuel H)31:1-9 The words of King Lemuel Epilogue I)31:10-31 Epilogue: The wife of noble character acrostic poem

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS His Character –He Is Teachable, Not Intractable He receives and loves instruction (18:15; 19:20) He grows in wisdom (1:5; 9:9; 10:14) –He Is Righteous, Not Wicked He fears the Lord (1:7; 14:16; see below under relationship to the Lord) He hates what is false (13:5) He shuns evil (3:7; 14:16; 16:6) He does what is righteous (2:20) He speaks the truth (22:21)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –He Is Humble, Not Proud (15:33) –He Is Self-controlled, Not Rash His temperament –He is self-controlled (29:11) –He has a calm spirit (17:27) –He is slow to become angry (29:8,11) His actions –He is cautious, not hasty (19:2) –He thinks before he acts (13:16; 14:8) –He thinks before he speaks (12:23; 15:2)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –He Is Forgiving, Not Vindictive He is patient (19:11) He is concerned about goodwill/peace (14:9) He forgives those who wrong him (10:12; 17:9) He is not vindictive (20:22; 24:29)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS His Relationships –To the Lord He fears the Lord (9:10; 14:16; 15:33) He trusts in the Lord (3:5; 16:3,20) He is ever mindful of the Lord (3:6) He chooses the Lord’s way/wisdom (8:10- 11; 17:24) He submits to the Lord’s discipline (1:2-3; 3:11) He confesses his sin (28:13)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –To His Family To his parents –Respects them (17:6; contrast 30:17) –Listens to them (23:22; cf. 1:8; 4:1) –Seeks to bring them honor and joy »By being wise (10:1; 15:20; 29:3) »By being righteous (23:24) »By being diligent (10:5)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS To his wife –He appreciates her »As a gift from the Lord (18:22; 19:14) »As his crowning glory (12:4; 31:10-31) –He praises her (31:28) –He trusts her (31:11) –He is faithful to her (5:15-20)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS To his children –He loves them (3:12; 13:24) –He is concerned about them (1:8-9:18) –He trains them (22:6) –He provides for their »Physical needs (21:20; cf. 27:23-27) »Spiritual heritage (14:26; 20:7)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –To His Friends and Neighbors To his friends –He values them (27:10) –He is constant to them (17:17; 18:24) –He gives them counsel (27:9,17; cf. 27:6; 28:23) To his neighbors –He fulfills his obligations (3:27-28) –He strives for peace (3:29-30) –He does not outstay his welcome (25:17) –He does not deceive or mislead them (16:29; 26:18- 19)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS His Words –The Power of His Words Their power –The power of life and death (12:6; 13:14; 15:4; 18:21) –The power to heal or to wound (11:9,11; 12:18; 15:4,30; 16:24) Their limitation –No substitute for deeds (14:23) –Cannot alter the facts (26:23-26) –Cannot compel response (29:19)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –The Character of His Words They are honest, not false (12:22; 16:13) They are few, not many (10:19) –Not boastful (27:2) –Not argumentative (17:14) –Not contentious (29:9) –Not a gossip »Revealing secrets (11:13; 20:19) »Spreading slander (10:18; 26:20-22)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS They are calm, not emotional –Rational (15:28; 17:27) –Gentle and peaceable (15:1,18) –Yet persuasive (25:15) They are apt, not untimely (15:23; 25:11)

6.OUTLINE: THE WISE MAN ACCORDING TO PROVERBS –The Source of His Words His heart/character (compare 4:23 with Mt 12:33- 35) –Positively, he is righteous (cf. 10:11; 13:14) –Negatively, he is not »Proud (13:10; cf. 6:16-19) »Hateful (26:24,28) His companions (13:20; 27:17) Reflections (15:28)

UNDERSTANDING WISDOM Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom…..”

UNDERSTANDING WISDOM “THE FEAR OF THE LORD” Wisdom requires a healthy fear of the Lord. We must learn to prefer God’s opinion above our own. We cannot gain wisdom without humility.

“THE BEGINNING OF KNOWLEDGE” relational (1)Knowledge in Proverbs refers to relational knowledge not propositional or intellectual. (2)In other words, there is much more to knowing truth than learning its propositions, its proven assertions.