917 英翻中 (617)
5. What Must We Do to Get the Most out of This Book? Solomon often uses the phrase “my son” (Prov. 1:8, 10, 15; 2:1; 3:1, 11, 21; 4:10, 20; 5:1, 20; 6:1, 3, 20; 7:1; 19:27; 23:15, 19, 26; 24:13, 21; 27:11), which suggests that Proverbs contains truths that loving godly parents would pass along to their children10 (see 1 Chron. 29:1). As God’s children, we need His loving counsel, and He gives it to us in this book. So, the first essential for an effective study of Proverbs is faith in Jesus Christ so that you can honestly call God your Father. You can’t make a life until you first have life, and this life comes through faith in Jesus Christ (John 3:16, 36). What applies to the study of Proverbs applies to the study of any book in the Bible: Unless we are spiritually prepared, diligent, disciplined in study, and obedient to what God tells us, we won’t really understand very much of God’s Word. A willingness to obey is essential (John 7:17). F. W. Robertson said that “obedience is the organ of spiritual knowledge.” The Holy Spirit teaches the serious, not the curious. At least a dozen times in Proverbs you find the imperatives “hear” or “hearken”11 (Prov. 1:8; 4:1, 10; 5:7; 7:24; 8:6, 32–33; 19:20; 22:17; 23:19, 22); many other verses explain the blessings that come to those who obey (who hear and heed) the Word of God (1:5, 33; 8:34; 12:15; 15:31–32). In fact, Solomon warns us not to listen to instruction that will lead us astray (19:27; see Ps. 1:1). This doesn’t mean that Christian students can’t study the classics and books written by nonbelievers, but they must be careful to read them in the light of the Scriptures. The counsel of godly Robert Murray M’Cheyne is helpful: “Beware the atmosphere of the classics,” he wrote to a friend in college. “True, we ought to know them; but only as chemists handle poisons—to discover their qualities, not to infect their blood with them.”
As you study, keep in mind that Hebrew proverbs are generalized statements of what is usually true in life, and they must not be treated like promises. “A friend loves at all times” (Prov. 17:17 nkjv), but sometimes even the most devoted friends may have disagreements. “A soft answer turns away wrath” (15:1 nkjv) in most instances, but our Lord’s lamblike gentleness didn’t deliver Him from shame and suffering. The assurance of life for the obedient is given often (3:2, 22; 4:10, 22; 8:35; 9:11; 10:27; 12:28; 13:14; 14:27; 19:23; 21:21; 22:4) and generally speaking, this is true. Obedient believers will care for their bodies and minds and avoid substances and practices that destroy, but some godly saints have died very young, while more than one godless rebel has had a long life. David Brainerd, missionary to the American Indians, died at thirty. Robert Murray M’Cheyne died just two months short of his thirtieth birthday. Henry Martyn, missionary to India and Persia, died at thirty-two. William Whiting Borden, who gave his fortune to God’s work, was only twenty-five years old when he died in Egypt on his way to China. “The righteous man is rescued from trouble, and it comes on the wicked instead” (11:8 niv) certainly happened to Mordecai (Est. 7) and Daniel (Dan. 6), but millions of Christian martyrs testify to the fact that the statement isn’t an absolute in this life. In fact, in Psalm 73, Asaph concludes that the wicked get the upper hand in this world, but the godly have their reward for eternity. The book of Proverbs has little to say about the life to come; it focuses on this present life and gives guidelines for making wise decisions that help to produce a satisfying life. God calls us to receive His wisdom and be skillful, so that we can make a life that will glorify Him. The important thing isn’t how long we live but how we live, not the length but the depth of life. Fools wade in the shallows, but wise people launch out into the deep and let God give them His very best. Notes 1 There are also “wisdom psalms”: 1, 19, 32, 34, 37, 49, 73, 78, 112, 119, 127–128, 133. 2 Roy Zuck, Biblical Theology of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody, 1991), 232. 3 Among the Jews, proverbs were a popular and accepted way to digest and preserve wisdom. (For proverbs outside the book of Proverbs see 1 Sam. 10:11–12; 24:13; Ezek. 12:22–23; 16:44; 18:1–2. See also Matt. 9:12, 17; 24:18; John 4:35, 37; 9:4; 1 Cor. 6:13; 14:8; 15:33.) 4 Proverbs 3:11–12 is quoted in Hebrews 12:5–6; 3:34 in James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5; 11:31 in 1 Peter 4:18; 25:21–22 in Romans 12:20; and 26:11 in 2 Peter 2:22. 5 Derek Kidner, Proverbs in Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downer’s Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 1964), 22. 6 Keep in mind that “wealth” means much more than possessing material things. The Bible doesn’t promise that obedient Christians will all be healthy, wealthy, and successful. It does promise that they will have godly character, enjoy their Father’s generous gifts to meet all their needs, and escape many of the physical and emotional pains and problems that the ungodly usually suffer. God’s covenant with the Jews promised special blessings if they obeyed and chastisement if they disobeyed (see Deut. 27—28), but the book of Proverbs also emphasizes the “true riches” of the spiritual life that are summarized in Christ’s beatitudes. It has well been said that true happiness lies, not in the greatness of your possessions, but in the “fewness” of your wants. 7 Charles Bridges, Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1959), 3–4. 8 L. C. Harris, Gleason Archer, and Bruce Watke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (Chicago: Moody, 1980), 283. 9 The phrase “the beginning of the creation of God” in Revelation 3:14 (kjv) cannot mean that Jesus was the first thing God created, since the Son of God was with the Father before there was a creation (John 1:15). The Greek word arche can mean either “first in time” or “first in rank”; therefore the NIV translates the phrase, “the ruler of God’s creation.” The familiar title “firstborn” can also refer to rank. As “the firstborn of every creature” (Col. 1:15 kjv), Jesus is the head of creation (“the firstborn over all creation,” niv). 10 Remember that the Hebrew society was strongly masculine and that primarily the fathers trained the sons, while the mothers trained the daughters. The masculine emphasis in Scripture must not be interpreted as a sexist bias but rather as a characteristic of the Jewish culture of that day, a characteristic that should no longer persist in the light of the gospel (Gal. 3:26–29). 11 The Hebrew word for hear is shema. The Jewish confession of faith in Deuteronomy 6:4–5 is called “the Shema.” Implied in the word hear is receiving and obeying God’s Word. 12 Andrew A. Bonar, Memoir and Remains of Robert Murray M’Cheyne (London: Banner of Truth, 1966), 29.
sinister stereo speakers emitting sounds so loud that the vehicle was shaking. Zeno never spent the night in a motel room with tissue paper walls separating him from the room next door where a TV set was being ignored by a guest who was obviously deaf. “Listen more and talk less.” Bah, humbug! There are times when about the only way you can protect your sanity and your hearing is to open your mouth and say something, even if it’s only a primal scream. But the greatest tragedy of life isn’t that people invade our privacy, get on our nerves, and help destroy our delicate hearing apparatus. The greatest tragedy is that there’s so much noise that people can’t hear the things they really need to hear. God is trying to get through to them with the voice of wisdom, but all they hear are the confused communications clutter, foolish voices that lead them further away from the truth. Even without our modern electronic noisemakers, a similar situation existed in ancient Israel when Solomon wrote Proverbs, because there’s really nothing new under the sun. God was speaking to people in Solomon’s day, but they weren’t listening. If you’ll refer to the suggested outline of Proverbs, you’ll see that the first nine chapters present two women—Wisdom and Folly personified—as they seek to win the attention and obedience of people in the city streets and squares. In this chapter, I want to focus on Wisdom’s calls, and then in the next chapter we’ll listen to Folly and learn what she has to offer. 1. Wisdom’s Call to Salvation (1:8–33) This paragraph records three voices that the person reading Proverbs needs to identify. The voice of instruction (vv. 8–10, 15–19). This is the voice of a godly father, urging his son to listen to Wisdom and obey what he hears. Note that both the father and the mother have been involved in teaching the boy,l and they both warn him not to abandon what he’s been told. These parents have obeyed the instructions of Moses (Deut. 6:6–9) and have faithfully taught their family the Word of God. But what will their children do with all this teaching? The parents’ desire is that the children obey what they have learned, so that God’s truth will become a lovely ornament to beautify their lives, like a crown on a king or a necklace on a queen. Paul told Christian servants to “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things” (Titus 2:10), which simply means to make the Bible beautiful to others by living a godly life. Peter exhorted Christian wives to win their lost husbands by focusing on the imperishable beauty of Christian character rather than the artificial beauty of man-made glamour (1 Peter 3:3–4). In Proverbs 1:15–19, the father tells his son how to avoid yielding to temptation. First, he says, check carefully the path you’re on and don’t walk with the wrong crowd. (This sounds very much like Ps. 1:1 and 2 Cor. 6:14–18.) If you’re walking with the wrong crowd, you’ll end up doing the wrong things. Second, don’t
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