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Apr
28

A Look at Proverbs 10.32

By | Proverbs

Pr 10.32
32 The lips of the righteous bring forth what is acceptable,
But the mouth of the wicked what is perverted.

 The Parts:

Parallelism Examined

32a

32b

lips of the righteous

mouth of the wicked

bring forth
(know)

(does not bring forth)
(does not know)

what is acceptable

what is perverted

acceptable – delight, favorable, pleasure (for shades of meaning, see the verses below)

bring forth (know) – knowledge which integrates with life, includes perception. This “knowledge” reflects in relationships, behavior, attitudes.

References to consider:

Acceptable

Ps 5:12 (favor or goodwill of God)
12 For it is You who blesses the righteous man, O Lord,
You surround him with favor as with a shield.

 Lev 1:3 (delight or acceptance of an individual)
3 ‘If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer it, a male without defect; he shall offer it at the doorway of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the Lord.

Ps 40:8 (desire, pleasure in the specific will of God or man)
8 I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.”

Sharpening in my life today:

Our final gem in Proverbs 10 turns our attention to the “form” of words.

Just a note on the “form of words” in Proverbs may give us an illustration. When we read Proverbs, it, by our standards, seems more abstract. The use of the third person style seems rather impersonal and often less “directive” than we may have expected. We’re often much more prone to “directly” say something!

By this manner of teaching, the teacher builds an evaluative grid into the learner. When the learner enters life, he is able to evaluate himself (an reward himself) regarding his choices of wisdom, or, of foolishness!

Proverbs places the locus of training, responsibility, and control within the hands of the learner who must now choose. Here is how “wisdom,” i.e., skill in living, is developed.

Our “likeness” to the God of life and His righteousness will impact the “form” of our words! When we come to the New Testament, we’ll find such a walk is one of love, Eph5.4.

4 and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.

This is a good time to look at the “form” of our words for speech “formed” in righteousness “perceives” (knows) and brings forth pleasure, delight, and favor with those around us.

Such speech is good, profitable, beckoning, but, most of all it reflects God’s likeness in us!

We may not see ourselves as divinely ministering, yet with words well formed we can surround someone with the likeness of God’s favor, encouragement, blessing, guidance, and much more!

Apr
14

A Look at Proverbs 10.31

By | Proverbs

Pr 10:31
31 The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom,
But the perverted tongue will be cut out.

 The Parts:

Parallelism Examined

31a

31b

mouth of the righteous

perverted tongue

flows with wisdom

(does not flow with wisdom)

(will not be cut off)

will be cut off

flows – “bears fruit,” “brings increase”

perverted – root means to “turn, over turn.” Often used of sin connected with the mouth, Pr2.12; heart, Pr6.14; eyes, Pr16.30; mind, Pr23.33.

cut off – also cut out, cut down. Beyond its literal meaning, it pictures: root out, eliminate, remove, excommunicate, destroy.

References to consider:

Pr15.9
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
But He loves one who pursues righteousness.

Num15.30
30 ‘But the person who does anything defiantly, whether he is native or an alien, that one is blaspheming the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from among his people.

Gen9.11
11 “I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth.”

Ex12.15
15 ‘Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, but on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses; for whoever eats anything leavened from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel.

Sharpening for my life today:

This gem of wisdom opens for us the fruit of speech. Wisdom, skill in living, involves a right attitude and approach to all areas of life, speech being one of the very important ones! At the core of this wisdom is edification, that is, building up others, which is fundamentally what loving someone is about.

A distinct way of not loving is “words turned upside down.” Here we would find all facets of untruth, deception, “white lies” (where did such foolish thinking ever come from? It takes the blood of the Savior to cleans “white lies”! There is no such thing!), denials, etc. It is very much worth noting that this motivation to harm others is met with God’s harm of the one who so practices this perversion! This truth of life is called talionic justice, or, by the measure which you measure it will be measured to you, or, what you sow you reap!

Take some time and think about “fruit bearing words.” This isn’t the “form” of the words, it’s the “results” of the words. Are your words bearing fruit, building up, bringing a blessing?

Consider the New Testaments’ direction, Eph4.29-31 . . . 
29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

Col4:6
6 Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

The Doctrine of Words in Proverbs
The wrong uses of one’s words include lying (Pr26:28), which God hates (Pr 6:16–17; 12:22); slander (Pr 10:18; 30:10); gossip, which betrays confidences (Pr 11:13; 20:19), separates friends (Pr 16:28; 17:9), and is not easily forgotten (“they go down to a man’s inmost parts,” Pr 18:8; 26:22); chattering (Pr 10:19; 19:7; 20:19); false witnessing (Pr 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 28; 21:8; 25:18); mocking (Pr 13:1; 15:12; 22:10; 24:9; 30:17); perverse or harsh talk (Pr 10:13, 31–32; 12:18; 13:3; 15:1, 28; 19:1, 28); boasting (Pr 17:7; 25:14; 27:2); quarreling (Pr 17:14, 19; 20:3); flattery (Pr 26:28; 28:23; 29:5); and foolish talk (Pr 14:7; 15:2, 14; 18:6–7).
Roy B. Zuck, A Biblical Theology of the Old Testament, electronic ed. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1991), 241.
Apr
07

A Look at Proverbs 10.30

By | Proverbs

Pr 10:30
30 The righteous will never be shaken,
But the wicked will not dwell in the land.

The Parts:

Parallelism Examined

30a

30b

righteous

wicked

will {forever} never
be shaken

(will be shaken)

(and will dwell in the land)

will not dwell in the land

shaken – Isaiah makes jest of idols that fall, Isa40.20; 41.7. Speaks of great insecurity. When negated (as here) and used with God it speaks of great certainty! Regarding the “righteous” not shaken, cf: Ps61.1-2; 112.6; 15.5; 16.8; 21.7; Isa54.10; Pr15.29; 11.19; 10.25; 12.3; 2.21-22.

{forever} – typically not translated in English versions to avoid redundancy, but it is part of the Hebrew text to emphatically to stress the “righteous” forever-never being shaken.

dwell – tabernacle, not “sojourn,” but be at home

land – this is a major concept in understanding the Old Testament. God redeemed His people so He could dwell among them! The “land” was His gift to them, and the place of His blessing, provision, protection, fruitfulness, and most of all, His Person! To “not dwell” in the land is the exact opposite of no blessing, provision, protection, fruitfulness, and most of all, His Person (cf: Ex29.46)!

righteous – already mentioned in Pr10.3, 6, 7, 11, 16, 20, 21, 24, 25, 28! A righteous person is one who conforms their life to a standard. It is not simply a state or condition, but is a word of relationship with another person where claims are to be met. Cf: Mic6.6-8; Ps15.1-5. Note carefully the relationship in Mal3.18 –

18 So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.

References to consider:

Ps61.1-2
1 Hear my cry, O God;
Give heed to my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Pr10.25
25 When the whirlwind passes, the wicked is no more,
But the righteous has an everlasting foundation.

Pr12.3
3 A man will not be established by wickedness,
But the root of the righteous will not be moved.

Mic6.6–8
6 With what shall I come to the Lord
And bow myself before the God on high?
Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
7 Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams,
In ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?

So, why should there be, why is there . . . conformity to God’s standard? Because He gave, by His grace, the place of blessing, provision, protection, fruitfulness, and most of all, His Person! We are never driven to God; we are drawn to God by His grace!

Ps37.23–26
23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
24 When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.
25 I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging bread.
26 All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.

Sharpening for my life today:

A good place to start would be describing where you see “confidence” in life. Take some moments here and don’t be afraid to take a look at your thoughts!

This gem of wisdom turns us clearly to the core of confidence. In a “God-ward” way, it’s His gracious Work, Word, Promises, and Provision! In a “man-ward” way, it’s my conformity, yieldedness, integrity, and obedience to Him because of my love of Him!

Reread the marks of a “righteous” person and spend some time talking with the Lord about your spiritual journey, seeing where He has grown you and you’ve walked in His blessings, and, where you need to grow to partake of even more of His great, gracious provisions for you.