Archive for August 2022

Nehemiah 9, Proverbs 12:15-28, Luke 18:1-8, 2 Timothy 3:10-17  Proverbs 12:15-28:  This section of Proverbs advances several important themes related to living the wise and productive life that pleases God. May God give us this wisdom! First, there is a theme related to what characterizes this character “the fool”, a character that plays a prominent role in Proverbs:…

Nehemiah 8, Proverbs 12:1-14, Luke 17:20-37, 2 Timothy 3:1-9  Proverbs 12:1-14:   Again, it is possible to discern some grouping of these Proverbs into themes.   It begins with an overarching statement about discipline:   “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid”  (12:1).   In our culture—even in many of our churches—discipline is a negative word.…

Nehemiah 7, Proverbs 11:16-31, Luke 17:11-19, 2 Timothy 2:14-26   Proverbs 11:16-31:   Sometimes it appears that the individual proverbs are grouped into sections that address a common theme. There are a few such sections in this part of Proverbs.   First, we have the theme of kindness:   “A kind-hearted woman gains honor, but ruthless men gain only wealth” (11:16).  …

Nehemiah 6, Proverbs 11:1-15, Luke 17:1-10, 2 Timothy 2:1-13  Proverbs 11:1-15:   More “wise advice”—pithy and to the point!   “The Lord detests dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with him” (11:1). When weighing of goods or food was done with physical weights, it was possible to use a variation in the weights or the scales to gain…

Nehemiah 4-5, Proverbs 10:17-32, Luke 16:19-31, 2 Timothy 1   Proverbs 10:17-32:   Each of these proverbs is like a Tardis: small on the outside but massive on the inside. We cannot do justice to them in totality but can only comment briefly on each in turn:   “Whoever heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction…

Nehemiah 3, Proverbs 10:1-16, Luke 16:10-18, 1 Timothy 6:11-21   Proverbs 10:1-16:   Now we come to a section of Proverbs where each verse is focused on a particular proverbial statement. Sometimes it is possible to detect larger themes, but often the overall larger theme is wisdom: the fear of the Lord being the beginning of wisdom. Sometimes the Proverbs…

Nehemiah 1-2, Proverbs 9, Luke 16:1-9, 1 Timothy 6:1-10   Proverbs 9:   With such warm praise of wisdom as the book of Proverbs has given us so far, it is natural to ask what could be the appeal of its opposite, that is folly? What is the way that wisdom invites us to follow its path, and what is…

Ezra 10, Proverbs 8, Luke 15:11-32, 1 Timothy 5:16-25     Proverbs 8:   Occasionally, people give the impression that wisdom is something only attainable to a select few. It is hidden. You cannot see it. You cannot find it. Wisdom can be said to be something esoteric, or belonging only to the clever, or the highly privileged.   But…

Ezra 9, Proverbs 7, Luke 15:1-10, 1 Timothy 5:1-15    Proverbs 7:   A great struggle for many people is maintaining fidelity to biblical norms regarding sexuality. How is this to be achieved? Many people assume that such fidelity to biblical norms is for all practical purposes impossible. But should we conclude this, we who have the Spirit of God…

Ezra 8, Proverbs 6, Luke 14:25-35, 1 Timothy 4   Proverbs 6:   This chapter is filled with wise advice. We cannot parse out every aspect of it in this devotion. I will pick out the core themes of the thoughts which are particularly central.   Verses 1-5 urge us to extract ourselves from a deal which leaves us stuck…