Years ago I was given the opportunity to write a ‘religious’ column in a weekly newspaper, partly because the local pastors were too busy with other things. I called the column “Parables” (LINK). It lasted for seventeen years and eight editors until the ninth one decided the paper didn’t need it.
Today’s word, PROVERB, is mostly used in the OT while parable is more of a NT word. What is the difference? The dictionary says a proverb is “a condensed but memorable saying embodying some important fact of experience that is taken as true by many people.” The Bible has an entire book of them plus others mentioned elsewhere. Every culture has its proverbs.
In the NT, parable identifies several literary forms that illustrate truth by comparing it with something more familiar to those who listen. However, many of Jesus’ parables required clarification and were often accompanied by explanations. In my column, I tried to clearly show how stories and events from modern life illustrate spiritual truths in the Bible. Writing them gave me a mindset to seek the hand of God in every area of life.
As for proverbs, God uses them to speak truth to readers but not every mention of them concerns God’s words. For example, 1 Samuel 24:13 quotes David’s saying to Saul after he refused to harm him: “As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Out of the wicked comes wickedness.’ But my hand shall not be against you.”
The book of Proverbs is filled with short sayings that are usually ‘in your face’ and don’t need clarification but some do. Also, in reading them it is helpful to understand that they are generally accepted truths but unlike the certainty of God’s promises because proverbs sometimes have exceptions. This is why the book begins with:
Proverbs 1:5–7. Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.
The bottom line is remembering that a collection of sayings may or may not be valid for all situations. Instead, readers need to reverence God and seek His wisdom.
Some proverbs may need explanations to help in interpretation and application. For instance, Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” Many a parent has assumed this promised eventual faith in their children if they were taught it when they were young, only to wonder if God abandoned them when it didn’t happen. However, this proverb is not a promise nor is that a good interpretation. It is about understanding and encouraging the interests and gifts of the child because these childhood passions will continue into old age. In other words, don’t force a music lover to be a baseball player.
Another proverb says, “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.” Taken out of biblical context, it is easy to see why this proverb is rejected in many cultures because of rampant child abuse. However, in the time proverbs were written it was a warning to parents not to give in to any fear that discipline (meaning training to develop strength and self-control) would harm their child, just as God’s discipline is intended to make better people of those He trains. His Word never condones any kind of abuse.
Not all proverbs intend to confuse or mock God’s wisdom. Most of them clearly identify problems in human life and often suggest solutions. Even so, they need to be read in context of the entire Bible, not picked out as short sayings for life solutions or hung on the wall as a plaque for life. As the psalmist says, “My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding. I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre.” Wisdom and understanding come before heeding any pithy proverb.
GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. Many Bible teachers and theologians recommend reading a Proverb a day which covers all 31 in a month. Since these require the wisdom of God to be helpful, other Bible readings are a wise addition. The point is that I seek all the glory of God, not just the condensed sayings that embody a small aspect of my experience — as helpful as they are to give me something to think about and provoke new ways to behave. Wisdom and understanding are still primary, even when reading God’s ‘wisdom’ literature.
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