Enticings and Responses

My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them.
-Proverbs 1:10

"My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them."

What an interesting scripture.

"My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them."

Hundreds of times have I read this scripture, and dozens of times have I looked at it and considered. Never before have I thought of every word.

My. Son. If. Sinners. Entice. You. Do. Not. Give. In. To. Them.

I've always read this before as, "My son, when sinners try to convince you to go their way, don't give in!"

But that's not what it says.

"My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them."

The word used here for "entice" is the word "pathah," and means "to be simple, open-minded, deceived, persuaded and/or seduced."

"My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them."
"My son, if sinners persuade you, do not give in to them."
"My son, if sinners convince you, do not give in to them."
"My son, if sinners deceive you, do not give in to them."
"My son, if sinners seduce you, do not give in to them."

My son, if you find that you have been persuaded by sinners, do not give in to them.

The concept here is that you have been convinced. It's not a "when they attempt to convince you..." it's an, "if they succeed in persuading you..."

Do not give in to them.

If they've opened their mouths and have deluded you... Remember this, and don't give in!

If you've been deceived, the only way to realize it is to be forewarned. This is what is happening here. The reader, by reading this is being forewarned that if they are deceived, they can still choose what is right. After this, the writer explains thoughts and intentions that are proof positive of a sinner. He essentially outlines what to look for in someone's plans, and if you find any of these, you can be sure that if you believe them, you have been duped... Remember, you don't have to give in... So don't!
-I
-Me
-David
-Suave'

The Fear of the Lord, and the Wisdom of Parents

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction.

My son, hear the instruction of your father,
And do not lay aside the instruction of your mother;
For they shall be a graceful ornament on your head,
And chains about your neck."
-Proverbs 1:7-9

Proverbs is filled with Enigma.

Enigma: Function: noun
Etymology: Latin aenigma, from Greek ainigmat-, ainigma, from ainissesthai to speak in riddles, from ainos fable
1 : an obscure speech or writing
2 : something hard to understand or explain
3 : an inscrutable or mysterious person
Synonyms: "Mystery"

Proverbs is filled to the brim with these...

It is filled with sayings and instructions that have meanings layered so thick that as one's experience grows and wisdom is accumulated, these proverbs begin to unfold in new ways, with deeper meanings and greater importance. But even for those who are just beginning to grow in wisdom all of these proverbs have first and foremost, a straightforward meaning.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Knowledge.
My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother.

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Knowledge."

A hefty statement, this is.

The word "fear" used here is often understood to mean, "reverence, or respect," and indeed, this is part of the meaning, but this word does have the meaning of "fear, especially of an awesome or terrifying thing," and "holy fear." The image being presented here and reinforced throughout the writings of Proverbs is of a great lord who knows the inclinations of our hearts, the intent of our actions, and the thoughts of our minds. This great lord cares for those under him, but will not hesitate to rebuke and discipline both those he loves (to lead them in righteous ways) those who are dishonest (to warn them and to stop them), and has not qualms harshly disciplining fools (as the only way to get through!).

This understanding is the first step on our way to knowledge... the same kind of knowledge delineated in Proverbs 1:4; meaning knowledge, perception, skill, discernment, understanding, and wisdom

"But fools despise wisdom and instruction."

Here is the first time the word "fool" appears in these proverbs. Obviously, the word means "to be foolish" or "to be lacking in judgment or prudence" ... but it also has another meaning. It comes from a word meaning, "to be perverse." So this word can be read, "those perverse who lack judgement or prudence."

"But perverse people despise wisdom and instruction."

The word "despise" here means, "to despise, hold in contempt, hold as insignificant."

Also, the word "instruction" here means, "discipline, chastening, and correction," with the implication being that these come from someone who actually has the wisdom and knowledge to discipline, chasten and correct.

So fools, or the perverse, find it contemptible to be disciplined, corrected, or chastened, and consider attempts to do so insignificant.

Proverbs was written in a culture where it was the responsibility of the parents to pass down the accumulated wisdom and knowledge of the previous generations of their family. The father and mother would continually instruct in both words and actions, and would give their children all that they knew.

But the word "father" means more than just this... It does not mean only "the one who gave birth," but the "up-bringer" or "nourisher" or "master" or "teacher." Just as while the word "mother" often means just that, it also has a secondary... more poetic meaning of, "her who bestows benefits on others."

So while this indeed has a straightforward meaning of, "Hear, listen, obey, and remember the wisdom and instructions given by parents," it also has a deeper meaning to be explored.

You see, the word translated here as "instruction" is the same as in the verse before this, meaning, "discipline, chastening, and correction."

Young one, hear, listen to, respect, and take to heart the instructions and corrections of wisdom of those who raise you, who provide for you, who you have chosen to let be your teachers, and if you are a servant, if your master chooses to correct you, listen! Hear the corrections and discipline of the righteous men in your life!

Young one, don't forsake the laws your mother set for you!

Apparently the writer understood very well the desire and inclination to split off of how we were instructed when we begin to feel independent. So much so, that this proverb was placed at the very beginning of the book of Proverbs, right behind "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge," so that even the most simple, foolish, or young who don't have the self-control or ability to make it far in the writings would at least read this!

"For they shall be a graceful ornament on your head, and chains about your neck."

The words here for "graceful ornament" are more accurately stated as "A wreath of grace and favor," while the word "chains" actually means, "necklace, or pendant."

So, "they shall be a wreath of grace and favor upon your head, and a necklace or pendant about your neck." In other words, the wisdom, counsel, rules, and instructions of the men and women of God in your life will bring grace, favor, and honor to you. Don't forsake them!

Proverbs is full of things difficult to understand, but at least the beginning is straightforward... if not easy.

Those who fear and respect the Lord are on their way to knowledge, perception, skill, discernment, understanding, and wisdom.

Those who are foolish and perverse despise being corrected, chastened, and disciplined by those wiser than them, and any attempts are considered insignificant to them.

Do not forsake the wisdom and rules of those elder men and women of God in your lives, for they will bring you grace and favor!

The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, King of Israel:

To know wisdom and instruction,
To perceive the words of understanding,
To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgement, and equity.
For giving to the simple ones; Prudence.
For giving to the young ones; Knowledge and Discretion.

A wise man will hear and learn more.
A man of understanding will attain wise counsel.

To understand a proverb and an enigma,
The words of the wise and their riddles."

It seems that any who wish to gain wisdom and a life of goodness would take these proverbs to heart.

It seems that only a fool would do otherwise.
-I
-Me
-David
-Suave'

An Introduction

"The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, King of Israel:

To know wisdom and instruction,
To perceive the words of understanding,
To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgement, and equity.
For giving to the simple ones; Prudence.
For giving to the young ones; Knowledge and Discretion.

A wise man will hear and learn more.
A man of understanding will attain wise counsel.

To understand a proverb and an enigma,
The words of the wise and their riddles."
- Proverbs 1:1-7

This is the purpose of this blog.

The book of Proverbs is a book of wisdom, compiled for all who have the ability to learn.

It delineates many kinds of people;
The Wise,
The Foolish,
The Simple,
The Proud,
The Young,
The Old,
and many, many more.

More and more as I live this thing called life, I've found that while Wisdom is a slippery thing, often hard to truly grasp, it does become caught as we are willing to live out things like Love, Discipline, Self-Control, Goodness, and other virtues.

It can be brought out be these virtues, just as it causes these virtues to grow.

But there's more.

These words of wisdom in Proverbs are compiled very specifically to act as a catalyst... an enhancer, a stabilizer, an aide to find wisdom and capture it.

They exist so that all who read it know and recognize wisdom and good teaching, to be able to have and see understanding instead of confusion, even when its hidden so well that almost everyone passes by. They are made so that all who take them to heart and mind receive instruction in the concept, application, and consequences of wisdom, justice and righteousness, judgement, and equity and discretion.

To those who are simple, these will bring out prudence. Although in today's culture, prudence has taken on negative connotations of hesitancy, it was not always so. The word translated "Prudence" here is formed from a root that means "To uncover" and "to act subtly or craftily." The word "Prudence" itself comes from the latin word "Providentia" or foresight, which honestly ties in well with the hebrew meaning.

From Proverbs, the simple will gain the ability to uncover truths that lay unseen to others, and to act with subtlety and cunningly, when the situation requires it. Tying the two word meanings together, it seems that from proverbs, the simple will gain insight and understandings of the subtleties of things and people around them so deep that these abilities can even double as foresight.

Insight and understanding by instinctively seeing truths that may be hidden; seeing through lies, being trained to understand things, and subtle enough to not seem like an idiot know-it-all.

To those who are young, these will bring out Knowledge and Discretion. The word used for "young" in this verse has a dual meaning. It means, "those from birth to around 20," and "those who are servants, or who serve another." In other words, "those who have not become fully independent".

To these ones, these proverbs will bring knowledge and discretion. In this case, the word translated as "Knowledge" means, knowledge, perception, skill, discernment, understanding, and wisdom. In other words, these proverbs provide, a broad base of knowledge needed for survival, the skill of perception, or to be able to see what others miss, basic skills for life, the ability to discern what really lies behind what is spoken or shown, understanding that reaches beyond just the brain, and wisdom to know which choices are truly right and good.

The word "Discretion" here comes from a word meaning, "to have a thought, to devise, to plan, to consider, to purpose or decide." This seems to tie in to the quality in front of this one, providing with the aforementioned qualities of Knowledge, the ability to devise plans, to think, to consider things deeply and well, and to purpose and decide. To have a purpose and decide one's direction.

But these writings quickly point out that they are not only for the simple and young.

For if those who are wise study these proverbs, they will add to what they already know.
And for those who are already intelligent, they will receive wise direction, guidance, and counsel.

These words are for all to gain the ability to understand wise sayings, and to be able to discover, explore, unravel, and understand things that are unique and mysterious... These are for all to gain the ability to understand what wise men say... even their perplexing statements and questions.

In other words, these proverbs give the ability to speak with wise men on their level. To understand what they mean when they try to condense their experiences and wisdom into a saying. To be able to find the things and thoughts and reality that their riddles and questions lead to, and to be able to unravel the deep truths hidden therin.

And these writings give the ability to become wise ourselves. To begin to be able to understand wise sayings on our own. To be able to find something unique... never seen before... an enigma... and to explore and understand it.

This is the purpose of Proverbs.

To know Wisdom and Instruction. To perceive words of understanding. To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgement, and equity. To give prudence, knowledge, discretion, greater understanding, and wise counsel. To give the ability to understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles.

And this is the purpose of this blog. To chronicle my journey as I explore Proverbs. To provide a record, and maybe an aide, or at least an encouragement, both to me and to others. As I begin to grow in these things, I hope to be able to come back and find more and more wisdoms and instructions and find more truth.

This is my exploring the great cavern of Proverbs... and making every effort to find wisdom.
-I
-Me
-David
-Suave'