Postings on Proverbs 12:9

“Better is he who is lightly esteemed and has a servant

Than he who honors himself and lacks bread” (NASB)

At first glance, this proverbs seems to be about hypocrisy, that what you are vs. how you present yourself to others.  Let’s see if that’s what it’s really about after studying it.

Since one of my goals in this blog is not to just give you my conclusions, but to show you how I got there let’s make some observations and ask some questions (again, I am determining what the proverb says before asking what it means):

1.  It is an antithetic parallelism, the second line contrasting the first, so “light esteem” is contrasted with honoring himself and having a servant is contrasted with lacking bread.

2.  Questions: What does “lightly esteemed” mean? What does having a servant indicate? What does lacking bread have to do with honoring oneself?

3.  What are the key words?  Better, lightly esteemed, honors

4.  This is about an individual (“he,” “himself”)

5.  The first situation described is “better” than the second, so being lightly esteemed while having a servant, is better than having honor and no bread.

6.  This is true anywhere and at anytime.

7.  More questions: How does one have a servant while the other lacks bread?  Is this about the importance of having money rather than the acclaim of people?

Proverbs don’t give up their treasures easily. When it’s hard to figure out what the wisdom is in a given proverb you need to take some time to meditate on it.

I can see someone saying "I’m not sure why it’s better to have less honor with a servant than it is to have honor and no bread." In fact, in Southern California (where I grew up), obeying this proverb would not be considered wise. Many eat Ramen and off dollar menus while going into serious debt just to appear to be more rich than they are. This, while unhealthy, can help them get more attention from the opposite sex or more opportunities to make money.

Upon further reflection, the key to understanding the wisdom in this proverb is that the man honors himself.  He doesn’t deserve the honor he gets (he can’t even provide for his family) while the first man may deserve honor (he has a servant), but doesn’t have it nor does he seek to get it for himself. He would rather be overlooked by society than live above his means because he is modest and humble, not at all given to a showy pretentiousness.

In contrast, the man who “falsely esteems” (IBHS 430-1) himself by declaring that he is worthy of honor is a proud poser, who really has nothing at all to be proud of (Bridges 136). This petty person is pretending to have wealth he doesn’t have, spending “his sparse resources to keep up a vain show” (Waltke 526).

Though focusing on undeserved honor for being something you aren't, this proverb has far-reaching ramifications. It could just as easily read:

“Better is she who is lightly esteemed and has integrity, then she who honors himself and lacks it.”

“Better is he who is lightly esteemed and holds his tongue, then he who honors himself with gossip & slander.”

“Better is she who is lightly esteemed and does his job, then she who is lazy and honors herself through politics.”

“Better is he who is lightly esteemed though reading his Bible and praying for others, then he who tells people he does when he doesn’t.”

“Better is he who is lightly esteemed and committed to Christ, then he who says he is when he isn’t.”

“Better is he who is lightly esteemed and pleases God, then he who gains honor by pleasing men.”

“Better is she who is lightly esteemed and bold for Christ, then one who says she is when she's really a coward.”

Writing your own proverbs after understanding what is says and what it means can be a great way to applying the wisdom to your life.  In the end, Proverbs 12:9 not saying that reputation is unimportant (cf. 10:7, 22:1; Eccl 7:1), but that it’s just “not as important as reality” (Longman 273). Our one-liner of wisdom for this is “Be who you are.”

Do you deserve your reputation? Do you project an image of yourself that isn't the real you? Be who you are. Live one life not two, so that your reputation and your character are one, and you will experience the smile of God.

I hope that helps! TII!!!

Postings on Proverbs 12:8

"A man will be praised according to his insight,
But one of perverse mind will be despised" (NASB)

Though I've planned to add to this blog many times in the past 3 months and just haven't done so, and though I already examined this verse and have had the notes stored in my Bible for those months, it's now time, finally!, to return to blogging through Proverbs -- just deactivated my Facebook account to give me more time :)

Now, before finding out what the verse means & how it's relevant for life, we need to know what it says, so let's start with some observations (asking Who, What, Where, When, Why and How):

1. This is about an individual, not groups of people ("a man," "one")
2. One person is praised by others while the other person is despised.
3. This is true in every location and anytime in history.
4. Public "praise" or honor is the response to a man's "insight" while public "despising" or shame  is the response to a man's "perverse mind" (lit. heart).
5. Their respective reputations are the result of interaction with the 2 kinds of people.
6. The word "but" shows "insight" is being contrasted with a "perverse mind" so these should be seen as opposites.

It seems to me that the most important word in this proverbs is "insight," which speaks of "the ability to recognize the true nature of a situation," allowing someone to navigate around the difficulties to make decisions that benefit him (Longman 273). Today, we'd say this person can "read" people or circumstances.



There are 4 other uses of the Hebrew word translated here "insight" in the book of Proverbs with 13:15 being a very close parallel to this one ("Good understanding produces favor"). Insight is the source of blessing (16:22). It is demonstrated by people who don't get angry easily (19:11) and tragically, insight is despised by fools (23:9).


In contrast, the "mind" (the place where everyone's thoughts, emotions, words and deeds are determined) of the second man is "perverse," meaning "bent" or "warped" (Waltke 515, 525), "distressed, disturbed" (NIDOTTE 3:340-1).

This defect in his soul will cause him to unwittingly head into difficulties rather than away from them because he is unable to see the truth about people or situations. Because this clueless person keeps making suicidal decisions, the best case scenario for him is that he "amuses people and becomes the butt of [their] jokes" (Waltke 525), but this proverb warns that people will eventually refuse to put up with him and view him with contempt. No wonder Proverbs 13:15 describes this man's life has hard and headed for ruin.

Much of Proverbs is about avoiding punishment, discipline and ultimately destruction while at the same time maximizing blessing in life, so when Proverbs 22:1 says "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches" and one might ask, "How do I gain the blessing of a good reputation?"

Proverbs 12:8 comes along and answers "With insight." That sounds good to me! I want me some of that, but "How do I grow in insight?" The answer from Proverbs is keep wanting, keep praying for, keep learning, keep meditating on and keep loving the wisdom of Proverbs 10-31, which we will return to tomorrow. So, the question this proverbs leaves you with is what do people admire you for?  Is it your insight?

Hope that helps!!! TII!!!

Postings on Proverbs 12:7

"The wicked are overthrown and are no more,
But the house of the righteous will stand" (NASB)

While doing errands today I listened briefly to a radio show about how to become a millionaire. It never actually said how to become one though. It just gave a bunch of success stories and cliff hangers that make people buy the discounted book with the free CD to the first 100 callers! However, one good thing they mentioned concerned investing now so that you have enough to retire -- bring the future into the here and now! That's actually what this proverb is teaching us about wickedness and righteousness.

We are surrounded in the news, or maybe even in our own lives, with injustice, pain, sorrow, anger, frustration, broken dreams -- all at the hands of other people. In our "I want it yesterday" culture, this proverb reminds us not to evaluate where people are at in the here and now.

Before I start digging into this proverb, one rule for clarification: Proverbs are not universal sayings or promises. They are statements that are generally true, though not 100% of the time.

The best way for me to explain this is with a clear case example like Proverbs 10:4b "the hand of the diligent makes rich." Many of us know many very hard working people who are no where near rich, but it's saying that in general, those who work hard and aren't lazy get rich and those who are rich worked really hard to get where they are.

Now, God built justice into the fabric of reality. "What goes around comes around" and "You reap what you sow" are common idioms we've had for centuries.

So, in the here and now it's easy for us to wonder "Why do the wicked prosper? Why do they get away with so much and live lives that seem so blessed?" but this proverbs says "The wise person knows their blessing will not last forever. Their wickedness will catch up with them."

Because of their wicked plans (12:5) and their wicked words (12:6) they will be "overthrown." Something, maybe unexpected, will turn their world upside down. The boomerang effect will be so thorough in fact that they will be "no more." They will not recover from their fall. I can't help but remember Haman in Esther 7 when I think about this proverb.

Notice, it doesn't say "the righteous will stand," but "the house of the righteous will stand." The word "house" is a metaphor for the future of the righteous person, and in particular, her descendents. Through her life, she gave them a solid foundation of integrity (12:5) and love for God and man (12:6) that will allow them to be pillars in their communities and weather the storms of life. They "stand" while the wicked are "overthrown and are no more." I think of John & Charles Wesley's mother here, a woman everyone should admire and emulate.

This proverb makes us wise by encouraging us to take the long view of what it means to be successful -- Saddam Hussein was wicked and successful until he as overthrown, captured and hung! -- and by suggesting that success is not measured by wealth or fame or influence or stuff, but by a family that is strong in the Lord.

"God, as I get married in a couple months, I am terrified of the responsibility of being a husband and a father. Please teach me how to love like Christ and to leave a dynasty that is strong in You. Amen."

I hope that helps! TII!!!

Postings on Proverbs 12:6

"The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,
But the mouth of the upright will deliver them" (NASB)

Growing up, my mom always told me "Jonathan, if you didn't have a mouth you'd never get in trouble" (I think it's ironic that for the past 8 years I've made a living with my mouth :P).

Obviously, this is a proverb about the use of our mouths. Previously, Solomon has shown how sinners are characterized by their destructive speech (see 1:10-19, 2:12-15, 4:14-19, 6:12-19, 10:32). As I read this proverb I was reminded of Jesus' words, "the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart" (Matt 12:34) -- "the heart" in the Bible does not refer to your emotions, but rather it refers to your core, your mission-control center, the place where all your actions originate, your soul, the real you!

Notice the classic "two kinds of people in the world" antithesis, the wicked & the upright, who reveal their "real you" as they use their mouths in two distinctly different ways.

The Hebrew word translated "wicked" refers to people who benefit themselves by disadvantaging others (Waltke, 110), seen here in words that "lie in wait for blood." This is a metaphor, describing how the words of the wicked "have the effect of entrapping and killing unsuspecting innocent and upright citizens" (Waltke, 523).

 

The Hebrew word translated "upright" conveys the idea of "conduct that does not go astray or out of bounds of [God's] morally fixed order" (Waltke, 98). So, while one plans harm, the other keeps from harm. One is interested in destruction, the other in salvation. One is filling their minds with damaging someone, whereas the other is about premeditated protection and rescue. One hates while the other loves.

In the end, Proverbs 12:6 is a warning. Listen closely to people's words. What a person says about others reveals what kind of person he is. While it's critically important to ask, "What do my family's, friends' or co-workers' words reveal about them?" let's get personal instead and ask, "What do my words reveal about me?"

I'm thinking about this in regards to my words about those who have harmed me? Am I planning or wishing their destruction? Am I thinking about, even praying about their good (cf. Matt 5:43-47)? Do my words show I'm all about me and my feelings and what I want, even at the expense of others? Do my words show I'm really about loving my neighbor like I love myself, so that just as I'd never wish pain or harm on myself so I never would on others as well?

What do your words reveal about you? Hope that helps! TII!!!

Postings on Proverbs 12:5

"The thoughts of the righteous are just,
But the counsels of the wicked are deceitful" (NASB)

I listed to rap music when I was a kid, and one of my favorite songs had this line: "What's running through my mind comes through in my walk." In a very real way, you are what you think and you do what you think, and it seems that's what this proverb is talking about, but there's more here than meets the eye.

Observations: As with almost all proverbs, line 1 is understood with input from line 2 and vice versa, and the word "but" is a clue that whatever is being said in line 1 the opposite is being said in line 2. "Thoughts" and "counsels" are the same, but "the righteous" are being contrasted with "the wicked" and the opposite of "just" is "deceitful." Now, I don't typically think of the opposite of justice being deceit. The opposite of deceit is truth-telling. The opposite of justice is unfairness. Solomon saw them as opposites, but how?

Notice that what's being talked about seems to be internal. "Thoughts / counsels" seem to refer to the dialogue we have with ourselves all day long. The question this proverb might be asking is "What direction do your thoughts take you -- towards justice, doing what's right, or towards deceit, not telling the truth?"

Interpretation: After meditating on this verse and reading some commentaries, the words "thoughts" and "counsels" are better translated "plans" and "guidance," referring to the kind of advice you are given from people in order to achieve some goal.

So, advice that encourages you in the direction of "justice," of doing what you should do rather than taking advantage of people comes from a righteous person, whereas advice that encourages you to be "deceitful," to trick and damage others for your own benefit (see 11:1) comes from a wicked person.

So, instead of this being a proverb about checking your thoughts and where they take you (though that's very important, see Matthew 15:18-19 and James 4:1-3), it's actually a warning about those you allow the privilege of directing your life. It's asking "Are your advisers righteous or wicked? The answer to that question is seen in the kind of advice they give you? In general, is it an encouragement to do what's good and best, or when examined carefully, are you being encouraged to do what's good and best for you?"

Hope that helps!!! TII!!!

Postings on Proverbs 1:1, 10:1

"The Proverbs of Solomon" (1:1, 10:1)

The first 9 chapters of Proverbs are 14 sermons, all with the same point: Get Wisdom!!!

When I was a kid I wanted a metal detector so bad. I wanted to go to the beach and find money hidden in the sand. When I actually got one, I walked around a park in Costa Mesa, CA for hours looking for money -- never found anything though! How a person gets wisdom, the passion we should bring to this endeavor, is compared to the passion you might have if discovered there was buried treasure in your backyard (2:4) -- for those in California, a backyard is a patch of dirt or grass located in the back of your house :P

Then, holding on to that wisdom, meaning living your life according to it, is better than being rich (3:14, 8:10, 8:19). If gold and jewels and money were on one side of a scale & wisdom lie on the other, there would no comparison -- wisdom is far more valuable (3:15, 8:11). In fact, "nothing you desire" -- technology, friends, knowledge, cars, houses, a spouse, influence, etc. -- nothing at all "compares with" wisdom (3:15). Now, if the primary author of Scripture is God Himself (2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:19-21), then this is not human opinion, but God Himself telling us what He wants us to value greatly.

In general, getting wisdom is accomplished by reading, studying, meditating on, talking about, writing about God's Word. However, after 3 years of studying Proverbs one of the things I learned was that in chapters 1-9 Solomon is encouraging his readers to get the wisdom found in chapters 10-31. When it says "Get wisdom" it means, learn and then live chapters 10-31.

Now, I studied the Bible consistently, but after preaching all 14 sermons in chapters 1-9 twice and challenging the people under my care to get wisdom, I kept being challenged with this question: "Am I getting wisdom with the same intensity that I'd have for buried treasure?" The answer was "No," so to take my own medicine I'm going to search for wisdom and pray that I get some by going verse by verse through chapters 10-31 in this blog. I started doing this before blogs existed, but stopped when life got too busy. So, on a regular basis I'm going to take that task up again here, starting in Proverbs 12:5 where I left off.

See you soon!!! TII!!!

Hello Again!!!

After thinking about it on my own for months now and having a friend last night, completely out of the blue, say "I think you should start writing," I've decided to blog again.

I'm not writing, ultimately, for others, but for the glory of God and to hone this skill that He's given me. At the same time, I am not oblivious to the fact that this is a public blog so others can find it (how, I have no idea), so if people find it and read it, fine. If, with the literally billions of webpages out there, it remains hidden no one reads it, that's fine too.

With that in mind, I think I'm going to focus on a couple things in this blog: (1) The passion of my heart is to see Christians and non-Christians transformed by the Gospel, (2) After preaching through Proverbs twice (2008-10) in the college and singles' ministries I used to pastor in Aliso Viejo, CA I've been struck by my need for wisdom so I'll spend a lot of time looking at Proverbs 10-31, and (3) I'm working on a book idea that I'll be fleshing out here as well.

To start, I just came home from a leadership meeting at my church, Redemption Church Gateway, where the pastor asked a random person to give their testimony. It was a moving story of God's grace that moved the grown man speaking to cry in front of a room of around 100 leaders. God saved him over a decade ago, and it wasn't old news to him! It was still really good news! What struck me as I watched was how emotional he still was about being saved, something I realized I've lost the wonder of in recent days, remembering that just today I shared my testimony with a friend and didn't have that response at all.

What also hit me was how many leaders in our day are taking the obvious work of God in people's lives -- as seen in my friend who I just rejoiced with -- and using it to build their own personal kingdoms. In the lives and ministries of many, the sovereign miracle of conversion is not an end in itself to be marveled at and rejoiced in. Instead, it's used to market a man or his ministry, which is about as ridiculous as the paint brush taking credit for the Mona Lisa.

Now, this distorted and wicked motive is often hidden behind slogans like "I just want to get God's Word to more of God's people" or "More people means more exposure to the Gospel" when deep down it's about prestige, money, security, proving oneself to doubters, book deals, acclaim and bragging rights. Now, I know the obvious comeback is "You don't know their hearts" and you're right. I don't. However, according to Jeremiah 17:9-10, they don't know their own hearts either.

So, after watching my friend my thought was beware all of us who love the "Good job" after serving God's people. The sacrifice being made may not be our time and effort. The sacrifice being made may be the Gospel on the altar of our own personal ambitions.

Truth is Immortal!!!