This week (Febryary 7th) we’re beginning a new series on the book of Proverbs. A small child once prayed “make the bad people good, and the good people nice”. This little prayer makes the point with ‘proverbic’ pithiness, that there are details of character that are small enough to escape the mesh of the law, like the Ten Commandments. There are dealings with each other that require finer thinking and consideration. You can have people supposedly good, but not able to apply the ways of God in the nitty gritty of everyday life.
The book of Proverbs asks what a person is like to live with, or to employ; how he manages his affairs, his time and himself. This good lady, for instance- does she talk too much? That cheerful man- is he bearable in the morning? What are the qualities of a fine wife? And that friend who is always dropping in- here is some advice for him… and for that aimless boy….
But the book of Proverbs is not a book on manners. It is not about making us more likeable or nice. It offers the key to life. It is God-centred. Even when it is down-to-earth, it is God’s Word, for God’s people in God’s world. And the aim is that we will know God “in all his ways”.
There are 31 chapters in the book of Proverbs. Read a chapter a week over the next month, ponder and understand, and you will be on the path to wisdom!
(Andrew)