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    Genesis to Revelation: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs Participant Book: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible
    Genesis to Revelation: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs Participant Book: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible
    Genesis to Revelation: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs Participant Book: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible
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    Genesis to Revelation: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs Participant Book: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible

    By James Crenshaw

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    About this ebook

    What does the Bible say? What does it mean? How does it relate to my life? Genesis to Revelation, a comprehensive, verse-by-verse, book-by-book study of the Bible, will strengthen your understanding and appreciation of the Scripture by helping you engage on these three levels. Newly revised, these Abingdon classics are based on the NIV translation and are presented in an easy-to-read format. Each of the volumes includes thirteen sessions and a separate Leader Guide.

    Study the entire Books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs in this comprehensive study beginning with a look at the springs of life in Proverbs and ending with Song of Songs' declaration that love is as strong as death. Some of the major ideas explored in this study are: the cost of getting involved, joy unlimited, the constancy of friendship, time to love and to hate, and the old and the new. The meaning of the selected passages is made clear by considering such aspects as ancient customs, locations of places, and the meanings of words. The simple format makes the study easy to use. Includes maps and glossary with key pronunciation helps.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAbingdon Press
    Release dateDec 19, 2017
    ISBN9781501848483
    Genesis to Revelation: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs Participant Book: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible
    Author

    James Crenshaw

    James L. Crenshaw is the Robert L. Flowers Professor of Old Testament at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

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      Book preview

      Genesis to Revelation - James Crenshaw

      1

      EVERYTHING FLOWS FROM THE HEART

      Proverbs 1–4

      DIMENSION ONE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

      Answer these questions by reading Proverbs 1

      1. What is the beginning of knowledge? (1:7)

      2. What happens to people who acquire wealth by means of violence? (1:19)

      Answer these questions by reading Proverbs 2

      3. Despite our efforts to learn about life’s mysteries, who grants true wisdom to individuals? (2:6)

      4. From what does wisdom deliver young men? (2:16)

      5. What happens to those who surrender before the adulterous woman’s seductive speech? (2:18-19)

      Answer these questions by reading Proverbs 3

      6. What happens to young people who heed the teachings of their parents? (3:1-2)

      7. Whom should we trust? (3:5)

      8. What special relationship exists between God and the subject of divine discipline? (3:11-12)

      9. What does wisdom hold in each of her hands? (3:16)

      10. What three things is wisdom like? (3:15-18)

      11. In the beginning, when God created the world, what assisted the Creator? (3:19-20)

      12. When should we help others? (3:27)

      Answer these questions by reading Proverbs 4

      13. What does wisdom place upon the head of the one who loves her? (4:9)

      14. What characterizes the separate paths of the righteous and the wicked? (4:18-19)

      15. What flows from the human heart? (4:23)

      DIMENSION TWO: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN?

      Proverbs 1:1. The Book of Proverbs consists of several individual collections that have been brought together in a single book. Verse 1 associates these proverbs with King Solomon, who was reputed to have been wiser than all the peoples of the East and of Egypt. (See 1 Kings 4:30.) Stories intended to demonstrate Solomon’s wisdom have found a place in the record of Israel’s early kings. (See 1 Kings 3; 4:29-34; 10:1-13.)

      Proverbs 1:2-7. We do not know whether this introduction applies to the entire Book of Proverbs or just to the first collection in 1:1–9:18. Verses 2-6 state the teacher’s wish to bestow wisdom on two kinds of people those who are being newly instructed in the ways of wisdom (the young or the simple) and the mature person who still may add to their learning. These two verses set the foundation of wisdom’s goal: to convey in both broad and specific teachings the Two Ways of life. Throughout Proverbs, life is portrayed with its real choices toward God and righteousness (wisdom) or toward sin and death (folly). The final verse stands as a motto for the educational task. Knowledge begins with faith, and any reasonable person wants to learn. The young are beginning to learn; the wise continue to learn; and the simple fool either refuses to learn or willfully rejects the lessons of wisdom.

      Proverbs 1:8-19. Above all, the wise are individuals who practice self-control. Violence breeds further violence, and therefore is to be avoided at all costs. This section warns young men that their choice of companions is crucial to their well-being. They must resist appeals to get rich by putting youthful energy to work at highway robbery. Those who surrender to generous offers of sharing the spoil acquired through murder will in the end be covered with their own blood. But those who heed their parents’ advice will wear a garland and necklaces, signs of prosperity in the ancient world.

      Proverbs 1:20-23. The author depicts wisdom as a person competing for a hearing in the hustle and bustle of daily activity within the city. The language comes from prophetic literature where God complains that frequent calls have met with stubborn resistance. Just as a spurned Lord eventually turns away and leaves the people to their destruction, so wisdom will withdraw from desperate individuals who seek her in vain.

      Proverbs 2:6. The motto in 1:7 claims that one must be religious in order to achieve true wisdom. This verse goes one step further: God is the source of all knowledge. One cannot become truly wise apart from the love of God. This assertion that God grants wisdom and proclaims understanding contrasts with the conviction that knowledge can be gained by using the intellect. The same tension pervades Proverbs 3:5.

      Proverbs 2:16-19. This is the first reference to the archenemy of young men, the foreign woman. We shall encounter the seductress throughout the first part of Proverbs. Opinions differ as to the identity of the strange woman. Is she a representative of fertility worship who invites young Israelites to sacrifice their virtue to a foreign goddess? Is she a foreigner residing in Israel? Is she an Israelite whose loose conduct sets her apart as foreign to the ways of decency? Since she is described differently in different places, we cannot be sure who she is. In any event, she cannot ensnare those who make room for wisdom in their heart.

      Proverbs 3:1-4. The sages believed that knowledge enriched life in more than one way. Not only did it help persons steer successfully through life’s rough seas, but wisdom also brought well-being and assured long life. In one sense, wisdom was the ability to cope. Without such ability persons fell victim to life’s negative forces.

      As reminders of the power of knowledge, loyalty and faithfulness are to be worn like amulets or even inscribed on the tablet of the heart. The imagery is taken from Deuteronomy, which urges a similar use of God’s words. Those who cherish wisdom will enjoy respect from persons and favor from God.

      Proverbs 3:11-12. Discipline was a favorite topic of the sages. Parents punished their children because they loved them. In the same manner God reproved those who were special. This response to human suffering was sufficient in some instances, but the Book of Job, for example, demonstrates the complexity of the problem and the danger of such simple answers.

      Proverbs 3:19-20. The orderliness of the universe impressed the sages. Therefore, it was natural to assume that divine wisdom accomplished the creative deed. This theme is fully developed in Proverbs 8:22-31.

      Proverbs 4:1-6. The family setting stands out in this section. Both father and mother are mentioned, although the father alone is responsible for teaching the son. Elsewhere a mother’s teaching is set alongside the father’s. (See Proverbs 6:20.) Nowhere, however, do we read that daughters receive instruction. The address, my sons, is a technical expression meaning student. Father means teacher.

      Earlier, the prophet Amos had urged people of the Northern Kingdom to seek the Lord and live (Amos 6:6). Here the teacher promises life to those who abide by his instructions.

      Proverbs 4:14-19. Two paths are compared—the path of the righteous and the way of the wicked. The wise walk along the first way, and fools the second. Light characterizes the way of wisdom, darkness the path of folly. The dark path represents danger. Death greets those who stumble in darkness.

      DIMENSION THREE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN TO ME?

      Proverbs 1:7—Faith and Knowledge

      The author of this verse believed that the first step in becoming learned was a religious one. To ancient Israelites, the fear of the Lord encompassed worship, though that is seldom mentioned in Proverbs, and also religion, which meant one’s entire orientation toward a life of faith. (See, for example, Deuteronomy 10:12-13.) We are not certain whether the beginning of knowledge meant the first stage or the main ingredient. Perhaps both ideas are intended.

      Our culture generally sees religion as a segment of our entire orientation to life, among family, school, work, and so on, rather than as a foundation for all that we think and do. Given that context and the teaching of Proverbs, what do you think is the proper relationship between knowledge and religion? What conflict exists between secular learning and religious teaching? Should persons give at least equal credence to spiritual truths as to nonreligious ones? Why or why not? In what ways might your life change if your entire orientation were religious, as defined here?

      Proverbs 1:8-19—Violence Breeds Violence

      One test of education’s value is its capacity for directing youthful energy along wholesome channels. Our society is prone to violence. Often prosperity depends upon a willingness to walk roughshod over the lives of all who stand in the way. The combined power of several people heightens the opportunity for harming others, since it permits a measure of anonymity.

      What do you think about the assertion that those who resort to violence will be swallowed up by its power? Did not Jesus warn against the use of force for precisely this reason? What is the difference between military readiness and violence as a way of life? When does arguing from a position of strength encourage the use of the sword?

      Proverbs 1:24-28—The Fool Who Refuses to Learn

      These verses express frustration by wisdom, who calls out to all who would give heed, but encounters only mockers and fools who reject or disdain wisdom’s knowledge and who choose not to fear the Lord. Students who have the capacity, but lack the discipline, motivation, or value for learning will face calamity. In a reversal of fortune, those who mocked wisdom’s gifts will be mocked by wisdom when disaster strikes. Those who refused to hear wisdom’s call will be ignored when they call out for help. Wisdom seems content to let the fool face the consequences of his folly alone.

      Compassion, as

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