July 12, 2014
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

The Fear of the Lord

Please see the links to our EXTRA Bible Study notes at the bottom of the page.

Opening Prayer

Powerful One, override my resistant ears with a penetrating word. I am ready.

Read Proverbs 9:1-18

[1] Wisdom has built her house; she has set up its seven pillars. [2] She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine; she has also set her table. [3] She has sent out her servants, and she calls from the highest point of the city, [4] “Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says, [5] “Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed. [6] Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of insight.” [7] Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse. [8] Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you. [9] Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning. [10] The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. [11] For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life. [12] If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer. [13] Folly is an unruly woman; she is simple and knows nothing. [14] She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city, [15] calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way, [16] “Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says, [17] “Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” [18] But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflect

“The ‘fear not’ of verse 1 comes with a promise. If we fear God we will become judicious, understanding, knowledgeable, and astute” (Mark Galli). So we need to chill out. Fear not. Or at least don’t fear relatively petty things!

Proverbs 1-9 closes with a challenge to choose between the two ways of wisdom and folly. It is presented in terms of responding to invitations from wisdom and folly, personified as women, to have a meal in their house. In each case the house is located at “the highest point of the city” (3,14). This is where the temple of the God worshiped in the city would be, so this is implicitly a challenge to choose which God you will serve. It is a choice that we face daily, as the advertising media present us with the siren calls of the gods of our culture, such as money, sex and power.

The point is driven home in verses 7-12 as they contrast the “mocker” with “the wise.” The mocker in Proverbs is someone whose arrogance makes them unteachable, but the wise are always open to correction and instruction. However, the issue is not just intellectual, it is once again theological: “the fear of the Lord” (10). There are different aspects to “the fear of the Lord.” It involves a deep sense of awe before the power and numinous presence of God. It means having a loyalty and love for God that is shown in obedience to his commands. In this sense it becomes a motivation for how one lives and treats people. The Hebrew word used for “beginning” (10) indicates that “the fear of the Lord” is the precondition for wisdom. The second half of the verse reinforces the first. The word for “knowledge” can mean “to acknowledge, recognize,” which seems to be the meaning here. True understanding begins with acknowledging that there is a holy God to whom we owe allegiance. This is why arrogance prevents the mockers from gaining wisdom. Growth in wisdom requires the humility of teachability.

Apply

How teachable are you? When did you last accept correction or learn something new as a disciple of Jesus?

Closing prayer

Lord, show me any barriers I have to being teachable, and give me the grace and humility needed to remove them.

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