In the old testament, and even today for practising Jews, the ten commandments are the pillar of Jewish life, expanded on in the Pentateuch, into things that Jews could or could not do. Righteousness and wickedness stem largely from the presence or absence of a fear of God. We give more definite definitions below, but this is the starting point, which cascades to all aspects of one's character.
The ten commandments are catechetical (religious teaching by questions and answers, rather than law), as it does not come with punishments. Moses expanded on the commandments by giving finer detail of punishments in the Pentateuch. If you would be interested in a further exposition of the commandments as related to the Pentateuch, please click here for TEN COMMANDMENTS EXPOUNDED UPON.
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For Christians this Fear comes from the teachings of Christ, and the various promises he makes for those that choose to follow him and those that fail to answer his call. In a nutshell, we show reverence and divine fear for our creator by following his commandments.
If you ignore what he commands, then it’s unlikely that you will inculcate what the proverbs teach. The starting point is divine fear and divine reverence, linked largely to how we perceive the afterlife, and if following a biblical perspective, where in the afterlife we would like to end up.
Imagine an all-seeing eye that follows your every action, utterance, and thought from birth to death and thereafter a judgment of every utterance, action, and thought. It is a realization that such a moment will come, that leads to divine reverence and fear. If all human beings would follow this line of thinking, I estimate that the world would be a very different place indeed; certainly better in every respect.
Proverbs were initially written for nobility, or if you prefer royalty, namely those that would naturally grow into positions of authority over the population. The covenant community would need just judges and rulers; frankly as would any community on the face of the earth.
While this book addresses the bible community, many of the proverbs were copied from other writings e.g Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, etc, and moulded for the Jewish worldview. In the former, the teaching was largely to administrators of the states or empires, while amongst the Israelites, the teaching was available to the whole community.
The covenant community is seeking holiness to set itself apart from the rest of the world and identify itself with God, and thus God-like qualities. In this regard, terms which we hear regularly take on certain meanings worth reflecting on.
This does not mean giving away your living and disadvantaging your family, loved ones, or dependents. It means acting with discernment while sacrificing what could easily be your advantage.
For example:
- I choose to pay more than what we agreed, simply because I can
- I overlook a slight even when I am both justified and have the wherewithal to hit back ferociously and effectively
- To be humiliated even when I know I have the power to retaliate
In a sense, justice, a fear of God and wisdom, looks at the heart, where God can see the sacrifice and men cannot.
Wickedness: To disadvantage another for your own benefit
- You can apply this to the more obvious sins like murder and adultery, but also to the less direct sins of encouraging people to vice for example adverts that lead to sins of the flesh e.g gluttony, drunkenness, covetousness, betting, etc.
- It also includes greed that is designed to amass at the expense of others, where there is absolutely no reason to do so, other than reckless competition for personal gain, even if it means destroying families and nations at large. It becomes an endless cycle of vicious greed and wickedness.
Why are we incapable of remembering that we are only here for a short while, and it is the growth of the spirit that matters most and not the satisfaction of our physical wants.
As you think about it, you begin to realize that there are many things we do for personal aggrandizement that are completely unnecessary and can be viewed as wicked in the divine realm, due to its effects on others. Is it worth risking the wrath of the divine realm?
The proverbs set boundaries in regard to how we live; whose company we keep and how we behave. To be blunt, a life of easy sex (no commitments), easy money (money with little or no work), and a lifestyle dedicated to the self are highly discouraged.
The book advocates for the development of the physical and spiritual self through hard work, commitment and love, and service to God and neighbour above self.
The proverbs are for the world uncommitted and open to anything. Modern teaching suggests that it's prejudicial to have an opinion or worldview; we should be open to everything and accepting of everyone. There are no absolute truths and everyone follows his or her own path, and a reasonable citizen of the world should be respectful of all opinions. This, based on the last two thousand years, is untrue.
The phenomenon called relativism is a relatively new concept in the modern age (the idea of no absolute truths), that has seen corruption in previously held values and systems, leading to a breakdown in modern-day societies where money and brawn have replaced intelligent thinking and proper analysis.
The abundance of sin in the world is due to this kind of thinking; there is no bulwark to sin and thus it simply cascades and permeates through society. The fear of God comes from on high and it only remains for as long as one serves God through fear and reverence and continuous study of his word.
The second we stop any of the above activities, wisdom slowly starts to depart. The wisest man in the world (Solomon, son of David), and a significant contributor to the wisdom genre in the bible, died a fool due to departing from the ways of the Lord.
A material sluggard, namely one who takes his eye off the ball, becomes lazy, and not attending to his needs will become poor. The same for spiritual knowledge. You stop feeding it, and the way of the world, the flesh, and the devil will eventually overwhelm you; subtly at first, but it is systematic subtleness.
You must commit yourself to a side. If there is any tension between the world and Christ, Christ and the proverbs win every single time; this is what making a decision is about.
The uncommitted, who sit on a fence are lukewarm, guided by senses and not heaven; as a consequence, they are flung around like rag dolls by the ruler of the earth, who prowls the earth roaring and looking for prey.
Fear of God and wisdom in Bible Proverbs is personified as a woman, shouting at the city gates trying to entice the simple, those that are uncommitted. They are addressed by woman wisdom and woman folly. This represents the tension between two world views; one spiritual and eternal, the other terrestrial and carnal.
The purpose of the book is to receive instruction in prudence, righteousness, justice, and equity; also known as the CARDINAL VIRTUES (CLICK FOR MORE).
Tissot The paralyzed man let down through the roof, Luke 5:17-33
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