Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23 is from two of the four large sections or “books” into which the canonical text divides the book of Proverbs: Book I (1:1-9:18), Book II (10:1-22:16), Book III (22:17-24:22), and Book IV (25:1-29:27). Scholars regard the remaining material as insertions or additions. The first two parts of this passage (vv. 1-2, 8-9) come from Book II, a collection of miscellaneous wisdom sayings, and the last part (vv. 22-23) comes from a collection of “Thirty Wise Sayings” (22:20) that bear striking similarities to a collection of sayings (also in 30 chapters) from the ancient Egyptian sage Amen-em-ope (who lived ca 1100 B.C.). The passage concerns the wisdom and folly of compassion and greed. The construction of the aphorisms in this section of Proverbs, like many of the psalms, is in the form of parallelistic couplets (i.e., the first line is of the form A - B - C, and the second line’s corresponding grammatical and sense elements are of the form A’ - B’ - C’).
Short, witty, memorable, and sometimes true, are sayings I like on occasion. At least, taken from one perspective, and on certain occasion, they provide useful wisdom. One saying I have often heard is, “Look before you leap.” In a situation that feels like a “leap” into a major change in life circumstances, it provides wisdom and caution. Yet, “a rolling stone gathers no moss.” In a situation where you feel stagnant, where you no longer like the situation in which you live, this saying is a reminder to keep moving forward. We need both sayings, even though their advice can appear opposed to each other.
In any case, certain types of sayings have the design of making us pause and reflect upon our life choices. We need more short, witty, memorable sayings that provide some wisdom that helps us keep in touch with what matters. What do you think?
Although wisdom literature depended more on common human experience than on divine revelation for its precepts, the particularity of Israel’s religion or Israel’s God was never wholly absent from wisdom teachings. Even in what is the most secular of biblical literature, it never perceives the world to be autonomous or devoid of divinity. Rather, the world is the very pervasiveness of the divine presence in common experience that characterizes revelation in wisdom circles, whose task it was to equip young and old alike to be able to perceive and appropriate the wisdom of that revelation.
1 One ought to choose a good name rather than great riches,
and favor is better than silver or gold.
In the first half, “a good name” corresponds to “favor” in the second half of the verse (A/A’), “is to be chosen” corresponds to “is better” (B/B’), and “great riches” corresponds to “silver or gold” (C/C’). This quite common construction provided great flexibility, allowing for comparisons that were both synonymous and antithetical (e.g., Proverbs 22:3). The proverb is a class A proverb, coming from the earliest collection.[1] The expression “silver or/and gold” is one the reader of biblical literature finds often, denoting monetary wealth in general. Why would they steal silver or gold (Genesis 44:8)? The Lord will multiply their silver and gold (Deuteronomy 8:13). The matter between David and the people of Gibeon is not one of silver or gold (II Samuel 21:4). The rule of Assyria tells Ahab of Israel that his silver and gold belong to Assyria (I Kings 20:3). Peter affirms that he has no silver or gold to offer the man who could not walk (Acts 3:6). Paul affirms that he coveted the silver or god of no one (Acts 20:33). God did not ransom them with silver or gold (I Peter 1:18).
I invite you to reflect upon your reputation. Mae West, the flamboyant and scandalous actress of the 1930s, said of a story she wrote, “It’s a story I wrote myself, about a girl who lost her reputation and didn’t miss it.” The writer of Proverbs would disagree. A good reputation is something we should miss if we lose it. In the opposite direction, some people have so much concern for their individual reputation that they are not effective and truthful witnesses. God has more interest in our character than in our comfort or career. Some will say that character is what God knows of us, while reputation is what people think of us.[2] Both can be important markers that evaluate the choices we make in life. Thus, the question of our name is a eulogy question. If we were to die, what would our funeral feel like?
One can scarcely overestimate the importance of a “good name” in ancient Israel, and it is an important theme in wisdom literature. A good name is better than precious ointment (Ecclesiastes 7:1). A good name is more durable than even life itself (Sirach 41:13). As in modern times, a person’s “name” in the biblical tradition meant more than simply her or his linguistic identifier. It contained and denoted something of the person’s essential being or character — rather like, but more even than the word “reputation” — so that when the biblical tradition speaks of someone cutting of the name. The enemies of the tribes of Israel could cut off the name of the Lord if the Lord allows the defeat of Israel (Joshua 7:9). Boaz makes it clear that he did want the name of his dead brother cut off from his family and village (Ruth 4:10). The Lord will cut off name and remnant, offspring and posterity from Babylon (Isaiah 14:22). It indicates a loss of more than simple personal identity. It indicates a loss of both descendants and, through them, social influence, presence and standing. Wisdom circles associated the term more closely allied with the sense of reputation. The ability to construct and preserve one’s reputation among one’s peers as well as among one’s superiors was an indispensable skill. The idea that one can choose a good name reflects the practical aspect of Israel’s sapiential tradition. Wisdom literature places a high premium on the ability of human beings to make definite choices with clear (as well as, occasionally, unforeseeable) consequences. We do not know what will come after the work we do on this earth (Ecclesiastes 3:22). The passage of time and chance have more to do with success in life (Ecclesiastes 9:11). Yet, a good name is largely a matter of hard, patient work. Much of the wisdom tradition, in fact, devotes itself to preserving those maxims designed to yield, through disciplined appropriation, precisely the sort of identity summarized as “a good name.”
“A good name is to be chosen over great riches.” Pause, and think about that. Riches are not bad. Yet, what priority do you have in life? Surely, we need to build character. Temptation gives us knowledge of ourselves. It comes at differing times and circumstances, testing the various sides of who we are. Integrity on one side of our character is no voucher for integrity on another side of our character. We have experienced a certain set of temptations. We do not know how we will act with another set of temptations different from the ones experienced thus far. This thought should keep us humble. We are sinners. However, we do not yet know how great a sinner we are.[3] One who focuses upon that will take everything that matters with him or her into eternity. “Reputation is an idle and most false imposition; oft got without merit and lost without deserving” (Shakespeare). “It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it” (Benjamin Franklin). “Your reputation is what other people think you are; your character is what you really are” (John Wooden). “You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do” (Henry Ford). Why is a reputation more valuable than money? Some people don’t care what others think of them. Don’t we secretly admire those people? The text says a good reputation is to be valued above riches. But if you have riches, why does it matter what people think of you? What are the benefits of a good reputation, and what makes a reputation a good one?
2 The rich and the poor have this in common:
the Lord is the maker of them all.
This proverb is a class C proverb, suggesting influence from the prophetic tradition.[4] One finds rich and poor side by side in every community. Social structures have this polarity of wealth and poverty. The gist of the proverb is that neither poverty nor riches are the direct result of an individual person’s achievement, but rather, the providence of God determines such matters. Such an observation is consistent with statements elsewhere in wisdom literature. Even the persecutors of the righteous can be those who trust in their riches (Psalm 49:6). People trusting in their riches will wither even as the righteous will flourish (Proverbs 11:28). The literature warns against trusting in riches (or anything else) in preference to trusting in God.
8 Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity (or trouble),
and the rod of anger will fail (or the rod of the anger of God will destroy).[5]
This proverb is Class C proverb, suggesting influence from the prophetic tradition.[6]
The combination sow/reap is one we find in wisdom and prophetic literature as an idiom for undertaking particular actions and suffering the consequences of those actions. Those who plow iniquity will reap iniquity (Job 4:8). The prayer is that those who sow in tears will reap with joy (Psalm 126:5). Those who observe the winds and clouds will neither sow nor reap (Ecclesiastes 11:4). Those who sow wheat reap thorns (Jeremiah 12:18). They sow wind and reap the whirlwind (Hosea 8:7). If they sow righteousness they will reap steadfast love (Hosea 10:12).
9 God blesses those who are generous,
for they share their bread with the poor.
This proverb is a Class B proverb, concerned with social relationships.[7]
I invite you to reflect upon your relationship with wealth. The kind person is benevolent and has concern for the poor. The life the Lord blesses is not in selfishness but in love for the neighbor. Although people do receive blessing from God in the Hebrew Bible, the word does not occur frequently in Proverbs. In the other two instances (5:18; 20:21), it refers to inanimate objects.
Wealth should not be an index of worth. This proverb is not a polemic against wealth. The biblical tradition frequently compares riches, explicitly or implicitly, with other values (such as a good name or wisdom or virtue). While the tradition does not despise riches, the tradition considers them wanting in comparison to other goods. Thus, since Solomon did not ask for riches, God grants Solomon’s request for the wisdom to rule Israel wisely (1 Kings 3:5-11). One needs to find refuge in God rather than riches (Psalm 52:7). Do not set your heart on riches (Psalm 62:10). Riches will bring no profit when at the time of death (Proverbs 11:4). Trusting in riches will cause one to wither, while righteousness will bring one to flourishing (Proverbs 11:28). The riches of this life will strangle the growth of the word in one’s life (Luke 8:14). One ought not to have pride in riches or set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who provides with everything for our enjoyment (I Timothy 6:17). Taking pride in riches does not come from the Father, but rather, comes from attachment to the world (I John 2:16). The matters of wealth and poverty play no less a role in wisdom literature than they do in prophetic literature or parabolic literature. Riches are a fortress for those who have it, while poverty is the ruin of those who are poor (Proverbs 10:15). Riches are so valuable in social standing that some will pretend to have it, while others who have riches will pretend to be poor (Proverbs 13:7). The poor have few friends while the rich have many friends (Proverbs 14:20). The poor will plead with others while the rich answer roughly (Proverbs 18:23). The rich rule the poor (Proverbs 22:7). Oppressing the poor in order to enrich oneself will lead to loss (Proverbs 22:16). In general, though, the orientation of wisdom literature toward riches tends to be more approving or cautionary than critical. Thus, the reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches (Proverbs 22:4).
Although much of the advice given in Proverbs would be appropriate for the education of a courtier-in-training, the “favor” one seeks here is general approval based on a sound reputation, rather than the favor of idiosyncratic favoritism. Widespread acceptance among one’s contemporaries was a matter in which to take pride in the world of Proverbs, a perspective that would shift dramatically in the biblical tradition by the time of the New Testament, where Jesus offers a beatitude upon those who falsely revile and speak evil against followers of Jesus (Matthew 5:11).
22 Do not rob the poor because they are poor,
or crush the afflicted at the gate (or the system of justice);
23 for the Lord pleads their cause
and despoils of life those who despoil them.
Verses 22-23 are from the Saying from the "Thirty Precepts of the Sages," which is dependent upon the "Instruction of Amenemope."
The Lord made the distinction between man and woman in creation, a distinction that matters for many reasons. Yet, most of the other distinctions that we consider significant, and wealth is clearly one of them, forgets an important fact. Beneath the roles we play, regardless of our status, fame, power, or wealth, we are still people made in the image of God.
I invite you to reflect upon your relationship with wealth. These verses discuss robbing the poor. Robbing a poor person shows both cowardice and injustice. Legal proceedings are in mind. The poor may not have resources to get justice, but the Lord will fight their case. The system of justice in ancient Israel was that village elders or city rulers administered justice at the gate. Boaz would negotiate his marriage before ten elders at the gate (Ruth 4:1-6). When Jerusalem fell to Babylon, its king sat in the middle of the gate (Jeremiah 39:3). The purpose for hearing cases in so public a place was to allow many and random witnesses to act as a safeguard against the perverting of justice in private trials. The point is that rulers were not to take advantage of the poor, for the LORD, dispenser of all justice, is their advocate, an idea found throughout the Hebrew Bible.
I came across some reflections on a book by Ellen T. Charry, Princeton theologian wrote God and the Art of Happiness (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2010). Some reviewers suggest it should be in the library of pastors and teachers. It is not in my library, but a reference sounded interesting, and I chased down a few reflections on the book.
In this study, she addresses her concern that Christian theology lacks a substantial doctrine of human flourishing. In the book's first section, Charry surveys the history of philosophy and Christian doctrine to reveal overlooked thinkers from Augustine to the Anglican divine Joseph Butler who encourage human flourishing. In the second section, Charry examines the biblical foundations of a doctrine she calls "asherism" (from the Hebrew asher, to be happy) and finds that Scripture encourages Christians to organize life around God so that the love, beauty, goodness and wisdom of God may lift them up. This discussion is what makes the book memorable for theologians, and probably boring for others. It has an innovative teaching of ‘asherism.’ Asherism avoids the dangers of self-denying agapism (love that would let people walk all over you) and self-serving eudemonism (your personal pleasure is your goal) by confirming our perennial need to love God, neighbor, and self at once and to live out our lives and vocations by the letter, spirit, and telos of both the law and the gospel.” Happiness, she concludes, is celebrating our own spiritual growth and well-being, and the enjoyment God receives in them. She makes it clear that Christians need not be dour and gloomy about life, but that their traditions do encourage them to put on a happy face.
As she sees it, western Christian theology is skittish about happiness. We hope for future, eternal happiness, but we avoid considering happiness in this life as if we suspect that God would not allow such a thing. The book offers a refreshing interpretation of happiness as a way of life grounded in scripture and the incarnate Christ.
Ellen Charry here reveals how the Bible encourages the happiness and joy that accompany obedience to the Creator, enhancing both our own life and the lives of those around us. This advances the wellbeing of creation, which, in turn, causes God to delight with, in, and for us.
Charry says that the divine goal of Christian truth is to produce virtue, and, thus, theology ought to be more concerned with teaching wisdom -- the root of happiness -- than knowledge. She believes that knowledge is a necessary, but subordinate, means to character formation. The same should be true about our study of Scripture. Yes, it helps us know what is in the Bible, but the larger purpose of our study is to help us become the person God calls us to be.
If our reading of the Old Testament brings us face to face with the asherist commands, our reading of the New Testament brings us, among other things, the Sermon on the Mount. That, too, aims at teaching wisdom and helping us create communities that thrive.
Not all Old Testament commands are asherist. Some, says Charry, are "single occurrence or rarely occurring ... orders" related to a specific time or circumstance, to test obedience." For example, when God told Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it was an obedience test. The asherist commands, however, are guidelines that commend an ongoing way of life. They include the Ten Commandments, certainly, but also the laws about how to treat the poor and the resident alien, and how to use the land. The asherist commands teach us the values God holds for human interactions and life together.
[1] Weiser, Old Testament Library
[2] Character is what God and the angels know of us; reputation is what men and women think of us. —Horace Mann.
[3] Never ... think we have a due knowledge of ourselves till we have been exposed to various kinds of temptations, and tried on every side. Integrity on one side of our character is no voucher for integrity on another. We cannot tell how we should act if brought under temptations different from those we have hitherto experienced. This thought should keep us humble. We are sinners, but we do not know how great. He alone knows who died for our sins. —John Henry Newman.
[4] Weiser, Old Testament Library.
[5] The word translated “calamity” can also be translated “trouble” (with the Revised English Bible), and the second half of the clause — “and the rod of anger will fail” — is gnomic to the point of obscurity. The Revised English Bible’s “The rod of God’s anger will destroy him” makes good sense, albeit through expansion of the Hebrew (“God” does not appear in the original text, nor is there a direct object for the verb “destroy”). The only other occurrence of the construct chain “rod of his anger” (which is what the Hebrew literally says) is found in Lamentations 3:1, where the expression refers to the rod of God’s wrath, which lends support for the REB translation (anticipated by the lexicon of Brown, Driver and Briggs, 720).
[6] Weiser, Old Testament Library.
[7] Weiser, Old Testament Library.
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