Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction:

If you have your bibles let me invite you to open with me to the book of Proverbs chapter 1.

Last week we introduced the book of Proverbs by considering the background of the primary author, Solomon, son of David, King of Israel.

If you missed that, I highly encourage you to go back and listen so that you can be caught up with our study…

This week we progress through what is considered to be the Pre-amble of the book.

a Pre-amble is an introductory section designed to help you to understand what is to come.

In this preamble we have been given:

the type of work that this is - proverbs

the author - Solomon

And now we turn our attention to the purpose for which it was written.

Verses 2-6 give us the reason that Solomon composed this work.

And thus, verses 2-6 are very helpful for helping us understand why proverbs has been preserved for us to read now 3,000 years later.

Verses 2, 3, 4, and 6 all begin with a hebrew preposition which just means “to” or “towards” or “ until”...

If you are wondering why we chose to study proverbs as a church… this paragraph will point you “to” the goals for the book and our study.

Imagine asking Solomon the question… Why did you write this?

Lets pray

Listen to what commentator David Hubbard says about this paragraph.

“Chock full of meaty morsels about wisdom, this paragraph is designed to whet the appetite of even the most casual reader.

Its synonyms, piled one on another, are calculated to show wisdom’s well-stocked pantry, They are an instance of the use of repetition by Hebrew authors to expand, reinforce, and enrich the meaning of a concept.

It is their accumulative force that conveys the teacher’s intention, more than the precise nuance of each term, though each word adds something to our understanding of wisdom.”

- David Hubbard

Verses 2-6 provide for us 9 distinct terms which are not exactly synonymous with wisdom, but rather they illuminate different aspects of what wisdom means.

Verses 2-6 also provide for us two distinct audiences for which this book was written.

The challenge is this, how do we draw out all these nuanced ideas and truths in one sermon?

From the distinctions in each word used, I want us to walk away with 7 truths about wisdom.

These are introductory truths, so no single one will be covered in great depth, but they are present here in the preamble precisely because we will see them fleshed out in detail as we progress throughout the book.

So lets begin with the first phrase:

“To know wisdom”

Firstly, the verb “to know” in Hebrew often carries with it a more intimate knowledge then our typical use of the word.

When we use the word “knowledge” we tend to think only in terms of intellectual ascent to particular facts.

Hebrew on the other hand uses the phrase “to know” when it refers to the intimacy that a man and woman share on their marriage night.

To know someone or something goes beyond intellectual ascent... to something deeper and more profound… something that is internalized.

Something that becomes a part of you, not just something external to you that you acknowledge.

We understand the distinction even in our use of the word “knowledge”

I know about the president of the united states, but I do not know him.

Some of you in this room have been coming to our church for sometime and you know a good bit about God, but you do not know God.

Similarly, you can know a lot about Wisdom.

You can know what is wise and what is not wise....

But we are approaching the book of proverbs with a reverent desire not just to know about wisdom, but we want to know wisdom.

We want to be so joined with wisdom and for wisdom to be such a part of who we are, that wisdom is the natural response to our everyday life.

But that begs the question, “what exactly is wisdom?”

The hebrew term for wisdom is “hokma”

I only tell you that because, there are some confusing instances where our english Bibles use the english word “wisdom” to translate other similar hebrew words, but in doing so we can miss some of the nuance.

“Hokma” is first noun the author uses in this preamble.

Later in the book, its the only term used when wisdom is personified as a person who calls out for you to follow and urges you to turn away from foolishness.

The author wrote proverbs so that we might know Hokma… so that we might know “wisdom”

But what exactly is “Hokma”?

Let me give you some definitions from a few scholars and then let me give you my own shortened definition.

“Wisdom is the totalizing concept that seeks to bring all of life’s activities into harmony with God’s created order.”

- Van Leeuwen

“In proverbs, wisdom mainly denotes the skill to navigate through the maze of life so that one conducts one’s life to the greatest benefit to oneself and the community; it is the way of eternal life.” - Bruce Waltke

“Wisdom is the broadest, most inclusive term available to depict the combination of observation, obedience, careful planning, prudent conduct, and sensitivity to God’s will.” - David Hubbard

Now here is my shortened definition in the form of our first truth.

Truth #1 To Know Wisdom is to Know How to Live in God’s World God’s Way

The most helpful text that contributed to my understanding of “hokma” in proverbs actually comes later in Proverbs chapter 8.

Wisdom is the stuff by which God created our world.

Its the fabric of the way things work.

Its the equation by which we live for God’s glory and for our good and for the good of those around us.

When we walk in wisdom we walk according to God’s design for creation… his intent for life, abundant life, eternal life.

When we walk contrary to his design we walk the way of a fool… we walk the way of death.

So in the broadest since.

Truth #1 To Know Wisdom is to Live in God’s World God’s Way

having now introduced the concept of wisdom… now the author applies layers of interrelated terms that helps us understand what wisdom includes and what striving for wisdom means.

Proverbs 1:2 (ESV)

2 To know wisdom and instruction

Proverbs is not shy about what it will take for you to become a wise person.

The obvious assumption of the book is that it is not our natural demeanor or disposition to walk in wisdom.

The force that is always pulling at our souls is one of foolishness, not wisdom.

The curse of sin in the world corrupted humanity first and foremost.... we are born foolish… not wise.

Wisdom, therefore, is a process of undoing what we naturally are.

We need “instruction.”

But that word for “instruction” conveys more than just “verbal communication of concepts.”

The word “instruction” here is the Hebrew word “musar” and it is can also be translated as “discipline, chatisement, warning, or training.”

One commentator writes this,

“The hebrew noun “musar” and the verb “yasar” have the double meaning of ‘instruct-reprove’ and ‘chastize-beat’” - Bruce Waltke

So this word conveys not just the kind of instruction you get from a text book, but the kind of instruction you get from a good whoopin.

Truth #2 Wisdom Requires Instruction that Confronts and Corrects

From the very first sentence of the preamble of this book… the author is warning you…

That if you want to proceed.

If you want to be a wise person who benefits from God’s wisdom rather than the destruction of foolishness…, You better prepare your heart and mind to be told when you are in the wrong.

Wisdom is impossible for us unless we are willing and ready to come to terms with and be chastised for our foolishness.

Hebrews 12 is commentary on this concept from Proverbs.

If you want to be wise you need to invite this kind of instruction into your life from God and from God’s people.

How does God discipline us in every day life?

God corrects us, through good Christian friends who love us enough to warn us when we are choosing a foolish path.

You need wise people in your life who love you enough to expose your foolishness in a spirit of gentleness.

Otherwise, you will live as a fool.

Fools are always either ignorant or worse tolerant to their own foolishness and they are always too arrogant to receive instruction that would suggest otherwise.

Christian if you are in this room and you know you are making decisions that are contrary to God’s way in God’s world… I can almost guarantee you that one sure sign of your condition… is that you will find yourself avoiding the people that you know will tell you the truth.

Seek wisdom… seek instruction that corrects.

This is a theme we will come to time and time again throughout the proverbs.

Truth #2 Wisdom Requires Instruction that Confronts and Corrects

Truth #3 Wisdom Requires Mental Understanding of Words

That may seem simplistic, but perhaps so simple that we ignore it.

God gave us a book.

This book contains words.

The words contain wisdom.

If you want to be wise, you have to understand the words.

In order to understand the words you have to read the words.

If you don’t understand what you read… you have to work hard at reading the words, thinking about the words, and internalizing the words.