1
Q
- How many lectures are there in the “Father’s Praise of Wisdom”? How many interludes are there, and what characterizes the interludes? In which chapters are the interludes?
A
It consists of 10 lectures, 2 interludes, an appendix, and an epilogue, First interlude chapter 1, Second Interlude Chapter 8
2
Q
- The first lecture contrasts what two sources of information?
A
a. Listen to your godly parents, not to your sinful friends (10)
3
Q
- Parents’ teaching is described using what two words, and what do these words indicate?
A
a. Instruction = discipline
b. Law – comes from root meaning “direction”
4
Q
- What word describes the youths that may tempt Solomon’s son?
A
a. “Sinners” = unbelievers who draw others into their sin
5
Q
- What is the nature of the temptation?
A
a. Easy money through crime
b. Young criminals are always overconfident
6
Q
- What is the meaning of Solomon’s aviary analogy?
A
a. Analogy of hunting for birds
b. Don’t be more stupid than a bird
7
Q
- What son of Solomon ironically failed this very first test?
A
Rehoboam
8
Q
- Why does Lady Wisdom cry out in the marketplace?
A
a. She is valuable for daily life
9
Q
- Who are the three groups of people she addresses?
A
a. The simple – morally naïve
b. The scorners – morally defiant
c. The fools – morally insensitive
10
Q
- What does it mean when we read that Wisdom will laugh at the fool in the day of calamity?
A
b. This is a metaphor for what happens when someone spurns wisdom for years and then meets a crisis in which he desperately needs her
c. It is laughable to think one can become instantly wise just because he needs to be
11
Q
- What is the progression in seeking wisdom in lecture 2?
A
a. Receive the words of wisdom (1a)
b. Treasure these words (1b) – they are not really received unless they are valued and stored
c. Incline your ear and apply your heart (2)
d. Cry out and lift up your voice (3)
e. Seek and search diligently (4)
f. Result: when we seek wisdom, we find God
12
Q
- What is the relationship between our seeking wisdom and God giving wisdom?
A
a. We find because God gives (cf. James 1:5)
13
Q
- What is the “Good Path Trilogy”?
A
a. Justice = what is right (conformance to God’s standard)
b. Judgment = what is just (in dealings with others)
c. Equity = what is fair (a life that is pleasing to God and others)
14
Q
- What does “strange woman” mean in this context?
A
a. Acting contrary to God’s covenant with Israel (living like a Canaanite)
15
Q
- Who, most likely, is the “guide of her youth”?
A
a. “Guide of her youth” = her husband; she has abandoned her marriage
16
Q
- What is the structure of lecture 3?
A
a. This lecture consists of six verse pairs that express demands wisdom makes and associated promises for those who keep the commands
17
Q
- What are the six imperatives of wisdom, and what is the promise attached to each?
A
1) Remember (1) Long life and blessing (2)
2) Commit (3) Grace and understanding (4)
3) Trust (5-6a) Direction from the Lord (6b)
4) Be Humble (7) Spiritual health (8)
5) Honor (9) Abundance (10)
6) Submit (11) Enjoyment of your relationship with God (12)
18
Q
- How is wisdom transmitted in lecture 5?a.
A
a. Generational Instruction
19
Q
- What are two reasons to avoid evil?
A
a. It enslaves (16-17) – vivid images
b. It endangers (18-19)
20
Q
- What metaphor shows the danger of evil in lecture 6?
A
a. The righteous who walk in the light of the sun from morning until its full brightness at noon
b. The wicked who walk in the darkness and stumble over obstacles they are unaware of
21
Q
- What is the point of all the anatomical references in lecture 7?
A
a. Anatomy used to teach total devotion (20-22)
i. Ear, eyes, heart, “all their flesh”
22
Q
- What is the meaning of the key principle in 4:23?
A
a. Guard your heart
b. Make this your highest priority
c. The heart is the wellspring of your life
23
Q
- What are three manifestations of the guarded heart?
A
a. Pure speech (24)
b. Fixed attention (25)
c. Unswerving devotion (26-27)
24
Q
- What is the organization of lecture 8 on marriage?
A
- Exhortation 1 – The Threat to Marriage (1-6)
- Exhortation 2 – Protecting Your Marriage (7-14)
- Exhortation 3 – The Intimacy of Marriage (15-23)
25
28. What does “her end” mean? What is her principal strategy?
a. “Her end” = where she will take you (her goal)
| b. Her principal strategy is to get you to forget or ignore the consequences (6)
26
29. What does 5:14 mean?
* Verse 14 literally: “I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the assembly.”
* With advisors and support all around me, I have destroyed my life
27
30. What three points does Solomon make about avoiding promiscuity in 5:15-17?
a. Don’t be promiscuous (15-17)
i. Find your satisfaction at home
ii. Should you seek it abroad? (v. 16 is a question)
iii. Be jealous of your purity
“Go astray” is the same Hebrew word translated “ravished” in verses 19 & 20
Be captured by your wife and not by a strange woman, or your sins will capture you
28
31. What vivid metaphor does he use in this passage to portray sexual satisfaction?
i. The physical relationship is designed for pleasure
ii. Frank language reminds us of the intimacy that is to be enjoyed only in marriage
iii. Because sex is “intoxicating,” be careful where you seek it
29
32. What solution does Solomon advance for avoiding immorality?
a. Reasons to be morally pure (20-23)
i. Sex is too intimate—too precious—to share with a stranger
ii. God sees all and will hold you accountable
iii. Be sure your sin will find you out!
30
33. What other context employs the word “ravished” in Proverbs, giving it what other meaning?
* “Go astray” is the same Hebrew word translated “ravished” in verses 19 & 20
* Be captured by your wife and not by a strange woman, or your sins will capture you
31
34. What are three reasons to be morally pure given at the end of the lecture?
a. Sex is too intimate—too precious—to share with a stranger
b. God sees all and will hold you accountable
c. Be sure your sin will find you out!
32
35. What are four pitfalls for the unwary? In which chapter do they occur?
* Debt (1-5)
* Laziness (6-11)
* Making Mischief (12-15)
* Seven Abominations (16-19)
* Chapter 6
33
36. What is the point of the warning against putting up security for a stranger?
a. Point: avoid foolish debt
34
37. What example does Solomon use to teach against laziness? In what two ways are the exemplars superior to sluggards?
a. The example of the ant (6-8)
i. They prepare in advance and have industry and initiative
b. The results of laziness (9-11)
35
38. What does “naughty person” literally mean?
a. Son of Belial (worthless)
36
39. What are the characteristics of the evil man in 6:12-15?
a. Corrupt speech everywhere (walks with froward mouth)
b. Winks with eyes, signals with feet, motions with fingers – rebellious nonverbal communication
c. Creates trouble because trouble is in his heart
37
40. What does the poetic formula in 6:16-19 mean?
a. representative, not exhaustive
38
41. What surprising sin is the culmination of the list of deadly sins?
a. Arrogance heads the list
b. Dishonesty appears twice (items 2, 6)
c. Evil and violence make up items 3-5
d. Gossip is a bit shocking as the finale (perhaps the point of the list)
39
42. The ninth lecture once again warns against what sin?
a. Warning against Adultery
b. Give heed to the Word (20-24)
c. Don’t give heed to the wicked woman (25-35)
i. Don’t lust (25)
ii. Think of the consequences (26-29)
iii. Think of the shame (30-32)
iv. Think of the danger (33-35)
40
43. What are the two consequences of adultery given at the end of lecture 9?
a. Think of the shame (30-32)
| b. Think of the danger (33-35)
41
44. What is the title of lecture 10? In which chapter does it occur?
a. A Drama about a Simpleton and a Seductress (Chapter 7)
42
45. What is “the little man in the eye” and what is the point of this metaphor?
a. How valuable is wisdom relative to such matters?
b. Keep it as “the little man in your eye”
c. Points us to the pulpal as the part that we value the most
43
46. What does Sheol usually mean in Proverbs?
a. Sheol = death and destruction, which we know means Hell
44
47. What are four descriptions of the simpleton in our story?
a. Simple, young, naïve, in the wrong place at the wrong time
45
48. What are four descriptions of the seductress in our story?
a. Dressed immorally
b. With crafty intentions
c. A liberated woman
d. A predator
46
49. What are the four steps in the seduction?
a. Catch and Kiss (13)
b. Concoct a Story (14-15)
c. Carefully Prepare (16-18) – note the appeal to his senses
d. Calmly Reassure (19-21) – my husband will be gone for awhile: don’t worry!
47
50. What does straightway mean in this text?
a. “Straightway” is a Hebrew word that literally means “all at once” – this implies brief indecision and then the plunge
48
51. What is the difference between how Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly approach people?
a. Wisdom’s Invitation (1-3)
i. Note the contrast between Lady Wisdom and the strange woman
b. Motivation to Accept Her Invitation (4-21)
c. Wisdom’s qualities (6-9)
• Excellent = princely, above worldly wisdom
• Truthful
• Right
• Plain (cf. 1 Cor. 2:14)
o The Wisdom That Is Offered (22-31)
• God’s eternal wisdom (22-23)
49
52. What is the wisdom that offers herself to people?
i. God’s eternal wisdom (22-23)
50
53. How did Arians misuse Proverbs 8 to teach that Christ is a creature, and how did early orthodox people fall into their hands?
○ Early Church Debate
○ Arians – denied deity of Christ
○ Wisdom in chapter 8 = Jesus Christ
○ Possessed in 8:22 should be translated created
○ Therefore, Jesus Christ was created by God
51
54. What is a better explanation of wisdom in 8:22-31?
a. Response of the Fathers – The Hebrew word means possessed, not created; Christ was possessed, set up, and brought forth at the creation in the sense that He manifested His creative wisdom at that time
b. Typical modern response – Wisdom is a personification of God’s attribute, not intended to portray the second Person of the Trinity
(Note: Steveson argues for the older, minority view)
Chapter 8 is the central argument of the whole book of Proverbs
As we respond to specific injunctions in chapters 10-31, we must remember this appeal from Wisdom
To live life well, we need the wisdom that only God can provide—His own wisdom, by which He fashioned the universe
52
55. What is the structure of chapter 9?
○ The Feast of Wisdom (1-6)
o Lady Wisdom’s Preparations (1-3)
• Her house is ready (1)
• Her meal is ready (2)
• Her invitations are ready (3)
o Lady Wisdom’s Invitation (4-6)
• To whom?
• To what?
• To eat bread and drink wine: to learn wisdom
• Why?
○ Responses to Wisdom’s Appeal (7-12)
o The Scoffer’s Response (7-8a)
• Rejects Lady Wisdom with insults and abuse
o The Wise Man’s Response (8b-11)
• Grows in wisdom and appreciates correction
• Reprise of the book’s motto in verse 10
o The Contrast (12)
• The wise man’s pursuit of wisdom will reward him
• The scorner’s rejection of wisdom will doom him
○ The Feast of Folly (13-18)
o Lady Folly’s Character (13-15)
• Liberated and foolish (cmp. 7:11)
• Imitating Lady Wisdom
o Lady Folly’s Invitation (16-17)
• Pretends to offer wisdom
• Offers paltry fare: stolen water and secret bread
• Appeal of this meal is its forbiddenness
o Consequences of Accepting Her Invitation (18)
• Her guests end up in Sheol
53
56. What preparations does Lady Wisdom make for her feast?
i. Her house is ready (1)
ii. Her meal is ready (2)
iii. Her invitations are ready (3)
54
57. How do the responses of the scoffer and wise man contrast?
i. The wise man’s pursuit of wisdom will reward him
| ii. The scorner’s rejection of wisdom will doom him
55
58. What are the characteristics of Lady Folly’s feast?
i. Liberated and foolish (cmp. 7:11)
| ii. Imitating Lady Wisdom
56
59. What is the appeal of the bread and water she offers?
i. Offers paltry fare: stolen water and secret bread
| Appeal of this meal is its forbiddenness
57
In Proverbs 1:20 for the first of many times in the book,
Wisdom is personified
58
The word translated law fundamentally means
Direction
59
Which of the following is NOT one of the three aspects of honoring God mentioned by Kidner?
Love; trust, homage, gratitude
60
What are the two main implications of the word froward?
Devious and perverse
61
Which of the following is NOT one of the aspects of godliness that mark the main divisions of Proverbs 3?
Joyful resolve; Patient quest, Quiet integrity, Glad commitment
62
The "fear of the Lord" and what other phrase "encompass the two classic Old Testament terms for true religion--the poles of awe and intimacy"?
Knowledge of God
63
What does "knowledge of the Holy" mean in 9:10?
Knowledge of God
64
The first and last six verses of chapter 9 describe two
Feasts
65
What early church cult tried to deny the deity of Christ be appealing to chapter 8?
Arian
66
According to Kidner, Sheol is basically synonymous with
Death
67
Be ravished could be translated intoxicated because the word is elsewhere associated with
Drinking alcoholic beverages
68
The six...seven formula in 6:16-19 indicates
The list is not exhaustive
69
Which of the following is NOT one of the young man's three defenses against the adulteress?
Marry a good woman; Guard your mind, Keep away from her, Look at the end of her path
70
Belial literally means:
Worthless
71
What are the four contrasts in lecture 4?
Enemy of God or Close Friend of God
Cursed by God or Blessed by God
Scorned by God or Graced by God
Shamed by God or Honored by God
Proverbs
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