Posted in textures, tagged biblical interpretation, Proverbs, textures on May 11, 2015| Leave a Comment »
Thing is, the biblical Proverbs have less to say about YHWH than you’d expect.
He is assumed to be the guarantor of the way things are, because that’s the way he made them. But he’s hardly the loquacious divinity who can’t stop talking. Rather, one learns about him indirectly, by scrutinizing what he’s made. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical interpretation, Proverbs, textures on May 9, 2015| Leave a Comment »
Truth is a little tricky to corner.
It does not surrender itself easily, requiring of its seeker a bit of diligence to prove his or her worth.
Biblical wisdom traffics in two dynamics that work out this evasiveness in space and time. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical interpretation, Proverbs, textures on May 6, 2015| Leave a Comment »
The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps.One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless. (Proverbs 14:15–16 ESV)
Life comes at us in textures and layers. Many of the latter are transparent to the careful observer. Under scrutiny, they can be seen through to what lies beneath.
The person who has practiced wisdom nearly forgets that life is this way, so accustomed does she become to living thoughtfully. For her, first impressions are merely that. The first glimpse, to be followed by careful reflection and—soon—sacrificed to the more complete picture.
That is to say, the wise person studies life. It would be facile to turn this into caricature, to imagine that this kind of life knows nothing of spontaneity, of artistry, of joy. That would be, again, rushing carelessly to conclusions, which is what the simple do as a matter of course.
In reality, the wise woman’s eyes often sparkle with discovery. She is alive to the manifold artistry, design, and hidden delight that she discovers in human interaction, in ‘nature’, in the ordered chaos of a good community living out its good life, in the unlikely trajectories of recovery and restoration.
The wise man ponders, sometimes with the furrowed brow of concentration. He gazes upon others with the half-smile of the discoverer who leans forward into conversation, into life.
One knows that a venomous snake may lurk in this riotously flowered garden. So one treads carefully rather than standing feebly on the asphalt parking lot next door.
The simple believes that everything is simple. The prudent knows better, deciding to walk here rather than there. Here where the angle of view is better and one lives long to tell of it.
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on May 6, 2015| Leave a Comment »
Heartbreak is not only the wolf at the door. It is also the ant in the cupboard, already inside the house and waiting only to be discovered.
Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief. (Proverbs 14:13 ESV)
Because biblical wisdom is so thoroughly committed to the world as it actually is, it is serially impatient with euphorias and tenaciously opposed to utopias. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on April 25, 2015| Leave a Comment »
No biblical proverb has challenged the delicacy of its translators more than 14.4. The squirming is like unto a spectator sport.
If there are no oxen the crib is clean, But a rich harvest comes through the strength of the ox. (Proverbs 14:4 JPS)
Clearly, the conditions of productivity are in play. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on April 16, 2015| Leave a Comment »
The biblical proverbs rarely aim for the fence. They just keep poking singles.
Rarely does the Book of Proverbs open a window to stupendous secrets that were heretofore unknown. Rather, it gradually builds a home out of the cumulative lessons learned by people who pay attention, brick upon brick, one small board after another fixed in just the right place with little fanfare and no shouting.
One man pretends to be rich and has nothing; Another professes to be poor and has much wealth. (Proverbs 13:7 JPS)
Attentive people know that things are often not as they appear. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs on September 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »
A studied self-interest and the concern for community pervade the realism of the biblical Proverbs.
The wisdom of this anthology is neither romantic nor sentimental. The student applies himself to knowledge because there is a career to forge, a life to plan, a community to construct. Distractions abound, blind alleys lie to the right and left. The environment demands a certain steely, interested resolve. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on September 10, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Bon appétit!, we say, and we tuck excitedly into the feast. Eyes bigger than stomach. So many dishes, so little time.
Where power is in play and self-restraint is absent, the banquet becomes a feast of death.
When you sit down to eat with a ruler, observe carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you have a big appetite. Do not desire the ruler’s delicacies, for they are deceptive food. (Proverbs 23:1–3 NRSV)
The Bible carves out a celebrated space for feasting. The biblical witness is no killjoy. It knows how to fast, when things come down to that, but it enjoys a good meal when they don’t. (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on August 10, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Sometimes a biblical proverb seems to deserve the ‘Well, duuhh …!’ response.
Usually this signals that we are missing something. We should figure out what it is, if only because we do not look our best in the light of historical ignorance.
Proverbs 21.3 illustrates the point:
To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice. (Proverbs 21:3 ESV)
Because we have long since lost our appreciation for the weight of cultic regularity, this proverb seems to declare a truism. Who needs a verse that simply tells us what everybody already knows? (more…)
Posted in textures, tagged biblical reflection, Proverbs, textures on August 9, 2014| Leave a Comment »
We have learned to be cynical about both leaders and leadership, and so we are slow to capture the rich blessing that a good leader produces for the fortunate community that surrounds him. To modern eyes and ears, the biblical account of kings and princes is sometimes embarrassingly lavish. Yet this impression fades when the relative restraint of the Hebrew Bible with regard to human leaders is contrasted with the sometimes slavish hyperbole that characterizes Israel’s ancient neighbors when they set to chronicling—and lionizing—their kings. (more…)
Canter Bridge 