Reading for November 28th

 Read 2 Corinthians 1.15--22. In 1.15-22: Paul's change of plans. In verse 15: Double favor refers to Paul's two planned visits. In verse 16: The route implied is Ephesus, Corinth (in Achaia), Macedonia (probably Thessalonica or Philippi), Corinth, Jedea (1 Cor 16.5-8). The trip to Judea would be to deliver the collection for poor Christians in Jerusalem (Rom 15.25-26). In verses 17-20: To identify Christ as God's "Yes" reflects the conviction that God's promises have been fulfilled in him (Gal 3.14-16; Roman 15.8). In verses 21-22: His Spirit maybe Christ's Spirit (Rom, 8.9). First installment is a commercial term, "down payment," a gesture of good faith indicating the balance will follow (Rom 5.5; 8.23). Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 27th

 Read 2 Corinthians 1.8-14. In 1.18-14: Paul's recent despair. Affliction ... in Asia: The circumstances of this crisis are not known. It may refer to the riot described in Acts 19.23-41. In verse 9: Sentence of death need not mean legal punishment. It is probably a figure of speech for a close shave with death. In verse 12: Boast here and in v. 14 is used in a positive sense, meaning "source of pride" (Phil 2.16). Frankness, sometimes rendered "simplicity," is being straightforward in one's dealings. In verses 13-14: End ... day of the Lord Jesus refers to the time of Jesus' return (1 Cor 1.8; Phil 1.6). Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 26th

 Read 2 Corinthians 1.1-7. In verses 1-2: Greeting. This greeting rembles other Pauline greetings (1 Thess.1.1; Phil 1.1-2). Timothy joins Paul in addressing the church. He had participated in the church's founding (1.19; Acts 18.5) and was well known to the church (1 Cor 4.17; 16.10-11). In verses 3-7: Prayer of blessing. Pauline letters usually open with a prayer of thanksgiving (Rom 1.8-15; 1 Cor 1.4-9). Here Paul uses the Jewish prayer of blessing ("berakah") found elsewhere in the New testament (Eph 1.3-14; 1 Pet 1.3-9). Paul had recently experienced great affliction and suffering in his dealings with the church. This has given way to consolation and a sense of relief that a severe crisis has passed. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 25th

 Read Proverbs 31.10-31. In 31.10-31:Praise of the capable wife. An acrostic poem of twenty-two lines, each line beginning with a successive letter of the alphabet. it is an encomium or a hymn praising a capable wife. A hymn does not dwell on inner feelings or the physical appearance of its hero but describes the hero's mighty feats of valor, in this case the wife's extraordinarily wise management of her great household. The narrator first describes the wife's wonderful deeds (vv. 11-27), a description that is completed by her own children and husband (vv. 28-31). In verses 19-20: The chiasmus at the center of the poem (hands ("yad") ... hands ("kap")// hand ("kap") ... hands ("yad") shifts the action from domestic to the public sphere in that the hands that weave the cloth (v. 19) now open wide in largesse to the poor beyond the household gates (v. 20). She is a blessing not only to her family but to the whole community. The hymn to the capable wife includes a metaphorical dimension. The heroic woman evokes Woman Wisdom of chs. 1-9. Her abundantly prosperous household illustrates the result of becoming a disciple of Wisdom (Ch. 8; 9.6, 11). The book began with a young person leaving the parental house to to found and maintain a new one. It ends with a splendid household provided by the wisdom of the capable wife. Visible within the house are all the blessings of wisdom-wealth, justice, generosity to the poor, reputation, children, and, most precious of all (compare 19.14), a good wife (or spouse). The pursuit of wisdom has brought every blessing. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 24th

 Read Proverbs 31.1-9. In verses 1-9: A queen mother's advice to her son, given with wit and style. The queen mother had an important role in the palace because of her insider's knowledge of palace politics and undoubted loyalty to her son. Verses 3-5 Warn the king that abuse of sex and alcohol can lead him him to forget the afflicted. Verses 6-9 Counsel rather than alcohol be used to aid the poor so that those who are afflicted (perishing) can forget their poverty. Verses 8-9 urge the king to open his mouth (speak out) not to drink alcohol but to speak for the voiceless poor. The underlying subject of the poem is the king's duty to bring about justice for the poor. The women referred to in v. 3 are the women of his harem. An example of moral callousness from sexual indulgence is David's adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah (2 Sam 11-12). For the association of liquor with disdain for the poor, see Isa 28.1-8; Am 6.1-7. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 23rd

 Read Proverbs 30.17-33. In verses 18-20: Anaphora (the repetition of way) unites the piece. Each way is wonderous: The effortless flight of the eagle (or vulture), the legless movement of the serpent, the massive progress of a ship. The fourth climatic way is the course of a man and a woman toward each other, the attraction of the sexes. In verses 32-33: The syntax is like 6.1-3: If you have done such and such, then you must now do such and such. It is the mark of wisdom to make peace and avoid strife (15.18). There is wordplay in pressing the nose ("mits ap") and pressing anger ("mits appayim," literally, nostrils; anger). Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 22nd

 Read Proverbs Read Proverbs 30.1-16.  In verses 1-10: This poem is the most puzzling section in Proverbs. Verses 1-6 were the original unit, but later vv. 1-10 were edited to make a new and larger speech. Verses 1-6 evoke old passages such as Ps 18.30 (Prov 30.5), Ps 73.22 (Prov 30.2a), Deut 4.2 (Prov 30.6), Deut 30.11-14 (Prov 30.4a). Also influential are the divine questions beginning with "Who?" in Job 38-41 and Isa 40-45 (see Prov 30.4b-d). In vv. 1-6 Agur delivers an oracle ("ne'um," v. 1) that did not come from his own efforts, for he is worn out, incapable of wisdom, and does not know God (vv. 2-3). In deed no human being can have divine wisdom, for  who is capable of bringing it down from heaven (v.4a)? In fact, no act of wisdom and power is possible for human being (v. 4b-d)! In the process of acknowledging his own impotence and ignorance, Agur finds the assuring word of God, which is reliable and protects him just as it protected the Psalmist in Ps 12 and 18 (v. 5). One should not add to the divine word (v.6). Agur now prays to speak the truth and to have the basic necessities of life (vv. 7-8) lest he offend the God who has rescued him from exhaustion and ignorance (v. 9). Verse 10 concludes vv. 1-9, for Do not resprises v. 6. Curse in verse 10b links to what follows. In verses 11-14: The poem is united by anaphora. there seems to be a progression from disdaining parental advice (v. 11), to overestimating one's situation (v. 12), to arrogance (v. 13), resulting in cruelty directed toward the lowly (v. 14). Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 21st

 Read Proverbs 29.1-27. In verse 1: Remains stubborn is literally,"stiffens the neck." There is a possible play on words: Stiffening one's neck risks having it broken. Suddenly suggests an extraordinary, perhaps divine, intervention. In verse 4: The saying uses the metaphor "high" and "low" for prosperity and decline in order to differentiate between good and bad governance. A just king gives stability, literally, "raises up the land." But a king who raises taxes ruins, literally brings down, a country. In verse 15: As with domestic animals, a staff ("sebet" as in Lev 27.32; Zech 11.7; Ps 23.4) is needed to train and control children. Children (and animals) allowed to run free cannot learn. In verse 18: Prophecy and law are paired in Ezek 7.26 and Lam 2.9. In this saying prophecy has to do with the community and law with the individual. Though a people may be demoralized without credible national guidance, an individual can still find happiness by heeding the instruction of teachers. In verse 24: An aphorism derived from the legal adjuration summoning witnesses to a crime, which is described in Lev 5.1. By not coming forward to testify one becomes an accomplice of the criminal. Moreover, to get mixed up with a crime is to destroy oneself. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 20th

Read Proverbs 28.1-28.  In verse 4: The law ("torah") is taken by some as the Mosaic law but it is better to understand it as the traditional instruction of teachers and parents. To defy such teaching is to promote the designs of the wicked, whereas to heed it is to defeat them. In verse 9: An example of poetic justice: Whoever does not listen to the law (or instruction), which comes ultimately from God, will not be heard by God. In verse 24: Children lived in their parents' home until they were married, and even after marriage could remain under the parental roof. If the parents grew feeble, the children might become the domineering and gradually take over the house and its wealth. The saying declares such usurpation to constitute simple theft. The children have  no more right to their parents' property while the later are living than a brigand does who is outside the family. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 19th

 Read Proverbs 27.1- 27. To correct someone is difficult, but it is better than passing over a fault in silence out of affection (hidden love). In verse 14: Blesses can simply mean "greets" (I Sam 13.10; 2 Kings 4.29) but the word cursing in line C keeps the sense "bless" to the fore. The saying has been interpreted seriously and humorously. If taken humorously, a loud voice and early in the morning describe boorish behavior that provokes a hostile reaction. If it is taken seriously, a loud voice refers to an insincere greeting as in v. 6 and 26.23-25, 28 and early in the morning means "insistently" as in Jer 7.13. In verses 23-27: a traditional poem prizing flocks and fields over hoarded treasure on the grounds of wealth in the form of flocks and fields ever renews itself. Vegetation comes up annually from the earth; sheep and goats are transformed into food and clothing. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 18th

 Read Proverbs 26.1-28. In verses 4-5: Each saying make sense in in its own right. Taken together they show the problem, even the danger, that fools pose to their neighbors. In verses 13-16: Four sayings on the lazy person, whom Proverbs derides on the grounds that this type of person never acts. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 17th

Read Proverbs 25.1-28. Chs.25-29:Proverbs of Solomon. In 25.1-28. In verse 1: An important clue to the composition and date of proverbs. Hezekiah, who was king of Judah from 715-687 BCE, apparently ordered this collection added to an already existing Solomonic collection (perhaps chs. 10-22). In verses 2-3: The world is full of conundrums and puzzles, but the king is there to unravel them and lead people to serve the gods. The affinity between divine and royal wisdom is expressed by the repetition of the first and last word of each phrase (glory and things) and by the rhyme in God and king ("elohim" and "melakim"). In verse 7 See Lk 14.8-10. In verses 21-22: An enemy's vulnerability should be made as occasion for settling old scores (so also Ex 23.4). Allow God's justice its proper scope (compare  20.22 and 24.17-18). Heap coals of fire on their heads alludes to no known practice. It may be hyperbole for punishment. Romans 12.20 cites the Greek version. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 16th

 Read Proverbs 24.23-34. Further words of the wise. A carefully arranged appendix to 22.17-24.22. Two areas of life, law (vv. 23-25, 28-29) and farming (vv. 27, 30-34), are used to illustrate the effects of wisdom in word and action. In verses 30-34: An illustrative story, like those in 6.9-11, ch. 7, and Ps 37. 35-36. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 15th

Read Proverbs 24.1-22. In verses 10-22: The probable meaning of the obscure admonition is that excuses for not aiding one's neighbor will be useless before the all-seeing God. In verses 17-18: Divine retribution works mysteriously. Human beings should stand aside and not anticipate its results. Comments or Questions.. 

Reading for November 14th

 Read Proverbs  23.1-23. In verse 1-3: Dining etiquette, especially moderation with food and drink, is a common topic in Egyptian instructions. Banquets were occasions for young servants to advance themselves, and self-indulgence would leave a bad impression. In verse 1: Observe carefully what is before you refers both to the food and the host. In verse 2: Put a knife to your throat: Put your knife in your jaws rather than in the food, that is, restrain your appetite. In verses 6-7: Don't go to banquets when  you are not invited or wanted. Though courtesy forces the host to say "East and drink!", the words are insincere. The result will be indigestion and frustration for the unwelcomed guest. In verses 13-14: Hyperbole and sardonic humor are used to give advice on raising children. It is not disciplinary blows that will kill a child but uncorrected behavior that will lead to fatal consequences. The humor and hyperbole show the dmonition does not espouse the corporal punishment of children. In verses 17-18: A warning against peer-group pressure, which is especially applicable to the young. Why envy the wicked, for they have no future, no descendents? The warning is repeated in 24.1 and 19-20. In verses 22-23: The two commands in v. 23, buy truth and do not sell it, continue on a metaphorical level in the two commands in v. 22, listen and do not despise. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 13th

 THE WORDS OF THE WISE

In 22.17-24.22: An instruction partly modeled on the thirteenth-century BCE Egyptian "Instruction of Amenemope." Like is Egyptian model, it has thirty sayings (22.20) and is introduced by a preface (22.17-21); its first two admonitions (22.22-25)) resemble the first two in "Amenemope." The words of the wise offer a kind of professional ethics, warning against behavior that can destroy one's humanity and religion (22.22-23.11). It concludes with counsels of a general nature (24.1-22).

Read Proverbs 22.17-29. In 22.22-23: The poor are dangerous to attack, for God will defend them. Comments or Questions...

Reading for November 12th

 Read Proverbs 22.1-16. In verse 8: Both metaphors are agricultural. In line A, bad actions are seed yielding trouble. In line B, the rod is a flail which cannot thresh grain. Evil will be frustrated, it will bear no fruit. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 11th

 Read Proverbs 21.1-31. In verse 14: The wise know the secret of taming anger and strong wrath-a gift of money. The strategy implies a certain disdain for anger, for a seemingly strong passion can be assuage by a little money. In verse 17: Those who desire the trappings of wealth will never get them, for wealth will never come to the idle and those who love pleasure (see 6.6-11; 10.4; 12.24, 27). In verse 19: Living alone is preferable to living in a house spoiled by a spouses anger. In verse 29: The wicked are defiant (put on a bold face) whereas the upright, who give thought to their ways, are willing to conform their actions to the teaching of others. The Hebrew text and the ancient versions transmit another reading in the second line: "the upright person maintains a faithful course." Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 10th

 Read Proverbs 20.1-30. In verse 15: Gold and costly stones must refer to jewelry. The most beautiful adornment of a face is not jewelry but wise lips, that is wise words that show the beauty within. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 9th

 Read Proverbs 19.1--29. In verse 2: Desire (the internal) and movement (the external) without sufficient reflection go nowhere. In verse 13: Another saying on the household (from the male point of view). The two great causes of domestic unhappiness are foolish children and an angry wife or spouse. Wisdom can help one avoid such unhappiness. In verse 14: As if to balance the preceding verse on the angry wife, this saying asserts the greatest cause of domestic happiness is a suitable wife. Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 8th

 Read Proverbs 18.1-24. In verse 1: The rabble meaning is that those who do not listen to others cannot grow wise, for wisdom comes through interaction with others-a process of instruction and correction. In verse 4: The deep waters of the mind are revealed by one's words (20.5). The waters become a stream nourishing others. In verse 17: The first speaker in a lawsuit seems entirely in the right. Then the opponent cross-examines. The law court experience teaches a valuable lesson: There are two sides to every question. In verse 19: Ally is a family member, literally, "brother" or "member of the family." An offended family member can be more unyielding than a fortress. In verse 21: Love has the sense of "choose" as in Deut 4.37; 10.15; Isa 41.8. One chooses either life or death by  the words one speaks. One must eat the fruits (consequences) of one's acts. For similar vocabulary, see 30.15-20. Comments or Questions..