Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes
    Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes
    Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes
    Ebook227 pages2 hours

    Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes

    By Dr. Brian J. Bailey

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    The author of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, King Solomon, was said to be the wisest man in the world. Sadly, he did not walk in his own teachings. What was it that stopped one who was filled with God’s wisdom from reaping its benefits? Dr. Bailey answers this question through his commentary on the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, drawing upon his many years of experience in the ministry. He will show the lessons that can be learned from Solomon’s life, as well as the blessings that come upon those who live according to the wisdom of God.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherZion Christian Publishers
    Release dateAug 2, 2017
    ISBN9781596656703
    Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Ecclesiastes

    Read more from Dr. Brian J. Bailey

    Related to Wisdom Literature

    Related ebooks

    Christianity For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Receiving The Good News Lessons From The Parable Of The Sower

      Jun 12, 2020

      The Bible is the best-selling book of all time. It is the best-selling book year after year, every year. It far outsells any other book, with a whopping 4 billion copies sold over the last 50 years. The mission with which I work, Hellenic Ministries,

      5 min read

    • Article

      The Holiness Of God

      Nov 19, 2021

      The Holiness Of God
      3 min read

    • Article

      Famous Fathers In The Bible

      May 20, 2019

      Scripture is filled with people who we can learn much from. When it comes to the challenging vocation of fatherhood, several fathers in the Bible show what is wise to do—and what is not wise to do. Of course, the most important father figure in the B

      2 min read

    • Article

      God Wants To Use You Part Ll

      Jun 24, 2022

      God Wants To Use You Part Ll
      1 min read

    • Article

      Church UNUSUAL Insight from Dr Jonathan David

      Apr 13, 2020

      Church Unusual lifts the paradigms of pastors and Christian leaders to see the church beyond its natural element and environment. It is the avenue and vehicle for the Kingdom of God manifesting here on earth as it is in heaven. When this happens, God

      3 min read

    • Article

      The Parables Of Jesus

      Jun 16, 2023

      The Parables Of Jesus
      4 min read

    • Article

      Josh & Tara McCauley On A REDEMPTIVE Mission

      Sep 4, 2020

      Whilst his friends were out playing cops and robbers, a young Joshua would sit in the front row of church listening to the sermons of his dad (Rhema Church founder, Pastor Ray McCauley) blissfully unaware that one day he too would be standing behind

      10 min read

    • Article

      Why Do The Wicked Prosper?

      Sep 4, 2020

      Why Do The Wicked Prosper?
      3 min read

    • Article

      Proclaiming The GOOD NEWS Laying Everything Down For The Sake Of The Gospel

      Apr 22, 2019

      In Romans 1, we read the story of Paul the apostle giving a message to the church in Rome. After the resurrection, Paul tells the church that their faith is being proclaimed to the whole world; that Jesus, their Messiah, was raised from the dead and

      3 min read

    • Article

      CHARACTERS OF THE BIBLE Ezra

      Jul 22, 2022

      CHARACTERS OF THE BIBLE Ezra
      3 min read

    • Article

      Stepping Into The Book Of Romans

      Oct 2, 2020

      The New Testament book of Romans is a copy of a letter written by the Apostle Paul to the church in Rome, sometime around the end of 58AD while he was in Corinth. He had never been to the Roman church before, although he had desired to do so for a lo

      2 min read

    • Article

      FAMILY TIME with God

      Aug 25, 2023

      FAMILY TIME with God
      3 min read

    • Article

      RELIGIOUS, But Lost…

      Nov 18, 2019

      RELIGIOUS, But Lost…
      2 min read

    • Article

      God’s Provision

      Nov 16, 2020

      God’s Provision
      1 min read

    • Article

      WHO’S In The NEWS?

      May 19, 2023

      George Verwer died on Friday 14th April at the age of 84. The Church has lost a man who had an astonishing global influence on the way it carries out its vital task of sharing the good news of Jesus. In Operation Mobilisation (OM), which George start

      3 min read

    • Article

      The Gospel Of Angels

      Feb 26, 2019

      The Gospel Of Angels
      3 min read

    • Article

      Spiritual Weapons Of Warfare

      Jun 15, 2020

      To be subject to the wiles of the enemy means to be deceived. The Hebrew word for wiles is nekel. It basically refers to five things that often happen to us. As we have discussed in previous articles, the first wile is treachery. The second wile is c

      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Wisdom Literature

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Wisdom Literature - Dr. Brian J. Bailey

      WISDOM LITERATURE

      Rules for Abundant Living

      Dr. Brian J. Bailey

      Version 1.1

      Wisdom Literature

       ©  2006 by Brian J. Bailey

      All Rights Reserved

       Front Cover Design

      © 2006 Zion Fellowship Inc.

      All Rights Reserved

      No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles or reviews.

      All Scripture quotations in this book are taken from the

      King James Version Bible unless otherwise stated.

      Revised May 2017 and published as an e-book on June 2017

      in the United States of America

      E-book ISBN 1-59665-670-0

      For more information, please contact:

      Zion Christian Publishers

      A Zion Fellowship ® Ministry

      P.O. Box 70

      Waverly, New York 14892

      Toll free: 1-877-768-7466

      Fax: 607-565-3329

      www.zcpublishers.com

      Acknowledgements

      Editorial team: Carla Borges, Suzette Erb, Mary Humphreys, David Kropf, Justin Kropf, Sarah Kropf, Caroline Tham, Paul Tham, David Wallis, and Suzanne Ying.

      We wish to extend our thanks to these dear ones for without their many hours of invaluable assistance, this book would not have been possible. We are truly grateful for their diligence, creativity, and excellence in the compilation of this book for the glory of God.

      PREFACE

      In the scriptural sense, Wisdom Literature refers to two of the books that King Solomon wrote, namely, the Book of Proverbs and the Book of Ecclesiastes.

      The title, Book of Proverbs (Pro meaning for and Verba meaning words), is translated in rabbinical writings as Sepher Hokhmah, which means Book of Wisdom. This is the theme of the Book.

      Proverbs are essentially composed of two lines. The truth spoken in the first line may be confirmed by a similar thought in the second. For example, Proverbs 11:25 says, The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself. This is termed a synonymous teaching.

      On other occasions, the first truth of a Proverb is explained in the second by means of its contrary, which is termed an antithesis teaching. We see an example of this in Proverbs 10:1, …A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

      The Book of Proverbs is filled with detailed instructions on practical living, concerning how to relate to God, parents, children, neighbours, those in authority, and even one’s enemies. The need to study Proverbs is emphasised by the prophet Isaiah, who said, And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the Lord is his treasure (Isa. 33:6). Especially in these tumultuous last days we need these pillars of strength to establish us. May we build our lives upon these pillars so that they will stand in the times of coming storms.

      THE

      BOOK

      OF

      PROVERBS

      INTRODUCTION

      1. A collection of proverbs from the teachings of King David

      1:1–9:18

      2. The proverbs of King Solomon

      10:1–24:34

      3. King Hezekiah appointed scribes to collect more proverbs

      25:1–29:27

      4. Miscellaneous proverbs attributed to Agur and King Lemuel

      30:1–31:31

      First Kings 4:32 states, And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five. We are told that King Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs (of which only 800 are recorded in the Book of Proverbs). His songs comprised 1,005 (of which only the last five are retained and included in the book entitled The Song of Songs written by Solomon.) The three books attributed to Solomon are traditionally said to have been written in the following time frames:

      • Song of Songs—in the spring time of his youth

      • Proverbs—in mid-life, or the wisdom of manhood

      • Ecclesiastes—in his declining and disappointing old age

      God’s Wisdom Seen in Creation

      First Kings 4:33 continues, And he [Solomon] spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. We see an example of this from Proverbs 30:24-28, which reads, There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise: The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer; The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks; The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands; The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces.

      This ratifies the truth that all nature reveals the glory and wisdom of God, as Paul states in Romans 1:20, For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.

      Purpose of the Book of Proverbs

      Then 1 Kings 4:34 says, "And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom."  The Book of Proverbs is often referred to as a guide for successful living. The key word is wisdom, which is the ability to live life skilfully, rooted firmly in the fear of the Lord.

      The purpose of this book of assembled Proverbs is stated in its prologue, To give subtlety to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion (Prov. 1:4). Furthermore, from verse 5 we understand it is to make the wise man wiser: A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels.

      We are going to study this book by means of the following subjects.

      Outline and Contents

      1. Wisdom

      2. Knowledge

      3. The Two Women—the Strange, Adulterous Woman, and the Virtuous, Wise Woman

      4. Diligence and Hard Work

      5. The Righteous and the Wicked, or the Two Men—the Righteous, Wise Man, and the Wicked, Foolish Man

      6. Strong Drink

      7. Wise and Foolish Children

      8. The Words of Our Lips

      PART ONE

      Wisdom

      Related to Proverb’s principal theme of wisdom, two people are contrasted here—the wise and the simple. Basically, the difference between the two can be stated as those who apply themselves to the pursuit of wisdom, and those who reject or are negligent in hearing the voice of wisdom that cries unto the sons of men.

      The wise are described in Proverbs 1:5-6 in the following manner, A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. In contrast, fools are described in Proverbs 1:7 as those who, "despise wisdom and instruction."

      What Is Wisdom?

      Wisdom is defined as the ability to live life in a manner that manifests the nature and purpose of God, as Paul suggests in Ephesians 3:10, To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God. God makes the right decision in every situation, solving the problem. In other words, the rapids of life are negotiated successfully by the one who is filled with His wisdom.

      Life is composed of choices, both little and great, every day of our earthly journey. Some are so important, like the choice of our marriage partner, that they impact the whole of our life and eternity. The Lord has forcefully impressed upon me that every right choice I make will bring forth pleasant fruits of righteousness, peace, joy, and prosperity.

      Having defined wisdom, we want to determine the attributes of wisdom that we are to manifest on appropriate occasions. These are given to us in the form of conduct such as turning away wrath with a soft answer; being slow to speak and swift to hear; pacifying the angry and taking the lower place; choosing good companions rather than evil companions; and loving righteousness and hating wickedness. These qualities will enable us to triumph in life and, as wise sons, glorify our Heavenly Father.

      Who Obtains Wisdom?

      Wisdom cannot be purchased with silver or gold, as we read in Proverbs 2:6, "For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding." To whom does the Lord give wisdom? We are told in Ecclesiastes 2:26, "For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit."

      When we set out feet on the pathway of wisdom, then the promise of Daniel 2:21 is ours, that God "giveth wisdom unto the wise." This is confirmed by Luke 19:26, which says, For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.

      How Do We Obtain Wisdom?

      The next question is, How do we obtain wisdom? Job chapter 28 asks and answers that question. In verse 12 we read, But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Then the response is given in verse 28, "And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding."

      The key to understanding the fear of the Lord is given in Proverbs 2:1-5, My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. Therefore, as we hide the commandments of the Lord in our hearts and seek wisdom, then we shall understand the fear of the Lord.

      The fear of the Lord can be defined as cautious living. This is where we ensure that everything we do is pleasing to the Lord, and that our choices in any given circumstance are in conformity with His wishes and His holy will. David described this state of holiness, I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved (Ps. 16:8). This is, after all, what we were created for. We were created by Him, for Him, and for His good pleasure (Rev. 4:11).

      The Lord is the One who has redeemed us by His blood. Therefore, as Paul states, we are not our own—for we have been bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:20). We now become His bond slaves; He is our Master and Employer. Thus, we seek to please Him, just as a person wants to please his earthly employer.

      Moreover, Solomon adds to the definition of the fear of the Lord, to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth (Prov. 8:13). Concerning this virtue, we should point out that as we will walk in His fear, then we will receive the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord. This seventh anointing of the Holy Spirit, as recorded in Isaiah 11:2, is His treasure (Isa. 33:6). It is clean, and enduring forever (Ps. 19:9). It is a blessing to find the fear of the Lord, for one who does so prolongs his days (Prov. 10:27). The fear of the Lord also brings a strong confidence, which is a fountain of life to all who possess it (Prov. 14:26-27).

      O how wonderful and what a privilege it is to have this precious anointing that keeps our heart from sin! O seek His fear, beloved, for it is so clean and lovely!

      The Benefits of Wisdom

      Continuing in our study of the attributes of wisdom, we learn from Solomon that wisdom is the principal thing (Prov. 4:7), and that all one can desire such as rubies, gold, or silver, cannot compare with it (Prov. 8:11; 16:16). It is a priceless possession, and according to Proverbs 19:8, he that loves his soul gets wisdom.

      In Proverbs 4:8-9, Solomon speaks of the benefits of wisdom, saying, "Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee."

      These benefits are exemplified in the life of Joseph, of whom Pharaoh said in Genesis 41:38-43, "And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1