This response was prompted in part by a question from a wise friend of mine. He brought my attention to Proverbs 10:22, which states in the NIV, "The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it." His apprehension is well-founded. One can fall into a few traps when reading this verse and we are susceptible to each of these traps when we take these verses out of context. The most prominent trap is to read this to mean, "The blessing of the LORD is always wealth and not only that, but it's trouble-free wealth!" The issue with this reading is one word: "always". If you think that the LORD's blessing is always manifested by wealth, you start straying into prosperity gospel territory, equating wealth with confirmation of a godly lifestyle. Just because you are wealthy does not automatically mean that you have the favor of God and being poor does not mean that you are cursed. What this verse ultimately draws attention to is this: for a believer, if your wealth was given to you by God's blessing, you don't have to deal with the stress and anxiety that those who accrued their wealth in ungodly ways have to deal with. Not only is it a contrast between "godly" wealth and "ill-gotten" wealth, but it is a reminder of the originator of that wealth and the true owner. Money is like any of our other "possessions", in that we don't really possess it. It is a blessing that God gave us in order to use to glorify him. The godly wealthy person is also generous. As a matter of fact, according to the concepts of Proverbs, that is the reason that God made them wealthy: their willingness to give and pour themselves out invites God to pour more into their lives so that the cycle can continue. As another proverb says, "One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want."(Proverbs 11:24)
But this raises one of the big questions about Proverbs: We see all of these verses about the righteous being blessed and the wicked being punished, but where is that in real life? It seems that everywhere one looks, the righteous are being oppressed by the wicked and no amount of proverb repetition can change their situation. This seems to fly in the face of the "common" wisdom espoused in Proverbs. If I do the right thing, doesn't that mean that I'm supposed to be rewarded? In my mind, there are two obvious responses. One is to do whatever you can to see God's promises realized. Do you see mistreatment? Be angry and do something about it. But the second thing to keep in mind is that nothing you do is as powerful as truly trusting the God who promised to judge the earth. Proverbs is more like a vision of the way that the systems of the world should be, and in essence, the way that Christ will set it when He comes back. Because believe me, at that point, He won't be playing any games. The wicked will be judged, the righteous (those with their faith in Christ) will be vindicated, and all will be well (for the elect). Unfortunately, until that time, injustice will be present in this world. But that does not mean we sit idly by. We must continue to "work out our salvation", for the good of ourselves, for the good of our neighbors, and for the glory of God.
Next time: What about outright contradiction (or at least, what looks like contradiction)?
Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
or you will be like him yourself.
Answer a fool according to his folly,
or he will be wise in his own eyes.
(Proverbs 26:4-5)
Also: Any theology questions nagging at you? E-mail me! Best way to find God's truth is to examine His Word in community, even if it's an online community.
Also: Any theology questions nagging at you? E-mail me! Best way to find God's truth is to examine His Word in community, even if it's an online community.
Perhaps I have a different understanding of the concept of "Wisdom Literature". To me, the genre means that it is wisdom. Oh, that requires an explanation. The genre, "Law", will give me rules. It doesn't mean that it happens. It means that they are commands. God's preceptive will. "Poetry" (which, I would content, would be the category for the Psalms) will be ... poetry. That is, don't take it purely at face value; take it at poetic value. There is such a thing as "poetic license" in poetry. There are sections of Doctrine, History, Prophecy, and Apocalyptic literature. Each has a function. To me, "Wisdom Literature", then, provides what is wise but not necessarily promised or sure. "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it" is a generally wise thought, a general rule of thumb, not a promise.
ReplyDeleteThus, to me, when I read of the blessings bestowed by God on His own in Wisdom Literature, I think two things. First, it is generally so, but not absolutely so. Second, they are blessings from God, not necessarily the blessings that we understand. (The New Testament, for instance, is full of "blessings" like suffering, chastisement, etc.)
I'm with you, Stan. I'm referring to the scholarly definition of wisdom literature when I use those five books. You have didactic literature, which deals with doctrinal truth, moral literature, which deals with moral admonitions, and poetical wisdom literature which is where SoS and Psalms fits in. Our only "disagreement", I believe, is categorization, which is trivial, I would say. The content is what matters and that content is the fact that God is the originator of all blessings and He is also the definer of those blessings. Thus, your final sentences. Though we may not see them as blessings, if we seek the wisdom and understanding that God has offered to us, we will see them as He sees them.
DeleteAlso, I can see how what I said might be misconstrued. Discernment between promises and general principles is made on a case-by-case basis with a holistic biblical framework in mind, not a blanket statement of "This is what it says, therefore this is how I expect life to be." That kind of reading makes Ecclesiastes infuriating haha.