LESSON 1:
The Subject
is Wisdom, at least for the next few days. Taken from the Book
of Proverbs of course, our Text will speak to us again and
again.
"Wisdom
hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars. She
hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also
furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth
upon the highest places of the city. Whoso is simple, let
him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth
understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread, and
drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the
foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
Proverbs 9:1-6
The point that today mostly needs
to be emphasized is this, Wisdom here is made to live!
And she is a lady! Even the Hebrew noun is framed in the
feminine gender. This is a common poetic convention simply known
as "personification."
Normally inanimate objects come
alive!
But I think that in the Old
Testament Book of Proverbs more than "personification" is
occurring. Yes, Lady Wisdom lives ... but she also is here a
Symbol!
She is a Symbol of Almighty God!
And I will later make the case
that she is most accurately an emblem of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ.
But first let's define the noun
Solomon would have here written for "wisdom." Spelled "chokmoth,"
well sometimes "chakmoth" too, it's based on the root noun "chokmah."
It basically means "prudence or understanding" in the great
issues of life. It can also mean "skill" at life, especially
godly behavior. Once in the King James Bible our word is
translated "wits." But get this, some of the older
lexicographers define the word this way: "skill at technical
work," even the arts and sciences included.
The first time I can find
"wisdom" in all the Bible, Exodus 28:3, it's being attributed
(because given of God) to those who planned "to make Aaron's
garments." Wisdom to sew! Its second mention, Exodus 31:3, men
are being made wise to work in gold and silver, stone cutting,
carving timber and so forth ... in the construction of the
Tabernacle!
That's Wisdom.
Then there's the Wisdom Job so
badly need, Job of the Book of Job. This is Wisdom that explains
and equips one to live for God, even in the face of adversity.
That's the Wisdom who, in
these next few days, will be inviting us to supper! We plan to
go, how about you all?
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 2:
The Paragraph
we're studying, Proverbs 9:1-6, begins with a building project!
With a lady as its architect and carpenter. This reminds me of
Another Carpenter Who lives in the pages of Scripture!
"Wisdom
hath builded her house."
Proverbs 9:1
The Bible is filled with building
metaphors, word pictures about enlarging and establishing and
completing things.
The house lady Wisdom here builds
is obviously elaborate, having as we shall see tomorrow "seven
pillars."
It's a place where Wisdom, God's
point of view for all of life, will be served! A place where an
all-you-can-eat banquet will be served.
The Hebrew verb "hath builded" is
"banah," meaning "caused to continue." This is a permanent
dwelling place. Wisdom is here to stay, for all eternity.
In fact the noun "house" used
here is also a derivative of "banah." Wisdom is not transitive,
not fleeting, not ephemeral.
This is a lovely beginning to
Wisdom's "Invitation" paragraph.
Now to the New Testament for a
minute.
To the Apostle Paul.
Who was also a builder.
Well, a tentmaker by trade.
That's found in Acts 18:3, where our word is "skenopoios," a
blend of "skene" meaning "tent" and "poieo" meaning "to make or
construct."
Paul build houses for shepherds
and travelers and nomads, literally. And Paul became after
salvation a builder of men's souls too!
One of his, the Apostle's,
favorite words is "edification." It means, or I would not be
using it here today, "building a house!" In Greek it's spelled "oikodome,"
combining "oikos" meaning "house" and "doma" meaning "dining
room or hall or bedroom." The root verb "demo" means "to build."
I found about twenty times Paul
uses the "edify" word group in his writings. He is indeed, like
Lady Wisdom, a builder!
Only Paul, best I can tell, uses
this word family in Scripture!
Christians, we are also to join
the Club. Like Lady Wisdom and like the greatest Apostle ...
let's build God's Word into our lives.
Then try to help build it into
the lives of those we love!
Builders ... for Jesus.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 3:
The Lady is
still at work!
She is
preparing a House, then planning a meal. A lavish Feast
dedicated to all seekers of Wisdom, God's Wisdom.
And She has
entered into some pretty heavy construction work, building this
cathedral of Wisdom.
Notice today
her strenuous activity. "She
hath hewn out her seven pillars." Proverbs 9:1, the
second half of the verse.
Heavy work
indeed!
Stone is
involved, carving and shaping and later no doubt polishing these
beautiful rocks.
The verb used
to depict her activity, "hewn out," is relatively rare in the
Old Testament. I can only find 25 times it occurs there. "Chatzsab"
means "to dig, to cut or divide, to stonemason, to engrave," all
artistic abilities.
The verb
grammatically in Hebrew is a simple active voice word, with lots
of action that is now complete. "Qal perfect" the Hebrew teacher
would tell us.
This House of
Wisdom is going to be stable, firm, built on solid rock. To use
Jesus' words, "a House built upon the rock!"
Wisdom is
enduring!
Not
transient.
Eternal.
I really
believe Proverbs Wisdom is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ
described as the Prudence and Understanding and Mind of Almighty
God! Jesus is God made flesh! He is God the Son!
But for a
minute today I'd like us to study that verb "hewed out." Here
are a few examples of the Holy Spirit's use of the word in the
Bible.
First use:
Deuteronomy 6:11 where it appears twice. It is associated with
digging wells. Hewing out the earth, forming the pit from which
water will flow. Lady Wisdom is digging into the earth, striking
solid rock and continuing with her foundation! Wisdom is built
on the Solid Rock, our Lord Jes7us indeed!
Second Use:
Deuteronomy 8:9 where it is a mining term. Digging or hewing
brass out of the hills!
Solomon
employed eighty thousand hewers in the mountains around Israel,
part of his many building projects! See 1st Kings 5:15 for
proof.
Poetically
Psalm 29:7 has the "Voice of the Lord," there a synonym for
thunder (in a raging violent storm) "dividing" (our verb
"hewing") the "fire," meaning the lightning itself!
In Isaiah
10:15 a person is "hewing" with an axe, Lady Wisdom with s tool
like that in her lovely feminine hand!
My favorite
use: Isaiah 51:1 where the Lord metaphorically says He "hewed"
us old sinners out of the filth and muck of sin and set us up on
Jesus the Solid Rock! "Hearken
to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the
LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and
to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged."
Last use:
Hosea 6:5 where the Prophets of God "hewed" the wicked people of
Israel and Judah, sternly rebuking them for their many sins.
"Therefore
have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by
the words of my mouth."
What a
plethora of meaning!
And that
gives us the general idea of what Lady Wisdom did, the extent of
her labors, to make "God's Truth" available to you and me!
Jesus,
"In Whom are hid all the treasures of
Wisdom and Knowledge." Paul in Colossians 2:3, King James
Version.
By the way,
Jesus was "hewed" too, on the old rugged Cross. That we might be
saved by Grace, washed in His precious Blood.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 4:
The Lady who
is building a house in which to hold a banquet honoring Wisdom,
the godly Proverbs chapter 9 Lady, is going to design and place "seven
pillars" around her mansion.
Note the
Scripture.
"Wisdom
hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars."
Proverbs 9:1
The noun for pillars, despite the
initial implication that the house's foundation is being laid,
actually implies above-the-ground columns of some kind. "Ammud"
in Hebrew, derived from the root verb "amad" (meaning "to stand,
remain, endure"), suggests upright rock standards, posts. Huge
round, towering posts, first culturally ornamental but more
importantly spiritually beautiful!
Wisdom, in God's Eyes, is pretty!
Jesus is too, Song of Solomon
5:16 calling Him "altogether lovely!"
Those pillars also suggest
"excess, prodigality, lavishness." More than enough! And again
so it is with Jesus. His Blood is more than sufficient for all,
all sinners who have ever lived or will ever live!
His sunshine reaches the just and
unjust, the inhabited and uninhabited fields and mountains
worldwide! All inclusive!
But see this too. There are not
nine pillars, or merely three ... but seven! This is Biblically
a significant number. Often it's taught as the "perfect" number,
the number of "spiritual completion." A hint of how special this
number is to God ... He created the world then rested in seven
miraculous days!
Seven pillars or columns in
Wisdom's Home ... God's Mind and Heart and Way and Plan and
Knowledge ... are perfect!
God is complete in Himself!
He lacks nothing.
So we can see some of the
symbolism built into Wisdom's lavish house! All of which we
believe points to God's only-begotten Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 5:
The extended
Word Picture we are studying these days, a verse by verse
journey through Proverbs 9:1-6, has a Lady, a godly Lady,
preparing a feast. That is, after she built a lavish mansion in
which to serve that feast!
We believe
this is a depiction of God, likely God the Son our Lord Jesus
Christ, Who is Wisdom Itself, personified.
Wisdom come
to earth!
Wisdom virgin
born!
Wisdom as
Creator!
Wisdom as
Sustainer!
Wisdom as
Teacher!
Wisdom as
Counselor!
Wisdom as
Redeemer!
But today she
just begins her meal. Her buffet of instruction on godly living.
Godly thinking. A godly world-view.
Where does
she start?
"She hath killed her beasts."
Proverbs 9:2
The verb "tabach" translates the
words "hath killed." It means "to slaughter, butcher, to end
life ruthlessly!"
No mercy killing here. Animal
rights groups would rise up in protest! The oxen she's going to
bake or broil or fry ... to the last one, was killed without
thought of kindness.
Of course that was a trait of
those long-ago times.
But this action implies a lot
more than some ancient cultural weakness.
The slain animal here, bled to
death as the Jews would have been required to do, is a Symbol of
the major course in God's Meal of Wisdom!
It's a Type or Picture of our
Lord, of Jesus.
Jesus Who was "slaughtered" on
the Cross that we might be saved and enjoy the Wisdom of God!
It's Paul the Apostle who in 1st
Corinthians 1:23-24 says that the fountain of all Wisdom flows
from Calvary! "But
we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a
stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness. But unto them
which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power
of God, and the wisdom of God."
The slain
Saviour ... Wisdom's Meal!
In Psalm
22:26, that miraculous Text about Jesus' Death on Golgotha, as
soon as our Lord died, He began to talk about a meal!
About food! "The
meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that
seek him: your heart shall live for ever."
That's why,
the reason "Wisdom hath killed her
beasts."
The word
"beast" is "tebach," closely related obviously to the verb "hath
killed," which is "tabach."
The word
means an "animal grown to be slaughtered." That's Jesus, born to
die! He came to give His Life a ransom for you and me!
All this in a
short line about an ancient Lady preparing a lavish meal!
Jesus truly
permeates this paragraph of Scripture, as He does all God's
precious Word.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 6:
The Lady
we've named Wisdom, based on her Proverbs chapters eight and
nine context, is preparing a meal. A Meal that somehow is
centered around the Theme of Wisdom, the very Wisdom of God.
Yesterday we
saw her killing the animals that were to be the core of the
menu. We studied how they picture our Lord Jesus and His Death
on the Cross.
Here are
Solomon's exact words about the Woman:
"She hath killed her beasts." Again, Proverbs 9:2
Our question
today, how many beasts?
We are not
told.
But still
Jesus is in view.
Matthew
presents Jesus as LION of the tribe of Judah, to the Jews
primarily.
Mark pictures
our Lord as a lowly CALF or OX, serving others all His life.
Luke has Him
as SON OF MAN, perfect specimen of God's Creation.
And John
shows us Jesus as the lofty flying EAGLE, soaring in the
heavens.
These animals
are seen specifically in Revelation 4:6-8. And that is based on
Ezekiel 1:10, the Prophet's vision of God:
"As
for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a
man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four
had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the
face of an eagle."
Yes,
"Wisdom hath killed her beasts."
But back to
my question, how many beasts were prepared?
Lots of them
I would assume.
This is a
royal banquet ... with an unlimited number of folks invited.
For example,
here's the daily menu for Solomon's table. The average grocery
list for one single meal! "And
Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine
flour, and threescore measures of meal, ten fat oxen, and twenty
oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts,
and roebucks, and fallowdeer, and fatted fowl." 1st Kings
4:22-23
If Solomon
ate like that, presented his guests at court such abundant
nourishment ... unlimited food for whosoever would come ...
think what Lady Wisdom would do!
"She hath killed her beasts."
And waht then
might God the Father do at Calvary?
Has He
prepared the food of salvation for only a few?
For a
predetermined handful?
No!
Like Lady
Wisdom and like Solomon the King ... Calvary invites "whosoever
will!"
There's
enough for everyone!
Come and get
it!
The
Invitation has been given!
"The Spirit
and the Bride still say come!"
Yes, we're
talking about an unlimited atonement!
Praise the
Lord!
Jesus said
it, "Him that cometh to Me I will in no
wise cast out." John 6:37
Yes, His
Blood, His Death is lavishly prodigal. "He
is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but
also for the sins of the whole world."
1st
John 2:2
Jesus one
more time, in the spirit of Wisdom's Feast here.
"Whoso
eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I
will raise him up at the last day. He that eateth my flesh, and
drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him." John
6:56
What a meal!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 7:
The meal is
nearing completion. Time to prepare something to drink! A kind
Lady is preparing a banquet, inviting people everywhere to come
partake of God's Wisdom!
So far we
have discovered that each element, every course, symbolizes some
aspect of God's Character.
A meal
pointing to God, or Jesus?
Yes!
The Lord's
Supper or what we often call Communion does that to this very
day! Month after month at Church.
Anyway, our
Text says of this great Hostess: "She
hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine."
Proverbs 9:2
The noun for "wine" chosen by the
Holy Spirit here is spelled "yayin." It means just what it says,
"wine," and is so translated 138 times in our King James Bibles.
The other two times it appears in the KJV it is translated
"banqueting house" and "winebibbers." See Song of Solomon 2:4
and Proverbs 23:20. It's also true that "yayin" is derived from
a verb root that means "to effervesce," that is "to bubble" like
a carbonated cola does when opened.
The verb "hath mingled" is "masak"
and indicates "pouring or mixing" things, blending them. One
lexicon says of this verb, "mingle," to make a "choice drink" by
mixing with "spices."
Not just water here, but wine.
And this wine, as it does elsewhere in Scripture, symbolizes
something. It represents "joy" in one's life!
This Meal of Wisdom that's being
prepared is both physically and spiritually nourishing ... but
also saturated with "gladness" and "delight" and "praise."
When Jesus worked His mighty
miracle in Cana of Galilee that day, turning plain water into
wine, we're being told that joy returned to a
disappointing wedding feast!
Therefore, where Wisdom is ...
joy will be as well!
Similarly where Jesus is ... joy
is to be found!
And First John 1:4 hints that the
Word of God, the ingested Bible, also yields joy to us, "full"
joy!
And the joy of living God's Way
and thinking God's Truths and obeying God's Commands ... that is
possessing true Wisdom ... is so thrilling that Paul
characterizes it as "joy unspeakable!"
I'm so glad that God's Invitation
to Wisdom not only feeds me meat ... but quenches my thirst in a
number of ways ... including the spirit of joy!
Praise His Name!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 8:
The house is
built. The meal is cooked. The drinks are ready. And now she is
setting her table.
Wisdom is the
meal! Advice to the spiritually simple-minded, counsel and
instruction on how to properly live for God.
Yes, that's
Bible Wisdom.
And Jesus is,
I think, Wisdom personified.
But back to
our chapter, Proverbs 9. "She
hath also furnished her table." And what a table it's
going to be.
But I've noticed that the verb
"hath furnished," in Hebrew "arak," means "to array, to order,
to prepare." This surely is what we in the South call, as I said
earlier, "setting" the table. Putting the plates and silverware
and napkins in place. With food and drink to come later.
The "qal stem perfect" traits of
the verb in Hebrew grammar tell us that this table, let's write
it as Table, is set or furnished but once! The action being
depicted here is "complete."
This Table, an eternal Meal of
Wisdom, is a once and for all invitation!
"She
hath also furnished her table."
Then, having thought this far
into today's Lesson, I noticed an interesting set of facts.
Biblical data concerning our verb "arak," at least as it appears
in the King James Bible.
When we located the first use of
our word in the Old Testament, Genesis 14:8, it's used in a
military context! A war is to be fought! A battle engaged!
"Joining battle" is the actual rendering.
And then the last use of "arak"
in Scripture, Joel 2:5, reveals the same sort of context.
"Like
the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap,
like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as
a strong people set in battle array."
Set in battle "array."
Early and late in the Bible, the
Jewish Scriptures, "arak" involves direct confrontation!
But in our verse, Proverbs 9:2,
it simply means "furnishing" a table!
But does this specific verb not
at least intimate that this meal is going to be served in a
hostile environment? On a battle field?
Reminds one of Psalm 23:5.
"Thou
preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies."
With enemies around ... a furnished table!
This godly Book of Proverbs, its
Lady's diligently prepared Meal of Wisdom, with all the right
trimmings, even served in a newly constructed mansion ... is
located in a strange land.
A war zone!
Good versus Evil!
Right confronting Wrong!
God as opposed to the Devil!
Or Wisdom against Simplicity,
spiritual gullibility!
With the forces of iniquity all
around, I need this Food, this Wisdom of God ... I must sit at
this beautifully furnished table.
It's the only way I can overcome
the enemy my soul faces.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 9:
The meal,
which is just Wisdom pictured as the main course at a lavish banquet, is ready.
Now the
guests must be invited.
So Lady
Wisdom, the real Heroine of Proverbs 9, issues the invitations.
Here are the words employed by the King James Bible, beautifully
inspired of God: "She hath sent forth her
maidens ... saying Come eat of my bread and drink of my wine."
Proverbs 9:3
Part of today's
Lesson is hard to understand. Maybe it's due to the poetic
nature of our Text, really of all the Book of Proverbs. But the
ones giving the invitation to earth's eager learners, "Come and
enjoy Wisdom's Banquet," are women!
The noun "naarah"
is feminine in gender. A "young lady" is meant. Here no doubt
virtuous young women are intended, but the word can be used with
a wide latitude of application.
These
servants to Wisdom, beautiful as they no doubt are, picture the
witnesses and missionaries and preachers and evangelists and
soul winners who yet go forth today ... inviting lost souls to
Jesus!
No wonder
then Isaiah said it, with Paul following.
"How
beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth
good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings
of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy
God reigneth!" Isaiah 52:7
"And how shall they preach, except they be
sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that
preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good
things!" Romans 10:15
Yes, God
calls men to preach, but their Message is beautiful.
And so are
their feet.
And their
ways, their attitudes, should be too.
Let's thank
God for every witness across the whole world today, inviting men
and women to the Saviour!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 10:
The
Invitation is being extended, the greatest appeal ever offered
to men and women!
The Very
Wisdom of God, including His Thoughts and Ways and Character and
Desires, all combined in one great Word ... being made available
to us human beings.
And though
maidens, all emissaries of Lady Wisdom in our parable here, are
commissioned to carry the good news ... it is Wisdom Herself Who
speaks today.
And notice
where she launches her invitation! "She
crieth upon the high places of the city." Proverbs 9:3
This is after
the sending forth of all the maidens, yesterday's lesson.
"She
hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth upon the highest
places of the city."
Point I'm
making is this, the Message Itself is echoed by Wisdom, not some
human mouthpiece.
In a real
sense God Alone summons us to His Courts of Salvation and Halls
of Praise and Classrooms of Learning!
"Crieth" in
Hebrew is the verb "qara," having the idea of "loudness" in its
definition. In our King James Bible the word is translated
"preach, proclaim, read, call, bid," and the like.
"Come unto Me," Jesus once pled. He
that Day was literally fulfilling the Role of God's Wisdom
personified!
"She crieth upon the high places of the
city." Proverbs 9:3
The noun
"high places" is "marom," meaning "elevated." Why is she
standing up there? At the highest place in town?
So the most
people can hear her, of course!
This message
is for everyone!
Plus, the
heathen and the false religions worshipped their idols up there!
Wisdom is thus raiding their fortresses and proclaiming a better
Way, victory over sin and death ... because of the Wisdom of
God, which according to Paul in First Corinthians 1 is the Cross
of Calvary!
Yes, let's
get this equation in our minds.
Wisdom of God
= Cross where Jesus died!
What a
blessing to be able to proclaim a "whosoever will" Gospel!
May it be
preached today ... from the high places and low places and every
other place on earth!
In Jesus'
Name.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 11:
The invitees
are initially labeled by one word. Listen to Wisdom name those
she's asking to attend her feast.
"Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither."
Proverbs 9:4
The "simple,"
who are they?
The Hebrew
word employed here, "pethiy," has nothing to do with one's
intelligence. Nor the level of one's education.
Neither does
immaturity, silliness or childishness seem to enter into the
picture. The word points another way.
"Pethiy"
suggests one who is "naive." A person "too easily influenced!" This
may be an abrasive definition, but really the grammatical
emphasis here is "too open-minded!"
In fact, it's
root verb is "pathah," meaning "to be spacious, wide," in our
context obviously to an extreme.
I find our
word nineteen times in the Bible, the Old Testament. It's first
use is fundamental. The Word of God "makes wise the simple!"
It will teach
me and warn me about the proper and improper ways of life,
according to God's Estimation!
Here's a
Bible Verse that illustrates the definition we've just allotted
to the word "simple." Proverbs 14:15 says it.
"The
simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh
well to his going."
Wise people,
people who are God-inhabited, saved by Grace and filled with the
Holy Spirit, need to be "discerning!"
And will be.
That's a
by-product of Wisdom!
They will not
be ultra gullible.
They will not
fall for everything.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 12:
Wisdom cries,
after preparing a great Banquet with all the trimmings ...
"Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither."
Proverbs 9:4
Today we plan
to emphasize the response Wisdom expects, hopes to receive from
her "open door" policy. "Let him turn in
hither."
The verb
"turn in" which is fully translated "let (him) turn in" hither,
is in Hebrew spelled "sur." It's a qal imperfect verb,
grammatically speaking. That means, among other things, that
it's set here in the "active" voice. The decision to come or not
to come rests in the hands of the hearer.
This is not a
forced invitation!
Whosoever
will, may come!
Then "sur" is
literally defined as "to go" in any certain direction. Maybe
even containing this idea, "to change directions." Really, "to
depart from one thing and embrace its opposite."
Again, a
decision must be made.
The King
James Version Translators wisely allowed the idea "let" him
turn in hither ... due to the syntactical constraints of the
word the Holy Spirit chose.
This
Christmas Season each of us should be grateful to the Lord for
the free will He has given us. No doubt modeled on the free will
He possesses, though to a much limited degree.
"Supper is
ready," yells Lady Wisdom.
"Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither."
Thank You, Lord.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 13:
It's called
"parallelism" and the Old Testament Books of Poetry abound in
it. It's the very beauty of ancient rhyme.
And our Text
presents a classic example. "Whoso
is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that
wanteth understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread,
and drink of the wine which I have mingled."
Proverbs 9:4-5
The matching
ideas: First, "Whoso is simple." Those words we're studied in
an earlier lesson.
Second, and
equal in meaning and meter, "Him that wanteth understanding."
Then
immediately comes a second set of thoughts, responses: First to
the simple ... "Turn in hither."
Secondly, to
the one who lacks understanding ... "Come, eat of my bread and
drink of the wine which I have mingled."
Again, that's
classic parallelism!
Now for a
discussion of our new clause today. "For
him that wanteth understanding." These words must have
nexus with "Whoso is simple" if my poetic theory is correct. And
they do have harmony of meaning!
The verb "wanteth"
is "chaser" and means "to lack" in an area. "To be destitute, to
fail, to be in need." Of course the majority of the world lacks
many spiritual traits and could care less! One must "sense" this
deficiency! And Wisdom is trying to introduce that feeling, that
sensitivity!
The noun
"understanding" translates, surprisingly, "leb." This is a
little Hebrew word that is normally, 508 times in fact, rendered
as "heart." It really means "the innermost" part of a person.
Where he or she thinks and feels and believes and responds!
In other
words, God's Wisdom imparts to us "God's Very View of life!"
God's Thoughts and Feelings and an appropriate sense of God's
Very Essence, His Character.
Based on
these definitions, who on earth can claim all the
"understanding" we need? We all "lack" in this area of
spirituality!
And so we all
stand in need of Wisdom!
Hence, this
chapter in God's Word!
"Wisdom
hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars. She
hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also
furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth
upon the highest places of the city, Whoso is simple, let
him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth
understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread, and
drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the
foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
Proverbs 9:1-6
Wow!
Lord, give us such Wisdom! Give
us Thyself!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
Jesus' very Prayer in John 17:3.
"And
this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true
God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." Now, that's
Wisdom!
LESSON 14:
The
Invitation we notice today, Christmas Day of 2011, is worthy of
a New Testament address! Yet it's buried in the heart of the
Book of Proverbs, written a millennium before the Virgin Birth
two thousand years ago.
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled."
Literally King Solomon quoting
Lady Wisdom in Proverbs 9:5.
These words
virtually flow from the Lips of Almighty God, our loving
Heavenly Father.
Jesus too
lets His sinless Tongue appropriate them. In fact here's proof
from John 6:53. "Then
Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye
eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no
life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath
eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my
flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that
eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in
him."
What Beauty!
What Grace!
But back to
today's clause,
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled."
The opening
verb "come," well "drink" too for that mater, both verbs are
expressed as "imperatives."
Commands!
There is only
one way to get Wisdom from God.
We must
"come" to him!
We must "eat
and drink" of His Offering!
Wow, that's
three verbs that are commands!
Come ... eat
... drink!
All this can
mean ... "internalize" the Wisdom of God!
Trust Jesus
as Saviour!
Imbibe Him!
Lean on Him!
Believe Him!
Love Him!
In other
words ...
"Verily,
verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth
on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come
into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
From Jesus in John 5:24.
"That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead,
thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto
righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him
shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew
and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that
call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the
Lord shall be saved."
Paul word for word in Romans
10:9-13.
Everyone
today, let's come to this great Table Wisdom has spread.
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled."
The results of this Food are
eternal!
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 15:
The noun
Wisdom uses for her Bread, the solid food she's serving at her
great Banquet, is "lechem" in Hebrew. It means "grain,
provision, victuals." But get this thought. It is derived from a
near-kin verb, "lacham," that means "to fight, to do battle, to
make war!"
The Bread
this lady is presenting us, free of charge, costs God a lot! A
war had to be fought to give us this Food!
And that
Bread, ultimately and symbolically, is Jesus' Very Flesh! His
broken Body!
And was It,
rather was He, made available to us for our eternal Salvation without
cost?
No, He paid
Plenty! He died,
shedding His Blood, to redeem us from sin! He warred against the
Devil and Sin and Hell and the Grave and Death ... and defeated
them all!
That Bread is
victory Bread!
No wonder "lechem"
is the root to our word "Bethlehem," which is "House of Bread"
and the place where Jesus was born!
Man-of-War
Jesus!
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled." Proverbs 9:5 again.
And the word "wine," the fruit of
the grape, obviously suggests "crushing and squeezing and
pulverizing" as well! All participles emblematic of Jesus' Ordeal both in
His Life and Death, a vicarious Substitute for lost sinners!
Today let's thank our Lord and
worship Him and praise Him and adore Him ... because He is that
Bread and Wine that provides us God's Wisdom! God's Eternal
Life! God's Very Being residing deep within our bodies and
souls!
Sure am glad I hear and accepted
and responded to that great invitation!
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled."
Aren't you?
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 16:
Are you tired of
these "Wisdom" Lessons yet? Only a couple more remain, as things
stand now. Proverbs 9:1-6 is quite an interesting Text!
I may be
going a bit too far in applying this verb so loosely. Sister
Wisdom, Who has prepared a lavish Feast, is planning to serve
meats and vegetables and no telling what else. Along with the
solid food items, all emblematic of the good Lady's Namesake,
the very Wisdom of God, she is serving wine. But here it's call
"mingled" wine.
"Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have
mingled." Proverbs 9:5
This little word for "mingled,"
in Hebrew "masak," means "mixed." It also can carry the idea of
anything that is "poured."
As we saw earlier in our study,
Wisdom's "wine" typifies "joy and excitement and exuberance."
The joy of the Lord,
Nehemiah 8:10 calls it!
But this joy, this wine of
Wisdom, is described in an unusual way. To be in the Bible
anyway.
It is "mingled" wine. "Mingled"
by Wisdom Herself! Mingled by the Holy Spirit of God.
Likely this Wine of Wisdom is combined with spices and
maybe even certain fragrances!
And so is it in the Christian
life yet today.
Wisdom comes "mingled."
Joy does too!
The Christian life is not
monolithic, static, and certainly not dormant.
God "mixes" various experiences,
day after day events, to produce "joy and wisdom" and the
manifold "fruit" of the Spirit in our lives.
That's part of what Romans 8:28
means. "And
we know that all things work together for good to them that love
God, to them who are the called according to his
purpose."
"All things," working together!
That is, "all things" ... mingled!
The joyful and the sorrowful ...
blended to grow Wisdom, God's Wisdom, in our lives for Jesus!
The bitter and the sweet, mixed
in proportion to our needs, by the Hand of an All-Wise and
Almighty God!
Wow!
"Drink of the
wine which I have mingled."
God, watching over us every hour
of every day!
What a blessed state of affairs,
in the Hands of Jesus.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 17:
All these
positive traits about Wisdom!
Her glories,
blessings and attributes.
Her many
positive side-effects, by-products.
Her open
invitation to all! That's right, the
come-one-come-all invitation she extends.
But today, in
the very last verse of our Text, we find a negative note.
There is
something we must leave behind, forsake, maybe even abhor ... if
we are to ever enjoy God's Wisdom as a permanent Resident in our
hearts.
Here's
Proverbs 9:6. "Forsake
the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
The verb
"forsake" is critical here. It's spelled "azab" in
Hebrew and means "to refuse" something. Even "to leave" it
behind!
To inject
Wisdom into one's life, he or she must thrust some things
or some people (the wrong kind) out of that life!
"Forsake the foolish and live."
Remember that
the noun "foolish" translates as the "naive," the "too easily
led," the "believe-everything he hears" type! Folks who are much
too gullible, especially in spiritual areas of life.
Forsake
foolishness and its adherents ... and gain Wisdom as a Friend!
As a "sister"
or "kinswoman" Proverbs 7:4 declares.
As a
"girlfriend" the Hebrew etymology suggests!
And what's
the result of such a friendship, such a companionship, with true
godly Wisdom?
"Forsake the foolish and
live."
Life!
Real life!
"Life on the highest level, the
highest plane," someone said.
The verb "live" is "chayah" in
the language Solomon used. To be "revived," to stay "alert!"
To be "quickened!"
Even "to recover" eight times in
the King James Bible.
Real life ... if we turn from the
lies of the world!
Now tomorrow, the Lord willing,
the last clause of our six-verse Text, Proverbs 9:1-6.
"Forsake
the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
Amen.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
LESSON 18, CONCLUSION:
Wisdom, but not
as a temporary experience.
Proverbs
9:1-6 literally presents a new lifestyle!
Living in
harmony with the Ways of God!
Here's the
last verse of our Text again, this time noticing the final
clause. "Forsake
the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
Once I've
attended Wisdom's Banquet. Once I've tasted and swallowed her
Wine. Once I've forsaken the foolish. Once I've trusted God and
His inspired Word with all my heart.
Then ... I
can "go" in the way of understanding.
This little
verb is spelled "ashar," an unusual word for this occasion. It
means "blessed or happy" in its fundamental sense! But a few
times in the Bible it is rendered as follows: "to lead, to
guide" and "to relieve!"
Twice in the
King James Version however it is just "go."
The Wisdom
Way is a Happy Way then!
It, "ashar,"
is here set as a qal stem verb in the imperative mood. It's a
command from God then, a necessity for knowing His Wisdom
perpetually. And it is an on-going activity as well. Live in
God's Wisdom from now to eternity!
"Go" ... in
His Ways!
The noun
"understanding" is informative too. It's "biynah," a word
basically meaning "discernment," the ability to see life and its
various situations "in diverse levels" of meaning.
Seeing like
God sees, at least as far as is revealed in His Word!
Proverbs
9:1-6 is a life-changing invitation!
Let's all
accept it.
"Wisdom
hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars. She
hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also
furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth
upon the highest places of the city, Whoso is simple, let
him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth
understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread, and
drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the
foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding."
Proverbs 9:1-6
Yes, Lord.
--- Dr. Mike Bagwell
