But such cases are the exception, not the rule. Extensive experience tells us that sometimes a corrupt judge will actually gain more power and prestige, instead of being cursed. For example, “Whoever says to the guilty, ‘You are innocent,’ will be cursed by peoples and denounced by nations” (Proverbs 24:24). Proverbs are not necessarily to be taken literally, and they are not promises rather, they are an acknowledgment of a common reality. Since the book of Proverbs is part of the Bible’s wisdom literature, it is appropriate to interpret its contents differently than, say, a historical account. The Bible refers to proverbs as “sayings of the wise” (Proverbs 24:23) and “sayings and riddles of the wise” (Proverbs 1:6). Many deal with the commonplace yet clarify the deepest realities of life. The purpose of a proverb is to present wisdom in a short, memorable format.
DEFINE BYWORD FULL
Paremiologist Archer Taylor claimed in his seminal work, The Proverb, that only “an incommunicable quality tells us this sentence is proverbial and that one is not.” Many take advantage of this “incommunicable quality” by turning their definitions into proverbs themselves, such as “short sentences drawn from long experience” or “the wit of one and the wisdom of many.” Within the biblical text, these descriptions are certainly applicable.Ī good definition of a biblical proverb is “a short saying that expresses a general truth for practical, godly living.” The Hebrew word translated “proverb” comes from a root word meaning “to be like” thus, the book of Proverbs is full of comparisons showing us how various images illustrate the fundamental truths of life. Biblical scholars have better success, confining the definition to biblical proverbs.
While many questions can be asked and answered about the biblical book of Proverbs, ascertaining the exact definition of a proverb, including its form, purpose, and interpretation, is rather difficult! Scholars who have dedicated themselves as paremiologists, or students of proverbs, debate various definitions of what a proverb is.
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