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December 10, 2023 – A Treasure Worth Seeking
Principle Topic – Proverbs

Lesson Focal Verses in King James Version:
Proverbs 2:1-5; 3:1-6, 13-18 KJV

Lesson Focal Verses in New Living Translation:
Proverbs 2:1-5; 3:1-6, 13-18 NLT

Keep in Mind the Key Verses (In King James Version):
Proverbs 3:13, KJV

 

Keep in Mind the Key Verse (In New Living Translation):
Proverbs 3:13, NLT

(Pop-up references come from courtesy of Faithlife Reftagger)

What shall we learn from this lesson:

Knowledge is the result of learning facts. The more facts we know the more knowledge we have. Intelligence is the ability to recall and use the knowledge we have accumulated in order to draw conclusions. Wisdom is knowing which conclusion and action is best to use for a given situation.

Solomon is considered one of the wisest people in the Bible. Many, if not most, of the proverbs are attributed to him and he is considered the author of the book. But he did not write all of the contents. Two small examples are Agur (Proverbs 30:1) and Lemuel (Proverbs 31:1).

The purpose of the Book of Proverbs is to teach people wisdom and discipline (Proverbs 1:2 NLT). The Book of Proverbs is an anthology - a series of literary works combined into a single volume with a unifying theme. For Proverbs, the unifying theme is wisdom.

When the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at Gibeon, He asked him what he wanted most of all.

Here Solomon had an opportunity to ask for anything including treasures, or a long life ... anything.

God was not only pleased when Solomon asked for wisdom but He was pleased by the way he asked. Let's review Solomon's request in his dream:

7 "Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.

8 "Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted.

9 "So give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?"
(1 Kings 3:7-9 ASB)

God's answer to this request was to make Solomon a very wise man with a discerning heart:

11 God said to him, "Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice,

12 behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you.

13 "I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days. (1 Kings 3:10-13 ASB)"

We are to follow in the footsteps of those who are wise. To do so means we must trust in the Lord and let Him guide our steps:

5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
(Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV)

December 17, 2023 – The Most Beautiful Bride
Principle Topic – Ecclesiastes – Song of Solomon (Song of Songs)

Lesson Focal Verses in King James Version:
Song of Solomon 6:4-12 KJV

Lesson Focal Verses in New Living Translation:
Song of Solomon 6:4-12 NLT

Keep in Mind the Key Verses (In King James Version):
Song of Solomon 6:9, KJV

 

Keep in Mind the Key Verse (In New Living Translation):
Song of Solomon 6:9, NLT

(Pop-up references come from courtesy of Faithlife Reftagger)

What shall we learn from this lesson:

Song of Songs is also called Song of Solomon. The central topic is love.

It is a unified collection of poetry with the theme of human love, following the relationship of a young man and a young woman from courtship and onward to marriage.

Like Proverbs, Song of Songs is also an instruction book. It tells us how the man and woman should respond to each other, especially when their love is young.

Like the Book of Esther, none of the principal names of God appear in this book.

Love is one of the most important aspects of living. God, in His wisdom, has made available to us all levels of love both mentally and physically. Built into each of us is a passionate desire to love one of the opposite sex.

The passion God built into human beings naturally leads to the creation of families and the propagation of our species. Therefore, this passion within us has a reason for its existence.

In the poem, sometimes the young man is speaking and sometimes the young woman is speaking but they both describe romantic longings for each other.

Song of Solomon reminds us that both the marriage and the physical union that follows originate in God; we should therefore consider each of them as evidence of His grace.

In verses 4:8,9,10 the woman is referred to as the man's bride indicating this is a story that transitions to married love or one that is on the verge of going from engagement to marriage.

When the woman invites the man into her garden they are then said to be married. Her garden becomes his garden to explore. She refers to it as "your garden" (4:16c). The young man then refers to the garden as "my garden" (5:1a)

If we were to impose allegory (interpreted as having a hidden meaning) on the book, the Christian interpreters could interpret that the book depicts love between Christ and His bride, the church.

On the other hand, the Jewish interpreters typically view the Song of Songs an an expression of the covenantal love between God and the Jewish people as expressed through their covenant with Him.

For those who don't look for a hidden meaning, the book can just be read as an expression of human love and passion between a young man and a young woman who deeply desire each other physically and emotionally.

To the modern reader, it uses wording that flows poetically but sometimes would fall short if only the visual senses are used. Let's look at a couple of examples.

A male suitor from today's time would think twice before comparing the young woman's teeth to a flock of sheep (4:6) or her hair to a flock of goats (4:5). He would hesitate to compare her temples to a piece of pomegranate (4:7).

But to a shepherd of ancient Israel, a flock of white sheep could be very beautiful to him, especially if it is the flock he was assigned to watch over and especially if that flock is ever lost by him and then found. So the shepherd uses the words and objects of which he is familiar with to describe the women he loves.

Instead of the visual focus which would, admittedly, at times fall short, we are to reflect on its core meaning. As an example, a man might compare the beauty of a rose to the beauty of his bride... not because she looks like a rose, but that her delicate beauty rivals that of the most precious rose one had ever seen.

What's the point of all of the compliments? This "instruction book" is teaching the men that they should compliment the beauty of the one who is the object of their affection - their bride. To the mature reader, the song reminds us of how our love used to be and still could be.

The woman in this story is said to be a Shulamite woman who could have been Solomon's first love and the one that first captured his heart.

She described herself as one whose complexion had been darkened by the sun. (1:5). Others believe her dark skin was because of her African heritage. We don't know for sure.

The fact that she works in the sun and has goats to graze (1:8 NLT) and vineyards to take care of indicates she is not of the wealthy class and most probably one of the working class.

She described herself as black and beautiful (comely), dark as the tents of Kedar. (1:5). The uniqueness of her beauty is another reason the young man may have found her to be so irresistible.

There are some who believe that Solomon was the young man in the story. Perhaps that could have been the case when he was very young.

But, as he matured and became king, he had 700 wives. But, it is obvious in the poem that the young man and young woman had eyes for only each other. Even so, that would not prevent him from loving one special woman.

The book ends with the couple still in love and with the woman inviting the man to follow her with the speed of a gazelle (8:14 NLT).

For access to all chapters of the King James Version Bible in audio and visual formats, visit the Audio-Bible.com web site.

For other versions (NIV, New Living Translation, etc.) of the Bible in audio and visual formats, visit the World Wide Study Bible page of Christian Classics Eternal Library site. Also visit the New Living Translation web site.

Some information on this page may be referenced from the NLT Study Bible, the Standard Lesson Commentary, Precepts for Living, Commentary by David Guzik, and gotquestions.org. Frederick L. Marsh is the commentary author of the information contained in this page. He is the author of the book: "The Book of the Holy Spirit: Joyful living." The opinions expressed on this page are his alone.