As you can see, we are back to Proverbs for the next few weeks. Before we dive back in, here’s a quick recap of Proverbs 1-9 : Wisdom is good; folly is bad. I think we can all remember and agree that the first nine chapters contain a good bit more than that, but if we come away from them with that much, we’re off to a reasonably good start!
Now we dive into the part of the book that truly consists of proverbs, those short sayings that convey nuggets of wisdom or observations on life. For the most part, each verse is a separate self-contained proverb. Perhaps that would be the best way to read them: one verse at a time. But no, we’ll be charging through about half a chapter at a time, giving us about 15 different proverbs to look at each day.
That goes to say that I am at a loss as to how our discussion might go. My guess is that I’ll just pick one or two verses to comment on each day — certainly not all 15 or so! But that should not constrain you. Feel free to comment on whatever verse or verses strike you. So here we go…
Proverbs 10:1-16
A rich man’s wealth is his strong city;
the poverty of the poor is their ruin.
Proverbs 10:15
I do not think this is the most profound proverb from today’s reading. It does not tell us how to get rich or how to avoid poverty. (Pr. 10:4 says a little something about that, as does Pr. 10:5.) Nor does it tell us whether the rich should or should not trust in their riches. Nor does this proverb say that wealth is morally better than poverty — or vice versa. It is simply a (morally neutral) observation of life that wealth offers tremendous practical advantages, and poverty tremendous challenges. And it illustrates how we need to be careful in reading these proverbs, careful to see what they say — and what they do not say.