Proverb of the Day – December 04 2009
Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding (Proverbs 4:1)
Today we will keep it nice and simple as it is Friday, but let me start with how amazing to me that God’s word lines up so accurately with each other as often as it does!
If you have a look at the fact that it was written by 40 different authors over a time span of about 1500 years, one 3 continents in 3 different languages, then it may blow your mind as much as it blows mine.
Can you imagine getting 40 Christians from the same church or even the same town, who speak the same language and ask them to interpret something, I can guarantee you that, you will not always get correlating views, that is why I believe that the Bible is in-fact the Word of God.
But to the scripture, this proverb is really also a reiteration of Exodus 20 (the ten commandments) where we have to honour our father and mother, but this goes deeper.
The word for hear (shama) would be better as Understand, take in, act upon. Childeren (ben) we have been through previously, the instruction is (muwcar) is to chasten, to discipline, father (ab) is simply father, attend (qushab) is to incline, pay attention, to listen,know (yada) understanding (biynah ) can also mean discernment.
So in an amplified version:
Hear, understand, take in, act upon, ye children, ye descendents, the instruction, the chastening, the discipline of a father, and attend, incline, to listen and pay attention to know understanding and discernment.
In a nutshell, chances are your father has been through it before, why not learn from his experience. The older I get, the more this is the truth.
God bless you all
William
