There are 31 chapters in Proverbs – perfect for reading one each day of the month. And the practical wisdom it serves up makes it highly applicable for daily living. For years, I’ve read the Proverb of the Day … and it never fails to challenge, convict, and even make me chuckle.
Our start-the-school day routine often included reading the Proverb of the Day aloud to my children. Often God would remind me of a story from my own childhood or adult life experiences that applied to a specific verse. I learned the best devotions were the ones unplanned by me, but prompted by the Holy Spirit. While my kiddos finished their bowls of Cheerios, I would read the Word and expound, often wondering if they were retaining any of it between bites. My concerns were alleviated while driving around one day. Our oldest son made a remark that his sister interpreted as prideful, and she responded with all the self-righteous authority an eight-year-old girl can muster, “Let another praise you, Kyle, and not your own lips!”
Such was life at the Macfarlan Homeschool.
As the years have gone by, I’ve come to treasure the Proverbs all the more. I often wonder if my adult children continue the Proverb of the Day tradition (but I’ve gained a keen understanding of how the “Don’t Ask Questions If You’re Not Sure You Want To Know The Answer” rule applies to parenting adult children).
The book of Proverbs – along with Job, Psalms, and Ecclesiastes – comprise what are often referred to as “the Wisdom books” in scripture. They unpack timeless, practical truth for not just for godly living, but also for happiness and success in our earthly lives. Themes like honesty, hard work, and avoiding folly flow through the pages of Proverbs.
It makes for a good study in literary devices, too. In Proverbs you will find plenty of metaphors and similes, as well as the personification of both wisdom and folly. The writer employs a poetic style referred to as parallelism. In my Bible, I have written notes identifying three types:
- Synonymous Parallelism: The first line is paralleled by a similar meaning in the second line.
for gaining wisdom and instruction;
for understanding words of insight
Proverbs 1:2 - Antithetical Parallelism: The first line is opposite of the second line, and there is a contrast. The second line usually begins with “but.”
The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son brings joy to his father,
but a foolish son brings grief to his mother.
Proverbs 10:1 - Synthetic Parallelism: The second line continues the thought of the first; it most often begins with “and.”
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:6
(These notes have been in my Bible for years and I did not write down the source. I would provide an attribution if I knew to whom I needed to give credit!)
I hope you will join us in writing the Word this month. I hope you will also consider reading the entire chapter each day, not just the selected verse(s), and perhaps launching your own Proverb of the Day tradition.
I’m praying the Spirit of God takes the Word of God and spurs us all on to walk in wisdom!
Download your printable bookmark for July
and join us as we write, dwell on, and pray verses
from the book of Proverbs in this month’s
Write The Word: Proverbs for the Woman of God.
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