Week 26 Proverbs 1
The first six verses are Solomon’s introduction to the Proverbs. In my bible that paragraph is one long sentence and it names some of the benefits that I can get from reading the proverbs. It ends with this: to understand a proverb and a figure, the words of the wise and their riddles.
I normally think of the proverbs as a book of sayings that are pretty straightforward & clear & uncomplicated. A lot of them are easy enough for a kid to understand. But however simple the proverbs seem to be Solomon says they also have this riddle-quality to them.
I looked up ‘riddle’. The dictionary said that a riddle is a saying that has to be solved because it has a hidden meaning. A riddle is tricky. I need some ingenuity to dope it out.
I check other bible versions. About 30 of them use the word riddle. The other versions use words or phrases that are different…but have the same idea: dark sayings. Puzzles. Enigmas. Clever messages.
That’s not to say proverbs aren’t straight-ahead literal sayings. But maybe they’re layered sayings too. They have a plain & simple surface but lying underneath is a more complicated subsurface. Maybe they make good & common sense. But there’s more to them than meets-the-eye.
Head-scratchers disguised as vanilla-flavoured platitudes.
Note: quote from Proverbs 1:6 (NASB)