Wisdom from a guy with a weird name …

In this chapter there is a shift from the wisdom of Solomon to the sayings of Agur. Most likely, Agur — what mother names her son “Agur?” —  was a student or understudy of Solomon.

Here are some things we learn about him in chapter 30:

• We see that he is humble: verses 1-4
• We see that he had a keen understanding of God and His creation: 5-6
• We see that he hates arrogance: 7-9

In my mind, the best way for this chapter to be get-a-hold-able is to provide an outline for your reading of it.

God’s Word and His People: Verses 5-14

• The purity and surety of God’s Word: Verse 5
• The perfection of God’s Word: Verse 6
• The prayer of the godly — seeking humility and contentment: Verses 7-9
• Ungodly times are described: Verses 11-14

Verses 11-14 seem to describe our society nowadays. The truth is that it describes all societies throughout time that ignore God and His Word.

Learning from God’s Creation: 15-31

• The wonder of how creation works. Verses 18-19

Wonder precedes worship; there can be no worship where wonder isn’t present. Unless we see majesty or beauty or glory, we will not have wonder in our hearts and minds, without it we will not worship anything except ourselves. Let us be people who in humility look beyond ourselves to God expressing His glory through His Word and creation in Christ. Let us be people entranced in the wonder of God and His glory and grace.

• The wonder of when things are awry. Verses 21-23
• The wonder of small, wise creatures. Verses 24-28
• The wonder of majestic things. Verses 29-31
• A call to humility and righteousness. Verse 32

It might help to provide a definition here. When Proverbs refers to the “righteous,” it does not mean the hyper-religious or those who are perfect. It refers to those who are saved by God’s grace, pursuing Him in His Word, and growing in wisdom and godliness.

Our only true right-ness and righteousness is provided by and found in Jesus.

Tomorrow is the final day of the Proverbs Challenge. Great job in making it this far. Chapter 31 is a fantastic one, especially for the ladies.

As an aside, please check out the Bearded Acorn forum on Facebook. It is a public group. Please join it. Next month I will lead a study through Philippians. We will do one chapter per week, a much slower pace. The Facebook forum will serve as a place for discussion, questions, and to hear your thoughts as we study Philippians together.