Contemplative Bible Reading

Proverbs 8:22 (New Living Translation) The Lord formed me (wisdom) from the beginning, before he created anything else. Proverbs 8 is about wisdom. This verse tells us that God created wisdom before creating anything else. I don’t know that I can understand that statement. Before the universe, there was wisdom. Wisdom has always existed. No, […]

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Proverbs 1:1-1 (New Living Translation) These are the proverbs of Solomon, David’s son, king of Israel. 2 Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline, to help them understand the insights of the wise. 3 Their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help them do what is right, […]

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Proverbs 15:8 (New Living Translation) Everyone enjoys a fitting reply; it is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time! Do you want to be wonderful? Here is a simple recipe: say the right thing at the right time. Pretty simple. Now all I have to do is go out and do that.

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Proverbs 15:9 (New Living Translation) The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but he delights in the prayers of the upright. The LORD does not delight in the actions of the wicked as He does in the actions of the upright. Notice – the wicked offer sacrifices. By definition, that means the wicked give […]

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Proverbs 17:13 (New Living Translation) If you repay good with evil, evil will never leave your house. I read this verse as: You can’t give away all the evil. There will always be some left over. I could be wrong on this one, but that is my take. Evil seems to be that way. It […]

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Proverbs 17:1 (New Living Translation) Better a dry crust eaten in peace than a house filled with feasting—and conflict. This tells us a simple principle about priorities. Take care of the physical necessities. Then take care of the emotional needs. The key word in the first principle is “necessities.” Enough bread to survive is a […]

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Proverbs 22:22-23 (New Living Translation) Do not rob the poor, because he is poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate, 23 for the Lord will plead their cause and rob of life those who rob them. Evil is easy. It is easy to rob the poor. It is easy to rob the rich. Let’s make a list of evil […]

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Proverbs 13:8 (New Living Translation) The rich can pay a ransom for their lives, but the poor won’t even get threatened. Hmm, poor people aren’t threatened. That makes sense as if you have nothing, you have nothing to lose. The rich, however, have lots to lose. They have so much that others will grab them […]

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Proverbs 12:18 (New Living Translation) Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing. This proverb gives us a clear choice. Do my words cut or heal? I am sure we can create other dividing lines, but this one is apt. It provides me with a simple question to ask myself […]

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Proverbs 15:27 (New Living Translation) Greed brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live. These Proverbs were written several thousand years ago or last weekend. Sometimes I confuse the two time periods. This proverb tells me that greed can ruin a family or a community or a nation. How did […]

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