Today’s passage: Proverbs 30
Helpful thoughts:
- The exact details of Agur’s identity are unknown. It is possible he was a contemporary of Solomon. The name Agur means “collector.”
- Without God’s revelation, there would be no wisdom. Left to ourselves we would not be wise, but by God’s grace we can be showered with wisdom (James 1:5)
- When people add to God’s Word, they are denying it’s authority and sufficiency.
- There are official ways this has been done, such as holding church tradition as authoritative or adding books to the Bible (e.g. the Apocrypha)
- This can also be done unofficially. When we decide to interpret the Bible differently in order to match a contrary opinion, or when we think the Spirit can use a clause of a sentence out of context to tell us what we might want to here…that is adding to the Scripture.
Questions to consider:
- Why do you think Agur wanted neither poverty nor riches? How does verse 9 answer that question? What would that look like today?
- What are the comparisons between verses 11-14 and 15-16? How do they all go together? What would repentance result in?
- What proverb stuck out the most to you? How can you put it into practice today?
Prayer:
Lord, as this chapter in proverbs finishes in verse 31, we are reminded that we have all deserved your wrath. You don’t lose control of your emotions. Nor do you react unjustly. Your wrath is forced because you are a holy and just God. Thank you for your great love in sending Christ to take our wrath in our place! Thank you for revealing yourself and your will to us through your word. Please grow in our hearts a passion to read it, heart it, learn it and live by it for your glory, for the good of others, and for our joy.