Life Lessons in the Old Testament
We talk about our human problems, our experiences with Christianity, since that is the form of religion that the majority of us are most familiar with. Whether or not that belief defines us now, it has left its religious mark. We've all made our desires to understand, communicate and learn of diverse religions and faiths other than our own.
Yet we seem to only be able to view those others thru our own eyes, thru our own windows, because of our own circumstances and so have I. Yet through these past few years I have been able to take and throw away all of the "bad" experiences that I have had with Christianity as a whole, and find the good in it, and apply it to my Pagan path. I am thankful for my better understanding of Christianity, for before it was something I hated because I didn’t understand it and felt it did not apply to me, but it does and within it I can find peace instead of fear and retribution as I did so before.
Since I was raised in the Christian denominations, cut my first two baby teeth on the front row pews of an Apostolic church, went to Sunday school every Sunday, and Church Camp in the Summer time, I'll tell you of my Theoretical, Practical, Sociological, Ethics, Religious Experience, & Art within something I am most familiar.
Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon, parts of the Old Testament, considered Poetical books of the Bible. These books are experiential and are concerned with individuals, the human heart and the Hebrew race and Christians and people as a whole. They are not the only poetry in the Old Testament scriptures and so we should understand that the term poetical refers only to the form. These books grapple with our profound human problems, our human experience, our great realities of humanity and the experiences of our humanity with our God. The Poetical books focus on Israel’s Spiritual lives, but we can adapt this to our own spiritual lives today, in 2011 - 2012; while in relation to one another the Book of Job - Blessing Through Suffering, The Psalms - Praise Through Prayer, The Proverbs - Prudence Through Precept, The Ecclesiastes - Verity Through Vanity and The Song of Solomon - Bliss Through Union.
There were three primary periods of poetic literature; Job (2000 B.C.) I the Patriarchal period, Psalms (1000 B.C.) II The Davidic Period, III The Solomonic Period, A. Song of Solomon - A Young Man’s Love, B. Proverbs - A Middle Aged Man’s Wisdom, C. (950 B.C.) Ecclesiastes - An Old Man’s Sorrow.
Hebrew poetry is unlike the poetry many of us are so used to today. We have read Keats, Tennyson, Shakespeare, and Poe which emphasizes rhyme and meter. Hebrew poetry relies on characteristics such as parallelism as its chief characteristic although there is other features as well that distinguish it from the typical poetry and prose that we may find in scripture. There is a terseness of form, a greater use of certain types of rhetorical devices. A richer use of imagery, figures of speech, rhythm and parallelism.
The Three Kinds of Hebrew Poetry
There is Lyrical Poetry accompanied by music, usually on the lyre (think of David), The Didactic poetry, using maxims designed to communicate basic principles of life (think the Wisdom books - Ecclesiastes and Proverbs), Dramatic Poetry used dialog to communicate its message (think The Song of Solomon and Job).
The Two Key Elements of Hebrew Poetry
English poetry which emphasizes rhyme and meter and manipulates sound, Hebrew poetry repeats and rearranges thoughts rather than sounds. Parallelism, again this word and I’ll tell you that it refers “To the practice of balancing one thought or phrase by a corresponding thought or phrase containing the same number of words or at least a correspondence in ideas”. While there are many different types of parallel arrangements in thought there are three basic ones.
1. Synonymous--the thought of the first line is basically repeated in different words in the second line
2. Antithetical--the thought of the first line is emphasized by a contrasting thought in the second line - They are often identified with “but.”
3. Synthetic--the second line explains or further develops the idea of the first line
4. Climactic--The second line repeats with the exception of the last terms
5. Emblematic--One line conveys the main point, the second line illuminates it by an image
Figures of Speech
Hebrew poetry, like its language uses vivid images, metaphors, similies and other rhetorical devices to communicate feelings and thoughts. Below you will see chart (as best as I can do) Ps. 1:3-4; 5:12; 17:8; 131:2).Psalm 23:1, David says, “The Lord is my Shepherd,” that is, He is to me like a shepherd is to his sheep (see also 84:11; 91:4).Ps. 22:16; Jer. 4:7).Ps. 6:6; 78:27; 107.26).Psalm 96:10reads, “For all the gods ( kol-elohay) of the nations are idols ( elilim). This latter word means nothings or things of naught; so that we might render it, “The gods of the nations or imaginations.”28(see also Ps. 22:16; Prov. 6:23).
1. Simile: This is the simplest of all the figures of speech. A simile is a comparison between two things that resemble each other in some way (cf.
2. Metaphor: This is a comparison in which one thing is likened to another without the use of a word of comparison as in “like” or “as.” In
3. Implication: This occurs when there is only an implied comparison between two things in which the name of one thing is used in place of the other (cf.
4. Hyperbole: This is the use of exaggeration or over statement to stress a point (
5. Paronomasia: This refers to the use or repetition of words that are similar in sound, but not necessarily in sense or meaning in order to achieve a certain effect. This can only be observed by those who can read the original Hebrew text.
6. Pleonasm: This involves the use of redundancy for the sake of emphasis. This may occur with the use of words or sentences. In
7. Rhetorical question: The use of a question to confirm or deny a fact (
8. Metonymy: This occurs where one noun is used in place of another because of some relationship or type of resemblance that different objects might bear to one another (
9. Anthropomorphism: The assigning of some part of the human anatomy to God’s Person to convey some aspect of God’s being like the eyes or ears (cf.
10. Zoomorphism: The assigning of some part of an animal to God’s Person to convey certain truths about God (cf.
Psalm 20:1we are told, “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob set you securely on high!” Here “name” appears to be redundant. It means God Himself and has more emphasis than if only the term “God” had been used. PS.2). Ps. 5:9; 18:2; 57:9; 73:9).Ps. 10:11, 14; 11:4; 18:15; 31:2).Ps. 17:8; 91:4).
(Since I did not change any of the meanings of these words I did not believe it to be considered plagiarism and do sincerely apologize if it is considered to be so. When researching anything one has to be very careful in rewriting something to make it your own. So although I have rewritten this to suit it to myself there has been things in which had I changed it, I would have changed its meaning. Again, I apologize)
JOB-Blessing through Suffering
No one truly knows who authored this book, although many assume that Job who is this book’s main character could have and was a historical person probably did. Still the author is unknown and there have been no textual claims as to the author’s identity. Many have suggested that King Solomon, Moses and even Job himself authored the book. (
Ezek. 14:14, 20; James 5:11)
PSALMS-Praise through Prayer
Like Texas is the biggest state in the USA, Psalms is the biggest book in the bible and perhaps the most used because of the way that the words speak to our human soul. Every experience we have had, or will have in our lives we will find here. Ever emotion, whether it is divine or mundane, we will find it here. Even though that the authors are not always known, the words still speak to my Pagan soul and I find comfort there. The sighs of our souls are turned into songs of praise and joy. As to their types, the following illustrates a generally agreed upon set of categories: 1.Lament or Petition, either individual (Ps. 3) or communal (Ps. 44); 2.Thanksgivingor Praise, either individual (Ps. 30) or communal (Ps. 65); 3.Trust in God (Ps. 4); 4.Enthronement hymns of Yahweh: psalms concerning Jerusalem (Ps. 48), and royal psalms (some of which are messianic; Ps. 2, 110); 5.Didactic and Wisdom psalms (Ps. 1, 37, 119). 6.Theme psalms: The psalms may also be classified according to special themes as: creation (Ps. 8, 19), nature psalms (Ps. 19; 104), acrostic or memory device psalms (Ps. 111, 112, 119), the Exodus (Ps. 78), imprecation (Ps. 7), penitence (Ps. 6), pilgrim psalms (Ps. 120), and Messianic psalms, those that include prophecies about Messiah as Psalm 2, 8, 16, 22, 40, 45, 72, 110, 118. The Book of the Psalms gives us hope and encouragement and they give us comfort in a common way of worship. They are words that chase away fear and complacency with a personal way to get to God. They express faith, a way to worship and the very spiritual life of the nation of Israel as well as the Church as a whole today, regardless of denomination or sect. The Psalms give us mirror to the heart of the nations of Israel by the recording the universal experiences of humanity in light of the Israel’s God’s plan, promises, presence, and person. A collection of 150 psalms cover a great deal of human feelings, situations, circumstances and often they include the psalmist’s emotions of thankfulness, anxiety, discouragement, God’s grace and goodness towards His people.
PROVERBS-Wisdom through Precept
If the texts of
ECCLESIASTES-A Search for Purpose
Jewish tradition attributes the book to Solomon, and within the book the number of lines of evidence show that Solomon was surely the author. Then the author identifies himself as “the son of David, king in Jerusalem” (1:1). Also, references in the book to the author’s unrivaled wisdom (1:16), extreme wealth (2:7), opportunities for pleasure (2:3), and extensive building activities (2:4-6) all suggest Solomon as the author. There is just no other man and would be no women, just no other descendant of David who measured up to these descriptions. In Jewish tradition, Solomon wrote his Song in his early years, expressing a young man’s love. He wrote the Proverbs in his mature years, expressing a middle-aged man’s wisdom. He supposedly wrote Ecclesiastes in his elder years, expressing an old man’s sorrow (cf. 12:1). Supposedly Ecclesiastes is the record of Solomon’s great regret for and repentance from his grave moral lapses recorded in 1 Kings 11. The Book of Ecclesiastes would have been written just before Solomon’s death and later division of his kingdom that occurred in 931 B.C.
On a second note Solomon also says confirms that life will never be fully understood, meaning that we will never be able to fully live by seeing first, but we will always have to live by faith in many ways. We have to have faith in others, and that includes having trust, trusting what we cannot see them do. There is so much that our mere humanity cannot understand, there are questions unanswered, wrongs not made rights, things beyond our control. It is thru our FAITH in our Deity that we can go on, not having our questions answered immediately, and still knowing that it will all be okay. That our deity’s wisdom and will always be and that we must learn to live in a world filled with wonder and unending mystery. Proverbs 10:16confirms that justice is handed out to both the just and the unjust, but Ecclesiastes 8:14states that this is not always the case, at least not always in this life. Is this saying that the scriptures are contradictory? Normally I would say that Yes, it is a whole book of contradictions and this is why I have to stand upon my soapbox and spew on and on about its faults and failures to and about mankind, but just for today and I am not sure why, but today it is not about my beliefs about contradictions so no it is not. No, because Proverbs is just making a note to us that while we live under the sun, we do live in a sin ridden world, we all are fallen and come short of the glory of God, and that exceptions to every rule do occur, and that there is a righteous order that does exist; but that it may not always be evident to man because of the way he sees life because of his perspective. On a fourth and final note Solomon shows us that any man or woman left to his or her own devices will always find that life is empty, horrible, and frustrating beyond repair; and that the mysteries of life and humanity will plague us to the point of insanity. It will not mean however, that life as we know it has no meaning or is useless. There is a significance to be found in every life, but to find it one must find the Deity first.
On a third and final note for the Book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon presents to us a rather realistic view to counter balance the view shown in Proverbs. To show us that there are exceptions to every law and promises shown in Proverbs at least from the view in this life.
SONG OF SOLOMON-A Royal Wedding
There are some who argue that Solomon is not the author of this Book, although the Scriptures states The Songs of Songs, which are Solomon’s, which would stand to reason that King Solomon would be the Author of the Book of Song of Solomon. The Songs or Song were perhaps written in Solomon’s early kingship probably in 965 and at this time he would have been married to nearly 60 women and had 80 mistresses. However in his later years as king he reportedly had 700 wives and 3000 mistress, all perfectly legal of course, this was a thing of his time, accepted and done.
Kings 11:3.The Song of Solomon is a love song with lots of metaphors designed to show us God’s love for us and the way we should behave towards each other in a marriage as a man does towards a man and a woman. In many scenes, there are three major players: the bride (Shulamite woman), the king (Solomon), and a chorus (daughters of Jerusalem). The name Ecclesiastes comes from the word given in the Greek translations in the Latin Septuagint. The Greek term, Ecclesiastes, translates “assembly” and is derived from the word ekklessia, which means “assembly, church.” The Hebrew word for the is Qoheleth, which means “the one who convenes and speaks at an assembly,” or “an ecclesiastic” or “preacher.” The basic theme of the Book of Ecclesiastes is that life is futile apart from God; there are four key purposes in Ecclesiastes. Since Solomon seems to be its author, we tend to draw upon his conclusions as a young man, a middle aged man and then finally as an old man; seeking to show us that without God life has no meaning, that our achievements and our own human wisdom must have God in it or it is worthless, also that our goals or the ways that may seem right to us will always lead to emptiness without God and we will always be forever seeking something and never finding it without God.1 Kings 4:32, is to be believed, Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs. And while he supposedly wrote most of proverbs in this book, later chapters indicate that he was not the only author of the book. Three sections of the Book of Proverbs are ascribed to Solomon; chapters 1:1-9:18; 10:1-22:16, and 25:1-29:27. However, the Book of Proverbs in the latter section (25:1-29:27) was selected from Solomon’s collection by King Hezekiah’s royal committee (25:1). Proverbs 22:17and it refers to the “sayings of the wise,” and 24:23 mentions additional “sayings of the wise.” Proverbs 22:17-21serves as an introduction which could suggest that these sections stem from a circle of wise men, but not from Solomon himself. Chapter 30 is specifically attributed to Agur, son of Jakeh, and 31:1-9 to King Lemuel. King Lemuel’s sayings contain several Aramaic spellings that point to a non-Israelite background. Proverbs is a book of wisdom, but not really a historical book per say, but rather a product from the environment of the school of wisdom in Israel. The Book of Proverbs gets its name from its contents, which are short sayings and quotes that convey truths in a very blunt and pointed way. The Hebrew word for Proverb from ma„sŒa„l, “to be like, represent means “parallel,” “similar,” or “a comparison.” It is designed to encourage one to live wisely. As the word would suggest the purpose of the book of proverbs is living through special instruction on every imaginable issue known to humanity; family life, poverty, children, husbands, wives, goodness, wealth, biting your tongue, pride, humility, justice, vengeance, laziness, love, hate, friends, you name it, it’s in there. There is no more practical book than the Book of Proverbs. It is possible that the events took place in the second millennium in a patriarchal society in the time of Abraham. There are facts that support this; Job lived at least more than 140 years and this was not uncommon during this period, there was the economy during this time, wealth was measured in terms of livestock (much like it is now in many areas of underdeveloped countries in many parts of the world today, and it was the type that existed in the world during that time; also like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Job was the Patriarch of his family, there was also no mention of Israel as a nation or the Mosaic law which suggests a pre-mosaic date, perhaps 1500 B.C.