Proverbs 9:13 [ESV] The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing.
Have I ever made a stupid choice, or lived in a stupid way? Yes, many times. I lacked wise counsel, and even if it was there, I thought I knew better.
More recently in the last ten years or so I have become aware of my core values and how they influence my thinking and my decisions. If I audit my life for my decisions I can reverse engineer those to see what my actual core values are, not what I would like them to be, or what I would like others to think that they are.
So having taken time to consider my core values and how my life aligns to them, it’s a constant source of direction – like a handy pocket compass that I can check in with regularly.
What about you – what are your core values? And if you audit your life, how well are they showing up just now? Are they really your core values, or are they the core values you would like to have, or intend to have?
KNOWLEDGE – The bible is direct here. There is a way of living that is called out and shown for what it is. There is no inquiry about the right way to live, but rather a headlong rush into self-pleasure and a never ending abuse of others in that end. The bible hear marks out a person, male or female, that has their own please and their own understanding as their guide for life, and calls it stupidity. In our culture the word stupid is often reserved for intellectual matters, where someone does not understand something that may seem obvious to others. It’s used for choices as well, when someone makes a poor choice that has consequences I the here and now. But here its clearly used for everyday life choices where the consequences are in the eternal life to follow.
UNDERSTANDING
Let’s pick one word from this verse to look closer at and see if that can help us gain a deeper insight into how God would love us to live?
The word used for “folly” is pronounced as “k’siylut” in Hebrew, and carries the meaning – folly, stupidity, insolence, with a possible implication of rebellion.
In the LXX the word use is “άφρων” [aphron] and the verse goes on to talk about a person who has no knowledge of shame. The word is translated as “a foolish” and is used in the New Testament eight times, meaning “without reason, senseless, foolish, without reflection or intelligence, and acting rashly”.
WISDOM – where do I invest my intellection energy, is it fruitful for others and myself.
STRENGTHS THOUGHT: Intellection as a Gallup Strength is a ponderer, asking “what if” and considering the power in the ideas you are investigating. When you get lost in your thoughts, others may think you “have left the room”.
Allan’s Unauthorised Version – The woman of rebellion. Insolence and stupidity is tumultuous and noisy; she is undisciplined, deceptive and never seeks or asks about anything.
The woman – The woman
Folly – of rebellion, insolence and stupidity
is loud – is tumultuous and noisy;
she is seductive – she is undisciplined, deceptive,
and knows nothing – and never seeks or asks about anything.
PRAYER: Father, thank you for today. Help me to be someone who tunes into your voice and your people each day, looking for your wisdom and your instructions with a heart set to obey.
To chat to me as a professional coach/mentor – allan@theallankey.com
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