God's Wisdom in Proverbs [Hardcover]

Dan Phillips (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2011

An excellent introduction and selective exposition of the book of Proverbs. Written in a such a way that the seasoned expositor, student, or laymen will be challenged, encouraged, and instructed in skillful living as God has revealed it.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Endorsement #1:“One of the great pleasures of life is puzzling through the book of Proverbs, and if you’re looking to navigate life with Solomonic skill, Dan Phillips is ready to show you the ropes. This book’s author is not too proud to learn from the Bible and he’s not too scared to think for himself. This is the first book I would recommend for those wanting to study Proverbs.”—DR. JAMES M. HAMILTON JR., associate professor of Biblical Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky, author, God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgment: A Biblical Theology

“Finding practical skill for living life is always a challenge. Dan Phillips has produced a highly readable, text driven, and practical exposition of the book of Proverbs. This work is technical enough for the scholar, yet clear and relevant for the layman. Phillips' commentary will help anyone navigate the challenges of contemporary life by explaining God's ancient book of wisdom.”—DR. MICHAEL RYDELNIK, professor of Jewish studies, Moody Bible Institute, author, The Messianic Hope

Endorsement #3:“God’s Wisdom in Proverbs is written brilliantly at a level that will challenge anyone who is interested enough in gaining wisdom and understanding to be serious in that quest. Readers will range from serious students of Scripture to casual lay readers on their way to a more serious approach to Scripture. It explains the wisdom of Proverbs (and the biblical nature of wisdom per se) in a clear, readable fashion that will be extremely helpful to everyone from students entering the academic world for the first time, to new parents seeking biblical insight into the process of child-rearing, to anyone in a position of responsibility or leadership. I recommend it for all who are tired of the superficial, self-centered themes that have filled evangelical pulpits and bookshelves for the past three decades (or more). If you are hungry for biblical material, God’s Wisdom in Proverbs will feed your appetite.”—PHIL JOHNSON, executive director, Grace to You

Endorsement #4:“The list of really useful literature on the book of Proverbs is rather short. God's Wisdom in Proverbs is a welcome and needed addition to that list. Proverbs is a book rich with insight and instruction, motivation and exhortation. However, for too many Christians it's a book of pithy sayings that make one either nod the head with feigned (but mystified) agreement or which are applied in ways that would have made even the wise Solomon scratch his head in bewilderment. Dan's book goes a long way to help clear one's head of mystery and misapplication. The reader of God's Wisdom in Proverbs will find, if not the key to Proverbs, at least a lamp to illumine and a guide to correct or confirm on the path to accurate interpretation. God's Wisdom in Proverbs offers an introduction to the wisdom of Proverbs for the beginning disciple as well insights for the seasoned scholar. Dan knows his stuff and it shows. Pastors who read this book will want to preach Proverbs; teachers will want to open the book's knowledge for students; all Christians will be delighted and challenged. After reading Dan's book, some will grow wiser, some will draw closer to the Lord, and some (after reading Dan's treatment of Proverbs 22:6) will have to take that old "cross-stitch verse" off the nursery wall.”—KEVIN D. ZUBER, PHD, professor of Theology, Moody Bible Institute

Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Kress Biblical Resources (September 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934952141
• ISBN-13: 978-1934952146
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #206,411 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I have enjoyed writing since I was very young. My first attempted opus was a rambling science-fiction tale, undertaken (and never finished) in my pre-teen years. I remember one line which gave next-oldest sister great merriment. As I recall it, I was attempting to describe a character who was a nurse. I delivered myself of this: "Beneath her cold, harsh posterior beat a heart of gold."

The line reveals two things at least about me. First, I needed a lot of seasoning (e.g. to avoid hackneyed cliches "like the plague" -- or at least to use them correctly). Second, I needed something worth writing about.

The first has continued over the years, honed in academic writing, newspaper columns, papers, tracts, online forums, and blogs.

The second only started in February of 1973, when God absolutely transformed my life by bringing me to faith in Jesus Christ. If you like, you can read more about that, starting here: http://bit.ly/11LuSY.

One of the biggest results of this transformation in my life was the conversion of a mushy-minded, undisciplined non-student into someone bent on serving Christ with all I had. It worked out partly in dedication to the Biblical sciences such as Hebrew and Greek, and work at various educational institutions.

Over and through it all was a unifying obsession with knowing God by knowing His word, doing it, and helping others know it and Him. I needed personally to have a firm and deep grasp, and I dearly desired to pass on everything I got to others. I have always been a slow study. Therefore, when I "get" something, I can usually break it down in a way that any willing hearer or reader can "get" it too.

So that's my aim, in writing: to take everything I've "gotten" from the deepest, hardest, and best Bible study I can do, and put it out there where any willing reader can get at it.

God has been exceedingly good. Gracious souls ranging from published PhDs to those who concluded their formal education at a young age have said they profit from my writing. Pastors and other church leaders are using the books for ministry throughout North America, Australia, and the United Kingdom. For that, all the glory goes to God alone.

If you haven't done so yet, I hope you'll become one of those to share the benefit of what I've had the joy of uncovering. After all, what I have been given, I've been given to share with you.

Currently I pastor the dear folks at Copperfield Bible Church in Houston, Texas.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Negative Reivew.. November 28, 2011

By Rachael Starke

Format:Hardcover

My friend Dan's recent post about all the ways a word like "not" can actually be positive, rather than negative, made me chuckle. I've recently finished his second book, "God's Wisdom in Proverbs", (published in a single year, alongside The World-Tilting Gospel, but who's counting) and have found myself describing it almost exclusively with the word "not", albeit in a positive way. Namely:

1. It is not a desert-dry, academic, straight textual commentary (praise God).
One of the main challenges I have with single-book commentaries, especially Old Testament ones, is the way their authors place themselves at a distance from their material. It's as if they're holding the book at arms length, unwilling to be personally engaged by it. Not so with this one. Dan writes both pastorally, and personally. He has the academic chops to wield Hebrew phrases and argue historical issues with the best of them, and it shows. But none of that is an end in itself. Dan writes like a pastor who wants to use every tool at his disposal to see his readers not just engaged by God's wisdom, but changed by it.

2. It is not a typical cutesy moralistic devotional (praise God). Dan spends a full 160 pages laying down foundational concepts about Proverb's authorship, the proverb as a literary genre and its key idea- "skillful living in the fear of Yahweh." He continually shows how that theme's context is set in the rest of Scripture, grounded in the truth that God's wisdom is only available, valuable, and essential for those who have been adopted through faith in Jesus.

3. It is not simple read - because Proverbs is not a simple book (not matter how many people write about is as if it is a magic instruction guide for Your Best Life Now (tm)).... This came as somewhat of a revelation to me, and a relief, to be honest. It's the simplistic treatment of Proverbs as a collection of pithy sayings for all and sundry that has frustrated me. The early ground work that Dan lays down reveals why a simple reading of Proverbs yields a simplistic understanding of it. But.....

4. It is not a difficult read, either. Dan writes in the lively, witty, personal style to which his loyal blog readers are accustomed. (See also point 1.) Make sure you you've swallowed your coffee before you read the section on one of his applications of godly wisdom in marriage relating to resolving disputes about the location of the toilet seat.

5. It does not embrace typical arguments about Prov. 22:6 being a promise.
How many parents have wrestled with guilt over their real or perceived inadequacies and how they will surely spiritually maim their child for life, based on their belief that this verse is a guarantee? Dan frees all such parents from their guilt by examining various common interpretations of this verse, and stacking them up against the Hebrew text. Ironically, Dan's careful exegesis reveals the warning that does exist in this verse - that a child left to his own way will be trapped by it, but a child taught by loving parents to live skillfully in the fear of Yahweh will thrive.

7. It does not speak to one particular audience. More scholarly types expecting a typical crusty academic tome might be surprised (hopefully pleasantly so) at the way Dan interacts personally with the text. Lay readers might not be sure of why Phillips spends the length of time he does dealing with issues around authorship (although they likely will after they've read the answers, and will hopefully have learned why it was a good question to ask in the first place!). And even though Phillips is clearly modeling a pastoral approach to teaching the book as he writes the book, the final appendix on how to teach Proverbs should be required reading by current and aspiring seminary students. In fact, I can think of no better application of for this book than as the text for a Sunday school class, taught by a young, teachable seminary student. The class will be blessed, and so will the teacher.

8. The Epilogue guarantees that you will not read the book just once. I do confess that as I dug into the section on skill in godly child-training, I began to feel that familiar weight of guilt over my many failures as a mother. Solomon's admonitions to parents are many, varied, and urgent. No doubt that is why Dan chose to save my favorite part of the book, the Epilogue titled "A Word to the Wise" to the end. In it, Dan, like the pastor he is, anticipates the burden of someone feeling, on this first reading, that she can never, ever measure up to all God lays out. He then shows clearly from the rest of Scripture how Jesus was and is the one who measures up to God's standard on our behalf, and how our trust in Him makes God our Father, who speaks to us as a Father about how we are to live as His children. Suddenly, instead of running away from Proverbs, we want to run back to it. Dan says it will prompt a second reading. I think it will prompt a lifetime of them.

I guess that's my "negative" way of saying - get my friend's book and read it ; you will not be disappointed, and you will not be unchanged. Read more ›

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Explanation of Proverbs 22:6 - "Train up a child..." September 26, 2011

By Kirby L Johnson

Format:Hardcover

The explanation of Proverbs 22:6 in your appendix is awesomeness on steroids. The writing is so clear, that half way through the chapter I figured out where the interpretation was going.

One ALWAYS hears the traditional or majority view as promoted by the King James translation. And that is just so problematic. But I heard the #2 and #3 views in my early 20's growing up in the late `80s, and never was satisfied for some of the reasons you put forth in your dissent of those views: They just didn't/couldn't deal with all the phrases in the verse in an intellectually satisfying way. Much less the resulting, "now what do I do?" And because of that, I have literally nixed that verse from my repertoire of child-rearing scripture. That is the sad condition of my mind regarding the inability of mine to figure that verse out. But NO MORE! I have a such a renewed sense of understanding it borders on triumphalism. I hope your explanation works its way to the top of the heap, and soon. Your concluding thought about being "brought back to the doorstep of the Majority View" has a really kind and nice ring to it. I hope traditionalists will give your explanation a fair reading.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent November 8, 2011

By Jacob Sweeney

Format:Hardcover

Proverbs can be difficult to read. The vast majority of the book seems to have little to no organization or connection from one verse to the next. It can be difficult for people to understand the message of Proverbs and its application to the Christian life. Many great books have been written at many levels to help people see the greatness of the Proverbs.

Dan Phillips has written God's Wisdom in Proverbs to help bridge the gap between technical commentaries and the multitudes of "how to read" books. Commentaries are wonderful tools, but they are limited. They focus on a very close and critical reading of the text. The big picture can easily be lost. "How to read" books provide an incredibly helpful overview of the literature or book being studied. But, they struggle to bring us down into the text and explore it.

God's Wisdom in Proverbs is a mediating work. It stands between "how to read" books and the commentaries. He provides us with a very helpful explanation of the nature and purpose of the book. Phillips also adds explanations of authorship, organization, types, interpretation and how to read the Proverbs.

From here Chapter 2 begins with exploring Proverbs stated purpose: to make us wise. There is more to this collection of sayings than mere reflection on life. Solomon has been granted wisdom by God. That wisdom is a reflection on living life as a member of the people of God in light of his revealed will - for Solomon, the Pentateuch (Gen. - Deut.). Chapter 3 concerns the proverbs understanding of the foundation of wisdom. Solomon was granted his wisdom by God (1 Kings 3) and it is the same fear of the Lord which grants wisdom to his people today.

Chapter 4 concerns the theme of seeking and finding in Proverbs.... Chapter 5 is about how the people of God are to relate to him by faith and trust. Chapters 6-8 concern skill in relationships, marriage and parenting, respectively. Proverbial wisdom is not a collection of pithy sayings disconnected from life. They are profoundly practical.

The epilogue is a reflection on the nature of the wise person in Proverbs. The wise man is the one who is teachable, humble and fears God. He is not always the most successful or feared man. The wise man is also determined by his positive response to God's call to seek wisdom.

The book of Proverbs is a wonderful gift of God's grace to his people. They are full of wisdom and practical instruction which is as relevant today as it was the day Solomon wrote them. Second to scripture as a gift of God's grace are godly teachers. God has granted his people men who are capable in learning and communicating his Word. Dan Phillips is such a teacher. This book is easy to read, yet packed with information and insight. He does what a teacher is to do: help us receive his knowledge. This is a book I will keep for many years and plan to turn to often.

NOTE: In accordance with the regulations of the Federal Trade Commission I would like to state that I received a complementary copy of the aforementioned text for the purposes of review. I was not required to furnish a positive review. Read more ›

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars God's Wisdom January 3, 2012

By Josh S.

Format:Hardcover

A chapter into God's Wisdom in Proverbs by Dan Phillips, I found I was in for a unique reading experience. I'd never read a book on Proverbs before, and whatever nebulous expectations I had, were broken from the beginning. The only problem was figuring out where to start in on my review. This book had a profound effect on me and my walk with the Lord. I hope I can be faithful to it, and show you some measure of its value.

Phillips writes as a no-nonsense pastor and shepherd, who cares deeply for his audience. And from the outset, he demonstrates the working knowledge of a scholar as well, bringing the original Hebrew text to bear on his interpretation from start to finish. Phillips' personal, pastoral tone comes through even in the technicalities. I almost always felt like I was being personally tutored through a study of Proverbs, by a very well-studied tutor and shepherd.

The first chapter starts Phillips' book so well, because of the method of biblical interpretation (or hermeneutic) demonstrated here. Phillips goes into even more detail on the literal interpretation of Proverbs in Appendix One. Both chapter and appendix are hard-hitting reminders of the beauty and simplicity of interpreting Scripture literally. Phillips' book is also a demonstration of how to do this. If we're in the mode of literally interpreting Scripture, then we assume the text has an intended meaning by the author, and our task is to grapple with it to eventually arrive at that meaning.

Phillips sets his reader up with a right hermeneutic, and he does us a great service. This will extend beyond Phillips' book to help one's personal study of Scripture.... May we not distort our interpretation or application of any verse of the Bible by fuzzy Postmodern thinking about the meaning intended by the author.

Phillips has been in the book of Proverbs, and given them much study time. And it shows. Phillips treats the Proverbs as you'd hope he would: like someone who's really been in the book, and has made Solomon his companion; and he treats Solomon's words like they're relevant and alive for saints today. Which they are.

Here's how Phillips writes about the Proverbs:

"Solomon aims at more than the mere acquisition of facts. Information is indeed essential and invaluable. But it is not an end in itself. The facts lead to a `knowing' which is an encounter, a relationship with the truth."

"We must not merely become theoretically aware of some nice ideas; we ust get involved with wisdom, we must become personally acquainted with it."

"Solomon intends to initiate the reader into the life-long journey of wisdom" (36-37).

The Proverbs are meant to be practical. They're meant to bring the fear of Yahweh into the specific, unique, messy circumstances of our everyday living. This is where the book got quite convicting. Phillips devotes his middle chapters to the following topics: "Relating to God by Trust and Worship," "Skill in Godly Relationships," Skill in Godly Marriage," and "Skill in Godly Child-training."

These chapter topics are wisely chosen, and wisely ordered. They move from the individual's relationship with God, which should be defined by trust and worship, to the effects that relationship will have as we relate to other people. Phillips brings the fear of Yahweh to bear on the whole gamut, from choosing good friends, to raising children who love and fear God. Phillips pulls the Proverbs together to form a cohesive, complete argument around these topics. By the end of the book, I felt that just about every area of my life had been addressed, exposed, and evaluated by the Word of God. Read more ›