Faith Seeking Understanding

In our tenth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we turn our attention to the book of Ecclesiastes. We start our journey through this book by analyzing the concept that is expressed throughout, captured by the Hebrew word “hevel”. We discuss the best way to think about it, as well as what it seems to get in the way of.

00:00 - Introduction

07:51 - The importance of hevel to Ecclesiastes

10:45 - Qoheleth vs Teacher, Preacher, Congregationalist

13:40 - Qoheleth’s hevel (vapor) and Aristotle’s hyle (wood)

15:56 - Hevel vs insubstantial or transient

20:40 - Hevel vs vain or futile

26:33 - Hevel vs diverse translations

28:18 - Hevel vs meaningless or absurd

32:38 - Hevel as intractable or elusive

37:12 - Hevel frustrates our pursuit of happiness

41:27 - Conclusion

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

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Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

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In our ninth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we close our time with Proverbs by looking at the later chapters in the book and thinking through the implications of their usage and similarities with non-Israelite sources of wisdom. This leads us into discussions about divine inspiration and the internal consistency of Proverbs.

00:00 - Introduction

02:01 - Agur and King Lemuel in Proverbs 30–31

09:10 - The Sayings of the Wise in Proverbs 22–24 and Amenemope

14:44 - The Questions This Raises

16:29 - What This Means for Divine Inspiration of Scripture

19:33 - What This Means for Proverb’s Own Arguments

26:04 - Agur’s Take on Poverty and Riches

27:58 - Returning to the Proverbs of Solomon?

29:01 - Closing With The Wife of Noble Character in Proverbs 31

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

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Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our eighth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we continue our exploration of Proverbs and how Christians should read them. In particular, we discuss how individual proverbs can have a wide range of applications, and how the book of Proverbs leverages this property (called “polysemy”) in its organization and repetition of them.

00:00 - Introduction

02:54 - Should Proverbs Be Read Individually or in Groups?

06:18 - Dealing With Particularity and Universality in Ethics

09:37 - Example 1: Using Your Words

16:17 - The Polysemy of Proverbs as Key To Reading Them

22:07 - Example 2: Divine Providence and Human Action

26:31 - Reading Proverbs Through Multiple Layers

30:34 - Concluding Thoughts

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our seventh episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we start to think about how we should read the proverbs found throughout the book of Proverbs. We explore the way in which a common modern way of thinking about morality gets in the way of letting Proverbs speak to us today, and suggest a more helpful alternative that connects morality, wisdom, and the many mundane choices we make daily.

00:00 - Introduction

01:29 - The Relationship Between Wisdom and Ethics

06:58 - Ethics in the Grey Areas

13:20 - Ethics and Wisdom are Pervasive in Life

18:07 - Proverbs and the Ethics of the Mundane

26:23 - Wisdom Looks Different for Different People

32:25 - Conclusion

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our sixth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we close off our journey through Proverbs 1–9 by considering the two figures of Woman Wisdom and Woman Folly. Who are they, and how do they relate to the characters we encountered in the previous episode?

00:00 - Introduction and Recap

01:26 - Introducing Woman Wisdom

13:24 - Woman Wisdom as The First of God’s Works

15:16 - Who Is Woman Wisdom?

23:24 - The Relation Between Woman Wisdom And The Parents and The Lord

29:14 - Woman Folly

36:27 - Conclusion

Works mentioned:

- Christine Roy Yoder, Wisdom as a Woman of Substance: A Socioeconomic Reading of Proverbs 1–9 and 31:10–31

- John H Walton, Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament

- William McKane, Proverbs: A New Approach

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our fifth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we continue our journey through Proverbs 1–9 and think about two of the characters we see there: the evil men and the foreign woman. We discuss some of the translational difficulties with these terms, as well as the post-exilic backdrop that informs them.

00:00 - Introduction and Recap

01:25 - Our Focus This Episode: The Evil Men and the Foreign Woman

03:03 - Post-exilic Authorship and Setting of Proverbs 1–9

08:06 - First Character: The Evil Men, Extortionists for Ill-gotten Gain

19:06 - The Motivation for Avoiding the Evil Men

20:58 - Second Character: “Foreign Woman” Rather Than “Adulteress”

32:14 - Wisdom, A Tough Pill To Swallow

34:16 - Why Prov 5 Doesn’t Imply “Adulteress” Is a Better Translation

38:29 - Conclusion

Resources: - William P. Brown, Wisdom's Wonder: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ICLAGVW

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our fourth episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we start our journey in Proverbs by looking at what the opening chapters say about wisdom, and how it relates to Torah and fear of the Lord.

00:00 - Introduction and Recap

02:37 - Starting with Proverbs 1–9: Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom

07:30 - How Proverbs 1–9 Understands Wisdom

09:00 - Wisdom Needs to be Learned, and from the Right Sources

14:28 - Wisdom Goes Hand-in-hand with Torah

24:42 - Wisdom and the Fear of the Lord

40:31 - Conclusion

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our third episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we delve into what it means to fear God. Unsatisfied with the typical explanations, we give an account of fear in general before looking at how this works itself out in our relationship with God for our good.

00:00 - Introduction and Recap

02:00 - Our Focus in this Episode: The Fear of the Lord

03:34 - How Fear is Typically (But Unhelpfully) Explained

05:49 - Fear as “Awareness of Possible Bad”

11:00 - Exodus 20: Fear that Draws Us Towards God

24:29 - Deuteronomy 10: Fear and Love Work Together 31:40 - Deuteronomy 6: Fear and Love Complete Each Other

37:11 - Ecclesiastes: Fear of the Immensity of God

39:41 - Conclusion

Works mentioned in this episode: -

Henry M. Whitney, “The Place of Fear Among the Motives of Religion” (1906) https://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/bsac/1906_227.pdf

- Bill T. Arnold, “The Love-Fear Antimony in Deuteronomy 5–11” (2011) https://www.academia.edu/2701215/The_Love_Fear_Antinomy_in_Deuteronomy_5_11

Other resources:

- Roland’s recent blog post on fear of the Lord: https://thinkingthoughtout.com/2023/04/10/fear-of-the-lord-2

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is also available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In our second episode on Wisdom in the Old Testament, we take a look at the figure of Solomon and the way wisdom is portrayed in his story. We see that the standard way of thinking about Solomon’s story doesn’t actually fit very well with the biblical story, and consider what this then means for the relationship between wisdom and the fear of the Lord.

00:00 - Introduction and Recap

01:04 - A Common Understanding of Solomon‘s Story

04:28 - Questioning This Common Understanding

06:46 - Kingly Criteria in Deuteronomy 17

08:46 - Overview of Solomon vs Kingly Criteria

12:54 - Solomon‘s Horses and Chariots

15:10 - Building the Temple and Solomon‘s House

16:58 - Solomon‘s Blunders, Wisdom, and Fear of the Lord

20:12 - What, Then, is Wisdom?

25:49 - Where We're Going Next

The Faith Seeking Understanding podcast is available on the following platforms:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKz8PlM8nC5Vnwvx_e2HmESdKBQq2exoe

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/faith-seeking-understanding/id1681648478

Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFpdGhzZWVraW5ndW5kZXJzdGFuZGluZy5jby56YS9wb2RjYXN0P2Zvcm1hdD1yc3M

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7cjo4np6hobnCjm2cuPkKk

Faith Seeking Understanding is a ministry aimed at providing deep dives into theology. To find out more, visit our website or follow us on social media:

Website: https://www.faithseekingunderstanding.co.za

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@fsu_southafrica

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fsu.southafrica

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fsu_southafrica

In this first episode of our new podcast, we question whether “Wisdom Literature” is a helpful category when it comes to exploring what the Old Testament has to say about wisdom, and then outline the path we'll take in future episodes.

Works mentioned in this episode:
- Will Kynes, An Obituary for “Wisdom Literature” (2019)
- John H Walton & J Harvey Walton, The Lost World of the Torah (2019)
- Katharine J Dell, The Solomonic Corpus of “Wisdom” and Its Influence (2020)

View on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAbTud51_XA