Uniform Lesson for June 28, 2020 Scripture passage and lesson focus: Proverbs 9 From Genesis (chapter 18, with Abraham) to Revelation (chapter 19, with the marriage supper of the Lamb), the Bible is full of feasts. In Proverbs 9, we are given the choice between two meals: one with bread and wine and a public invitation, hosted by Woman Wisdom; the other with stolen water and bread eaten in secret, hosted by the Foolish/Loose/Strange Woman we met in chapter 2. Proverbs frames our lives as a choice between competing banquets — one that leads to wisdom and to life and the other that serves up foolishness and death. Seems like a pretty obvious choice. But is it? Proverbs 9:1-6 — The first invitation Much like the capable wife at the end of Proverbs, Woman Wisdom is a whirlwind of industry. She builds a house, prepares a meal, sets a table, then sends her messengers out into the town with an invitation not to be missed or ignored: “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have … [Read more...]

Uniform Lesson for June 21, 2020 Scripture passage and lesson focus: Proverbs 8 The beginning and ending of Proverbs 8 sound a lot like Proverbs 1. Woman Wisdom calls out to her people and her children – on the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads, beside the gates and at the entrance of the portals – in other words, from all directions and vantage points at once! Again, she offers us a treasure more valuable than gold: paths full of justice and righteousness and an understanding grounded in the fear of the Lord. None of this is new. But what is new is a declaration that Woman Wisdom has been God’s partner since before the universe was created.  Proverbs 8:1-11 — Parallels in other sacred writings Two words in this chapter have provoked reams of scholarly writing. One is the verb in verse 22, which the NRSV translates as “created” (but could also be translated as “possessed,” or “birthed,” or “brought forth”). The other is the noun in verse 30, which the NRSV translates as … [Read more...]