ORGANIZATION OF PROVERBS 9 AND 10

The first nine chapters of Proverbs are organized to tell a consistent story, but starting with Chapter 10 we begin running into what look like random collections of sayings only loosely arranged by themes, poetic types, or key words. But even in this chapter, there is a literary structure that ties the individual proverbs together. The two figures below are slight adaptations of Bruce Waltke's proposed arrangements changed to better bring out the symmetries present.

                               Proverbs 9 (collage, 1994)

 

                                                Figure 1: The Organization of Proverbs 9

    A. Lady Wisdom (vv. 1-6)

        1. She calls out from the high places in town (1-3)

            2. “You who are simple, turn in here. To those without sense she says...” (4)

                3. Bread and wine are promised (5)

                    4. “Live!” (6)

                        B. Consequences to the Wise and the Scoffers (vv. 7-12)

                            1. Scoffers (7-8a)

                                2. The wise man (8b-9)

                                    3. Fear of the Lord (10)

                                2'. The wise man (11-12a)

                            1'. Scoffers (12b)

    A'. Woman Folly (vv. 13-18)

        1. She calls out from the high places in town (13-15)

            2. “You who are simple, turn in here. To those without sense she says...” (16)

                3. Stolen water and bread are promised (17)

                    4. Die! (18)

    (a) Note the appropriate central verse in the chapter. This all-important teaching that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom is also found in Proverbs 1:7; 15:33; and 31:30 as well as Job 28:28 and Psalm 111:10.

    (b) Wisdom builds her own house (A1) while the foolish woman only sits in front of hers (A'1).

    (c) The phrase “does/do not know” appears at the opening and closing of Section A'.

    (d) The appearance of “scoffers” in verses 7 and 12 similarly unifies Section B.

                                 Proverbs 10 (collage, 1994)

 

The most unifying feature of this chapter is the predominant use of proverbs which contain contrasts between the behavior of and consequences for the righteous and the wicked. Beyond that point, there is perhaps some further underlying organization as shown below:

                                               Figure 2: Organization of Proverbs 10

        A. Earthly consequences of behavior (1-5)

                B. Appropriate speech (6-14)

        A'. Earthly consequences of behavior (15-16)

                        C. The path to life (17)

                B'. Appropriate speech (18-21)

        A''. Eternal consequences of behavior (22-30)

                B''. Appropriate speech (31-32)

  (a) The central verse here contains basically the same message as the central verse in Proverbs 9. The whole verse reads: “Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life, but one who rejects a rebuke goes astray.”

    (b) Warnings to the lazy are found in A (vv. 4-5) and A'' (v. 26).

    (c) Images of wealth and lack of wealth are concentrated in sections A, A', and A''.

    (d) Waltke proposes the following structure for Proverbs 10:22-30a:

                1. Yahweh saying + “add” (ysp) (22)

                        2. Joy (sehoq, “laughter”) (23-24)

                                3. Righteous secure “forever” ('olam) (25b)

                1'. Yahweh saying + “add” (ysp) (27)

                        2'. Joy (simha, “joy”) (28-29)

                                3'. Righteous secure “forever” ('olam) (30a)

In order to achieve this neat parallel structure, he needs to delete 25a and 30b. But by including those lines, one obtains a more accurate if slightly more complicated organization for the whole:

        1. Yahweh saying + “add” (22)

                2'. Joy (28-29)

                                3. “The wicked are no more” (25a)

                                    4. Righteous secure forever (25b)

        1'. Yahweh saying + add” (27)

            2'. Joy (28-29)

                                    4'. Righteous secure forever (30a)

                                3'. “The wicked will not remain” (30b)

Waltke is actually representative of a number of commentators who recognize the widespread existence of two types of literary arrangements in the Bible: parallel cycles and mirror-image (chiastic) organizations and try to force-fit texts into one of those two molds. That is at least better than those who only recognize the existence of chiastic structures. But if one lets the texts speak for themselves, often combinations of these two types are seen to be present within the same section, as pictured above.