Proverbs 22 brings us to the end of Solomon's 375 proverbs, although there are more to come. The section ends in the middle of the chapter, verse 16, before introducing a new section entitled "Thirty Sayings of the Wise." 

In general, this section seems to be thematically about generosity--giving to the poor, oppression of the poor, and what ultimate wealth looks like. There are a few verses that don't align with the theme (for example, verse 13 gives an incredible excuse for why you can't go to work. Seriously, call your boss after the long Labor Day weekend and tell him there is a lion outside and you won't be coming in!). One that receives a lot of attention (my father-in-law has the verse hanging on his wall) is verse 6: "Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it" (NIV). 

At first glance this proverb doesn't appear to fit within the theme but there is something very clever going on underneath the surface. In Hebrew, the sentence starts with the verb (and good English translations will do the same). Whenever this happens, the author is indicating a command (called an imperative). The verb used here literally means in this context, "to train up". In Deuteronomy 20:5 however, the same exact verb is used, but in that context the verb means "to dedicate." A soldier could not leave for battle if he had just built a house and hadn't yet dedicated it to Yahweh, because he may die in battle and someone would take the house and dedicate it to someone else (another great excuse for why you can't come to work). When Solomon built the temple, it couldn't be used unless it was first properly dedicated to Yahweh, or it might be used in vain.

As I write this, I am on the doorstep of fatherhood. Thanks to maths, we know our daughter will be born sometime around October 14th. Until then, my greatest fear is what Solomon writes about here: that the house will be used for a vain purpose. Solomon used the same word as dedicating a house and training a child because he wants us to recall the purpose of both: to bring glory to God through its activities. Some might read this verse and think this is a one-time transaction: the child is trained, sent on their way, and if the training holds, wisdom prevails.

But Solomon is driving at a much deeper purpose, and a much more active calling to our children. When a building is dedicated, there isn't something special that happens to the space. Rather God is honored when we continue to use it for the purpose it was created for. Think about it in a different way: we aren't dedicating the building to God, but we are dedicating ourselves to the building. The same should be true of our children. In promising to train a child in the wise ways of the world, we aren't devoting the child to God, we are devoting ourselves to the child so they will devote themselves to God and others. 

This changes the way we do ministry, because when we attend church, volunteer at an event, or host a small group bible study, we are making our faith active. We don't dedicate our lives to a building, but we dedicate our lives to people, God's people. In training a child, it takes daily discipline, daily attention. We can’t come at this in a part-time way, because someone else might come along and encourage the child in another direction. David wrote Psalm 30 to serve as a song for the dedication of a temple which doesn’t mention the temple anywhere in its verses. He writes: “You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy SO THAT my heart may sing your praises and not be silent” (NIV). This is my prayer today, that the wisdom of God helps you in your families turn wailing into dancing because our children haven’t strayed.

Chris Ruhlen