Essay --

What do we need to do to be closer to God? I find myself asking this on a somewhat daily basis. The book of Proverbs three describes several ways in which we can become closer to God and gain spiritual wisdom. In Proverbs three, there are thirty-five verses that can be analyzed in depth and discussed thoroughly; I however, will only be discussing the first twelve. Proverbs 3:1 states â€Å"do not forget my teaching,† and â€Å"let your heart keep my commandments,† these are two very bold statements both firm commands from the script of Proverbs himself. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown states, â€Å"law and commandments—all divine instructions / let thine heart keep—or sincerely observe† (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, www.biblehub.com, par. 5). This implies that we should think of all the divine teachings in our daily lives and sincerely observe God’s instruction. In Proverbs 3:2 the ESV’s wording was a bit peculiar so I went to the NIV and it articulated it rather well for me. The ESV said, â€Å"for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you.† but the NIV said, â€Å"for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity.† The NIV introduced a more straightforward interpretation of the verse and made it easy to understand that if we recall what God ha s taught us, we will live long and prosperous lives. The significance of Proverbs 3:3 is very unequivocal, the NIV states â€Å"let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.† Clarke’s commentary states that, â€Å"Let not mercy and truth forsake thee - Let these be thy constant companions through life. / Bind them about thy neck - Keep them constantly in view. Write them upon the table of thine heart - let them be thy movin... ...m, par. 2). This is personally one of my favorite verses in the Bible because of the everlasting comfort it provides. Even though sometimes things don’t work out in our favor, God still loves us and always will because we are his children. Though there are 35 verses in the Book of Proverbs, the first 12 have always captured my interest because of the requests the script of the book makes of the people. If I did not know God, why would I want to tithe? I would not, because I would not recognize the benefits. If I did not know God, why would I leave my future in the hands of someone else? I would not, because I do not recognize the benefits. I think if every person were to read, even listen to, Proverbs 3:1-12, it might spark their interest in getting to know God better. My hope is for as many people as possible to find as much inspiration as I did in these verses.