Category: Biblical Support

This week’s lessons from The MANual, my NIV Bible for Men is a series of lyrical poems that feature the love dialogue between a simple, Jewish peasant woman and her lover, King Solomon. Scholars suggest it is an allegory of God’s love for humankind. However, the Songs of Songs celebrate not only human love but also the sensuous and mystical quality of erotic desire. Given today’s sexually charged world, this literature is a good reminder that God created sex and pronounced it “good” within the context of a covenantal relationship between a man and a woman.  About the Song of Songs Also known as “The Song of Solomon,” the Song of Songs is about romantic attraction, desire, love, and physical intimacy. It’s central theme is that sex is God’s amazing gift to a husband and wife. The Songs give us a proper perspective on physical love between a man and

This week’s lessons from The MANual, my NIV Bible for Men, continue with another of the books of Poetry: Ecclesiastes. My prior posts on the book of Job, the 150 Psalms (an Introduction, Books 1 & 2, and Books 3, 4 & 5), and last week’s on The Proverbs, now lead us to lessons from King Solomon.  About Ecclesiastes The wisdom of Ecclesiastes comes from someone identified as “Qoheleth.” It’s not certain whether this is sort of a pseudonym or the title of an office but the related verb seems to suggest “convener” or “assembler.” Some English translations use “Teacher” or “Preacher.” Chapter 1 in the NIV begins with “The words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem” (verse 1) which implied Solomon as the author. In fact, Ecclesiastes 12:9 specifically says that the Teacher was “wise” and “set in order many proverbs.” Ecclesiastes was probably written

My year-long journey through The MANual, my NIV Bible for Men, continues in the section called the Books of Poetry. I started with a post with lessons from Job. Next, I covered the books of Psalms in three posts: an Introduction to the Psalms, and two with lessons from Books 1 & 2, and Books 3, 4 & 5. I now move to Proverbs, which include the teachings of the wisest man who ever lived: King Solomon. About The Proverbs  By definition, a proverb is a short, concise sentence that conveys moral truth. It comes from a Hebrew word that means “to rule or to govern.” The book of Proverbs is a collection of wise statements to teach people how to attain wisdom, discipline, and a prudent life. It covers a wide range of topics, including youth and discipline, family life, self-control & resisting temptations, business matters, words of the tongue,