There was a little shoe repair store in the town we lived near for fifteen years which we drove past many times. The owners had a small sign hanging outside their front door that I read very often: "If the shoe fits, repair it." That is an example of the genre of Hebrew Poetry that we are studying in the book of Proverbs.
I. STUDY THE CONTEXT (Macro Hermeneutics) (See Part One)
II. STUDY THE CONTENT OF THE PASSAGE (Micro Hermeneutics)
A. Allow the form of the Proverbs to influence how you prepare and preach Proverbs
Jeffery D. Arthurs gives thirteen ways to implement this thought of allowing the form of the text to influence the form of the sermon:
1) Preach Observations, Not Promises
Proverbs summarize the normal patterns, and the books of Ecclesiastes and Job, handle the exceptions. There are two strands of wisdom in the wisdom literature: the conservative and the radical.
The conservative strain operates within the framework of an orderly world: obedience brings blessings, and disobedience results in failure. Most of the Proverbs are conservative.
Job and Ecclesiastes are radical. Job was obedient and suffered. Solomon in Ecclesiastes was disobedient and prospered. Perhaps you could preach two series to honor that balance. The first could be called 'You Reap What You Sow,' and the second 'What to Do When You Plant a Carrot but Get an Onion' (page 141).
2) Do Not Preach Selfish Behavior, Humanism, or Materialism (such as the Prosperity Gospel from 22:4). Proverbs reveal the OT emphasizes the outward physical blessings on the children of Israel while the NT stresses spiritual blessings for God’s people, the church (Eph 1:3).
3) Preach Thought Units.
Especially in Proverbs 10 ff, "a topical approach is also possible as a genre-sensitive way to preach from the catalog. The book of Proverbs tosses out observations on themes like old age, gossip, laziness, alcohol, and humility” (page 142). See the list of Positive and Negative Topics and Other Subjects in Proverbs in Bible Knowledge Commentary.
4) Use Your Imagination.s
"As you use your imagination in exegesis, remember that many images need translation. So the mocker shooting 'firebrands and deadly arrows' (26:18) may in our day toss dynamite and shoot a shotgun, or drop napalm and discharge a canon" (page 143).
5) Show as Well as Tell.
"Remember that a story, or a group of stories, lies behind each proverb. Show the congregation the result of cheerful words. Show them what is happening in society because of alcohol abuse" (page 143).
6) Turn on the Spotlight.
Let the roving spotlight swing across society to find situations illumined by the proverb. Illustrate Proverbs 26:20 with a real-life example of the danger of gossip.
7) Make Your Central Idea 'Proverbial.
You can do this by using the proverb as the central idea as in 18:21, "Death and Life are in the power of the tongue."
8) Dueling Proverbs.
This technique could be used to show how Proverbs 26:4 and 5 do not contradict each with examples from Jesus dealing with Herod in Luke 20 and the Herodians in Matthew 22.
9) Borrow the Proverb Movement.
Communicate the way God communicated by using antithetical, synthetical, and synonymous parallelism. Arthurs discusses this in detail in chapter three.
10) Adopt the Teacher's Stance
This can be accomplished by quizzing your congregation, allowing them to participate, and through discussion. Arthurs provides examples for all three.
11). Feature Women because Proverbs does.
12) Use Some Humor as found in Proverbs 26:13-15.
13) Use Homespun Language.
In other words, since Proverbs is down to earth don't preach with a stained glass voice or like your favorite systematic theologian.
B. Allow the kind of Proverb to influence how you prepare and preach Proverbs
All Scripture is descriptive truth, but not all Scripture is prescriptive truth. For example, Satan’s desire to get Job to curse God in Job 2:4–5 and his lie in Genesis 3 are both examples of descriptive truth. Descriptive truth demands that whatever Scripture originally recorded was preserved with historical accuracy. Satan did what Scripture says he did in Job 2 and Genesis 3. However, prescriptive truth pertains to those truths by which the people of God are to regulate their lives. Satan’s lies and deceitful tactics are not to be followed by God’s people (Interpreting Proverbs by Dr. Robert V. McCabe) (click to open).
1. General guidelines that do have exceptions (descriptive truth)
Some scholars only mention this characteristic of Proverbs (Jeffrey K. Arthurs, Preaching with Variety, 136; Leland Ryland, How to Read the Bible as Literature, 124; D. Brent Sandy and Ronald Giese, Jr., Cracking Old Testament Code, 249). Examples are Proverbs 15:1 and 11:14.
2. Unconditional proverbs that are always true without exception (prescriptive truth)
Greg W. Parsons in addition to noting that most of the Proverbs are general guidelines, also notes that the recognition that the Proverbs have limitations does not nullify the fact that some Proverbs may always be true.
Frequently these are connected to an attribute or action of God (11:1; 12:22; 15:3; 16:2, 33; 22:2)
However, ultimately the way to decide whether a proverb is always true or limited to certain circumstances is not using a subjective “vote” but by correlating with the rest of the biblical canon … the promises of long life, peace, riches, and honor to those who obey the commandment of parents or wisdom teachers in chapter 3 can be clarified by noting Jesus’ life. Though he embodied wisdom and fulfilled all the requirements of Proverbs 3, he did not have a long life, riches, or much honor while on earth, (Learning from the Sages, 160). See the blog post on A Proverb for Mom and Dad (click to open).
McCabe calls the prescriptive proverb a moral absolute: A prescriptive proverb that has no exceptions is a moral absolute. This will often be true in proverbs dealing with an action or characteristic of God. Proverbs 11:1 says, “A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight.” Another example is 14:31, “He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who is gracious to the needy honors Him.” The instructional material in Proverbs 5 against adultery by maintaining a proper marital relationship is a moral absolute. It upholds the moral absolute, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exod 20:14). (Interpreting Proverbs by Dr. Robert V. McCabe) (click to open).