Contents
- 1 Religion considers the 10 Commandments from a theological, Testament, Covenant, or doctrinal perspective. What about the practical?
- 2
Religion considers the 10 Commandments from a theological, Testament, Covenant, or doctrinal perspective. What about the practical?
Everyone asks the theological question, “Are the 10 Commandments still valid today?” That in itself is a negative proposition. Here’s what we should be asking: Why did God generate and give humans the 10 Commandments? What’s His perspective? How are the 10 Commandments relevant to improved mental health today?
(Transform Your Mind, Upgrade Your Life – Chapter 21)
I want to Uncover the Nakedness Mystery
Short history of the Commandments
They were present from the Garden of Eden, through Cain, Noah, Nimrod, Abraham and his descendants, God formalized the 10 Commandments to the 12-tribe nation of Israel and the mixed multitude on Mount Sinai at the Exodus. Forty years later, in Deuteronomy, Moses reiterated God’s 10 Commandments and many others as the specific recipe for living prosperously and healthily (in body and mind) in the Promised Land.
Then, there followed umpteen ups and downs as the leadership and people waxed and waned with regard to the 10 Commandments. When they obeyed, blessings ensued, while disobedience brought hardship and catastrophe. Until finally, disobedience culminated in God allowing the entire northern ten tribes of Israel to be taken captive by the Assyrians around 720 BC, and about 120 years later, the same calamity on the two remaining tribes, Judah and Benjamin, along with the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.
Solomon Published Wisdom Books
During this tumultuous period, there was one brief glorious period of righteousness: King David and the beginning of his son’s reign, Solomon. One of the highlights of that era is Solomon’s prayer to God.
7 And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And your servant is in the midst of your people which you have chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore your servant an understanding (H8085, hearing, obedient, publish…) heart to judge (H8199, reason, rule…) your people, that I may discern (H995) between good and bad (Sam: the Tree of good and evil): for who is able to judge this your so great a people?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said to him, Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life; neither have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies; but have asked for yourself understanding to discern judgment;
12 Behold, I have done according to your words: lo, I have given you a wise and an understanding (H995) heart; so that there was none like you before you, neither after you shall any arise like to you.
Read the entire context at UnlockBibleMeaning.com. The deep significance of this discussion has evaded us; here it is. Solomon wants to know how to govern the nation to benefit their prosperity in every way possible, including their mental health.
We must meditate on God’s gift to accomplish Solomon’s desire: a wise and understanding heart. This is exactly what neshama does: “The inspiration (neshama) of the Almighty gives them understanding” (H995, Job 32:8). We’ve defined neshama as consciousness, composed of five vital traits: Purpose, Conduct, Reasoning, Socialization, Rulership.
God gave Solomon THE understanding of HOW TO govern UNconverted people (the nation of Israel, and by extension ALL people) in these five domains so they’d benefit the most from their life in this world.
God poured out on Solomon the keys to mental health. He lived, experienced, and wrote profusely about Purpose, Conduct, Reasoning, Socialization, Rulership, and how to maintain optimum mental health for ALL humankind.
30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country (origin of Oriental Philosophy, Buddhism, mindfulness, and other non-Biblical practices), and all the wisdom of Egypt.
32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.
Wisdom Books and The Writings
Solomon’s book of Proverbs contains about 800 Proverbs, and we have the Song of Solomon; most of his writing is not in the Canon, The Bible. His writings are among the Wisdom Writings, one of the three parts of the Bible, The Writings, along with Torah and the Prophets. Christ summed it up in Luke 22:44, “These are the words which I spake to you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses (Torah, Law, Pentateuch), and in the prophets (Neviim), and in the psalms (Ketuvim, Writings), concerning me.”
The Writings also contain Ecclesiastes (wisdom for depression), Lamentations (wisdom for grief), Ruth (wisdom for racial issues), and Esther (wisdom about God’s Justice). The Writings include the last books written in the Old Testament: Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles. I want you to grasp that this Section is the ultimate Word of God for the UNconverted. Understand that there are only two groups of people in THIS WORLD.
- The converted; God’s people who eat from the Tree of Life through the Holy Spirit.
- The UNconverted; ALL people not called at this time, who live IN THIS WORLD, who eat from the Tree of Good and Evil, and who should do the Good.
Please comprehend the extent of the UNconverted of THIS WORLD. Those are the people for whom Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs, among others.
The Ten Commandments in Exodus were for the 12 tribes in the desert, the Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy were for the 12 tribes in the Promised Land with all the laws associated with the Temple, sacrifices, ablutions, national, and land laws, etc. The last books written, Proverbs and the Writings were specifically for the 12 tribes disbursed after their captivities in Assyria and Babylon, and, beyond that for ALL people.
Notice Solomon’s prayer: “I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in” (1 Kings 3:7). Compare that with Proverbs 1:8: “My son, hear the instruction of your father, and forsake not the law of your mother.” Solomon received his wisdom from His Father as a child; now, as a father, he’s transmitting this wisdom to his children.
Solomon’s Children, ALL people
Solomon had children, but the audience to whom he addresses Proverbs goes far beyond his own begotten family, his tribes, and even his nation. Proverbs are for ALL people; meditate on these passages.
Whoso is simple (Sam: ALL people), let him turn in here: as for him that wants understanding, she [wisdom] says to him.
Pro. 8:1 Does not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her voice?
2 She stands in the top of high places, by the way in the places of the paths.
3 She cries at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors (Sam: These Proverbs call out from EVERYWHERE to EVERYBODY).
4 To you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man (Sam: and daughters… ALL people).
Pro. 8:35 For whoso (Sam: anyone, anywhere) finds me finds life (Sam: mental health), and shall obtain favour of the LORD.
36 But he (Sam: everyone, everywhere) that sins against me wrongs his own soul (Sam: mental ILL-health): all they that hate me love death.
Pro. 9:3 She [wisdom] has sent forth her maidens: she cries upon the highest places of the city, (Sam: call all in city). Whoso is simple, let him turn in here:
The Book of Proverbs and all The Writings are not limited to Israelites, or the Judeo-Christian Bible world. It is for ALL people worldwide who want mental health and to know how to deal with anxiety, depression, grief, race, God, justice, and many other daily aspects of life. These are the books of Bible Psychology.
10 Commandments in Proverbs for Everyone, Everywhere
The 10 Commandments are very much alive. The 10 Commandments are the wisdom of Proverbs calling from everywhere to everyone. Listen up. Here are the new Proverbs 10 Commandments:
Exodus – Deuteronomy: | Proverbs: |
| 1. You shall have no other gods before me | 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge… |
| 2. You shall make no idols | 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes… |
| 3. You shall not take God’s name in vain | 30:9 Lest I say… Who is the LORD? Or lest I… take the name of my God in vain. |
| 4. Keep the Sabbath day holy | 20:26 It is a snare to the man who devours that which is holy… |
| 5. Honor your father and mother | 6:21 My son, keep your father’s commandments, and forsake not the law of your mother: |
| 6. You shall not kill | 6:16 Things the LORD hates: …hands that shed innocent blood |
| 7. You shall not commit adultery | 6:32 But whoso commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding: he that does it destroys his own soul. |
| 8. You shall not steal | 9:17-18 Stolen waters are sweet… But he knows not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell. |
| 9. Do not bear false witness | 6:19 The LORD hates: A false witness that speaks lies, and he that sows discord among brethren. |
| 10. You shall not covet | 21:26 The desire of the slothful kills him. He covets greedily all the day long: |
God gave and continually shouts the 10 Commandments from the pages of the Bible. Will we listen and benefit from mental health or remain deaf fools and harvest mental ill-health?
Many Books about Psychology
Notice God’s response to Solomon’s request for wisdom: “none like you before you, neither after you.” God gave him understanding (Biblical Hebrew meaning, among others, publish). Solomon through the Bible publishes the wisdom to reach mental health. And God’s promise is: Nobody after him would improve on this wisdom!
That’s why Solomon ended his book Ecclesiastes this way.
12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Psychology today spends billions studying the brain to determine what consciousness and mind are and how they work. Yes, they found a few things, but psychology is empty-headed. It looks to books by Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Jordan Peterson; the list of psychologists and their books is endless. I’m not saying there isn’t value in such thinkers and books. I am saying they don’t hold a candle to the wisdom of Soloman and the Writings on how to nurture and heal mental health.
It’s time for practical applied psychology from Proverbs, starting with keeping God’s 10 Commandments, the whole duty of humans, to nurture and heal minds.
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