Reply:

Prov. 16:1. If this verse supports meticulous divine control, it means that every vile, vulgar and blasphemous thing any mouth has ever uttered has been willed by God. Odd, since God goes on record as telling us he is against such language.

Nevertheless, even if one insisted on taking this verse to imply that every word a person speaks (vile or otherwise) is decreed by God, the verse still does not support meticulous divine control, for the first clause contrasts with the second and says, "The plans of the mind belong to mortals..." Does the defender of meticulous control want to hold that God gives us free will to plan things, but not free will when it comes to speech?

Given the genre we're dealing with (Wisdom literature), I think it fair to take the verse to mean that we may plan all we want, but unless the Lord empower us we can't take even the first step toward accomplishing those plans. We can't even make the transition from THINKING to SPEAKING.

Prov. 16:4 The Hebrew here can be translated "The Lord works out everything for his own ends" (as in the NIV, surprisingly). The verse simply says that God makes sure that justice is ultimately accomplished. Though the wicked may prosper now, they shall eventually run into disaster.

Prov. 16:9. a) As with 16:1, is the defender of meticulous divine control affirming that we humans can freely make plans, but the Lord then decrees every step we take? Even this would mean that humans have SOME decree of self-determination. b) Does the defender want to affirm that Hitler and every other evil person in history has been "directed" or "determined" by the Lord? This of course raises insurmountable problems with understanding why the Lord is consistently and unequivocally against such behavior, and why he holds the people HE "determines" responsible for what they do. Given the genre, a fair interpretation which avoids these issues is to simply affirm that humans can never outsmart God. We may plan evil -- and God hates it -- but he retains an influence on how we carry out our evil plan. (The Hebrew here can be translated "direct" or "determine" or "steer"). This doesn't mean the evil person does exactly what God would want -- for God would want them not to be evil. But it does mean that God has a role in how a person carries out their evil intentions.

Prov. 19:21. As with 16:1 and 9, note the CONTRAST between what humans do and what God does. The verses do NOT teach that God does, or determines, EVERYTHING. The verse only teaches that regardless of what humans may plan, God's over all purpose will prevail. If a person rejects God, they thwart God's will for their life to be related to him, but they fulfill God's purpose to punish sinners. (So 16:4).

Greg Boyd
Bethel College

Reply:

It is important to notice that proverbs as a form of literature, do not function as universal truths. We do not really find that the righteous always prosper and the wicked are always punished. (pr. 3:33) Or that the wise always inherit honor and the fools are always shamed. (3:35) Or that the righteous never go hungry and the cravings of the wicked are always thwarted. (10:3) If these proverbs are so clearly unfulfilled in their universality, why should we not expect a consistently "looser" reality to be up for discussion in proverbs 16:33? Certainly God is capable of determining the outcome of such lot casting and, in fact, did this often in the history of Israel.

My first point is that proverbs are not "true" in an absolute sense, as the question seems to assume, rather they are expressions of practical wisdom which are good for the whole of a society. (Hence there presence in the category of Wisdom literature)

Secondly, let's talk about casting lots. God often commanded that people cast lots to distribute land. In most cases, "lot" is almost synonymous with "portion." But notice, the same lot that is given by divine decree can be redistributed against God's will according to Psalm 50:18 (NIV) "you throw in your lot with adulterers." There is freedom with regard to such lots. This again reflects the dynamic nature of reality assumed by the author and our Creator who's words are reflected.

Thirdly, if we are to understand that the proverb means that every event which seems in anyway up to chance is actually ordained by God how is it that we have the bell curve, the laws of probability, successful cardsharks and rich craps players. An interesting thought which a literalistic reading of this text raises might be: God controls all of the results of dice and other games of "chance" used in gambling and brings forth the results as we see them.

These results then, must be understood to be the best of all possible results if God has ordained them! Wouldn't it be much better if God used those opportunities to redistribute wealth in a just manner?

This is a situation where common sense is enough to tell us that it is sufficient to say: God controls those castings of lots which happen in a context appropriate to such guidance and leaves the rest to chance and risk. These being real elements experienced daily by all (every time you get in a car, for instance), whether they realize it or not.

Reply:

In addition to the excellent remarks made by my colleagues I'd like to add a few things.

Proverbs 16:9 declares that "the human mind plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps" and 21:1 says, "the king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will." First, these sayings, along with all the others in Proverbs, should be understood as guidelines for godly living rather than universal principles which always hold true. If one takes every proverb as a universal one will run into contradictions (for they simply cannot all be practiced at the same time e. g. Prov. 26:4-5) and become untrue to life (e. g. it is not always true that a quiet answer turns away wrath, Prov. 15:1).

Moreover, the proverbs about human plans and YHWH's purposes should be seen within the book's call for seeking the covenant God's wisdom in our planning. The God of Israel desires that his people seek his input rather than doing what they (on their own) think is best. Just as with Adam in the garden, so for the people of Israel, one cannot chart a wise course through life without trusting in divine wisdom (Prov. 20:24). God does direct his people's steps (16:9) and guide the king of Israel (21:1) when they seek God's wisdom. When they do not, then as we have seen, God stands against them. Though some kings "did right in the eyes of the Lord" (e. g., 2 Chron. 20:32; 25:2), others, such as Saul, did not, in fact, do what God wanted them to do (e. g., 1 Sam. 15:11; 2 Kings 16:2; 2 Chron. 28:1). If we take this proverb as a universal then we have the problem of explaining why God became angry with so many Israelite kings for breaking the covenant when the kings were only doing what God wanted. How could YHWH desire the breaking of his covenant when this hurt him so? Furthermore, if we universalize this text to include all kings everywhere then we have to conclude that all the evils they have committed in history is exactly what God wanted from them since they, like water, could not but go in the direction God's hand.

Proverbs 16:9 declares that "the human mind plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps" and 21:1 says, "the king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will." First, these sayings, along with all the others in Proverbs, should be understood as guidelines for godly living rather than universal principles which always hold true. If one takes every proverb as a universal one will run into contradictions (for they simply cannot all be practiced at the same time e. g. Prov. 26:4-5) and become untrue to life (e. g. it is not always true that a quiet answer turns away wrath, Prov. 15:1).

John Sanders
Huntington College