Proverbs 3:32: “For the froward [is] abomination to the LORD: but his secret [is] with the righteous.”
I love the King James Version but I fear it is filled with so many archaic words that I find it easier to read the passage in Hebrew. I mean what does froward mean? I cannot say in my three score and five years have I ever heard anyone use the word froward in normal conversation. Even my auto correct keeps changing it to forward and list it as a misspelled word. A modern translation like the NIV uses the word perverse. A little better at least I hear the word perverse on rare occasions like reading it in an academic or formal paper. But the use of the word perverse is still quite rare and hence when it is used at all most people understand that you are talking about something bad. Now some Bible translator sitting up in his high tower of academia probably has a full understanding of the English word perverse and thinks everyone also has such an understanding. Well, let me tell you like it is baby. Not even I with my fancied PhD is really clear as to what you mean by perverse other than it is something bad. How bad is bad and in what way is bad bad. I have no clue. Ok, ready, here is Webster’s meaning of perverse. Willfully determined to go the wrong way, cantankerous, obstinate, rejecting what is right, good or proper, wicked or corrupt.
My, my and I thought Hebrew words covered a lot of territory. Hey know just what exactly we are talking about when we say perverse is important, to me at least. If perverseness is an abomination to God I want to really be certain I don’t do any abomination stuff, I mean I don’t want to go around abominating without realizing it so I need something a bit more clear. A paraphrase uses the detestable. That is better. The NASB say devious. I hear devious I picture the guy in the black knee length jacket, top hat and twitching his wiry mustache as he forecloses on the house of a poor widow with twelve children. Well, that is not me so I guess I don’t have to worry about abominating.
Another translation says one who goes astray. Ouch, lets like I am back in the running. Another says disgusting. I’m feeling the heart. I have done some disgusting things but I don’t make a regular practice of it. Another rendering used is fraudulent. Can we go back to devious, I am really getting burnt here. You see how am I going to determine just where I fit on the scale of abomination if I don’t even have a clear picture of what it is.
This is where the Holy Spirit becomes you guide. I believe God put a built in commentary in every Hebrew word so when we reach an impasse like this we can go to the built in commentary, spin the dial and let the Holy Spirit zero in on how you fit into this picture. So let’s examine this built in commentary. The word for froward in Hebrew is tow’ebah which comes from the root word ta’ab. This word is often used in Scripture to refer to the eating of unclean foods, worship of Idols and mixed marriages. In other words breaking the law of God. The Phoenicians who were a seafaring people and used the word in their navigation. When they made an error in their navigation they called it a ta’ab. An error in navigation would mean they would miss their port of entry. In fact any navigator will tell you if you are off just by one degree could end up hundreds of miles from your destination. In our space program if the scientist are off by the slightest degree the spacecraft could miss its destination by millions of miles. Hence froward or ta’ab is just being slightly off in your destination to God. The word is spell Taw which is the letter for truth, Ayin which is the letter for seeing and Beth which represents your home. Thus the built in commentary tells us that the word means that if we have the slightest alteration to the truth of God we will not see our way home. Now that is an abomination to God.
The word abomination sounds so horrible. I mean you commit an abomination, like that’s it buddy your goose is cooked. But you know I am not sure just what that English word abomination really means, oh well back to Webster. Let’s see “Anything that is abominable.” Hmm, I wonder if that includes the snowman. Don’t you just love it when Webster does that to you? Abomination is to be abominable, wow like that is deep. Ok here we go,a vile, shameful or detestable action. So just being slightly altered from the truth of God is a vile, shameful, and detestable action.
The word abomination is loz which in its Semitic root simply means to turn aside or depart. I don’t see any translation that uses the word departure, but to me it fits perfectly. A simple miscalculation of the truth is a departure from the Lord, but His counsel is with the upright. The word upright in Hebrew is tsadiq, the word for a righteous person. A righteous person is one who follows the laws of God. You know there are many laws in the Bible but they fall into two categories, laws which point to the work of the Messiah, this would include dietary laws, laws of sacrifice etc. We are under no obligation to these laws and Jesus fulfilled them Matthew 5:17. Then there are moral laws, the thou shalt nots. When we try to circumvent these laws that is when we froward, ta’ab. “Thou shalt not steal.” “I am not stealing the restaurant’s pen when I sign that slip, just take it out of my tip.” Stealing is stealing. “I am not cheating on my wife if I gave that waitress a little pat on the …” Adultery is adultery and whosoever looks upon a woman to lust commits adultery – Matthew 5;28. Yeah, like let’s go back to perverse, detestable, and abomination, at least we don’t have to worry about getting that bad.
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