don't be overrighteous

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memyselfi

Junior Member
Jan 12, 2017
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what about Job?

is Job an example of 'overrighteous' ? or an example we can learn what this means from

No, Job was not an over righteous man, unless G-d was wrong in calling him righteous.

When the standard, Messiah, is perfection we cannot ever be righteous enough.... righteousness is thru Him. However, given all mankind falls short.... we are to be as righteous as possibly at all times. We should be able to say, I do this, that... not this, that.... according to G-d's Word, because this sets apart from the world! Our goal should be to be righteous, to please G-d" with the knowing the righteousness that gets us into heaven comes from Messiah's blood that covers us.
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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No, Job was NOT overrighteous.

Noah, Daniel, and Job are all commended by God for their righteousness.
No, Job was not an over righteous man, unless G-d was wrong in calling him righteous.
thanks :)

when post asked post's wife what she thought about this, one of the first things that came to her mind was Job, because God said this of him:

Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
(Job 1:8)

((thinking, 'over-righteous? who is the most righteous man i can think of?')), so we asked, is Job overrighteous?
we didn't think so either. not if 'over-righteous' is a fault.

so is there an example of an over-righteous person in the Bible?
phairsees & sadducees?

what about an over-wise person?
 

Nehemiah6

Senior Member
Jul 18, 2017
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so is there an example of an over-righteous person in the Bible?
phairsees & sadducees?
Yes, "over-righteous" means (1) attempting to establish one's own righteousness by the works of the Law (rather than being justified by faith) and (2) being super scrupulous about inconsequential things (tithing mint and cumin, washing cups and saucers, washing hands) but failing to do the two greatest commandments.
 

memyselfi

Junior Member
Jan 12, 2017
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thanks :)

when post asked post's wife what she thought about this, one of the first things that came to her mind was Job, because God said this of him:

Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
(Job 1:8)

((thinking, 'over-righteous? who is the most righteous man i can think of?')), so we asked, is Job overrighteous?
we didn't think so either. not if 'over-righteous' is a fault.


so is there an example of an over-righteous person in the Bible?
phairsees & sadducees?


what about an over-wise person?
Sorry...lol...

I don't know an over wise person.... I know age is suppose to make people wise but all I know is some old fools.... The only thing that makes people wise is Wisdom/ the Word of G-d.... can we ever be over-wise? …. Can one ever be full of too much Word? Now I know some old, young and in-between people full of the Word of G-d that have GREAT wisdom!

phairsees & sadducees? old fools...
 
Feb 28, 2016
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oh how we Love John..., the Heavenly appointed whom Christ has used to
lead us into His blessedness...
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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so is there an example of an over-righteous person in the Bible?
phairsees & sadducees?
how about Peter?
when he wouldn't eat with the Gentiles, and Paul got in his face about it?
for that matter when he had his vision on the rooftop, and told God "
no!" 3 times when God commanded him to rise, kill and eat?

could this mean, don't think yourself '
too righteous' to do what is right? like Peter being too good to sit with goyim, or too clean with regard to the cleanliness of the law to eat an unclean animal, even when God Himself the giver of that law is telling him to do it? is Peter being over-righteous?
or pharisees complaining that Jesus eats with sinners?
the Levites passing by the robbed and beaten man on the far side of the road, too pure to be sullied by him, while the Samaritan in kindness and grace rescuing the man?

could it mean don't consider yourself '
too wise' to do something foolish when it is time that it be done?
what if you were '
too wise' to hear the preaching of the cross when it sounded like foolishness?
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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I don't know an over wise person.... I know age is suppose to make people wise but all I know is some old fools.... The only thing that makes people wise is Wisdom/ the Word of G-d.... can we ever be over-wise? …. Can one ever be full of too much Word? Now I know some old, young and in-between people full of the Word of G-d that have GREAT wisdom!
i know, right?

that's why this is an hard teaching.
which is why there's something amazing here :)


look, 8 pages in and we're not all calling each other names and shouting. that's amazing already hahaha
 

mailmandan

Senior Member
Apr 7, 2014
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I ran across this Q&A on gotquestions.org

Please no calling me names or shouting at me. :giggle:

What does it mean to be overrighteous and overwise (Ecclesiastes 7:16)?
Question: "What does it mean to be overrighteous and overwise (Ecclesiastes 7:16)?"

Answer: Ecclesiastes 7:16 says, “Do not be overrighteous, / neither be overwise— / why destroy yourself?” Given the Bible’s standard of righteousness and the premium it sets on wisdom, it seems strange that Solomon would say not to be overly righteous or too wise.

One key to understanding this warning against being overrighteous and overwise is found in Ecclesiastes 7:15: “In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: / the righteous perishing in their righteousness, / and the wicked living long in their wickedness.” Solomon had witnessed both situations: those who had died doing righteous deeds and those who had died while sinning—and, what’s worse, sinning for a long time while seeming to get away with it. Solomon here is contemplating the fact that sometimes the good die young while evil men live long, iniquitous lives. This is a mystery to him and one of the things that add to the “vanity” of a life lived “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:2–3).

We must also keep Ecclesiastes 7:17 in mind, because Solomon continues the thought begun with the warning against being overrighteous and overwise: “Do not be overwicked, / and do not be a fool— / why die before your time?” And then verse 18 summarizes the lesson: “Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.”

Putting it all together, Solomon is teaching moderation in the fear of God. Don’t be overly righteous, overly wise, overly wicked, or overly foolish. Chasing after extremes will not prolong one’s life or provide the satisfaction one desires.

Still, what does it mean to be overrighteous and overwise? Solomon obviously means something different from being truly righteous and truly wise. To be “overrighteous” is to strive for a self-made righteousness based on an outward adherence to rules. “Overrighteousness” is an extreme religiosity, perhaps marked by asceticism, excessive strictness, and zealous observance of the minutiae of man-made religion. The Pharisees in Jesus’ day were “overrighteous” in this way; in their fanatical self-righteousness, they would “strain out a gnat but swallow a camel” (Matthew 23:24).

To be “overwise” is to think of oneself as self-sufficient in matters of knowledge, especially when it concerns the things of God. “Overwisdom” will call God’s character and wisdom into question, speculate about His actions, and judge them according to one’s own “superior” wisdom. Job, righteous man that he was, was “overwise” when he began to question God, and God had to ask him, “Who is this that obscures my plans / with words without knowledge? / Brace yourself like a man; / I will question you, / and you shall answer me” (Job 38:2–3). Job’s reply showed that he had regained true wisdom: “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? / I put my hand over my mouth” (Job 40:4).

Self-righteousness has the potential to lead to much harm. Matthew 23:5 offers an excellent summary of the behavior of the “overrighteous”: “Everything they do is done for people to see.” This type of lifestyle is condemned by God as attempting to be righteous in the wrong way.

In Joel 2:12–13, the Lord calls His people to move beyond external religion and righteousness and to truly return to Him: “Return to me with all your heart, / with fasting and weeping and mourning. / Rend your heart / and not your garments.” The Lord was less concerned with their sacrifices and external adherence to the Law than He was the condition of their hearts.

Solomon knew better than most people the outcome of righteousness that did not arise from a heart that truly loves God. As king, he would have been familiar with the religious leaders of the temple he commissioned to have built in Jerusalem. Thousands of Levites served within its walls. Some certainly did so with a true heart of love for God, while others served with improper motives. Solomon’s words in Ecclesiastes 7:16 reflect the voice of one calling all of God’s people to live for Him with true righteousness and true wisdom. And the next verses (Ecclesiastes 7:17–18) keep it all in balance.

Though these themes are only mentioned briefly in Ecclesiastes, Solomon and others speak at length regarding true righteousness and wisdom in the book of Proverbs. Its opening words say that proverbs are “for gaining wisdom and instruction; / for understanding words of insight; / for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, / doing what is right and just and fair” (Proverbs 1:2–3). Proverbs 1:7 adds, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, / but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

https://www.gotquestions.org/overrighteous-overwise.html
 

memyselfi

Junior Member
Jan 12, 2017
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how about Peter?
when he wouldn't eat with the Gentiles, and Paul got in his face about it?
for that matter when he had his vision on the rooftop, and told God "
no!" 3 times when God commanded him to rise, kill and eat?


could this mean, don't think yourself 'too righteous' to do what is right? like Peter being too good to sit with goyim, or too clean with regard to the cleanliness of the law to eat an unclean animal, even when God Himself the giver of that law is telling him to do it? is Peter being over-righteous?
or pharisees complaining that Jesus eats with sinners?
the Levites passing by the robbed and beaten man on the far side of the road, too pure to be sullied by him, while the Samaritan in kindness and grace rescuing the man?


could it mean don't consider yourself 'too wise' to do something foolish when it is time that it be done?
what if you were '
too wise' to hear the preaching of the cross when it sounded like foolishness?
I love this!!! There is Scripturally "wise in our own eyes".... Now granted... we have Scripture to consult for what we see/view as wisdom and Peter and really even the Pharisees did not. (well they had Torah but not the NT).... So, with that said how much more accountable for what we do or not do now that we have all 66 Books?
 
Feb 28, 2016
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bottom line -
if you truly 'belong' to Christ and have been 'truly 'called-out-elected' by Him,
then you know your 'worth' and 'wonder' that He has is store for you...,
you will have no 'doubt' as to what He is requiring of you in your
every day life in your beloved service to Him and His...
 

memyselfi

Junior Member
Jan 12, 2017
503
260
63
bottom line -
if you truly 'belong' to Christ and have been 'truly 'called-out-elected' by Him,
then you know your 'worth' and 'wonder' that He has is store for you...,
you will have no 'doubt' as to what He is requiring of you in your
every day life in your beloved service to Him and His...

What about the "not called-out-elected" by Him?
 
Aug 8, 2018
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:)I know you mean common as In It’s a common occurrence and commonly as the person doing this Is not to brite.
Seed Time Harvest! To clarify my intent: Common = occurring often, commonly = usually. Probably not worth a post to clarify, but I was not implying lack of intelligence to any one. The post I reacted to had no context or point, which happens all over most forums of any sort. Be alive in the Power of our Righteous Saviour.
 
Dec 12, 2013
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the word here is literally 'be made desolate' not 'be disappointed' isn't it?

from an interpretive standpoint, taking into account v.20 & v.23, seeing that there is no one righteous and that Solomon himself saw wisdom as 'far from him' i can see where one gets the idea of being disappointed ((i kinda said this in post #102)), because both wisdom and righteousness in the abstract are as though unreachable goals, and gaining both lead one to realize & see their antithesis both in oneself and in others.
but to be faithful to the text, Solomon is saying that excess in these things can make a person desolate, which i think is hard to comprehend - aren't both wisdom & righteousness good things we should always seek?
but whether to obsessively go after either is a subtly different question.


i'm interested to know exactly what it is about excessive righteousness or wisdom that can make desolate.



the text doesn't include the word 'warnings' here at all, but is ambiguous 'this' and 'this one' and 'them all'

if he means warnings, which ones? for example, is it keep hold of 'the beginning of wisdom: get wisdom' ((Proverbs 4:7)) as well as 'do not be overly wise' ? this is hard because we know these are good things we should seek. discovering what 'temperance' with respect to being righteous or wise is, isn't necessarily plain, even if it is easy to see that what he's encouraging us to do is be temperate. pragmatically, at what point should a person say 'i'm righteous enough, i should stop' ??
The over all foundation of Ecclesiastes is aimed at the worldly experiences that Solomon had partaken of, the things which he had acquired and begins with the question--->what profit is there in these things.....maybe he is speaking more toward being wise in the worldly wisdom that can be gained from experience and or things that can be experienced from a worldly standpoint....He lists all the things he had and had done and then concluded that all is vanity and vexation of Spirit.......just a thought....
 

notuptome

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May 17, 2013
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Mt 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Have the righteousness of Christ and not the righteousness of man.

For the cause of Christ
Roger
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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isn't this a clue:

I spoke with my heart, saying,
"Behold! I have magnified and increased wisdom more than all who were over Jerusalem before me;
and my heart has observed an abundance of wisdom and knowledge.”
And I set my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly; I realized that this also is striving after wind. Because in much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge, increasing pain.
(Ecclesiastes 1:16-18)
the teacher set himself to know wisdom & knowledge and found that it increases sorrow and suffering.
next, in chapter 2 he set himself to understand hedonism, and found it has no profit.

Do not be excessively righteous and do not be overly wise. Why should you ruin yourself? Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool. Why should you die before your time? It is good that you grasp one thing and also not rest your hand of the other; for the one who fears God comes forth with all of them.
(Ecclesiastes 7:16-18)
what do y'all see here? :)
 

posthuman

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Jul 31, 2013
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.....maybe he is speaking more toward being wise in the worldly wisdom and or things that can be experienced from a worldly standpoint....
Solomon's wisdom came from God tho ;)
 
Dec 12, 2013
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Solomon's wisdom came from God tho ;)
Ummmm, there is a worldly wisdom acquired by experience and that is what he set his heart to find........wisdom is the proper application of knowledge and that is what he asked God for....WISDOM to rule as seen in the judgment to divide the child....SOLOMON setting out to find out about ALL of the works of MAN UNDER THE SUN does not equate to the proper application of the knowledge of God "Biblical wisdom", but rather an understanding and application of the worldly wisdom that comes by application and a worldly knowledge......NO way he can conclude that BIBLICAL WISDOM or GODLY wisdom leads to one's demise and or say that it is vanity and vexation of spirit.....
 

Lafftur

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Apr 18, 2017
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Mt 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Have the righteousness of Christ and not the righteousness of man.

For the cause of Christ
Roger
Hmmmm, :unsure: ya know, I think Jesus was having a bit of fun when He said, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" because ONLY Jesus' righteousness could exceed the scribes and Pharisees and Jesus' plan was to give us His Righteousness.

So, all we can say is, "The Lord Our Righteousness."

Jeremiah 23:6 King James Version (KJV)
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord Our Righteousness.

Jeremiah 33:16 King James Version (KJV)
16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The Lord our righteousness.
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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Ummmm, there is a worldly wisdom acquired by experience and that is what he set his heart to find........wisdom is the proper application of knowledge and that is what he asked God for....WISDOM to rule as seen in the judgment to divide the child....SOLOMON setting out to find out about ALL of the works of MAN UNDER THE SUN sets the stage for the proper application of the knowledge of GOD, but rather an understanding and application of the worldly wisdom that comes by application and a worldly knowledge......NO way he can conclude that BIBLICAL WISDOM or GODLY wisdom leads to one's demise and or say that it is vanity and vexation of spirit.....
how can i say the wisdom he got from God was ungodly?