What is the oil of Matthew 25? ("Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps...") Does this correlate with Proverbs 23:23: "Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding"? Is the oil we are supposed to buy truth, wisdom, instruction and understanding? -- Dale
No, I do not think there is any connection. You are allegorizing the text. We must be careful not to do this, or we can end up with many different (often contradictory) interpretations. For example, Psalm 45:7 speaks of the "oil of gladness." If we are allegorizing, what will stop us from concluding that the foolish virgins in Matthew 25 failed to enjoy themselves, especially in light of Ecclesiastes 2:24, 8:15, 9:7?
Or to return to the idea of buying something, why not connect Proverbs 23:23 with Isaiah 55:1, where Israel is invited to purchase wine and milk. (Wine = truth [despite Proverbs 20:1]? And milk = wisdom (which we should imbibe like newborn babes [1 Peter 2:2]?)
You see the point: without clear criteria for interpretation, and without respecting the grammar, context, theological genre, etc, of a passage, we could end up anywhere! Locomotives need tracks, otherwise they become derailed. Likewise, interpreters need firm rules for interpretation; otherwise, they become theologically derailed.
Not to say you are doing this, or are "derailed"! This is just a lesson I believe we all need to learn, me included!
