This is the third in a series of blogs on The Righteousness of God as a part of the Armor of God.
In Proverbs 8:1-9 the author described how wisdom called out to us. I like the way Proverbs 8:1 is written in the New King James Bible version, “Does not wisdom cry out, and understanding lift up her voice?” It is written as two questions, but it is crystal clear to the author that everyone knew what the answer was. Wisdom cries out all around us and understanding is there to be heard. If we don’t hear, then it’s because we are not listening.
The writer of this scripture identified several places where wisdom could be heard: the hilltop, the crossroads, and at the city gates. One common element in all these places is that people traverse them all. Wisdom is where we are. Wisdom is among us. We don’t have to travel to some far-off place to learn wisdom from people who have isolated themselves from the world. The idea that some self-proclaimed spiritually enlightened individual who is isolated in some remote location can teach us wisdom is absurd. If they offer any wisdom at all, it’s usually what they learned from others when they lived among people.
But when there are lots of people around, we can become distracted by what people are saying or doing and then we stop listening to or looking for wisdom. Perhaps this is why the writer of this scripture goes on to say in Proverbs 8:5, that we are naive, foolish, and lacking understanding.
A good example of this is found in our own court system. One of the places in Proverbs 8:3 where wisdom calls out is at the city gates. At the time this scripture was written, the city gate was where the city leaders and elders sat and heard cases brought by the people. In essence, this was the court system of their day and they made judgments based upon God’s law. Our legal system was also built on principles from God’s word, but over time our judges have become more liberal and their judgments are based more and more on their own experiences or political preferences.
Wisdom calls out on many moral issues, but many people ignore wisdom and chose to follow their own selfish paths and desires. We have ignored the excellent things that wisdom has to teach us and do not consider it the absolute truth from God. Instead, we have replaced it with the ideas and philosophies of people. How ironic that we put more trust in the ideas of created beings than in the wisdom of our Creator.
Wisdom has excellent things to tell us (Proverbs 8:6). Take a moment to consider and list what you think is important in life. Once you have a list, evaluate each item on the list with the following questions: Why is it important to you? Does it draw you closer to God or does it lead you away from Him? Is it important to others in your family? Does it draw you closer to others or drive you farther apart?
When we take time to consider the value of things that are important to us, we often find that our priorities are self-centered, and this biases the standards we believe in and how we value things around us.
In contrast, wisdom is based on God’s standard alone. Everything wisdom says is right and true, ethical and moral, righteous, upright, in accordance with what is just, good, or proper. True wisdom conforms to facts or truth, is correct, suitable, appropriate, genuine, and real. Wisdom is not deceptive (Proverbs 8:7). It is wholesome and good and there is nothing crooked or twisted in it (Proverbs 8:8). Wisdom is plain to anyone with understanding, clear to those who want to learn (Proverbs 8:9). If we evaluate everything using God’s standard, then His wisdom will guide us in our decisions and expectations.
In fact, our very being is empty without wisdom. If we are honest with ourselves, we understand wisdom when we hear it or see it. According to Warren W. Wiersbe [1], “Mark Twain is supposed to have said, ‘It isn’t what I don’t understand about the Bible that worries me, but what I do understand.’”
The problem is that once we hear and understand what wisdom is telling us, we are often forced to make a choice about it. Do we follow wisdom, or is there something else we want to do that’s more important to us? Until wisdom becomes our treasure, this will be a constant battle for us. The key is that we must want to learn true wisdom. So, stop ignoring it and embrace it. Remember Job 28:28, “… The fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding.”
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[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, “Be Skillful, God’s Guidebook to Wise Living, OT Commentary, Proverbs”, Published by David C. Cook, Colorado Springs, 1995.
All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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