LESSON 5
THE CRY OF WISDOM
PROVERBS 8-9
As a parent, have you ever found yourself trying to get your children to listen to reason? You tell them look both ways before the cross the street and not to talk with strangers. Many times we tell them if they do not stop doing _______ then _______ will happen. Whatever we said would happen usually does. Solomon talks about wisdom in this same way.
Wisdom cries out
(Proverbs 8:1-5)
Proverbs 8:1 Does
not wisdom cry out, And understanding lift up her voice? 2 She takes her stand on the top
of the high hill, Beside the way, where the paths meet. 3 She cries out by the gates, at
the entry of the city, At the entrance of the doors: 4 "To you, O men, I call, And
my voice is to the sons of men. 5
O you simple ones, understand prudence, And you fools, be of an understanding
heart.
In Chapter 7, the immoral
woman was portrayed as a seductress who worked in the cover of darkness.
However, in Chapter 8, lady wisdom is completely opposite of this because she
is cries out for all to hear. She does not hide who or what she is as she proclaims
her message before all at gates of the city. She never tries to manipulate anyone, and her
desire is for people to listen to what she has to say, so they can benefit from
the message she brings.
The excellence of wisdom (Proverbs 8:6-11)
Proverbs 8:6 Listen,
for I will speak of excellent things, And from the opening of my lips will
come right things; 7 For
my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. 8 All the words of my mouth are
with righteousness; Nothing crooked or perverse is in them. 9 They are all plain to him
who understands, And right to those who find knowledge. 10 Receive my instruction, and not
silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold;
11 For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the
things one may desire cannot be compared with her.
When wisdom speaks, it
never speaks of perverse things or of things that will destroy one’s life.
Instead, it speaks of righteousness and all things that are pleasing to God.
Wisdom cannot stand the pathway of wickedness and it will never allow itself to
be associated with the wicked way. When wisdom speaks, we can know that it will
only present the truth from God’s Word, which can set from our sins (Jn. 8:32).
John 8:32
"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
Her message is clear and
easy to understand for those who are willing to take the time to listen and
contemplate it. With that in mind, we never have to worry about wisdom trying
to deceive us with ambiguous sayings that no one can interpret with certainty.
Just like the parent
desires their children to listen to their instruction, wisdom wants us to
receive her instruction. She wants us to know that her instruction is far
greater than any precious jewels that can be found on earth. Therefore, we
should seek out the instructions of wisdom first because it is the greatest
treasure we can find.
The power and reward of wisdom (Proverbs 8:12-16)
Proverbs 8:12 "
I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion. 13 The fear of the LORD is to
hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I
hate. 14 Counsel is mine,
and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength. 15 By me kings reign, And rulers
decree justice. 16 By me
princes rule, and nobles, All the judges of the earth. 17 I love those who love me, And
those who seek me diligently will find me.
18 Riches and honor are with me, Enduring riches and
righteousness. 19 My fruit is
better than gold, yes, than fine gold, And my revenue than choice
silver. 20 I traverse the way
of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice, 21 That I may cause those who love
me to inherit wealth, That I may fill their treasuries.
Wisdom lives with
prudence, which means that it skillful at finding out knowledge and discretion.
This saying in verse 12 reminds me of what Jesus told His disciples when He
sent them out a limited commission: “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst
of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Mt. 10:16).
When we respect the way
God, we are going to hate what God hates. So, we should hate evil and all sin.
Paul implies that pride was the downfall of devil (1 Tim. 3:6), and we know he
was full of arrogance to think he could actual stand against God and win. To
speak with a perverse mouth includes much more than just speaking profanity or
perverted things. It includes all speech that is contrary to God’s Word, which
is another characteristic of the devil because he is the adversary of God and
the father of lies (Jn. 8:44).
We need to open our eyes
to the truth that when we get involved in the way of evil or approve of those
who practice it, we are aligning ourselves with the devil. Imagine him putting
his arm you and saying, “Good job my friend.” Imagining that should make us
shudder, but that is basically what is happening when we fail to fear the Lord
and hat evil.
As verses 14-15 point
out, wisdom provides strength and leadership. Whether it is a king, ruler,
prince, noble, or a judge they can only be successful and make sound judgments
by using wisdom. The most successful leaders will allow the wisdom of God to
guide them. Also, every successful Christian and leader within the church will
be successful if they allow wisdom of God to guide them as well. As wisdom
says: “I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me”
(17).
Some might read verses
18-21 and get the false idea that seeking out wisdom and obtaining it is a
guarantee of material wealth, but that is not what our text is saying. It
saying that having wisdom is the greatest treasure there is. However, it is
general true that those who seek out wisdom first will not only be rich in
knowledge and understand, they will be successful in life, which can equate to
material blessings. Those who seek out wisdom first understand that material
blessing are just byproduct. Even when they have material riches, they still
understand that wisdom is the greatest treasure and they would never give it up
for all the riches in the world.
As Christians, we must
realize that our true treasure, which has been revealed by wisdom, is found in
heaven (Mt. 6:19-21).
Matthew 6:19 "
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy
and where thieves break in and steal; 20
"but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor
rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 "For where your treasure
is, there your heart will be also.
We do not want to be like the rich young ruler who loved God enough to follow His commands, but refused to put God before his material wealth (Mt. 19:16-22).
Wisdom is eternal
(Proverbs 8:22-31)
Proverbs 8:22 "
The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of
old. 23 I have been
established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an
earth. 24 When there were no
depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with
water. 25 Before the
mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was brought forth; 26 While as yet He had not made
the earth or the fields, Or the primeval dust of the world. 27 When He prepared the heavens, I
was there, When He drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28 When He established the clouds
above, When He strengthened the fountains of the deep, 29 When He assigned to the sea its
limit, So that the waters would not transgress His command, When He marked out
the foundations of the earth, 30
Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman; And I was daily His delight,
Rejoicing always before Him, 31
Rejoicing in His inhabited world, And my delight was with the sons of
men.
There is some controversy
surrounding these verses because some teach this referring to Jesus. No doubt,
we can see some similarities to Jesus in our text, but we have to keep things
in context and realize this is personifying wisdom and not Jesus. It should not
surprise us that there are many similarities between lady wisdom and Deity
because we have already seen how wisdom encompasses everything that God stands
for.
We can see the eternal
qualities of wisdom because God possessed it from the beginning of His works
before the earth and everything on it was created. Without wisdom there would
be no understanding and God could not create wisdom or create the universe
without having wisdom. Therefore, wisdom has been established from everlasting.
Wisdom is seen as being
right there with God while everything was being created. She is called a
“master craftsman,” which means a skilled worker or architect. By God’s wisdom,
Jesus created the heavens and the earth (Jn. 1:1-3; Col. 1:16-17). With our
current technology, we know just out precise and complex everything in our
universe is. Those who honestly look at evidence cannot deny that our universe
had a creator because there is not way it just came to be from an explosion
billions of years ago. Verse 27 and
Isaiah 40:22 points out that wisdom knew that the earth was round long before
man was able to prove it.
Wisdom is also seen as
being a delight to the Lord and rejoicing in what God has created. Also wisdom
delights in us especial when we listen to what she has to say.
Proverbs 8:32 "
Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep
my ways. 33 Hear instruction
and be wise, And do not disdain it.
34 Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my
gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors.
35 For whoever finds me finds life, And obtains favor from
the LORD; 36 But he who sins
against me wrongs his own soul; All those who hate me love death."
While this is
specifically talking about lady wisdom, we can also see Jesus saying these same
words to all people today. Those who heed the words of wisdom from the Word of
God will bless their soul and will find eternal life, but those who reject it
by choosing the pathway of sin will face the worse kind of death, which is
spiritual death.
In Proverbs Chapter 9,
lady wisdom and lady foolish are compared.
The invitation of lady wisdom (Proverbs 9:1-6)
Proverbs 9:1 Wisdom
has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars; 2 She has slaughtered her meat,
She has mixed her wine, She has also furnished her table. 3 She has sent out her maidens,
She cries out from the highest places of the city, 4 "Whoever is simple,
let him turn in here!" As for him who lacks understanding, she says
to him, 5 "Come, eat of
my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Forsake foolishness and live, And go in the way of
understanding.
Lady wisdom is well
established and is always prepared for her guest. She uses her maidens to
continuously invite people to learn from her and she makes her instructions
available for all. She never ceases proclaiming the truth where all can hear
that will listen. Her invitation is for the wise and the foolish. While the
wise can become wiser, the foolish have much more to gain because to turn from
foolishness will cause them to live before God in the way righteousness. Much
of what is said in these verses is similar to the invitation Jesus taught in
the parable of Wedding Banquet (Mt. 22:1-14).
Matthew 22:1 And
Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is
like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants
to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to
come. 4 "Again, he sent
out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have
prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things
are ready. Come to the wedding." '
5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to
his own farm, another to his business. 6
"And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and
killed them. 7 "But
when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his
armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his
servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not
worthy. 9 'Therefore go into
the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went
out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and
good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 "But when the king came in
to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding
garment. 12 "So he said
to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he
was speechless. 13 "Then
the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast
him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth.' 14 "For many are
called, but few are chosen."
What Jesus said in verse
14 applies to the world in general, “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Unfortunately, many will hear the call of wisdom and how to be saved, but only
a few will listen and make eternal life heaven their destination.
The deaf ear of a scoffer (Proverbs 9:7-12)
Proverbs 9:7 "
He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself, And he who rebukes a wicked man
only harms himself. 8 Do
not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will
love you. 9 Give instruction
to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; Teach a just man, and
he will increase in learning. 10
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge
of the Holy One is understanding.
11 For by me your days will be multiplied, And years of life
will be added to you. 12 If
you are wise, you are wise for yourself, And if you scoff, you will bear
it alone."
Those who do not care
about God or righteousness will not take heed to anything wisdom has to offer
them. We would have better success at rebuking a brick wall. It is shame that
some are so stubborn at listening to wisdom that will change their lives for
the better, but there are many like this. Paul gives us similar instruction:
Titus 3:10Reject a
divisive man after the first and second admonition, 11 knowing that such a person is
warped and sinning, being self-condemned.
In contrast, the wise are
willing to learn more because they understand that there is much to learn and
that the more wisdom we have better off we will be. Again, the beginning point
of fulfilling the purpose of Proverbs in stated in verse 10, which is the fear
the Lord. As verse 12 point out, we all stand on our own merit. No one get us
to heaven on their own merit or cause us to taste the flames of hell because
their sinfulness. We must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give
an account for how we have lived our lives (2 Cor. 5:10).
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive
the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good
or bad.
The invitation of lady foolishness (Proverbs 9:13-18)
Proverbs 9:13 A
foolish woman is clamorous; She is simple, and knows nothing. 14 For she sits at the door of her
house, On a seat by the highest places of the city, 15 To call to those who pass by,
Who go straight on their way: 16
"Whoever is simple, let him turn in here"; And as for him
who lacks understanding, she says to him,
17 "Stolen water is sweet, And bread eaten in
secret is pleasant." 18
But he does not know that the dead are there, That her guests are
in the depths of hell.
Lady foolishness is
pictured as being a loud boisterous woman who is cares nothing about wisdom.
She also offers her invitation to all that will listen. She is on the devil’s
side, and she wants to lead as many people as she can to him. She uses temptation
and empty promises to lure the foolish to her. She tries to convince people
that indulging in sin will bring you more pleasure and satisfaction. Like a
mouse that goes for the cheese on mouse trap, the foolish will discover that
they have been deceived and are now in the devil’s trap.
Obviously, we should
clamor for the way of lady wisdom because she offers us truth, happiness, and
home in heaven while lady wisdom offers us lies, temporary pleasures, and home
in hell.
APPLICATION:
Lady wisdom cries out to us
daily. She wants us hear the simply truth, and she will never deceive us. She
is eternal and part of God, and He has shared her with us through the Bible. We
must be willing to learn from her and to listen to what she has to say every
day. Our priorities should include some time set aside for reading and
reflecting on God’s Word. We must not be like Martha, who was so distracted by
daily tasks that she missed out on the wisdom Jesus was teaching (Lk.
10:38-42).
We should make it our
goal to put foolishness and childish things behind us (1 Cor. 13:11). We should
approach each day as opportunity to gain more wisdom so we can learn how to
avoid the snare of the devil. Let us keep our minds on the eternal rewards that
we will enjoy from listening and understand the wisdom that God offers us in
His Word.