Wisdom

Kingdom Building

June 11, 2019

Scripture Reading: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

Does not wisdom call,
   and does not understanding raise her voice?
On the heights, beside the way,
   at the crossroads she takes her stand;
beside the gates in front of the town,
   at the entrance of the portals she cries out:
‘To you, O people, I call,
   and my cry is to all that live. –Proverbs 8:1-4

The Hebrew word chokmah*, translated in the scripture above as wisdom, is used in the ethical and religious sense as the divine wisdom personified. Are we called to personify divine wisdom?

Merriam-Webster picks up on this idea in its first definition of the word wisdom** and list some additional meanings that provide clarity.

  • the effectual mediating principle or personification of God’s will in the creation of the world
  • the intelligent application of learning: ability to discern inner qualities and essential relationships
  • good sense:  judgment, prudence

We have a lot of information in our world today and a lot of well-trained, smart people. These are good things. Problems arise when we do not practice wisdom regarding what we know.  A sad state of affairs exists in our world when we use our intelligence for all the wrong reasons. Rather than pooling our skills and talents for the betterment of all, we use it to divide and compete for wealth and power admiring ourselves for our accomplishments. Lists of the richest people in the world are routinely shared in media. I Googled, top ten wisest people in the world,today and got zero results. The response included lists of the smartest people in the world. I even searched for the wisest people in history and got no response but the smartest people.

Perhaps we have problems recognizing the qualities of God we are called to personify. How do we know what the will of God is for all God’s creation without extensive study in recognizing God’s work in our world and building a relationship with God?

Prayer: Creator of all, bless us with your wisdom has we strive to do your will in striving for the betterment of all?

*https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2451.htm
**http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/wisdom

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.