Proverbs – Day 8
Scripture: Proverbs 8
Does not wisdom call out?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
At the highest point along the way,
where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
beside the gate leading into the city,
at the entrance, she cries aloud:
“To you, O people, I call out;
I raise my voice to all mankind.
You who are simple, gain prudence;
you who are foolish, set your hearts on it.
Listen, for I have trustworthy things to say;
I open my lips to speak what is right.
My mouth speaks what is true,
for my lips detest wickedness.
All the words of my mouth are just;
none of them is crooked or perverse.
To the discerning all of them are right;
they are upright to those who have found knowledge.
Choose my instruction instead of silver,
knowledge rather than choice gold,
for wisdom is more precious than rubies,
and nothing you desire can compare with her.
“I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence;
I possess knowledge and discretion.
To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate pride and arrogance,
evil behavior and perverse speech.
Counsel and sound judgment are mine;
I have insight, I have power.
By me kings reign
and rulers issue decrees that are just;
by me princes govern,
and nobles—all who rule on earth.
I love those who love me,
and those who seek me find me.
With me are riches and honor,
enduring wealth and prosperity.
My fruit is better than fine gold;
what I yield surpasses choice silver.
I walk in the way of righteousness,
along the paths of justice,
bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me
and making their treasuries full.
“The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works,
before his deeds of old;
I was formed long ages ago,
at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
When there were no watery depths, I was given birth,
when there were no springs overflowing with water;
before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was given birth,
before he made the world or its fields
or any of the dust of the earth.
I was there when he set the heavens in place,
when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep,
when he established the clouds above
and fixed securely the fountains of the deep,
when he gave the sea its boundary
so the waters would not overstep his command,
and when he marked out the foundations of the earth.
Then I was constantly at his side.
I was filled with delight day after day,
rejoicing always in his presence,
rejoicing in his whole world
and delighting in mankind.
“Now then, my children, listen to me;
blessed are those who keep my ways.
Listen to my instruction and be wise;
do not disregard it.
Blessed are those who listen to me,
watching daily at my doors,
waiting at my doorway.
For those who find me find life
and receive favor from the Lord.
But those who fail to find me harm themselves;
all who hate me love death.”
Devotional:
We first encountered the “woman” Wisdom in chapter 1. Here she is again roaming the busy city streets, loudly calling out for people to follow her. Part of what she has to say concerns the relationship between wisdom and wealth. On the one hand, Wisdom asks us to “Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, for wisdom is more precious than rubies” (vv. 10-11). Riches can be spent, stolen, traded away foolishly, or otherwise lost. Wisdom, however, cannot be taken from you. Its “compounding interest” is guaranteed – what other investment can claim that?
Yet while Wisdom exhorts us to seek her first, she also says that with her “are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity” and that she bestows “wealth on those who love me” (vv. 18). Just as God rewarded Solomon with a wise and discerning heart as well as wealth and honor (1 Kings 3:12,13), Wisdom offers us the same deal: pursue God and wisdom and you will be rewarded financially. In other verses, we read how pursuing wisdom also leads to a “long life” (e.g., Pr. 3:16). However, we must also remember that the Proverbs state what typically happens; not everyone who pursues wisdom will necessarily become rich, famous, or live to age 100!
The chapter ends with a wonderful picture of Wisdom as she stands with God at the creation of the world. She watches as oceans, mountains, fields, and clouds all come into being. Far from being a scientific accident, all creation is an intentional act of a wise and all-knowing God. “By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; by his knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew” (Pr 3:19-20).
The Apostle John described Christ’s relationship with God the Father with a striking similarity: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:1-4,14). And, just as Wisdom tells us to listen and keep her ways, Christ tells us that those who love Him keep His commandments (John 14:15).
Key Verses:
“Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the LORD.” ~ Proverbs 8:34-35
Questions:
- Is it easier for you to pursue wealth or wisdom?
- What are the short- and long-term impacts of one over the other?
