“I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.” (Pr 8:23 AV)
The eighth chapter of Proverbs is a personification of wisdom. We know wisdom is not a person. But in this chapter, we learn wisdom has divine qualities such as eternality. Wisdom is simply the knowledge of God. It is what God thinks and how God does things. Wisdom is that attribute that designed and spoke into existence all that we see. Wisdom existed before God created anything. Wisdom existed from eternity, and will continue to do so into eternity. Understanding the eternal nature of wisdom, we can understand it to be absolute. We can understand the wisdom of God to be that upon which all else rests. Every creature, purpose, and situation was caused directly or indirectly by wisdom. This also means wisdom is not relative. Wisdom does not change with situations. There are absolute principles that play a part in every situation and the answer to that situation will also be absolute. Wisdom does not bend to meet a situation differently than an identical situation. Wisdom should change the situation and not the situation, wisdom.
Sometimes we are too quick to find what we think is a pragmatic and wise solution, but in the long run, it is not wise. Yesterday, I read of Rueben and Gad who were two tribes of Israel heavy into ranching. They noticed the land on the east side of Jordan was very conducive to raising cattle. They bartered with Moses and God to allow them to settle to the east of Jordan rather than cross the river and settle with the rest of the nation to the west of Jordan. Wisdom would say this was a prudent request. However, there were several problems with this. First, if an enemy were to attack, they would be on their own. There was no natural defense to the east and Jordan lay to the west. They would be trapped. This is exactly what happened. They were constantly harassed by Assyria and eventually fell to them. Second, they had not completely spied out Canaan and were not aware of the pasture that could have been provided had they gone over Jordan. The valley of Megiddo was a plush valley ripe for raising cattle. There was also direct access to the sea and trade would have been much easier. Third, and most importantly, with Jordan running between them and the temple, they would be tempted to create their own centre of worship, which they did, because Jordan was too much of an obstacle to cross. All in all, what seemed like a wise choice turned out not to be so.
There may be a workable solution, but that does not make it the right solution. There may be a temporary fix that works, but it is not the wise thing to do. Wisdom existed before our trial and it will continue to exist long after it is over. Praying and seeking God’s face is the wisest thing to do. Going to His word which has all the answers we will ever need is the next step. To go through life without seeking the wisdom of God is absolute foolishness. It is the very definition of failure. God has given us His eternal wisdom in the form of His word. He has given us the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that will teach us His word and enable us to apply it. Wisdom has always been there. It is not a mystery. The first verse of this same chapter says that wisdom cries out from the highest vantage point. Wisdom is obvious if we will simply listen. It is there. It always has been. It is absolute and unchanging. Wisdom desires to be shared. It desires to be applied. It will not force itself upon us. We must welcome it.
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