Wisdom Calling
Wisdom, mural by Robert Lewis Reid. Second Floor, North Corridor. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C. Caption underneath reads “KNOWLEDGE COMES BVT WISDOM LINGERS”.
Oh to be wise…
Wisdom is defined as
knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.
Very useful and helpful attributes to possess.
In biblical terms, such wisdom would be deemed as following God’s ways, walking in justice, knowing what he would do.
But in Proverbs, Wisdom becomes the personification of those things – and more besides.
Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31 (CEV)
In Praise of Wisdom
8 With great understanding,
Wisdom is calling out
2 as she stands at the crossroads
and on every hill.
3 She stands by the city gate
where everyone enters the city,
and she shouts:
4 “I am calling out
to each one of you!
22 From the beginning,
I was with the Lord.
I was there before he began
23 to create the earth.
At the very first,
the Lord gave life to me.
24 When I was born,
there were no oceans
or springs of water.
25 My birth was before
mountains were formed
or hills were put in place.
26 It happened long before God
had made the earth
or any of its fields
or even the dust.
27 I was there when the Lord
put the heavens in place
and stretched the sky
over the surface of the sea.
28 I was with him when he placed
the clouds in the sky
and created the springs
that fill the ocean.
29 I was there when he set
boundaries for the sea
to make it obey him,
and when he laid foundations
to support the earth.
30 I was right beside the Lord,
helping him plan and build.
I made him happy each day,
and I was happy at his side.
31 I was pleased with his world
and pleased with its people.
Wisdom demands attention, calling out loudly to everybody. This is not a message to be whispered or hidden, but yelled from the rooftops for everyone to hear.
We go on to hear a description of wisdom. Wisdom as an intrinsic part of who and what God is.
We see Wisdom as God’s life before creation, there with him as everything was put in place. So are we to understand her as
Spirit of God was hovering over the waters (Genesis 1:2)?
Kenneth T Aitken suggests she was “God’s intimate companion” (p83). She is as at home with God as she is with human beings living in his world.
Wisdom speaks sense because she was with God from the beginning. She was “in” on creation. She understands intrinsically how everything should work. That is why she is to be listened to, why she has a word for each and every person in the world, regardless of who or what they are. No one is above her, no one is below her. She has a unique insight into our world.
Wisdom can be seen as God’s Spirit, God’s voice into where we are – we should be listening to what she is calling – that we might know truth, right and justice.
Lord,
may I hear your voice
speaking truth and right and justice.
Over the noise of life,
over the decisions I have to make,
into relationships
and day-to-day living,
may I hear
all you have to say.
May I know
your ways,
your answers,
your direction,
your life.
Lord,
help me to listen
to you
Pam's Perambulation 
And the promise of James 1:5 – God will give Wisdom to all who ask. Also, “how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”
Very inspirational and timely indeed. Its the wisdom of God we should seek and not of Man.
Thank you. Very true