22 The Timeless Worth of Wisdom (Proverbs 8:12-21)
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Welcome to the X+1 Podcast, where we meet you where you are with Jesus Christ and seek to take you one step closer to Him.
I’m your host, Luke Metzler, and welcome to episode 22 in our series, ‘Pursuing Wisdom in Proverbs’, where together we’re studying and walking through the book of Proverbs with the intention of growing in our pursuit and possession of wisdom.
Last episode we revisited wisdom’s call. We talked about how Solomon here in Proverbs 8 is reviewing and packaging together all of the various claims he’s made of wisdom in the previous 7 chapters, and we saw that with the different claims he makes of wisdom that are eerily similar to verses in the first few chapters of the book.
In all, we saw that wisdom’s call to you and me is certain, it’s public, personal, and it's trustworthy. And today we’re transitioning to the next section of verses in Proverbs 8, verses 12-21, which show us wisdom’s value in historical time. Let’s read, beginning in verse 12:
“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. 13 The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. 14 I have counsel and sound wisdom; I have insight; I have strength. 15 By me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; 16 by me princes rule, and nobles, all who govern justly. 17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. 18 Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness. 19 My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. 20 I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, 21 granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries.’
Here, wisdom continues her speech to us, describing her timeless value. She reveals the impact she’s had throughout history, and we can divide this impact into two sections:
First, her communicable attributes - those qualities we can share in, though not fully (in vv 12-14), which we see are attributes by which kings and rulers govern justly (in vv 15-16).
Second, the material blessings and honor she faithfully bestows (vv 18-21) on those who love and seek her (v17).
Let’s dive into the first section, where wisdom shares her communicable attributes—the very qualities that enable kings and rulers to lead well.
Verse 12:
‘I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.’
Here we see where wisdom dwells. Wisdom dwells with prudence, and that word prudent means to be thoughtful and careful. To me, prudence is the opposite of haste.
Proverbs 19:2 says ‘whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way’.
One commentator describes prudence as ‘wisdom applied to practice’, saying that ‘wherever true wisdom is, it will lead to action.’
Think of prudence like the work of an experienced gardener. When a gardener plants a garden, they don’t rush to plant everything immediately. Instead, they carefully study the environment, choosing plants suited to the soil and climate, spacing them to allow for growth, and timing the planting so each has the best chance to thrive. They’re still doing stuff, so they are by no means sitting on their hands, but they also aren’t hastily moving things into action.
That’s where wisdom dwells. Wisdom with prudence, not wisdom with haste. Now I’ve gotta confess to you guys this is not easy to apply to our lives and I’ll tell you why, at least for me: It’s hard sometimes to discern whether I am being prudent or just overthinking, and then on the flip it’s also hard sometimes to know whether I’m making haste with my feet or if I genuinely need to move with urgency.
I think we can all agree poor application of this verse would be like seeing someone in dire need of emergency care and saying ‘Ahhhhh, guys listen, maybe we should think more about this, pray on it a little, and then see what happens’. Obviously not! We can’t do that.
For me I think the proper application of this verse is to know and trust that where self-control and good judgment are, there wisdom will be too.
Let’s keep going, verse 13:
13 The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.
I love this verse as a stand alone because if you remember, if you’ve been listening to this series from the beginning, you would know in our second episode we looked at and answered the question: ‘What is the fear of the Lord?’
Proverbs 1:7 says ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…’
And here we see another answer, adding to what we’ve already seen in Proverbs 1:
‘The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.’
This definition proposes the purpose of the fear of the Lord, and that is to align our heart’s with God’s. God wants us to love what He loves and hate what He hates. Therefore, the fear of the Lord is the hatred of evil.
Also notice what comes after: ‘Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.’
God hates pride. He hates it so much He referenced it twice there in the verse. Pride and arrogance God hates. He hates a haughty heart. Further, God hates a heart bent on its own way. Our hearts are deceitful above all things (Jeremiah 17:9), and ‘every intention of the thoughts of (our) heart (is) only evil continually’ (Genesis 6:5). God hates the way of evil. And He also hates perverted speech.
In regards to this verse (Proverbs 8:13), how is it possible for us to be a proud disciple of a lowly Savior? How?
If we genuinely are saved and know Christ, we will be growing in the humility that He so gloriously portrayed in the life He lived for us on earth. He will produce the same humility that is in Him in us. So if you want to know whether you have wisdom, this verse is a good litmus test. Do you hate evil? Do you hate what God hates and love what God loves?
Now as we move on to verse 14, we see what wisdom has. Wisdom has ‘counsel and sound wisdom’, ‘insight’, and ‘strength’.
You know what I love the KJV translation of this verse. That translation says ‘Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.’
See it is not that God has understanding to order and govern the world. But rather He is understanding. We don’t have to understand every circumstance or situation because we know the God who ultimately IS understanding Himself! God’s understanding and wisdom is infinite. His strength is everlasting.
I love what Charles Bridges says on this verse: ‘In all your doubts and anxieties - counsel is mine and sound wisdom. Remember God’s fullness is your portion.’
Remember God’s fullness is your portion. We get to share in Christ. We get to share in these communicable attributes. He wants to impart this wisdom on us. Remember James 1:5-6, ‘if anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all who ask without reproach, and it will be given to him’.
It is by this wisdom presented in verses 12-14 that verse 15,
15 ‘By me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; 16 by me princes rule, and nobles, all who govern justly.’
Again I love Bridges’ words on these verses. He says that when God, when wisdom says ‘By me kings reign’, He is saying kings reign not only by my permission, but by my appointment. He is saying they bear my name. They are stamped with my authority.
And it is here that we can find our rest. Why? Because as Isaiah 9:6 tells us, 'The government of the world is on the shoulders’. Ultimately ‘The Lord reigns’ (Psalm 97:1). The Lord reigns. That’s important to hear especially on the backend of the election here in the US. The Lord reigns.
Do we see these attributes of wisdom in our leadership here in the US? Maybe so, maybe not. Regardless, I find great rest in knowing Jesus sits on the throne and He’s doing just fine. And He would’ve been doing just fine had we elected Kamala President, or the little kid down the street. He would’ve been just fine. And so we can be just fine too.
Now this leads us to the second section in our text, where we see the material blessings and honor she faithfully bestows (vv 18-21) on those who love and seek her (v17).
To me, outside of maybe verse 13, it’s hard to pick, I think verse 17 is the most important verse in this passage.
17 ‘I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.’
Wisdom is found by those who pursue her. But let’s not forget she also pursues us! In the same way with Christ, He pursued you and there’s no chance you could begin to seek Him had He not stirred your heart to do so. I also love the personalness of this verse. It’s clear there is a mutual and personal connection here in this verse.
I can’t harp on that enough. Wisdom is not tips and tricks for the Christian life. Wisdom is a person, the person of Jesus, in whom we find life. I also think it's worth noting that other translations of verse 17 say ‘those who seek me early shall find me’. What an encouragement to a younger guy like me and also to any young listener tuned in. Seek God and His wisdom early! This fading world is too poor of a portion, and it fails in comparison to the treasures early seekers of God find.
Look at the material blessings and honor that we see wisdom give to those who love and seek her in the remainder of the section. Beginning in verse 18,
‘18 Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness. 19 My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. 20 I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, 21 granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries.’
I see eight things wisdom rewards those who love and seek her with in those verses:
Riches (v18)
Honor (v18)
Enduring wealth (v18)
Righteousness (v18)
Fruit better than gold (v19)
Yield better than choice silver (v19)
Granted inheritance (v20)
Filled treasuries (v20)
What treasures do early seekers find! What treasures do any seekers find! I mean there’s so much I could talk about here, but I want to point out one thing and then make a summarizing statement for these verses.
First, there’s a paradox here. When we seek and love wisdom, it’s clear in these verses that riches and enduring wealth is given. Now that doesn’t read ‘if you seek and love wisdom, you will become a millionaire’. It doesn’t say that. But it should give you confidence that the Lord will provide.
The paradox here is that when someone seeks and loves wealth, their end is corruption. It’s clear here wisdom's value is greater than that of silver, gold, or jewels.
Proverbs 16:16 says ‘How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.’
You can genuinely have all the wealth in the world and be absolutely miserable. I think that’s important to point out here. Wisdom is of way more value than material blessings, but also when wisdom is truly sought after and prized as she ought, she rewards her seekers with these things anyway!
Secondly, I want to close with just a blanket statement to summarize this section:
With God, there is ultimately no disappointment.
What do I mean by that?
There is not one person that has ever left the pursuit of God or the pursuit of wisdom empty handed. But I can promise you that there are many who have left the pursuit of wealth or things of this world empty handed. And there are few who pursued those things and actually received them, only to realize they are perishable goods and left them empty anyway.
Jim Carrey is a great example. Carrey once said, "I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
You see the pursuit of worldly things will no doubt leave you empty, whereas the pursuit and possession of Christ, His Spirit, and His Wisdom, leads to everlasting, fulfilling, and imperishable life.
We are guaranteed possession of wisdom if we so choose to pursue and love her. What a guarantee! I think that security of possession alone heightens its value.
And though these words we’ve discussed today were written two thousand years ago, they still hold true today. The value of wisdom over history has not changed.
‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore’ (Hebrews 13:8).
I love you all.
God bless.
