Wisdom literature is not unique to the Bible. In fact, the bible itself refers to the wisdom and wise men of Israel’s neighbors. The wisdom of Egypt (1 Kgs 4:30), Arabia (Jer 49:7), Babylon (Is 47:10) and Phoenecia (Ez 28:3) are all given mention in Holy Scripture. Indeed many of these schools of wisdom emerged earlier in history than Israel. The wisdom of God’s chosen people flowered quite late in the day. And so, the question arises…

What is so distinctive about biblical wisdom?

1. Its Supreme Quality

Its widely accepted that Solomon was the wellspring of the wisdom corpus. Just as David was the spring of the psalms, so Solomon was the fountainhead of the proverbs . It is quite impossible, therefore, to think of Israel’s wisdom without also thinking of Solomon. And when we think of Solomon, we consider a man who possessed an extraordinary level of wisdom.

Several passages emphasize the unprecedented degree of Solomon’s wisdom. After Solomon asks Yahweh for wisdom, the LORD replies, “I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be” (1 Kings 3:12, emphasis added). This unparalleled wisdom is then demonstrated in the following account, when Solomon brilliantly discerns between two claimants to one baby (1 Kings 3:16-28). Solomon’s wisdom is commended further through the visit of the Queen of Sheba. She concludes at the end of their state visit: “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!” (1 Kings 10:6-7).

All of this is designed to demonstrate Solomon’s superior wisdom. The world may have its wise-men, but Solomon towers above them all. And if the wisdom corpus was largely spawned by Solomon, that means that it too has a superior quality.

2. Its Divine Source

Much of wisdom literature has an earthy feel. It reflects ‘life on the ground’ in the dirt and dust of daily life. Nevertheless, this earthy material – we mustn’t forget – has a heavenly source. Unlike other wisdom writings which are purely the product of human reflection, biblical wisdom is divine revelation.

This is not to say for a moment that God bypassed the human mind. We are not claiming that God circumvented the reflections upon experience which human beings are capable of. What we are saying is that the Holy Spirit was ultimately guiding this process. Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes are part of that ‘all Scripture’ which Paul tells us is ‘breathed out by God.’  Biblical wisdom is not merely human observation, it is divine revelation.

3. Its Divine Orientation

Biblical wisdom is God-conscious. This is in contrast to much of the wisdom materials outside the bible – whether in Egypt, or in Waterstones.  Human wisdom is entirely humanly focused. There is usually no mention of God in those writings.

But biblical wisdom is theological.  A repeated maxim in Proverbs is that,  “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”  (Proverbs 9:10. And Proverbs 1:7.  Also see Psalm 111 verse 10)

In biblical thinking, then, wisdom is not merely worldly experience or practical smarts.  The tree of wisdom, with all of its delectable fruit, grows out of the fear of the LORD. Reverencing God, and seeing all life in relation to Him, is the root system out of which the truly wise life develops and grows. The truly wise man is the man who knows God, fears God, relies on God and who lives their life with a constant consciousness of their Creator. Knowing and fearing God is the starting point of all true wisdom. This means that a person may abound in knowledge and experience and still be a fool (see Ps 14:10, Luke 12, James 4). If they haven’t factored God into their equation for living they are unlikely, indeed unable, to live with wisdom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Previous posts in this series:

Why Do We Ignore Wisdom?

Why Bother With Wisdom?

Following on from yesterday’s post, let us now consider some reasons to preach from the wisdom genre.

1.  The value of the Bible

“All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Tim 3:16). Enough said…

2.   The aim of the Bible

Why do we have a bible? One legitimate way to answer that question would be: ‘God has given us the Bible to make us wise.’ In His astounding grace, God has purposed that the Scriptures should make us “wise for salvation.” And that is not all. The Bible is further designed to “thoroughly equip” us for every good work.  In short: the bible is wisdom to be saved by, and wisdom to live by. Therefore to preach wisdom literature is not to preach what is tangential, but central, to the Bible’s stated purpose.

3.  The art of skillful living

Wisdom could be defined as skill in the art of godly living.  Going by that definition, how many of us would dare call ourselves ‘wise’?  Could we not be more adept in our parenting? More skilled in handling our finances? How about our words? Are we always saying the right thing.. at the right time.. in the right manner.. to the right people?

If so, congratulations Solomon! If not, then wisdom opens its arms to embrace us. Wisdom is a goldmine of sagely-counsel; it invites the simple to delve into its plunder!

4.  The perplexities of life

Tim Keller has commented that “Genesis stands behind Proverbs.”  He means that wisdom literature assumes Creation. God made the universe and inbuilt a certain ‘order’ to things. This is not just a predictable material order, but a moral order: human experience has typical patterns. To give but a few instances: righteous people tend to flourish, hard working people tend to make good money, and godless people tend to come to ruin. These are ‘trends’ in God’s ordered world.

But Job, in particular, reminds us that patterns aren’t the same as promises. Job was living a wise life, fearing the Lord, working hard, and raising his children prayerfully. Yet Job loses everything, save his own life. How do we account for this? Surely one thing Job is teaching us is that while the world has order, it also has mystery. While we live our lives in this world there will always be mysteries and perplexities, even for the godliest saint. The trick is to learn to trust God in the dark, as well as in the daylight.

5.  The wisdom of God Personified ​

A striking feature of Proverbs is that wisdom is often personified. Wisdom is frequently personified as a woman (Lady Wisdom), and is famously personified as a Craftsman in the Proverbs 8 account of Creation. The New Testament takes this a step further. There, wisdom is personified in the flesh and blood man, Jesus of Nazareth. The wisdom literature helps prepare us for his final revelation.

Theologians often refer to the three offices which God the Son fulfilled on earth.  Jesus is said to be “prophet”, “priest” and “king.” But we might easily add to that trio: Jesus as the “wise-man.” Our Lord is clearly presented in the gospels as being full of wisdom; one who is greater than Solomon. Much of Jesus’ style of teaching is cast in the wisdom style. Summing it up, Paul could says that “In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”  (Col 2:3). We will better understand our Lord and Savior’s ministry when we’ve first grappled with the wisdom literature of the Old Testament.