I am hoping to post on this subject tomorrow, but I wanted to direct you to a helpful interview where Douglas O’Donnell attempts to answer the tricky question of how do we preach Christ from the wisdom genre?

First, he answers in general terms:

Jesus is presented in three ways. First, he is the wisdom sage par excellence. Like the sage of Proverbs 1:26, Jesus taught practical, intellectual, moral, and mysterious wisdom to the young, the simple, and the already wise, using proverbial sayings, parables, beatitudes, and many other figures of speech. Second, Jesus is wisdom acted. That is, in all his relationships, mostly notably his relationship with his heavenly Father, Jesus acted as the obedient son—the perfectly wise child—should. Put differently, our Lord Jesus, in his incarnate nature, perfectly and perpetually feared the LORD. From the cradle to the cross, he walked the way of wisdom. Third, Jesus is wisdom embodied—he is the very “wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24), “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3). And he beckons all to come to him for rest and fullness of life.

Collin Hansen then goes on to ask, how would you explain the unique message of each OT wisdom book as it anticipates Jesus? O’Donnell answers:

Proverbs: For our own good and the glory of God, the book of Proverbs invites and instructs God’s covenant people—especially young men—to embrace wisdom. For Christians, such wisdom comes through fearing God’s beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 5:21), and walking in his wisdom.

Ecclesiastes: Ecclesiastes is about finding the goodness of God while living within the vanity of this world. Such goodness or “wisdom” is found only through a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. This relationship involves trusting in Christ and heeding his commands, which brings rest, justice, and joy.

Job: The book of Job prefigures the purposeful sufferings of Christ. That is, the story of God’s servant Job prepares us for the story of Jesus, the suffering servant, who in his passion and death shows how innocent suffering can show forth the justice of God.