Proverbs 8

All about wisdom--how it's more valuable than gold or silver, how you only need to look for it to find it ("Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened" Matthew 7:7), how it existed at the creation of the world. Wisdom isn't really something that people talk about today. Intelligence, knowledge, smarts, yes. But wisdom? Not really, except in fantasy stories when there's a wise old man/woman who gives the here the information they need. Even then, though, is that knowledge or wisdom? Is there a difference? I think knowledge can be wisdom--a knowledge of God, of how to help people, how the world works--but it can also be something else--the knowledge of all the capitols in the world, or of the chemicals in the Kreb's cycle, or of how to fix a car. Wisdom, God's wisdom, is knowledge of Him and His ways, following those ways and not allowing yourself to be tempted away, or at least knowing the things that really tempt you and avoiding them. God's wisdom is different than the world's wisdom ("Don't fool yourself! If you think you are wise in the things of this world, you will have to become foolish before you can be truly wise. This is because God considers the wisdom of this world to be foolish. It is just as the Scriptures say, 'God catches the wise when they try to outsmart him.'" 1 Corinthians 3:19-23), more life-giving and less constraining, I think (God does offer freedom). The world's wisdom is so set in its ways--do this or you'll look stupid and fail. I suppose God's is too--My way or hell.

Hm.  That's stumped me. Well, God's intentions are so different--to love us, to free us from sin. The worlds just wants its so because that's how people do it, or that's what it thinks. Does that make sense?

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Psalm 111:10