Lately, God has been giving me wisdom. Lots of wisdom! So much wisdom I've been overflowing with knowledge! This is a good thing, a very marvelous, awesome, thing.
I've been reading systematically through the book of Job in these past couple of months. Out of all the 42 chapters, chapters 28 and 29 stand out the most to me. In fact, in my pocket ESV Bible I outlined the majority of 28, and kept it in my mind that chapter 29 compliments chapter 28. Just a few verses in Job to get you started off with:
Job 1:21 - And he said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord."
Job 8:5-7 - If you will seek God and plead with the Almighty for mercy, if you are pure and upright, surely then he will rouse himself for you and restore your rightful habitation. And though your beginning was small, your latter days will be very great."
The book of Job is just full of wisdom and knowledge, flat out. Period.
In Job 26, we hit the tip of the iceberg on what the wisdom of God is and His dominion. When we come to chapter 28:12-28, we see that our mere human knowledge is not equal to a single ounce of the amount of God's knowledge... v.13 - "Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living." This also explains where wisdom comes from, as will another verse in this same chapter later on. Wisdom is not in us when we are born. Rather, it is given to us by God Himself!
If we seek to have wisdom, we must first pray that God will grant it to us.
In verses 12-19, the statements say what wisdom is not, and how wisdom is worth more than anything. v.15 - "It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price." v.18 - "...the price of wisdom is above pearls."
So here we see what wisdom is NOT and how nothing, absolutely NOTHING, can get you the wisdom that only comes from God. So is this to say that people who are not of God's elect have no wisdom at all? Exactly. If you are not a child of God, you are on Satan's side of the fence and are in utter darkness before Him. This will be proven in a later verse.
In verses 20-22, we have questions posed asking where wisdom and understanding are... v.21 - "It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air." Reading this, we begin to understand that wisdom comes from God alone.
Verses 23-28 explain where wisdom comes from, how it is obtained, and also speaks of the sovereignty of God.
This is where I make my point...
Back to verse 12 it says "But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?" v. 20 - "From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding?" v.23 - "God understands the way to it, and he knows its place." v.28 - "And he said to man, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.' "
In these three paragraphs, we are given the knowledge and wisdom to understand and comprehend where our wisdom comes from! The truth is, we cannot understand it simply because it's given to us by God. In verse 28 the phrase "And he said to man" meaning that God declared what wisdom was, and where it came from, and that we do not have it in us when we are born. So, it is correct to exclaim that people who are not of God do not have wisdom "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom".
Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom... So what is the "fearing" of the Lord? Are we supposed to be scared of God? By all means NO! Why, when we are in the light, be afraid of the dark? Darkness is not in us if we are children of Light.
My good friend Abe says "Fear of the Lord is an urgent desire to please God on the basis of His holiness and omnipotence."
By understanding this, we come to the realization that people who are not of God do not have wisdom because they cannot see Him (in their everyday life), know Him (as their Lord and Savior), or please Him (for they are living in darkness all of their days). So, let's run this over one more time to really hit it home. v. 12 says "But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?" and v. 28 answers with "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.' "
I encourage you, reader, to do a systematic reading of a book in the Bible. Break down every single verse you come upon, and apply it to your knowledge of God and understand how it relates to you and your relationship with God and everyone among you.
I'm excited to continue on my journey through the Bible and understand the purposes God will reveal to me. Just last night I started reading systematically through 1 John with Amanda. What an edifying hour and a half just to get through the first chapter!
I pray that as I continue my journey, the nourishment of my mind will bring forth glory to my Lord and Savior!
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