So if I have taken the easy and evil road it is not because I didn’t have sound advice.”
–Ernest Haycox (Whispering Range)
“In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.”
–Job 1:1 (NIV)
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I recently started reading a book by Bryce Dominic Valor, and right off the bat it had this: “We are drowning in information but starved for wisdom.” That is the part of the premise we see in Proverbs 8. People do not understand wisdom, and that is clear because if they did they would not shun or mock the things of God. We see in the two verses below that wisdom is tied directly to the fear of the Lord. “Coming to wisdom requires coming to God, and coming to God means turning away from all that God hates…” (NKJV Study Bible)
12 — I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge and discretion.
13 — The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate. (NKJV)
Wisdom is personified and speaks to the way of holiness. Do not listen to false teachers, those who would deceive. The true worship of Christ is distinguished by the call to holiness. He alone is altogether righteous and holy. He hates evil and every evil work (Beasley). Know this that man is sinful and undone. “The way of holiness leads only by the cross of Christ, where the holiness of God met the sinfulness of man.” (Beasley).
We see in these verses that wisdom is a person; the person of Jesus Christ. He is wisdom personified. Wisdom, then, is part of the grand character of God. When people reject God they are rejecting wisdom. Evil and wickedness are hateful to Him; therefore, if we belong to Him, we will hate these things also. (McGee) Those who partake of them show that they in reality hate wisdom and refuse to be guided by it.
Prudence means discretion; that is, being cautious in one’s actions. This is necessary for wisdom. J.L. Flores says that it is “the best manner in which to carry out what wisdom has designed.” For example, “wisdom decrees that a certain word is to be spoken. Prudence decides upon the best time, place, and manner in which to say it.” (Flores) Adam Clarke adds this, “wisdom applies to practice; wherever there is true wisdom it will lead to action.” So wisdom is not passive.
Wisdom and prudence then act in union for the promotion of moral ends. Satan will try to deceive by offering false wisdom and prudence as he did Eve in the Garden. Scripture declares, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12, NKJV) Man’s wisdom and judgment are often misleading, that is why diligent study and knowledge of God’s Word is vital.
We know what is “that good, and holy, and acceptable will of God” through the use of holy, godly wisdom. Stephen Charnock states that “Whatsoever wisdom there is in the world, it is but a shadow of the wisdom of God.” We are to avoid evil, and Paul goes further by saying we are to “avoid the appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonian 5:22, NKJV) The ESV puts it this way, “abstain from every form of evil.” (Hmm, good thing to remember as we enter this devil’s holiday of Halloween). We read in Romans, “Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.” (12:9, NKJV) This means that we are to be repulsed by something that they shun and avoid it at all costs (Renner). Evil–that is “anything that is full of destruction, disaster, harm, or danger” (Renner) to the physical, mental, or spirit. To honor the Lord is then to hate evil.
What then will you do with wisdom? Do you listen to it or turn from it to your own ways and opinions? Do you fear the Lord enough, honor Him enough, to hate and shun the things that He hates? The choice again belongs to us. Choose godly wisdom or choose man’s and the ways of the world. One keeps and leads to life eternal, the other is the way of perdition.