606_Wisdom from above (Proverbs 2)

Proverbs 2:1-15 My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 guarding the paths of justice
and watching over the way of his saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice
and equity, every good path;
10 for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 discretion will watch over you,
understanding will guard you,
12 delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
to walk in the ways of darkness,
14 who rejoice in doing evil
and delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 men whose paths are crooked,
and who are devious in their ways.

A young apprentice asked his master carpenter why he insisted on measuring every piece of wood so carefully before making even the smallest cut. “I already know the length,” the apprentice said. The master replied quietly, “Knowing the length is not the same as submitting to the measure.” Years later, the apprentice understood. Without the humility to submit to an external standard, rightness or accuracy cannot be assured. Wisdom lies in not living by one’s assumptions or confidence, but in submission to the One who shapes reality and sets the ultimate standard.

The book of Proverbs underscores the truth that the Lord is the source of wisdom, and those who wholeheartedly seek wisdom inevitably find that they know God. Proverbs 2:1–15 unfolds this theme. Wisdom is not a human invention or refinement. The world may define wisdom as the right use of knowledge, yet who determines what is “right”? Not culture, not the times, nor the situation – for what is now accepted may soon be dismissed or condemned in another age. Human wisdom is self-serving and self-contradictory.

Proverbs gives us a different starting point. “For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” Wisdom is the result of divine revelation. True wisdom in Scripture is neither intelligence nor brilliant decision-making. Rather, the wise are those who live in right relationship with God and therefore with others. It is morally attuned to God’s holiness and goodness. It is rooted in faith, hope, and love. It results in a lifestyle of obedience and reverence, a walk directed by the fear of God.

James echoed this truth, distinguishing two types of wisdom. “The wisdom from above,” he says, “is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits.” By contrast, wisdom that is earthly and unspiritual is driven by envy, selfish ambition, and pride, and it produces confusion and disorder. Scripture does not deny that such wisdom can be clever or effective, but it does reveal the source and end of these types of wisdom. Knowledge divorced from reverence easily becomes a weapon of pride; conversely, wisdom from God always accompanies humility and obedience. As Proverbs reminds us, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.”

The question of wisdom first appears in the Garden of Eden. Long before philosophers debated ethics or cultures shaped moral frameworks, God placed a simple command before humanity: “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat.” God did not forbid knowledge itself. Adam was already getting to know God, walk with him, and learn truth from him. Hence, the issue was never information; it was about who has the right to define good and evil.

God never intended humanity to remain ignorant forever; He intended us to learn as children, not seize truth as rebels. That is why James urges us, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God.” God wanted his people, beginning with Adam and Eve, to gain knowledge of all truth through their walk with him. In contrast, Satan tempted them to seize the opportunity to gain knowledge apart from God—independent of Him and ultimately in competition with Him. “You will be like God, knowing good and evil,” the serpent said. This ignored the fact that God had already created man in his own likeness.

The temptation was to become autonomous, to determine truth without trust, to attain wisdom without submission. In this view, obedience is unnecessary, waiting on God is limiting, and the highest wisdom is only to be gained through rebellion against all authority; self-definition is freedom. This is earthly wisdom. James’ description of human wisdom thus goes all the way back to Eden – it is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.

Yet in Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Hidden does not mean withheld; it means reserved to be thrown open through trust. Adam thrust forth his hand to grasp the forbidden fruit through defiance. But Christ opens these treasures to anyone who comes humbly to ask. “Come unto me, all who labor and are heavy laden; I will give you rest,” He invites.

For wisdom is simply the fruit of humility – knowing our complete helplessness, while trusting God’s measureless and unchanging love, knowing his unlimited power, and rightly estimating his boundless wisdom. This inevitably leads to dependence on his leading and unquestioned obedience to his perfect, good, and acceptable will.

After eating the forbidden fruit, “the eyes of both were opened.” Yet what followed was not enlightenment but shame. Instead of freedom, they became afraid of God. They exchanged innocence for self-justification. In Paul’s words, “Claiming to be wise, they became fools.” Grasping for freedom, they lost life because they chose to be estranged from God, the author of life.

Christ offered himself as the second Adam who resisted the temptation and won back for man what the first Adam lost. Where Adam seized, Christ let go of his own will. Adam sought autonomy; Christ willingly offered himself in love to God’s will, even to the point of death on a cross. Where Adam reached for the forbidden fruit that he might become like God, Christ revealed what it meant to be human, in his complete yet unforced obedience even unto death. And God therefore raised him to the highest place in heaven and on earth. Rightly, Christ “became to us wisdom from God.” The seizing of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, which brought death, was finally cancelled at the Cross, the tree of life to anyone who believes in Christ Jesus, the Son of God.

Today, it’s all too common to say,“I decide what is right for me,” or “Truth is relative,” or “Morality is subjective.” In the words of scripture, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Conversely, wisdom is living in the fear of the Lord, and therefore living in love and reverence towards God and others.

Despite the availability of unprecedented information today—whether scientific advancement, moral reasoning, or psychological insight—Scripture warns us that knowledge only puffs us up. Paul warns believers not to be taken captive by philosophy and empty deceit. To grasp at ungodly wisdom casts us adrift from God, no matter how much intelligence or success it may appear to bestow.

Solomon’s life clearly illustrates this. Though he chose God’s wisdom and was known to possess wisdom beyond any other human of any age, he fell away from the fear of the Lord. This corrupted his wisdom, and he became a fool who threw away all he had gained by losing the favor of the Lord. Wisdom must be realized through obedience to the revelation of God in scripture. Past experiences must be made good by continued perseverance. Spiritual gifts do not guarantee faithfulness, which alone guarantees the eternal reward.

Proverbs shows us the reality of wisdom – it is trusting and obeying God. Christ is the life and light of men, the one who showed what wisdom looks like – obedience to God in humble loving trust, which rests in God’s salvation. The temptation remains the same in all ages. The path to victory also remains unchanged – the fear of the Lord, which lays the foundation of a life of wisdom, and of eternal life, through the love and mercy of God.

Let us learn to ask God before we act, to listen before we decide, and to submit before we assert. Let us evaluate our choices by God’s Word and not by convenience or culture. Let us cultivate hearts that tremble at His voice and delight in His ways. Blessed indeed are those who find wisdom and gain understanding, for they walk with Jesus Christ Himself and have fellowship with the Father – theirs is life eternal. God bless.