Wisdom calls
1 Who calls? Is it not Wisdom?
Who lifts up her voice?
2 Is it not Knowledge?
She shouts from the hilltops
and waits by the crossroads;
3 in the vicinity of the city gates she speaks,
4 “To you, people, I call,
for my message is directed to all that live,
5 so that the ignorant may learn
and the thoughtless come to their senses.
6 Listen to me for I speak of vital things
and everything I say is true.
7 Truthful words come from my mouth
and my lips do not lend themselves to evil.
8 All my words are right,
none are twisted or deceitful.
9 The intelligent will verify their truth,
the wise perceive their sincerity.
10 Prefer my teaching to silver
and seek wisdom rather than gold,
11 because wisdom has more value than any jewel
and all that you may desire cannot equal it.
12 I, Wisdom, dwell with discretion
and count prudence among my friends.
13 The fear of Yahweh is rejection of evil.
I hate all pride, arrogance, wicked ways and lies,
14 but I love counsel, discretion, prudence and strength.
15 Kings reign by my power,
their ministers issue just laws;
16 by me princes govern,
and the great and noble of the earth as well.
17 I love those who love me
and go to meet those who seek me.
18 Riches and honor are with me,
true well-being and upright living.
19 More precious than silver and gold
are my fruit and my yield.
20 I proceed on the path of righteousness
and make use of the ways of justice,
21 giving riches to those who love me,
and filling their cellars.
Yahweh formed me at the beginning
22 Yahweh created me first,
at the beginning of his works.
23 He formed me from of old,
from eternity, even before the earth.
24 The abyss did not exist when I was born,
the springs of the sea had not gushed forth,
25 the mountains were still not set in their place
nor the hills, when I was born
26 before he made the earth or countryside,
or the first grains of the world’s dust.
27 I was there when he made the skies
and drew the earth’s compass on the abyss,
28 when he formed the clouds above
and when the springs of the ocean emerged;
29 when he made the sea with its limits,
that it might not overflow.
When he laid the foundations of the earth,
30 I was close beside him,
the designer of his works,
and I was his daily delight,
forever playing in his presence,
31 playing throughout the world
and delighting to be with humans.
32 Now then, my sons, listen to me:
happy are those who follow my ways.
33 Listen to my teaching and gain wisdom;
do not ignore it.
34 Happy are those who listen to me
and wait at my gates every day,
watching, close to my threshold.
35 Those who find me find life:
theirs is Yahweh’s blessing.
36 Those who offend me will undergo affliction;
they hate me for they love death.
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Comments Proverbs, Chapter 8
• 8.1 Wisdom speaks again in this poem. We understand that this Wisdom is the wisdom found in the books of the Bible. Biblical words are the Word of God and because of that even when they seem naive, or “old hat” at times, they are always bearers of life (Jesus will say that the word of God is a seed).
All the benefits that will be reaped by the frequent reading of the Bible are listed: to begin with, the fear of God, that is to say, appreciating God above all things. Then culture that enables us to be leaders and to undertake responsible tasks. Finally success in life.
Many youths and adults who are not well educated think they will always be inferior: they do not believe they are capable of performing well either in ministry or in community development. They must realize that the regular study of the Bible will not only strengthen their faith, but be a starting point for human wisdom and enabling them to guide others.
• 22. Yahweh created me first, at the beginning of his works. Note the poetic way of presenting wisdom as if it were someone, as if it were a daughter of God: I was his daily delight, forever playing in his presence; playing throughout the world. Such figures of speech contain a religious discovery of the last centuries before Christ.
For a very long time the Bible insisted on the fact that there is only one God and that he has nothing to do with the countless gods of the pagans. Now believers sense that there is something missing in their knowledge of Yahweh. How can God be a source of life and love if he is locked up in his solitude? Thanks to the Bible, believers know that besides being the Almighty and Holy God, the Lord becomes present to his people, in the Temple and the Cloud, and that he reveals himself to the prophets to whom he sends his Spirit.
Thus, in the last books of the Old Testament, the authors speak of the Spirit, the Wisdom, the Power, the Providence of God as if they were both something of God and something different from him, like characters sharing God’s mysterious life and through whom he is involved in human affairs.
This is a way of preparing for the great revelation which will happen with the coming of Jesus. God is one in three persons and from the beginning his eternal Son “through whom all things were made” and who came to live among us was with the Father (see Jn 1:1-4; Col 1:15 and Heb 1:2-3).
Thus Wisdom is a figure of Christ. Christians came to see it as an image of their mother, Mary. In fact, more than any other creature, she was present in God’s plans from the beginning and deserves to be called “Throne of Wisdom” since she was so intimately united with the Son, the Wisdom of God.
Happy are those who listen to me (v. 34). Thus the Wisdom of God speaks to the be ginner taking his first steps in search of wisdom.
Who is this beginner? Perhaps the one who enrolled in a reading course because she wanted to better her situation; or one who dedicates his days off to taking a course in unions in order to serve better his fellow workers; or the one who studies at night after work; or the one who does not go to bed without having read a biblical passage with his wife, etc. The wisdom you will gain comes from God himself, the source of all truth, who calls men and women to share in his wisdom.
This student may not reach a highly-prized knowledge, nor will he graduate with honors in this world! It does not matter. Because he decided to live more responsibly and to develop his human potential, God will see him as one of his children and one day, will give him the true wisdom which is in God.
We find two similar texts in Wisdom 7:21 and Sirach 24:5.