1 I, too, am a mortal man like others, a descendant of the first human being formed from clay. My flesh was molded in a mother’s womb;
2 her blood formed me for ten months from the seed of man, given in pleasure, the companion of sleep.
3 Once born, I breathed the air com mon to everyone; I fell on the earth, the same for all; my first cry was like that of other infants.
4 I was nourished, cared for and wrapped in swaddling clothes;
5 indeed, no other king began life dif ferently.
6 For there is but one way into life for all and one way out of it.
I prayed and wisdom was given to me
7 I prayed and understanding was given to me; I asked earnestly and the spirit of Wisdom came to me.
8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones and I considered wealth as nothing compared with her.
9 I preferred her to any jewel of inestimable value, since gold beside her is nothing but a few grains of sand, and silver but mud.
10 I loved her more than wealth and beauty and even preferred her to light, because her radiance never dies.
11 She brought with her all other good things, untold riches in her hands.
12 I rejoiced at all that came with Wisdom without knowing she was their mother.
13 What I learned without self-interest I share freely and with no desire to conceal her value;
14 for she is an inexhaustible treasure for man and those who possess her have gained the friendship of God, commended to him by the fruits of her discipline.
15 May God grant me to speak with discernment and reflect in a way worthy of the gifts I have received, for he is the guide of Wisdom and the corrector of the wise.
16 For we are in God’s hands, we ourselves, our words, our understanding and technical knowledge.
17 He, in fact, has given me true knowledge of what is, of the world and the properties of the elements;
18 the beginning, the end and the times in between; the alternation of the solstices and the succession of the seasons;
19 the cycles of the year and the position of the stars;
20 the natures of animal species and the ways of wild beasts; the power of spirits and human reasoning; the varieties of plants and medicinal properties of roots.
The reflection of eternal light
21 I have come to know everything we see and everything hidden,
22 because Wisdom, who designed them all, taught me.
In her is a spirit that is intelligent, saintly, unique, manifold, sub tle, active, concise, pure and lu cid. It cannot corrupt, loves what is good and nothing can restrain it;
23 it is beneficent, loving humankind, stead fast, dependable, calm though almighty. It sees everything and pe netrates all spirits, however intel ligent, subtle and pure they may be.
24 Wisdom, in fact, surpasses in mo bility all that moves, and being so pure pervades and permeates all things.
25 She is a breath of the power of God, a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty; nothing impure can enter her.
26 She is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of God’s action and an image of his goodness.
27 She is but one, yet Wisdom can do all things and, herself unchanging, she renews all things. She enters holy souls, making them prophets and friends of God,
28 for God loves only those who live with Wisdom.
29 She is indeed more beautiful than the sun and surpasses all the constellations; she outrivals light,
30 for light gives way to night, but evil cannot prevail against Wisdom.
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Comments Wisdom, Chapter 7
• 7.7 All this page is an invitation to seek Wisdom as one would seek a spouse: we remember that at this time sovereign rulers would “espouse” such and such divinity which allowed them at times to take possession, in the name of their spouse, of the treasures in its temple (2Mac 1:14). Seeking the Wisdom of God is no different from what we do when we speak of union with Christ: we must not forget that he is un-created Wisdom. This communion is not a matter of something sentimental: it is the costly and never-ending search for the one who is the Truth.
I preferred her to any jewel of inestimable value. See Mt 13:44-45.
• 21. See commentary of Proverbs 8:22: it is the same theme. Wisdom comes from God: it is the same Wisdom that gives order to the universe and which is the presence of God in us – his presence, as always, through his Son.
Nothing impure can enter her. Note the optimism found in this description. Because she is “holy and pure” the wisdom of God penetrates everything, even what is impure and imperfect, enlightening our slow and limited spirit. The Jews of the time learned from the Law that they had to remain “clean” and stay away from all that is “unclean”: for example, when two people touched each other, the unclean person contaminated the other (see Lev 11:1; and Hg 2:11). Here, it is the wisdom of God that overcomes darkness and impurity (see Eph 5:13). Nothing is absolutely bad in itself: it is bad if it could have been better, and it is good if in a concrete way nothing better could have been accomplished.
Evil cannot prevail against Wis-dom. The Chris-tian, rooted in God’s word, brings light where darkness ruled: he must be present and active, without fear of such involvement, wherever problems of his country, his work, his daily life are being decided. Light and justice will triumph and renew the face of the world.
She enters holy souls, making them prophets and friends of God. It was said in 2:24that the devil corrupted creation by introducing death. Now, the Wisdom of God overcomes the ravage of death.
She is a pure emanation of the Glory of the Almighty. For the Hebrews “glory“ was something “heavy,” something that imposes itself and is not pure appearance. In the language of the Greeks, “glory” becomes what is radiant: the radiance of God in the universe, and still more “on the face of Christ” (2Cor 4:6). Wis dom, mirror of God’s activity and image of his perfection, is Christ, as Paul says in Col 1:5; Heb 1:3; John calls Christ “Word of God” (see Jn 1:1). See also introduction to Ephesians.