25.3.18

Daily Bible Study: Proverbs 3:13-18

Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
And the man who gains understanding;
For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver,
And her gain than fine gold.
She is more precious than rubies,
And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
Length of days is in her right hand,
In her left hand riches and honor.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
And all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who retain her.

Proverbs 3:13-18 (NKJV).

It's worth remembering that Solomon did not ask God for material gain, but wisdom. It's also worth "skipping ahead" to know that the material gain of Solomon due to his wisdom would also ruin him, that he would abandon "her" in the later stages of his life, and that he would regret that.

Based on some quick research, this may be supported in that some think the earlier chapters of Proverbs may actually have been written last, and so while Ecclesiastes goes into the "why", these first 9 or so chapters of Proverbs are the "what to do", sanitized of the "why" so as not to clutter the good advice with a regaling of his failures.

That makes sense, in that often times advice is given with the instruction first, and the explanation second. The instruction is the more important part of the advice, and the explanation merely comes in to offer a context, a background, in case the reader is not able to grasp the significance of the wisdom as offered, and stubbornly demands to know why things must be the way they are.

It's also worth noting that polygamy was common in this era, and so while we in our post-monogamous culture might find the concept of wisdom being treated like a woman a little odd, in Solomon's era, taking on another wife who had some great quality about her was a socially acceptable norm.

In giving advice to his son, who would likely be the next ruler of Israel, or at least in the line to do so, there would be many temptations to go after material gain. To gaze at the beauty of precious metals and rare gems, to engage in the collection of power and profit to enrich oneself. The other leaders of foreign nations would be doing this, and collecting unto themselves great earthy wealth.

Solomon is trying to draw a contrast that would later be echoed in advice regarding those who "seek first the Kingdom of God". In seeking material gain, you will find a path to destruction and strife. In seeking wisdom, you will find a path to peace and material gain.

There is a paradoxical vibe to this, that to get what you want you must first seek something else whose byproduct is what you want instead of seeking that byproduct itself. Yet we can see this dynamic in secular circumstances all the time.

People want the benefits of healthy living, but without the pursuit of proper diet and exercise. People want the lifestyle benefits of wealth, but without the decades of saving and working hard. People at 35 want the benefits of a healthy marriage, whether children or the mature relationship with their spouse, but without having spent their late teens through their 20's in marriage and raising kids.

We constantly want the benefits without the investment, and often times sin and temptation offer just that. What is adultery but the offer of sexual satisfaction without the commitment of marriage? What is greed by the offer of material satisfaction on a timeline that your efforts would not otherwise produce? What is lust but the desire for that which may very well be good on its own, and in due time, but you seek to find shortcuts and ignore the consequences of getting exactly what you want when you want it?

In this manner, Solomon is telling us that wisdom, and not any material gain, is what we should strive to find, to hold on to, to cherish in our lives because wisdom will not leas us astray, to our ruin. Do not pursue the byproducts of wisdom, the things which intend to compete with wisdom to bring us peace and satisfaction, as they simply cannot.

Simple advice, and later on in scripture we'll be able to understand why all the better.

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