In the story of the Bible, God creates the
world by carving order out of disorder and darkness. Like an artist creating a place where life
can flourish. Right! And still today, God’s ordering power is
at work, preventing the cosmos from slipping back into chaos and nothingness. And in the Bible, humanity has a key role
to play in this ordering work. But to partner with God in that ongoing ordering
of the cosmos, we need to be mentored by Lady Wisdom. Lady Wisdom? Who’s that? Let’s find out in Proverbs chapter 8. So within the Hebrew Bible, there’s a scroll
called Proverbs. It’s about gaining wisdom. And while most of the scroll is a collection
of short proverbs, it begins with nine chapters of speeches in which we meet a cast
of symbolic characters. There’s the wise fatherly king and a woman
named Lady Wisdom. And they’re offering divine wisdom that
leads to stability and life. There is also a wicked man and a wily woman
called Lady Folly. And their way of life is attractive, but it
leads to disorder and death. Okay, so these speeches force you to make
a choice. Whose advice will you listen to? Right. These contrasting couples are like poetic
symbols of the many voices out there telling us how to be human. And in Proverbs, they’re all competing for
the attention of you, the reader, who is referred to throughout as “my son.” Got it. Now, all these speeches can be grouped into
three main sections. And for now, we’re going to focus on Proverbs
chapter 8. It’s a long speech from this majestic woman. Lady Wisdom! She is God’s wisdom personified. And she stands at a crossroads
on a tall hill, inviting you to enter into God’s sacred city. Doesn’t wisdom cry out and understanding
raise her voice? At the road’s high point, at the crossroads
she stands. Beside the gates going into the city, at the
entrance, she shouts. And then Lady Wisdom begins her speech, which
has four main parts. In the first part, Wisdom declares her value. Choose my instruction instead of silver, and
knowledge rather than pure gold. For wisdom is more precious than pearls, and
nothing you desire compares with her. So living by God’s wisdom can lead to the
most valuable things in life: healthy relationships, moral integrity, a stable, fruitful life. You can’t buy those things with money. Right, and in the third part of her speech,
she repeats this same idea. Wealth and honor are with me, enduring abundance
and justice. My fruit is better than
pure gold, and what I offer surpasses silver. Now, let’s back up to the second part of
her speech where we learn that God’s wisdom is very practical. In fact, humans depend upon it every day whether
they know it or not. Through me kings reign, and rulers issue decrees
that are just; through me, princes rule, and nobles, all who rule with justice. Now, that phrase “issue decrees” comes
from the Hebrew word khaqaq. It means literally “to carve or engrave.” It refers to how ancient kings would carve
laws of justice onto tablets. So a good leader confronts disorder and injustice
by creating laws that are just. And when they do so, they’re drawing on
God’s wisdom. Right. Wise leaders become images of the God who
also creates by his decrees, carving order out of chaos. But God’s decrees aren’t written on tablets. Rather, they’re woven into the fabric of
creation itself. In fact, that’s what the final part of Lady
Wisdom’s speech is all about. She claims that she was there with God in
the beginning. Yahweh brought me forth as the firstborn of
his way, before his deeds of old; in the remote past I was formed, from the beginning, from
the earliest times of the land. Now watch. She’s going to repeat that Hebrew word khaqaq
to describe how God carved order into the world. When he established the skies, I was there. When he carved a horizon on the face of the
deep waters. Here, God is splitting the dark chaotic waters
in half, making the waters above and below. And he carved a boundary for the sea, so the
waters don’t cross his command. This is God creating the boundary of the dry
land, holding back the sea so humans can flourish in peace. When he carved the foundations of the land,
I was there. The biblical authors imagined that the dry
land was supported by pillars below to keep it from sinking back into the chaotic sea. So this is the three-tiered cosmos that’s
described all over the Bible. Right. It’s how the Israelites and all their ancient
neighbors imagined the world. And notice, the dry land is sustained and
protected from the surrounding chaos only by God’s
wise carving abilities. That’s beautiful. It is. And it’s worth celebrating, like Lady Wisdom
says. I was beside him, growing up. And I was his daily delight, celebrating before
him the entire time; celebrating the inhabited world of the land, delighting in human beings. God’s wisdom delights in the ordered universe
and also in humanity. Yes because humans are the image of God, called
to live by divine wisdom as they carve out their own little spots here in his world. But humans often reject God’s wisdom, doing
what’s right in our own eyes. And in the Bible, that’s how humans drag
creation back into chaos and darkness. It’s only when we live by God’s wisdom
that we join his project of ordering the world, creating space and communities where all of
God’s creatures can flourish in peace. Or, as Lady Wisdom puts it at the conclusion
of her speech: The one who finds me, finds life and receives
favor from Yahweh; but the one who forfeits me, hurts
themselves. Those who hate me, love death. So every day, Lady Wisdom presents us with
a choice. Will I live by God’s wisdom and contribute
order, beauty, and justice to the world? Or am I going to live selfishly by my own
wisdom and pull creation back into the chaos from which it came? That’s the decision that lay before humans
throughout the story of the Bible and still today. Which way will you choose? Lady Wisdom is waiting for our answer.
