Insights from Chapter 4–

Wisdom is the principle thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.

Proverbs 4:7

Get wisdom! Get understanding!

This is one of my favorite verses in the entire Bible.

I want to break out the dictionary today…

Wisdom:

the right use or exercise of knowledge.

Webster, Noah (1828). American Dictionary of the English Language.

There was a time in my life where wisdom was far from me. It definitely wasn’t something I thought about on a regular basis.

In fact, the extent of my applied knowledge was how to do my job– as a communication tech specialist in the Navy– and how to interact with strangers at the bar. I was pretty good at those things.

Yet any application of knowledge does not inherently make it wisdom, for it requires a heightened degree of discernment to guard one from paths that lead to depression; regret; addiction– ultimately, destruction.

Understanding:

Comprehending; apprehending the ideas or sense of another, or of a writing.

Webster, Noah (1828). American Dictionary of the English Language.

This involves attributing meaning to knowledge, or a certain perception, in line with the intent of the originator.

For example, one could gather a pool of knowledge from a text and draw a completely different perception from that which the author intended. This can be due to a number or reasons.

Some common causes include cultural paradigms and shifts in vocabulary due to the ever-evolving nature of language. I’ll do my best to avoid turning this into a dissertation about linguistics… I can come back to this another time.

Back to the point…

Ultimately, the Word of God; the Scriptures; Torah gives us an abundance of righteous principles and values. When we seek to diligently apply all these things to our lives– being doers of the Word and not hearers only, as my man James would say– that is Wisdom.

But it doesn’t stop there! We must constantly examine ourselves against the entirety of the Word and ensure that our application of these principles and precepts are indeed in tune with the Father’s intent for us– that is Understanding.

All wisdom, and every good thing comes from above. There is no private interpretation.

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