Wisdom - where to find it?

Browsing through a bookstore, surfing the internet, or watching TV gets us bombarded with all sorts of messages. We are told -- mirroring Benjamin Franklin’s adage -- how to be “healthy, wealthy, and wise.”

We are told which foods to eat, which diets to follow, which exercises to take. We are told what to do to earn more dollars, how to get a good job, invest in lucrative stocks, save money on taxes, how to retire rich and worry-free. We are told which bestsellers and magazines to read, what seminars to attend, what movies to see, what sports to watch, what cars to drive, where to buy a nice house, where to travel, ad infinitum.

Numerous modern sages seem bent on ensuring our success, welfare and happiness. But are they really interested in our well being or in merely loosening our wallets and purses?

If you open your Old Testament, you will see the first five books (the Pentateuch) - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Then you will see the Historical Books, followed by the Poetical and Wisdom Books. Canonically, the three Wisdom Books are: Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes. The Psalms, the Song of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus or the Book of Sirach, the Book of Tobit and others are not strictly “Wisdom Literature” but they do contain “wisdom motifs” and, therefore, are worth studying and extracting timeless wisdom from.

Anyway, it is interesting to survey what is out there in popular media offering us wise advice and compare them to wisdom sayings that have stood the test of time. Below are selections from the first eleven of the thirty-one chapters of the Book of Proverbs, written in the pre-exilic era, about 7000 years ago. Enjoy reading them and, if you like, “write them on the tablet of your heart.” (Proverbs 3.3)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. – Prov 1.7

Search for it (wisdom) as for hidden treasures … Prov 2.4

Therefore walk in the way of the good, and keep to the paths of the just. – Prov 2.20

My child, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life and abundant welfare they will give you. – Prov 3.1-2

Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. – Prov 3.3

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. – Prov 3,7

Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. Prov. 3.9-10

My child, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves the one he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights. – Prov 3.12

Happy are those who find wisdom, and those who get understanding…nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. – Prov 3.13-16

(Wisdom) is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold her fast are called happy. – Prov 3.18

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give it” – when you have it with you. – Prov 3.27-28

Do not quarrel with anyone without cause, when no harm has been done to you. – Prov 3.30

Do not envy the violent and do not choose any of their ways – Prov 3.31

The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the abode of the righteous. – Prov 3.33

Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evildoers. – Prov 4.14

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Keep straight the path of your feet, and all your ways will be sure. – Prov 4.25-26

For the lips of a loose woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword….keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house…Prov 5.3-8

Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. May her breasts satisfy you at all times; may you be intoxicated always by her love. – Prov 5.18-19

Go to the ant…consider its ways, and be wise…it prepares its food in summer, and gathers its sustenance in harvest...When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want, like an armed warrior. – Prov 6.6-11

There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that hurry to run to evil, a lying witness who testifies falsely, and one who sows discord in a family. – Prov 6.16-19

Can fire be carried in the bosom without burning one’s clothes? Or can one walk on hot coals without scorching the feet? So is he who sleeps with his neighbor’s wife…Prov 6.27-29

Whoever finds (wisdom) finds life and obtains favor from the Lord…all who hate (wisdom) love death. – Prov 8.35

Lay aside immaturity, and live, and walk in the way of insight. – Prov 9.6

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. – Prov 9.10

A wise child makes a glad father, but a foolish child is a mother’s grief. Prov 10.1

Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death. Prov 10.2

A child who gathers in summer is prudent, but a child who sleeps in harvest brings shame. Prov 10.5

The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot. Prov. 10.7

The wise of heart will heed commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin. Prov. 10.8

Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever follows perverse ways will be found out. Prov 10.9

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. Prov. 10.11

Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses. Prov. 10.12

The wage of the righteous leads to life, the gain of the wicked to sin. Prov. 10.16

Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life, but one who rejects a rebuke goes astray. Prov. 10.17

When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but the prudent are restrained in speech. Prov. 10.19

The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense. Prov. 10.21

When the tempest passes, the wicked are no more, but the righteous are established forever. Prov. 10.25

Like vinegar to the teeth, and smoke to the eyes, so are the lazy to their employers. Prov. 10.26

The hope of the righteous ends in gladness, but the expectation of the wicked comes to nothing. Prov. 10.28

The way of the Lord is a stronghold for the upright, but destruction for evildoers. Prov. 10.29

A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but an accurate weight is his delight. Prov. 11.1

When pride comes, then comes disgrace; but wisdom is with the humble. Prov. 11.2

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them. Prov. 11.3

The righteousness of the upright saves them, but the treacherous are taken captive by their schemes. Prov. 11.6

Whoever belittles another lacks sense, but an intelligent person remains silent. Prov. 11.12

A gossip goes about telling secrets, but one who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a confidence. Prov. 11.13

Where there is no guidance, a nation falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety. Prov. 11.14

To guarantee loans for a stranger brings trouble, but there is safety in refusing to do so. Prov. 11.15

A gracious woman gets honor, but she who hates virtue is covered with shame. Prov. 11.16

The wicked earn no real gain, but those who sow righteousness get a true reward. Prov. 11.18

Crooked minds are an abomination to the Lord, but those of blameless ways are his delight. Prov. 11.20

Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman without good sense. Prov. 11.22

Some give freely, yet grow all the richer; others withhold what is due, and only suffer want. Prov. 11.24

A generous person will be enriched, and one who gives water will get water. Prov. 11.25

The people curse those who hold back grain, but a blessing is on the head of those who sell it. Prov. 11.26

Those who trust in their riches will wither, but the righteous will flourish like green leaves. Prov. 11.28

The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but violence takes lives away. Prov. 11.30