Creation | Knowable Word

Proverbs 8 and Jesus

August 4, 2014 By Peter Krol

Last week, I drew these four “credentials” for wisdom from Proverbs 8:22-31:

Seeking wisdom is seeking the Lord.
Life without wisdom isn’t truly life.
The way of wisdom is tried and true. God’s wisdom makes the most sense of how the world works.
Wisdom gives you eyes to see who alone can make you happy.

In this chapter, Solomon praises God’s wisdom to motivate us to pursue it. Since wisdom can deliver what it promises, we’d be foolish not to chase it.

Before I move into more specific application from these points, I’d like to reflect on the connection between this wisdom and the Lord Jesus. This case presents a helpful example of how to see Jesus in any passage.

A Little History

Proverbs 8 provides a mine field for Christ-centered interpretation because it’s been so often misused. Because of the potential for misuse, many interpreters try to distance Jesus from this passage altogether.

“Baptistery.Arians06” by Georges Jansoone

Here’s the problem: In the third century, a heretic named Arius came to prominence with his teaching that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did not always exist. According to Arius, Jesus was subordinate to God the Father because God had created him. Arius and his followers put much stock in verses like “The Father is greater than I” (John 14:28) and in biblical phrases like “the only begotten Son” (John 3:16) or “the firstborn of all creation” (Col 1:15). If he was begotten—the thinking goes—there must have been a time before he was begotten.

Arianism saw clear parallels between Jesus and Proverbs 8, since “all things were made through him” (John 1:3) and “when he established the heavens I was there” (Prov 8:27). If God created everything by his Word, and the Word is Jesus, and Jesus made everything—then Solomon’s declarations about wisdom’s creative work in Proverbs 8 must be about Jesus.

And so Prov 8:22 became a key verse for the Arian cause: “The LORD possessed me at the beginning of his work.” Some early Bible manuscripts use a word for possessed that could be translated as created, and the Arians had a field day with it. Proverbs 8 is about Jesus→Proverbs 8 says wisdom was created→Jesus must have been created. The links in the chain appear to hold tight.

Ramifications for Today

Far from being an obscure 3rd century problem, Arianism remains alive and well. Some of its most populous adherents include many Unitarians and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons). Leland Ryken also cites a tract from the Jehovah’s Witnesses that make this very argument from Proverbs 8.

Thus Christian interpreters, careful to guard against the dangers of Arianism, sometimes hesitate to acknowledge any connection between Proverbs 8 and Jesus. Proverbs 8 speaks of wisdom→The New Testament speaks of Jesus→Reading Jesus back into Proverbs 8 does violence to the text. By separating the person of Jesus from the personification of wisdom, they avoid the potential Arian problem.

How to See Jesus

However, there is a problem with making too sharp of a distinction between Proverbs and Jesus: We can’t deny that Jesus believed all the Old Testament was about him (Luke 24:44-46). Paul considered Jesus our wisdom from God (1 Cor 1:30). And, well, Jesus was present at the creation as a master workman, just like wisdom (John 1:1-3).

In addition, if you review the four conclusions with which I began this post, connections to Jesus should pop out.

Seeking Jesus is seeking the Lord (John 14:9).
Life without Jesus isn’t truly life (1 John 5:11-13).
The way of Jesus is tried and true. Knowing Jesus makes the most sense of how the world works (Acts 17:22-31).
Jesus gives you eyes to see who alone can make you happy (Mark 8:22-9:1).

We could support all four of these statements from the New Testament. That doesn’t mean, however, that we must say Jesus was created (Prov 8:22 – even if “created” is the best translation).

My point is this: Proverbs 8 doesn’t have to be an exact, direct prediction about Jesus in order for it to be about Jesus. If you want to see Jesus in the Old Testament, first discover the author’s main point (in this case, wisdom’s four credentials). Then connect the main point to Jesus. It’s okay if not all the details match up exactly.

Wisdom’s Credentials

July 28, 2014 By Peter Krol

Even if you like baseball, you probably haven’t heard of Rowan Wick, but someday you might. He rocked our town earlier this summer, but now he’s gone.

The State College Spikes are a Single-A short season minor league affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Our family goes to enough games that we feel like we get to know the players. This season, Rowan Wick needed only 19 games to break the Spikes’ single-season home run record. After Wick’s 14 homers, 38 RBIs, and a .378 batting average, the Cardinals decided it was time to move him up the chain, and they relocated him to the Peoria Chiefs in Illinois.

We miss Wick and the high-strung energy that rippled through the stadium when he was at the plate. But he was well-qualified for the next level of baseball, and his credentials earned him a place of honor and advancement in the Cardinals franchise.

Similarly, Proverbs 8:22-31 describes wisdom’s qualifications for honor and advancement. In this chapter, Solomon has already promised wisdom’s surprising availability and unimaginable fruit. Now he backs up his assertions with some particular credentials.

Wisdom is the Lord’s Possession

The LORD possessed me at the beginning of his work,
the first of his acts of old. (Prov 8:22, ESV)

Wisdom is an affiliate, not an independent. Because wisdom belongs to the Lord, those who find wisdom find God’s favor (Prov 8:35). And because godly wisdom provides a pipeline to the God of wisdom, becoming wise and drawing near to God are the same. You can’t know God without receiving his instruction and becoming more like him.

The point is this: Seeking wisdom is seeking the Lord.

Wisdom was brought forth before God made the world

Ages ago I was set up,
at the first, before the beginning of the earth.
When there were no depths I was brought forth,
when there were no springs abounding with water.
Before the mountains had been shaped,
before the hills, I was brought forth,
before he had made the earth with its fields,
or the first dust of the world. (Prov 8:23-26)

Observe the fourfold “before” and the double repetition of “I was brought forth.” There’s a sense in which wisdom is passive; it exists because God chose to bring it out. Before the Lord made anything tangible—before his work of shaping the earth—he brought forth wisdom and paraded it around.

In other words, wisdom is more fundamental and central to existence than any other created thing. That’s why wisdom is better than jewels (Prov 8:11) and gold (Prov 8:19). Wisdom is more intimate and satisfying than sexual activity (Prov 7:4-5). Nothing we desire compares with wisdom (Prov 3:15). If we get anything at all on earth, it should be wisdom and insight (Prov 4:7).

The point is this: Life without wisdom isn’t truly life.

Wisdom was present when God made the world

When he established the heavens, I was there;
when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,
when he made firm the skies above,
when he established the fountains of the deep,
when he assigned to the sea its limit,
so that the waters might not transgress his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
then I was beside him,
like a master workman. (Prov 8:27-30a)

Notice how “I was brought forth” in the previous stanza (Prov 8:24-25) has shifted to “I was there” (Prov 8:27) and “I was beside him” (Prov 8:30). Wisdom was present in the world from Day 1. When God created the heavens and the earth, wisdom saw what God did and how he did it. Wisdom saw what worked and gained experience as a “master workman” (Prov 8:30).

The point is this: The way of wisdom is tried and true. God’s wisdom makes the most sense of how the world works.

Wisdom delights

I was daily his delight,
rejoicing before him always,
rejoicing in his inhabited world
and delighting in the children of man. (Prov 8:30b-31)

In this stanza, wisdom finally gets active. It goes from being possessed, being brought forth, and being present to delighting and rejoicing.

Wisdom delights in two ways: It is both delightful to God and delighting in others. Note the progression:

God delights in wisdom.
Wisdom rejoices before God.
Wisdom rejoices in the world.
Wisdom delights in humanity.

God didn’t implant the world with wisdom because it would kill joy. No, quite the opposite. He knew wisdom’s delight would go viral. He understood that his world would be dull without wisdom. What use would sex and money and music and sports and hiking and productivity all be if we couldn’t know the fear of the Lord, receive instruction about how life works best, find satisfaction in God’s ways, and have hope that anything can change? “Then I saw that there is more gain in wisdom than in folly, as there is more gain in light than in darkness. The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness” (Eccl 2:13-14).

And joy will be joyful only when we know the joy God has in us.

The point is this: Wisdom gives you eyes to see who alone can make you happy.

Satisfaction is God’s Design, Part 1: Creation

April 15, 2013 By Peter Krol

Satisfaction is the fruit of both finding and keeping wisdom. Why?

The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
By understanding he established the heavens;
By his knowledge the deeps broke open,
And the clouds drop down the dew (Prov 3:19-20).

These two verses form the hinge on which the main point of Prov 3:13-26 swings: God designed the universe by means of wisdom. Wisdom is not an end in itself; it ought to lead us to the Lord and Giver of wisdom. Thus, finding satisfaction in wisdom really means finding satisfaction in the Lord. There are at least three biblical reasons why this point is significant. This week I’ll explain the first.

1. In creating the world, God demonstrated wisdom.

"The Old World" by Mark H. Evans (2010), shared under a Creative Commons Attribution License

Mark H. Evans (2010), Creative Commons

When God created the world, he set an example for us to follow. He exhibited wisdom then, and he expects us to imitate him now. In particular, Genesis 1 describes how God made a world that was initially dark, shapeless, and empty: “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep” (Gen 1:2). He proceeded to give it light (Gen 1:3, 14), shape (Gen 1:4-10, 17-18), and stuff (Gen 1:11-12, 20-25). After doing so, he made people “in his own image,” expecting them to imitate his model (Gen 1:26-28). It pleases God when we bring the light of truth to the darkness, the shape of organization to the wildness, and the fullness of more worshipers to all the corners of the earth. We can do this personally (as we grow in Christ), corporately (as we join and serve a church), or socially (as we engage the culture or help those in need). Such is wisdom: Follow God’s example.

What does God’s example have to do with satisfaction? We’ve already seen the blessings of finding and keeping wisdom. It will go well for us when we do things God’s way. God demonstrates how life works best. When we imitate him, we reap the satisfying fruit of it. Or, to approach it conversely: If you want to know the right thing to do, you’ll have to go to the Lord to find out what it is. Wisdom pushes us toward the Lord to learn his ways.

For example, many single people seek satisfaction in romance. Since Jesus’ relationship with the Church sets the pattern for all human romance (Eph 5:22-33), finding wisdom in this realm begins with imitating Jesus’ example. That means men must learn to serve others more than themselves (Eph 5:25). They should become mature enough to teach the Bible (Eph 5:26), and influential enough to help others flourish (Eph 5:27). Women will benefit from holding out for such men, so they can have husbands worth following on their journey toward the Lord. I advise singles to habitually imitate Jesus’ character before dating another person. Failing to do so will result in unsatisfying romance, which is worse than having no romance at all.