Where Wisdom Starts

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” — Proverbs 9:10

Do you remember King Solomon, who asked God for wisdom? God gave him so much wisdom that people came from all over the world to hear him. The Bible says Solomon spoke three thousand proverbs (1 Kings 4:32).

A proverb is a short, wise saying that’s easy to remember. Many of Solomon’s proverbs, and others too, are collected in the book of Proverbs.

The book of Proverbs begins by explaining what it’s for. It’s written to help people get wisdom, to understand what’s right and fair, and to make good choices. And it says it’s especially for young people.

Then it tells us where wisdom starts.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,” it says. And later, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

What does “the fear of the Lord” mean? It doesn’t mean being scared of God, the way you might be scared of a monster. It means having great respect and awe for God: knowing how great and holy He is, loving Him, and wanting to please Him.

It’s a bit like this. Imagine you are standing at the edge of a huge waterfall, watching tons of water thunder down. You’re not frightened in a bad way. But you’re filled with awe. You know how powerful it is. And you’d never treat it carelessly.

That’s the beginning of wisdom: knowing who God is, and taking Him seriously.

Lots of people are clever. They know lots of facts. But being clever isn’t the same as being wise. Wisdom is knowing how to live well, how to make good choices, how to treat other people, how to live God’s way. And it all starts with knowing God.

Proverbs talks about wisdom almost as if it’s a person, calling out in the streets: “Come to me! Listen to me! I will make you wise!” Wisdom is better than silver or gold, Proverbs says, and more precious than jewels.

And the best news is that God gives wisdom to anyone who asks. “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all” (James 1:5).

Looking ahead to Jesus: The New Testament says that Jesus “has become for us wisdom from God” (1 Corinthians 1:30). The wisdom Proverbs talks about is found most of all in Jesus. When we know Him, we have the wisest teacher of all.

Read it in your Bible: Proverbs 1:1–7; 9:10; 3:13–15

Dear God, please give me wisdom. Help me to love you and respect you, and to make good choices. Thank you that Jesus is the wisdom of God. Amen.