Posted on Friday, July 3, 2026

Wisdom Lost!

Wisdom Lost

When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam a body and soul. The Garden was in the realm of the senses (Adam could see, hear, smell, taste, and feel). This was so he could interact with, live in, and work in the garden. His body and soul were also the container for his spirit. Adam needed spirit so he could interact and talk to God, who is Spirit. John 4:24.

Thus, any time Adam had a question, he could ask God, and God could talk to him. For instance, it says God brought the animals to Adam to see what he would name them. God said, “Adam, what would you name this creature?” Adam looked at the thing with an exceptionally long neck and said: “I have no idea, God, what would you call it?” God said, “I would call that a giraffe.” Adam said, “Good, I will call it a giraffe.” Thus, Adam named all the animals. Adam could rely on the wisdom of God in any situation.

God has said that in the day they ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would die. The part of Adam that died was his spirit. He no longer had a connection with God, and he no longer had access to the wisdom of God. Thus, Wisdom Lost. God promised that He would send a redeemer to redeem man out of this terrible situation he found himself in – no spirit. After Jesus Christ had done all the work necessary to redeem mankind, on the day of Pentecost, thousands of years later, God gave the gift of the holy spirit to all who would believe that God raised Christ from the dead and confess him as lord. Then once again, man could be the way God intended for man to be, body, soul, and spirit. Now God could talk to His children again, as He originally did with Adam in the garden before he sinned.

But what was God to do in the meantime so He could communicate with Mankind? Sometimes He presented Himself as a burning bush or a pillar of fire. Sometimes He sent angels, or He put His spirit upon some men who spoke for Him.

I used to think that very, very few people in the Old Testament had the privilege of spirit. Only perhaps certain kings, prophets, priests, or maybe Levites. But as I kept reading the Old Testament, I found others who had the privilege of having spirit. There is an interesting verse in Proverbs Chapter 1. The book of Proverbs is commonly recognized as being addressed to young people, although as adults, we could learn a great deal from it.

Proverbs 1:23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

That does not mean that a great number of people turned at God’s reproof. In the days of Noah, he was the only one. In the times of some of the prophets, there seemed to be very few believers.

The first person said to have the spirit of God is Joseph. Here, the first characteristic attributed to the spirit of god is wisdom.

Genesis 41:38,39 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:

The second person the Bible mentions as being filled with the spirit was Bezaleel.

Exodus 31:1-6 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee;

So, we see that God put wisdom in the hearts of all the wise-hearted men. He did that by filling them with the spirit, as the next verse says.

Exodus 28:3 And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.

God says all the wise-hearted He filled with the spirit of wisdom (spirit of God)! These first verses where God talks about what He did are very important in our study here. He filled them and called it a spirit of wisdom. Amazing, as we shall see. Now look at this!

Exodus 35:25,26 And all the women that were wise hearted did spin with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, both of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine linen. And all the women whose heart stirred them up in wisdom spun goats’ hair

Again, we see that when it says they were wise-hearted, it was because God had filled them with the spirit of wisdom.

Then in the days of Moses, God took of the spirit that He put upon Moses and put that spirit on the judges that were to work with Him. Apparently, if you were to judge righteously, God needed to be able to talk to you and to give you the wisdom to discern rightly.

Numbers 11:16-17 And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone

God took from the spirit in Moses and filled the judges with that spirit.

It is interesting also that in the Old Testament, there are only two records of anyone losing the spirit of God once they had it. Adam in the Garden and King Saul when he walked too far away from God. God was very patient and merciful with Saul, hoping he would heed the reproof and return to walk with him.

Then there is the record of Joshua being full of the spirit of wisdom.

Deuteronomy 34:9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.

In these records, wisdom is the main attribute associated with the spirit of God. So much so that God calls it a spirit of wisdom. And no wonder, man had lost his access to the great wisdom of God when Adam sinned in the Garden. Wisdom is one of the greatest things people need in order to carry out what God calls them to do. To give them access to His wisdom, He filled them with spirit. What a privilege!

God is not stingy or tight with His blessings. He has always wanted man to have spirit and to have access to His wisdom. On the day of Pentecost, thousands of years later, the gift God gave to all who wanted it was spirit. And as we shall see later on, the first manifestation listed in Corinthians is Word of Wisdom!

Let’s look at others with spirit who were not prophets, kings, priests, or Levites. The first one is King Cyrus of Persia.

Ezra 1:1-2 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Cyrus is the man who got the credit for the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem after the 70 years of captivity. EW Bullinger states that Cyrus was the son of Esther.

We go now from a king with spirit to a young maid who is not named. First, note that during the prophet Elisha’s ministry, not one person in Israel was healed of leprosy except for Naaman the Syrian.

2Kings 5:3 And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.

Notice, she did not say the prophet might be able to help him; hopefully, the prophet could do something. NO! She said the prophet would recover him of his leprosy. How did she know this with certainty? Was she guessing? Was she hoping? No! She knew! How did she know that with such certainty? God did not make a list in the Bible of all the people He filled with His spirit. Did what she say come to pass? Absolutely! This is how you know that the spirit of God is at work within someone. The spirit of God in a captive maid – amazing! Because if these are only the thoughts of her own mind and God did NOT tell her — when it came to pass, did God say, “That was good, let’s put that in the record”? Doubtful. It was the spirit of God at work in her.

Now let’s look at two more women, Mary and Elizabeth, in the Gospels. Think about how old Mary was. Probably a young teenager!

Luke 1:39-43 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

Mary did not even need to tell Elizabeth what child she was carrying. Elizabeth knew and prophesied because she, too, had spirit, and God showed her what Mary was carrying. When it says Elizabeth was filled, it means that the spirit of God in her overflowed, filled to overflowing, and she prophesied.

Once Mary heard Elizabeth’s blessing and prophecy, the spirit of God overflowed in her, and she too prophesied. This came from the spirit of God in her.

Luke 1:46-48 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

Another woman with the spirit of God was Abigail. This is a long record and well worth reading, but I have copied out the part we want to see. Here, David recognized the words of God coming from this woman’s mouth.

1Samuel 25:23-32 And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off the ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, And fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid. Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. And now this blessing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord. I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days. Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling. And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel; That this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid. And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:

It is amazing that when David was so angry that he was about to kill the whole household of Nabal, he recognized the voice of God in what the woman said and admitted that God was the one who sent her!

God does not list all the people that He filled with spirit in the Old Testament. But He gives us enough examples by way of tradesmen and women, judges and prophets, kings and priests, disciples and Levites for us to know that if people would turn at His reproof, He would pour out His spirit to them and make His words known to them. If it were possible, God would have all His children in the Old Testament filled with His spirit.

Numbers 11:29 And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the LORD’S people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them!

It is also interesting to note that the most common use of the spirit God filled these people with was for wisdom to carry out what God wanted them to do: words to speak, instructions to give, or actions they needed to take. They needed this spirit for access to God’s wisdom.

Even in the Gospels, Jesus’s disciples and the 70 he sent out were filled with the power of the spirit, They also found other people, who they did not know, also casting out spirits.

Now, you might find it interesting to look at the words “spirit upon” and see that at times it indicates:

They were filled with the spirit of God.
The spirit which God had filled them with was now in manifestation. In other words, they were speaking or acting according to God’s instructions.

When you read “spirit upon” in the Bible, you need to understand the meaning from the context.

For instance, in Luke, Jesus said:

Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

It says of David that the spirit of the Lord came upon him.

1Samuel 16:13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah

So, you have to ask yourself a question: Is the way the spirit was upon Jesus less than when Bezaleel was filled with the spirit of God? NO! “Spirit upon” is just another way of saying “filled with the spirit”.

It has been mentioned that God temporarily placed His spirit on people in the Old Testament so He could speak to them. It has been said He would put His spirit upon them, speak to them, and take it away. I don’t know anywhere that says He used His spirit like a yo-yo only when He wanted to talk to people. This must come from a misunderstanding of the phrase “spirit upon.”

The gifts and the calling of God are without repentance. Only twice does it mention men losing the spirit of God once they had received it — Adam and Saul.

God looked forward to the time when He could have all who believed be born of His spirit, so they could never lose it or be talked out of it.

In the next article, we will look at why God chose the specific order for the manifestations in 1 Corinthians 12. It is interesting to note that once God gave us the gift of holy spirit, the very first manifestation listed in 1 Corinthians 12 is Word of Wisdom!

Wisdom Restored!

Posted on Saturday, April 18, 2026

What is Wisdom?

A Short on Wisdom #3

Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. (NLT)

A simple definition of wisdom is: The practical application of knowledge. For instance, knowledge says a tomato is a fruit, wisdom says it does not belong in a fruit salad.

Wisdom has been studied for ages, and I do not pretend to know all the answers as to what wisdom is. But having said that, here are some thoughts about wisdom that might help in understanding.

Wisdom can come with life experiences.
Wisdom can be acquired over time.
Wisdom comes more easily to those willing to learn.
Wisdom is judging rightly about things in life and conduct.
Wisdom knows when to speak and when not to speak.

As a great man once said, “You have to know when to hold’em, when to fold’em, when to walk away, and when to run.”

Many times, we know what the problem is, but not how to solve it. We may know what needs to be done, but we don’t know which process or policy to follow to achieve the best results.

Some people confuse knowledge with wisdom. They are not the same. You can have knowledge without wisdom. There are a lot of smart people with no wisdom. Also, there are some people with a lot of common sense but no “education.”

It might also be good to make some distinctions. Knowledge, wisdom, and understanding are close traveling companions in the book of Proverbs. One writer gave these definitions this way:

Knowledge = facts and information
Understanding = grasping what those facts mean
Wisdom = knowing what to do with them in real life

In the books of Moses, God told Moses what the tabernacle was to be like. That is knowledge, but how to accomplish that?

Exodus 36:1 Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom and understanding to know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that the LORD had commanded.

God gave the knowledge of the tabernacle to Moses and how to accomplish the work to Bezaleel and Aholiab. God gave these men the wisdom and the know-how to build what Moses had the plans for.

Wisdom is more than how to deal with people; it’s more than how to walk wisely in the body of Christ.

Most areas of our lives require wisdom, but we may call wisdom by other names.

In business, wisdom is commonly called acumen or business sense.
In the trades, wisdom is commonly called craftsmanship or skill.
Dealing with people and our conduct in daily life can require wisdom.
Wisdom is necessary in judgments, as in those who sit in judgment.

This is not an extensive list of the areas of wisdom, but we can see that the word “wisdom” covers a lot of territory.

There were many wise people in the Old Testament. Enoch, Abraham, Noah, and Moses come to mind. But the first place wisdom comes up is in Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dream and Joseph’s instructions on how to handle the coming famine.

The wisdom Joseph had to administer all the necessary details to carry out what God said to do might fall under what we today call business acumen. When it came to the administration of the kingdom, he was a very wise man. Wisdom that he gained from God.

It is interesting here that Pharaoh recognized that the wisdom he just heard came from the spirit of God in Joseph.

The next place we see wisdom spoken of is in the building of the tabernacle. What we might today call craftsmanship or skill.

Exodus 31:2-5 See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship.

If you ever get a chance to see an animation of how the tabernacles fit together, it might blow your mind. The precision with which all the prices fit together without any modern equipment, like lasers. The wisdom of God showed them how to do all the work with what was available in the wilderness.

It is interesting that the first two places where the spirit of God/Wisdom is mentioned in the Bible concern the administration of a kingdom and workers in the trades. This knowledge should be quite encouraging to those in government and the trades.

The next area where wisdom is useful is in dealing with people. Proverbs talks about speaking with fools, raising children, and our conduct in daily life.
The next area of wisdom is in judgment.

Deuteronomy 1:16 And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.

2Chronicles 19:6 And said to the judges, Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment.

1Ki 3:28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.

To judge righteously, the judge needs the wisdom of God. The judge needs to conduct a diligent search into the problem, but ultimately, he needs God’s wisdom to judge rightly.

Without God in the mix in our lives, we are just spinning our wheels. What is built on the wisdom of God will last.

Psalm 127:1 .. Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: …

The wisdom of God is the solid foundation on which to build our lives: our relationships with others, our work, the raising of our children, and in carrying out our function in the body of Christ.

Matthew 7:24,25 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

That rock is Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:2,3 … to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

So, where to start to acquire this great wisdom of God? The first thing to do is to be born of God’s spirit. Then begin to read His Word and ask God to teach you.

Proverbs 9:10 The fear (great respect) of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

Fear here means having great respect for God and for what He has said in His Word. Then you could start by incorporating what God has already revealed in His Word into your life. Then, where you know you need more wisdom, ask Him to teach you.

James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Wisdom is a very broad topic, but hopefully this introduction will help you in your quest to understand its role in The Prosperous Life.

Posted on Thursday, April 9, 2026

Wisdom’s Banquet

A Short on Wisdom #2

Before we get any deeper into the subject of the wisdom of God, I thought it would be helpful to discuss the other type of wisdom available.

There are basically two types of wisdom. The wisdom of God and then the wisdom of the world. James describes both.

James 3:14-18 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

Many cultures have had those who sought after wisdom. The Greeks were famous for this.

1Corinthians 1:19-25 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Even in ancient times, men were interested in and sought after wisdom.

1Kings 4:30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.

When the people of other countries heard of Solomon’s wisdom, they came to hear him.

I Kings 4:31 For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about.

Just as the Greeks sought wisdom, many others in history have also sought after wisdom. Without God, they end up with the wisdom of the world, which is earthly, sensual, and devilish, and which God says He will destroy.

As far back as the Garden of Eden, Eve was promised that if she ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it would make her wise. That promise — that wisdom — was devilish.

What we want to find is the wisdom of God and have God open that wisdom to us as He did for Solomon and Jesus.

Just to be clear, there is much so-called wisdom available, but true wisdom comes from our Father. All the other wisdom that is in or of the world, no matter how great and right it seems, is of no long-term profit.

As a quick example, one of the great financial gurus of our time says that the way to wealth is through debt. Does God promote this as a way to prosperity? To borrow and use other people’s money (OPM)? NO! Some have followed this advice and made a lot of money, but others have lost everything they owned. God’s wisdom is to learn to give and save. The promise God makes in following His ways is:

Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

In fact, God says the borrower is servant to the lender. This is covered extensively in the books, Poverty vs Wealth, Volume I and II.

What are some of the other promises of following the wisdom of God?

Length of days, long life, and peace.

Proverbs 3:1,2 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.

Favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

Proverbs 3:3,4 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

He shall direct your paths.

Proverbs 3:5,6 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Health

Proverbs 3:7,8 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.

Storehouses filled and an abundance of new wine.

Proverbs 3:9,10 Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

The wisdom of God has a lot to offer. In Proverbs Chapter 9, God invites us, by way of a figure of speech that depicts wisdom as a woman, to enter into His abundance of wisdom.

Proverbs 9:1-6 Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars: She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth upon the highest places of the city, Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

Wisdom is like a woman who has a very large and fabulous home in which she has prepared a wonderful banquet for God’s children. The tables are set; the meat and wine are ready. She (wisdom) says, “Come to what I have prepared for you and dine on my wisdom. Forsake the foolish wisdom of the world and live.”

These promises are just some of what is available in our quest for the wisdom of God in The Prosperous Life.

Posted on Saturday, March 21, 2026

The Opening Act of Creation

A Short on Wisdom # 01

Psalm 90:12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

It is commonly understood that the 90th Psalm was written by Moses about the generation that was to die in the wilderness. All the people from 20 years old and upward, except Joshua, Caleb, the priests, and the Levites.

Knowing they only have 38 to 40 more years to live, one of God’s instructions to them was to apply their hearts to wisdom.

“Apply our hearts to wisdom” is a little difficult to understand. Others have translated this as:

…gain a heart of wisdom. (NIV)

…may develop wisdom in our hearts. (Christian Standard Bible)

…we may cultivate and bring to You a heart of wisdom. (Amplified)

may grow in wisdom — may become wise — may develop inner wisdom.

Our lives are also relatively short and pass quickly like the grass of the field — here today and gone tomorrow. So, it might be in our best interest, in the short time we have here in this life, to understand why God is so interested in us gaining a wise heart.

Thinking about this, God could have said, “Since your days are numbered, learn to walk with me, learn to pray, learn to love one another, etc.” Actually, many of the attributes God could have asked them/us to gain or acquire could fall under the umbrella of wisdom.

God must esteem wisdom very highly. In fact, in the book of Proverbs, Chapter 8, God talks about wisdom.

The whole chapter is well worth reading, but we are going to concentrate first on verses 22-30. Let’s start with Vs 1.

Proverbs 8:1 Doth not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her voice?

Here, God puts His wisdom in a figure of speech. His wisdom is presented as a person – it is personified. So, in this entire chapter, it is wisdom that is speaking.

Proverbs 8:22 The LORD possessed (created) me (wisdom) in the beginning of his way, before his works of old.

Possessed is a confusing word. God does not possess anyone or anything. But you could look at it as God owning wisdom. By definition, in most lexicons, it could be translated as “created.”

The word used here for wisdom is the most common word translated as “wisdom” in the Old Testament.

Therefore, before God went to work to create the world, the universe we live in, He created wisdom.

Proverbs 8:22 The LORD possessed (created) me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old.

Proverbs 8:23 I (wisdom)was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.

Proverbs 8:24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water.

Proverbs 8:25 Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth:

Proverbs 8:26 While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world.

Proverbs 8:27 When he prepared the heavens, I (wisdom) was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:

Proverbs 8:28 When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:

Proverbs 8:29 When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:

Proverbs 8:30 Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I (wisdom) was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him;

From the beginning, wisdom was the first of God’s creation. Before all of His works, wisdom was there before the heavens and the earth and before the mountains and the seas. God obviously holds wisdom in high esteem. He sees it to be of immense worth. As His people, He instructs and asks us to grow in wisdom.

There are many who are supposed to have the answers to life — gods, ideologies, and/or political parties. But the Bible says in Romans 16:27 God is “only wise.”

When Adam was in the Garden of Eden, he was a man of body (Genesis 2:7: formed from the dust), soul (Genesis 2:7: breathed into man, and he became a living soul), and spirit (Genesis 1:27: created in the image of God). God had said that in the day they ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would die. The part that died was their spirit, their connection with God.

So, God, being a loving and merciful Father, set out to redeem His man from man’s fallen state. God sees the big picture. He could see thousands of years into the future that there would come a time when He could redeem man. Man could have spirit born within. God’s answer to this huge problem of redeeming man was Jesus Christ.

This perfect man’s (Jesus Christ) death and resurrection paid in full for Adam’s sin and all the sins that resulted from his disobedience. This was the great wisdom of God.

1Corinthians 1:24 … Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

The only wise God is the only one who could have planned this out because:

1 Corinthians 1:25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

So, God, who is only wise, who created wisdom as the first of His creation, who authored the plan of redemption for mankind, instructs us to gain a heart of wisdom in this short time we have in this world.

In the following blogs, we will delve further into the subject of wisdom. This is part of our search into The Prosperous Life.

Posted on Saturday, January 3, 2026

Content and Prosperous!

Someone asked me the other day how I would reconcile Matthew 6:33, which says to seek the kingdom of God first and that all these things will be added unto you with the promises of prosperity. This is very similar to:

Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Sometimes, I find that contrasting is the easiest way to understand a subject. For instance, the Pharisees loved money more than God. They were not content with what they had, nor did they seek the kingdom of God first. Their priorities were messed up.

Luke 16:14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous (lovers of silver or money), heard all these things: and they derided him.

It is entirely possible to be content while believing the promises of prosperity and being a good manager of what God has given to you. Believing God will fill your storehouses and prosper you is as much walking with Him as being content and seeking the kingdom of God first. Once you begin to prosper, you don’t let money go to your head or serve money only.

Job was content and kept God first in his heart, even after he lost his family, his wealth, and his health. Then in the end, GOD gave him twice what he had before. Apparently, God is not opposed to great prosperity. He has said He has great pleasure in the prosperity of His children just like He wants us to seek Him first.

Psalm 35:27 …Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

Other men were like that, too. Abraham, David, and Solomon come to mind. All these kept their priorities straight. God was first in their lives, and God blessed their lives with great abundance.

So, these two ideas, or verses, are not opposed to each other, but simply different aspects on the subject of The Prosperous Life.