Jesus and God's Wisdom

The Gospel of John and the book of Proverbs seem, at first glance, to be very different books of the Bible. But they share a deep connection. The beginning of the Gospel of John describes Jesus in the same way that Proverbs describes the character of “God’s Wisdom”. Compare the Gospel passages (John 1:1-3) with a few quotes from Proverbs.

John “In the beginning was the Word…”
Proverbs 8:22-23 “The Lord created me [Wisdom] at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago. Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.”
John “and the Word was with God …”
Proverbs 8:30 “…then I [Wisdom] was beside him [God], like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always.”
John “All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being.”
Proverbs 3:19 “The Lord by Wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens.”

It seems that the writer of the Gospel of John was familiar with the biblical descriptions of the figure of Wisdom, and that he described Jesus in a similar way. He connected Jesus to the Wisdom tradition that already existed in Judaism. But who is this “Wisdom”? Wisdom is an attribute of God personified, who appears in the “Wisdom Literature” of the Bible. The following books of the Old Testament and the Apocrypha are classified as Wisdom literature: Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, Wisdom of Solomon, and Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Sirach). In these books, Wisdom is described as a companion and a co-creator with God at the time of creation. Wisdom is an eternal aspect of God’s personality. Wisdom brings light, life, and truth to the world. It is not surprising that the New Testament writers would identify Jesus with the concept of God’s Wisdom. The traditional descriptions of Wisdom helped the earliest Jewish Christians to express the divine nature and the creative role of Jesus in such New Testament passages as John 1 and Colossians 1.

Once again, compare the following passages:

“He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers — all things have been created through him and for him.” (Colossians 1:15-16)

“For she [Wisdom] is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of his goodness.” (Wisdom of Solomon 7:26)
“I learned both what is secret and what is manifest, for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.” (Wisdom of Solomon 7:21-22)
“With you is wisdom, she who knows your works and was present when you made the world” (Wisdom of Solomon 9:9)
“Wisdom was created before all other things, and prudent understanding from eternity.” (Sirach 1:4)
“When he established the heavens, I [Wisdom] was there” (Proverbs 8:27)

But Wisdom is more than an aspect of God and a participant in creation. Wisdom is also described as something we can receive from God. God is the source of all wisdom; God gives wisdom to us as one of his greatest gifts. Wisdom is God’s word, and it is available to those of us who can understand and accept it.

What exactly is “wisdom”, this gift from the Lord? The Old Testament defines the word as “skill in life”. To have “wisdom” can mean to have the skills that come from education and training. Or it can mean to have the skills of day to day living, skills we need to succeed in marriage, work, raising children, and relating to others. The book of Proverbs was once used as a kind of schoolbook to teach boys what they needed to know for their adult life. Wisdom literature is full of observations about living life well, and living life poorly.

Here is a passage from Proverbs 2 that summarizes the essentials of what the gift of wisdom can give to us:

“My child, if you accept my words and treasure up my commandments within you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; if you indeed cry out for insight, and raise your voice for understanding; if you seek it like silver, and search for it as for hidden treasures — then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly, guarding the paths of justice and preserving the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; prudence will watch over you; and understanding will guard you.”