Proverbs 3:13-20 - Homiletics

More precious than rubies.

We must bear in mind that the wisdom here commended to us is not mere knowledge, science, philosophy. It has two important characteristics. First, it is religious ; it is based on the fear of God. Second, it is practical ; it assumes the direction of human conduct. It is the knowledge of Divine truth, and the application of it to life. Why is this to be accounted most precious?

I. WISDOM IS VALUABLE ON ACCOUNT OF ITS OWN INHERENT QUALITIES . ( Proverbs 3:13-15 .) Paper money is worthless unless it can be exchanged for something else; but gold coins have a value of their own. If they are not used in the purchase of other things, the precious metal is valuable, and can be fashioned into objects of use and beauty. Wisdom is like solid specie. If she brings nothing else, she is a treasure in herself. While men are asking what advantages will religion give them, they should see that she is "the pearl of great price," for which all other good things may be sold, and yet the profit remain heavily on the side of him who purchases her. This is an inward treasure, a possession of the soul. It has many advantages over material treasures.

1 . It is exalted and elevating. Its character is pure, and it raises those who possess it. There are earthly treasures that defile by contact with them, and others that materialize—make a man hard, worldly, ignoble.

2 . It is satisfying. A man cannot live on gold, but on bread alone. There are desires of the soul that money and food do not quiet. Books, pictures, music, all works of art, all triumphs of civilization, leave a void unfilled. It is the mission of the thoughts of God in the soul to fill this void.

3 . It is never wearying. Many things that never satisfy soon satiate. We are not full, yet we turn away with disgust, having had enough of them. The sea is beautiful, but the sailor grows tired of the endless monotony of waves. Divine wisdom never tires us. It is infinite, endlessly varied, eternally fresh, It is true that we may become wearied of religious occupations, religious books, etc. But then we have the imperfections of the human embodiment of wisdom to annoy us.

4 . It is secure. No thief can steal it. No moth nor rust can consume it. The thief may take a man's jewels, but never his inner treasure. He may be stripped of property, home. choicest possessions, and left to bare beggary; yet if he have precious thoughts of God in his heart, no thief can touch them. They are a safe, an eternal possession.

II. WISDOM IS VALUABLE BECAUSE IT MINISTERS TO OUR EARTHLY WELFARE . ( Proverbs 3:16-18 .) The temporal advantages of religion are here described with that prominence and positiveness which are characteristic of the Old Testament, and of the Book of Proverbs in particular. We have learnt to see more limitations upon these things, and, at the same time, we have had revealed to us much larger spiritual and eternal beatitudes than those of the Jewish faith. But we may make the mistake of ignoring the truth contained in the old view. There are earthly advantages in religion. It has promises for this life as well as for that to come.

1 . Length of days. Many good people die young; many bad men grow hoary in sin. It' it were not so, we should lose the discipline that comes by our having to walk by faith. But on the whole, wisdom tends to length of days by preserving the constitution sound and healthy. A wise way of living falls in with the laws of health. Reckless folly saps the energies of life, induces disease, decrepitude, premature old age and death.

2 . Ways of pleasantness and peace. The road is pleasant as well as the end. Religion may bring a cross, but she also brings grace for bearing it. All her rewards are not reserved for the future. There is a peace of God that passeth all understanding, which the world can neither give nor take away, and which will make the wilderness of tim saddest life blossom like the rose.

3 . A tree of life. Length of days is a poor blessing unless the life preserved is worth living. What boon would it be to an exile in Siberia, a convict on Dartmoor, a paralytic in an infirmary? Long existence without a source of worthy life is the curse of the Wandering Jew, not the blessing of eternal life. Wisdom— i.e. Divine truth, religion—supplies fruits for holy sustenance and leaves for the healing of the nations. To know God is eternal life ( John 17:8 ).

III. WISDOM IS VALUABLE BECAUSE IT IS A LINK OF CONNECTION BETWEEN MAN AND GOD . (Verses 19, 20.) Our heart is restless till it finds rest in God. All our highest life, all our deepest peace, all our truest thought, all our noblest effort, all our purest joy, depend on our union in and with God. But wisdom is an essential Divine attribute. By it God first created the earth and the heavens (verse 13). By it he now controls all things ever. 20). The wisdom of God is reflected in nature. All our knowledge is just the reflection of this wisdom; it is thinking into the thoughts of God; thus it is a communion with him. Spiritual knowledge brings us nearest to God, who is Spirit. Christ as the incarnate "Word," by whom all things were made, and the Wisdom of God, is our Mediator, and unites us to God.