That God is not indifferent to man’s need is shown at the beginning of this deeply interesting chapter. Wisdom’s call is urgent on the great highway of life. Connect what we have here with 1 Corinthians 1:18-31.
Verse 9 states a very blessed fact, for the believer justifies God in all His sayings. And we who have by grace received Christ as our Saviour, know well the truth of the eleventh verse.
Verses 12 to 16 tell important principles of divine wisdom for man. Prudence; knowledge which comes from reflection; fearing God; hating evil, pride, arrogancy, the evil way arid the froward mouth are part of this-wisdom of God, provided for us. In it is counsel, strength; by it kings, princes, nobles, judges, rule and carry on their responsibilities.
Verse 17 introduces another subject which was before us a little in considering chapter 3,—that there are rewards for the diligent seeker after wisdom. This verse carries a pointed message:
“I love those that love me, and they that seek me early (or earnestly) shall find me.”
God knows how to encourage His beloved children to apply themselves diligently to what concerns their eternal blessing!
Verses 18-21, it will be seen, tell of more than riches and honor; durable wealth and righteousness, fruit better than fine gold, revenue better than choice silver: these are spiritual blessings with which our God has endowed those of His heaven bound children who prize His Word above all things earthly. Precious is the last verse 21 with its positive assurance of blessing from above. May we look more constantly to the great Blesser!
The Holy Spirit has been occupying these chapters with the theme of God’s wisdom for man; Christ is the wisdom of God and the center of all; the object of God’s ceaseless and eternal love. In Him the wisdom of God is revealed. (See Ephesians 1:9, 10; 1 Corinthians 1:24, 30; 2:6-10). Accordingly Christ is presented in our chapter, from verse 22-36.
Every reference to the Lord Jesus in the Old Testament (though we never find that blessed name of Jesus there) is of the deepest, interest to the believer, and these verses, in Proverbs 8 are very precious. The mystery of the Godhead is here: the Father and the Son, with the Holy Spirit writing the words. The Son was set up (literally, anointed) from eternity, from the beginning, before the earth was.
Our limited minds cannot grasp eternity; the subject is too vast, and God uses the words “the beginning” to bring to our thoughts that which we can take in. So in Genesis 1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” tells us of the beginning of creation, untold ages, it may be, ago, for it was before the events of the six days of verses 3-21, which are commonly reckoned as occurring 4000 years before Christ. But John 1 proceeds back into past eternity as far as our minds can grasp, when it says,
"In the beginning Was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." And so here in Proverbs 8,
"Jehovah possessed Me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old."
Here is the furthest point our finite minds can travel. Avoiding the speculations of the natural mind, we rest in the knowledge of the Father who gave His Son; of the Son who laid down His life on Calvary's cross, and of the Holy Spirit, seal of the purchase of every believer, with the precious blood of Christ. Matthew 11: 27; Luke 10:22, and John 1:1-3, shut off all speculation about the Son.
Before we close our scripture study today, let us notice the Father's delight in the Son, in verse 30, and the Son's delight in man, in verse 31.
"It is in connection with men that Christ is seen, when considered as uniting and developing in Himself every feature of wisdom and the counsels of God. The life that was in Him was the light of men."
Christ's delight in man will have its full expression in the Millennium, not before, and in the meanwhile He calls upon men to hearken unto Him.
"Whoso findeth Me findeth life" (verses 32-36).