1 My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
2 turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding—
3 indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
You have to take action in order to receive blessings from God. Accept the words, memorize (store) the words, listen to wisdom, take time to understand, ask for insight, beg for understanding, look for wisdom, then I will understand fear of the Lord and knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7 He holds success in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
8 for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.
God gives wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. God holds success for those in the upright, a shield to those who are innocent, guards the just, and protects the faithful.
9 Then you will understand what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
10 For wisdom will enter your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11 Discretion will protect you,
and understanding will guard you.
12 Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men,
from men whose words are perverse,
13 who have left the straight paths
to walk in dark ways,
14 who delight in doing wrong
and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,
15 whose paths are crooked
and who are devious in their ways.
I need more wisdom. Wisdom is full of good stuff – send you on good paths, protect me, guard me, and save me.
16 Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman,
from the wayward woman with her seductive words,
17 who has left the partner of her youth
and ignored the covenant she made before God.
18 Surely her house leads down to death
and her paths to the spirits of the dead.
19 None who go to her return
or attain the paths of life.
I wonder if adultery here has two meanings. One the lust and another idolatry. Perhaps it means sin all together. In any case, wisdom will also protect me from it.
20 Thus you will walk in the ways of the good
and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright will live in the land,
and the blameless will remain in it;
22 but the wicked will be cut off from the land,
and the unfaithful will be torn from it.
Walk in the ways of the good, stay on the path of the righteous, upright will live, blameless will survive, and everyone else won’t.
My wife told me the other day that I have been glowing. I feel different now that I have consistently done a quiet time every work day. I need to do them on the weekend to. I will repent this week and do all seven days.
Action Item: I need to pray for more wisdom and actively search for it.
God bless you and thank you for reading. I’d love to hear your thoughts and encouragements too!