the message of

WISDOM

Learning and living the way of the Lord

Daniel J. Estes

INTER-VARSITY PRESS

36 Causton Street, London SW1P 4ST, England

Email: ivp@ivpbooks.com

Website: www.ivpbooks.com

© Daniel J. Estes 2020

Study Guide by Ian Macnair © Inter-Varsity Press 2020

Daniel J. Estes has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this work.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher or the Copyright Licensing Agency.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version (Anglicized edition). Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. ‘niv’ is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790.

First published 2020

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN: 978-1-78359-982-0

eBook ISBN: 978-1-78359-983-7

Inter-Varsity Press publishes Christian books that are true to the Bible and that communicate the gospel, develop discipleship and strengthen the church for its mission in the world.

IVP originated within the Inter-Varsity Fellowship, now the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship, a student movement connecting Christian Unions in universities and colleges throughout Great Britain, and a member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. Website: www.uccf.org.uk. That historic association is maintained, and all senior IVP staff and committee members subscribe to the UCCF Basis of Faith.

Bible Speaks Today

the message of

WISDOM

Series editors:

Alec Motyer (OT)

John Stott (NT)

Derek Tidball (Bible Themes)

Dedicated to

Christiana Estes Trecker,

with my deep love

Contents

General preface

Author’s preface

Abbreviations

Select bibliography

Introduction

Part 1: The concept of wisdom

1. An invitation to wisdom (Proverbs 1:1–7)

2. Searching for wisdom (Proverbs 2:1–11)

3. The contrasting paths of wisdom and folly (Proverbs 9)

4. The personification of wisdom (Proverbs 8)

Part 2: The context of wisdom

5. Choose life (Deuteronomy 30:15–20)

6. Solomon, the prototype of wisdom and folly (1 Kings 3:5–15; 4:29–34)

7. The distortion of wisdom (Jeremiah 8:8–10; 9:23–24)

8. The blessings of fearing the Lord (Psalm 112)

Part 3: The conduct of wisdom

9. Wisdom in work (Proverbs 6:6–11)

10. Wisdom in speech

11. Wisdom in decisions

12. Wisdom as righteousness

Part 4: The complexity of wisdom

13. Retribution and its limits

14. Wisdom resides in the all-knowing Lord (Job)

15. Enjoy God’s portion as his gift (Ecclesiastes 9:7–10)

Part 5: The culmination of wisdom

16. Jesus, the teacher of wisdom (Matthew 7:13–29)

17. Christ, the wisdom ...

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About The Message of Wisdom: Learning and Living the Way of the Lord

‘For the LORD gives wisdom … he stores up sound wisdom for the upright … The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom’ (Proverbs 2:6, 7; 9:10).

The Old Testament books of Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes are often referred to as the wisdom books of the Bible. The theme of wisdom, however, is not limited to these books: it actually pervades much of the Bible. Dan Estes explores wisdom in key passages in Scripture.

In Part 1, he investigates the concept of wisdom in the book of Proverbs: what wisdom is and how it calls out to humans to follow its path. In Part 2, he considers how wisdom is presented in various contexts in the Old Testament, in passages from the law (Deuteronomy 30), history (1 Kings 3–4), prophecy (Jeremiah 8–9) and Psalm 112. Part 3 focuses on Proverbs to learn how wisdom affects our conduct in our work, our speech, our decisions and our righteous living. There is complexity in the biblical message of wisdom. Part 4 shows how the prominent theme of retribution in Proverbs is balanced and qualified in the books of Job and Ecclesiastes. In Part 5, Estes examines the culmination of wisdom in the New Testament, as we see that Jesus is the master teacher of wisdom and the source of all wisdom, and that we are challenged to live by God’s wisdom rather than falling into folly.

Throughout the Bible, we are constantly challenged to learn God’s wisdom, to live God’s wisdom, and to love God’s wisdom.

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Table of Contents