Kings Should Seek Wisdom

(Rom 13:1)

6 Listen therefore, O kings, and understand;

learn, O judges of the ends of the earth.

2 Give ear, you that rule over multitudes,

and boast of many nations.

3 For your dominion was given you from the Lord,

and your sovereignty from the Most High;

he will search out your works and inquire into your plans.

4 Because as servants of his kingdom you did not rule rightly,

or keep the law,

or walk according to the purpose of God,

5 he will come upon you terribly and swiftly,

because severe judgment falls on those in high places.

6 For the lowliest may be pardoned in mercy,

but the mighty will be mightily tested.

7 For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of anyone,

or show deference to greatness;

because he himself made both small and great,

and he takes thought for all alike.

8 But a strict inquiry is in store for the mighty.

9 To you then, O monarchs, my words are directed,

so that you may learn wisdom and not transgress.

10 For they will be made holy who observe holy things in holiness,

and those who have been taught them will find a defense.

11 Therefore set your desire on my words;

long for them, and you will be instructed.

Description of Wisdom

(Cp Prov 8:1–36)

12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading,

and she is easily discerned by those who love her,

and is found by those who seek her.

13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.

14 One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,

for she will be found sitting at the gate.

15 To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,

and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,

16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,

and she graciously appears to them in their paths,

and meets them in every thought.

17 The beginning of wisdoma is the most sincere desire for instruction,

and concern for instruction is love of her,

18 and love of her is the keeping of her laws,

and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,

19 and immortality brings one near to God;

20 so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.

21 Therefore if you delight in thrones and scepters, O monarchs over the peoples,

honor wisdom, so that you may reign forever.

22 I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be,

and I will hide no secrets from you,

but I will trace her course from the beginning of creation,

and make knowledge of her clear,

and I will not pass by the truth;

23 nor will I travel in the company of sickly envy,

for envyb does not associate with wisdom.

24 The multitude of the wise is the salvation of the world,

and a sensible king is the stability of any people.

25 Therefore be instructed by my words, and you will profit.

Solomon Like Other Mortals

7 I also am mortal, like everyone else,

a descendant of the first-formed child of earth;

and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh,

2 within the period of ten months, compacted with blood,

from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage.

3 And when I was born, I began to breathe the common air,

and fell upon the kindred earth;

my first sound was a cry, as is true of all.

4 I was nursed with care in swaddling cloths.

5 For no king has had a different beginning of existence;

6 there is for all one entrance into life, and one way out.

Solomon’s Respect for Wisdom

(1 Kings 3:3–9; Wis 9:1–18)

7 Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me;

I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.

8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones,

and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her.

9 Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem,

because all gold is but a little sand in her sight,

and silver will be accounted as clay before her.

10 I loved her more than health and beauty,

and I chose to have her rather than light,

because her radiance never ceases.

11 All good things came to me along with her,

and in her hands uncounted wealth.

12 I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them;

but I did not know that she was their mother.

13 I learned without guile and I impart without grudging;

I do not hide her wealth,

14 for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals;

those who get it obtain friendship with God,

commended for the gifts that come from instruction.

Solomon Prays for Wisdom

15 May God grant me to speak with judgment,

and to have thoughts worthy of what I have received;

for he is the guide even of wisdom

and the corrector of the wise.

16 For both we and our words are in his hand,

as are all understanding and skill in crafts.

17 For it is he who gave me unerring knowledge of what exists,

to know the structure of the world and the activity of the elements;

18 the beginning and end and middle of times,

the alternations of the solstices and the changes of the seasons,

19 the cycles of the year and the constellations of the stars,

20 the natures of animals and the tempers of wild animals,

the powers of spiritsa and the thoughts of human beings,

the varieties of plants and the virtues of roots;

21 I learned both what is secret and what is manifest,

22 for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.

The Nature of Wisdom

(Jn 1:1–14; Heb 1:1–4)

There is in her a spirit that is intelligent, holy,

unique, manifold, subtle,

mobile, clear, unpolluted,

distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen,

irresistible, 23 beneficent, humane,

steadfast, sure, free from anxiety,

all-powerful, overseeing all,

and penetrating through all spirits

that are intelligent, pure, and altogether subtle.

24 For wisdom is more mobile than any motion;

because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.

25 For she is a breath of the power of God,

and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;

therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.

26 For she is a reflection of eternal light,

a spotless mirror of the working of God,

and an image of his goodness.

27 Although she is but one, she can do all things,

and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;

in every generation she passes into holy souls

and makes them friends of God, and prophets;

28 for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.

29 She is more beautiful than the sun,

and excels every constellation of the stars.

Compared with the light she is found to be superior,

30 for it is succeeded by the night,

but against wisdom evil does not prevail.

8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,

and she orders all things well.

Solomon’s Love for Wisdom

(Cp Prov 8:22–31)

2 I loved her and sought her from my youth;

I desired to take her for my bride,

and became enamored of her beauty.

3 She glorifies her noble birth by living with God,

and the Lord of all loves her.

4 For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God,

and an associate in his works.

5 If riches are a desirable possession in life,

what is richer than wisdom, the active cause of all things?

6 And if understanding is effective,

who more than she is fashioner of what exists?

7 And if anyone loves righteousness,

her labors are virtues;

for she teaches self-control and prudence,

justice and courage;

nothing in life is more profitable for mortals than these.

8 And if anyone longs for wide experience,

she knows the things of old, and infers the things to come;

she understands turns of speech and the solutions of riddles;

she has foreknowledge of signs and wonders

and of the outcome of seasons and times.

Wisdom Indispensible to Rulers

9 Therefore I determined to take her to live with me,

knowing that she would give me good counsel

and encouragement in cares and grief.

10 Because of her I shall have glory among the multitudes

and honor in the presence of the elders, though I am young.

11 I shall be found keen in judgment,

and in the sight of rulers I shall be admired.

12 When I am silent they will wait for me,

and when I speak they will give heed;

if I speak at greater length,

they will put their hands on their mouths.

13 Because of her I shall have immortality,

and leave an everlasting remembrance to those who come after me.

14 I shall govern peoples,

and nations will be subject to me;

15 dread monarchs will be afraid of me when they hear of me;

among the people I shall show myself capable, and courageous in war.

16 When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her;

for companionship with her has no bitterness,

and life with her has no pain, but gladness and joy.

17 When I considered these things inwardly,

and pondered in my heart

that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,

18 and in friendship with her, pure delight,

and in the labors of her hands, unfailing wealth,

and in the experience of her company, understanding,

and renown in sharing her words,

I went about seeking how to get her for myself.

19 As a child I was naturally gifted,

and a good soul fell to my lot;

20 or rather, being good, I entered an undefiled body.

21 But I perceived that I would not possess wisdom unless God gave her to me—

and it was a mark of insight to know whose gift she was—

so I appealed to the Lord and implored him,

and with my whole heart I said:

Solomon’s Prayer for Wisdom

(1 Kings 3:3–9; Wis 7:7–22a)

9 “O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy,

who have made all things by your word,

2 and by your wisdom have formed humankind

to have dominion over the creatures you have made,

3 and rule the world in holiness and righteousness,

and pronounce judgment in uprightness of soul,

4 give me the wisdom that sits by your throne,

and do not reject me from among your servants.

5 For I am your servanta the son of your serving girl,

a man who is weak and short-lived,

with little understanding of judgment and laws;

6 for even one who is perfect among human beings

will be regarded as nothing without the wisdom that comes from you.

7 You have chosen me to be king of your people

and to be judge over your sons and daughters.

8 You have given command to build a temple on your holy mountain,

and an altar in the city of your habitation,

a copy of the holy tent that you prepared from the beginning.

9 With you is wisdom, she who knows your works

and was present when you made the world;

she understands what is …