Wisdom Wednesday: Truth and Wisdom
Submitted by Debbie’s Dad
Buy truth, and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding. (Proverbs 23:23 NASB 95)
Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom. (Psalm 51:6)
In these two passages, we see the importance of the directly related concepts of truth and its necessity to bring wisdom.
- Invest in Truth- The first proverb in chapter 23 is a sequence of instructions to live a Godly life walking with the Lord. Verse 23 instructs the young person to purchase truth–to invest time, energy, and resources, and focus on gaining genuine truth. This truth is found in God’s word. On the night He was betrayed, Jesus prayed for His disciples (John 17) and He asked the Father to set them apart for the ministry He would assign to them (underlined emphasis added):
Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. (John 17:17-18)
The young person who “buys” truth from the word of God–by reading, studying, and thinking (meditating) on what God is saying – will receive wisdom, instruction and understanding to walk wisely.
- Inward Truth- The second passage in Psalm 51 reinforces this concept of truth as a foundation of wisdom. The verse is found within David’s humble prayer of confession and humiliation after Nathan the prophet exposed his adultery with Bathsheba, and his attempted coverup by arranging for her husband’s death. The public psalm proclaims the message of David’s confession and God’s forgiveness (2 Samuel 12:13), In his confession (Psalm 51:3-6) he acknowledges God desires truth (genuine, sincere, honest) in the most inward parts of a man’s soul. This honesty before God in the part that God alone sees, is necessary to become wise. It is God who provides the light to see our innermost (and sinful) soul: “The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD, Searching all the innermost parts of his being.” (Proverbs 20:27) In David’s case, it was the innermost, painful, truthful acknowledgment of his heinous sin. David acknowledged his sin and appealed, “Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” (verse 7).
Here is the way to wisdom: Invest in truth, read God’s word, be truthful before God in your innermost soul. The Lord will “make you know wisdom.”