“Those who earnestly seek out God’s wisdom through growing in the fear of the Lord find only good and wonderful things. This is not to say that there is no suffering or hardship, but that God blesses those who pursue Him even amidst the difficulty. True riches are in Christ alone, and we will be honoured by God for our growing obedience to Him.”

“(N)ot only is ‘the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom’ (Prov. 1:7; 9:10; Ps. 111:10), but, stated negatively, ‘the fear of the Lord is to hate evil.’ (Prov. 8:13) Both refer to the same thrust and direction. The pursuit of God’s wisdom shows an abject hatred for evil, and, at the same time, careful and diligent love for God. Thus, all who would pursue this wisdom will also diligently endeavour to learn discernment—so as to discern good from evil—so that the good will be loved and the evil will be hated.”

“Wisdom calls on the heights near passersby, and at the busy crossroads; at the main gates to the towns, and the other entrances to the town as well. The sense is that it is nigh impossible that anyone miss the call to wisdom. The call of wisdom is to men and youth, the simple and the fools. It is to all people. All are thus without excuse, and must respond to the call in one way or another.”

“How many of us neglect the pursuit of wisdom? How many of us are simple; people merely idling through life and waiting for some seduction to come upon us? How many of us neglect the discipline of the hearts of our children, never acquainting then with the wisdom of God? Shall we—or our neglected children—become just like this simple youth, or even the wicked adulterous? So many are, and so many become so because they neglect the wisdom of God. The wisdom of God helps to safeguard us against evil, so we neglect it to our own peril.”

“The effect is that we are to keep wisdom so close to us (in our hearts) so that we may avoid the adulterous woman, a woman who thus represents all that it means to forsake God and His covenant. The adulterous woman thus represents all that seeks to oppose wisdom and the commandments of God—even God Himself. Pursuing wisdom is pursuing God, and that is what we must do.”

“Today’s devotional serves to illustrate not only God’s design for parents to their children, but also shows that Solomon’s teaching is for all. Regardless of our age, we are all students of God’s wisdom. We all need to be taught how to apply God’s wisdom to every area of our lives, and we all need to see this lived out in others.”

“This is the pursuit of godly wisdom: magnifying the fear of the Lord in your life according to all that God teaches in His Word. Take Him lightly—which is the opposite of godly fear—and your life will be marked by compromise and ineffectiveness for the Lord. The way of wisdom is aptly named, for there is no better way to live. Cultivate the gift you received when you became Christ’s and leave no provision for the flesh.”

“…(W)e can see that our work is not actually for ourselves. Rather, we are slaves to Christ. Likewise, Christ does not desire just any conduct in our work, but that we ‘do God’s will from your heart.’ Thus, every bit of our work involves our whole selves (which the heart depicts), and all of our work is to be done as for the Lord: that we may do His will…”