Wisdom 8

Wisdom of Solomon 8

¹She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,[#Wis 7.24]

and she orders all things well.

Love for Wisdom

²I loved her and sought her from my youth;[#vv 9, 18 ; 1 Kings 3.7, 9; Sir 15.2]

I desired to take her for my bride

and became enamored of her beauty.

³She glorifies her noble birth by living with God,[#v 9]

and the Lord of all loves her.

⁴For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God

and an associate in his works.

⁵If riches are a desirable possession in life,[#Prov 8.18; Wis 7.8, 9]

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

⁶And if understanding is effective,[#Wis 7.22]

who more than she is fashioner of what exists?

⁷And 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.

⁸And if anyone longs for wide experience,[#Prov 1.6; Wis 10.16; Sir 39.2, 3; 47.15, 17]

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 Indispensable to Rulers

⁹Therefore I determined to take her to live with me,[#vv 2, 16, 18]

knowing that she would give me good counsel

and encouragement in cares and grief.

¹⁰Because of her I shall have glory among the multitudes[#1 Kings 3.7; Sir 47.14, 16]

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

¹¹I shall be found keen in judgment,[#1 Kings 3.28]

and in the sight of rulers I shall be admired.

¹²When I am silent they will wait for me,[#Job 29.8–10; Sir 5.12]

and when I speak they will give heed;

if I speak at greater length,

they will put their hands on their mouths.

¹³Because of her I shall have immortality[#v 17]

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

¹⁴I shall govern peoples,[#1 Kings 4.21, 24]

and nations will be subject to me;

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

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

¹⁶When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her,[#vv 3, 9, 18; Prov 3.17; Bel 2]

for companionship with her has no bitterness,

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

¹⁷When I considered these things inwardly[#v 13]

and pondered in my heart

that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,

¹⁸and in friendship with her, pure delight,[#vv 2, 5, 9, 16]

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.

¹⁹As a child I was naturally gifted,

and a good soul fell to my lot,

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

²¹But I perceived that I would not possess wisdom unless God gave her to me—[#1 Kings 3.9; 4.29; Prov 3.17; Sir 1.1]

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,