Proverbs 30
I love this passage of scripture. It is beautiful and poetic in its description of God’s wonderful creation and in revealing my limited ability to comprehend it all. The author makes lists of things too wonderful for him, things that make the earth tremble, things that are small but wise and powerful, and things that are majestic to watch. The awe and wonder of our creator’s creativity is a canvas at which we often do not find ourselves lingering or being captivated. We are like children in a museum running past masterpieces to find the gift shop and to gawk at its trinkets. However, the power of great art is that it awakens us to beauty and enriches our being. So, it is most effective on those who are seeking and who know their deficiency.
How amazing is the author who declares, “I am weary, O God; I am weary, O God, and worn out.” He adds to this, “ Surely, I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.” Here is a humility that is begging to receive and open to see God’s wisdom.
The author makes two petitions before his death. First, remove far from me, falsehood and lying. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches. Strange requests in our culture and perhaps in his as well. He has a singular desire for truth and contentment driven by his passion for God. Don’t give me too much so that I say, “Who needs God.” And don’t give me too little so that I steal and dishonor the name of God. He wants to be faithful to God and sees the dangers that our material needs can create.
Humility is the quality expressed that leads to wisdom. The one-liners or nuggets of truth sprinkled within this chapter all speak to humility. There are truths for sons and daughters, for the unclean, for the angry for the greedy, for the immoral. The author ends, asking, “Have you been foolish?” “Have you been exalting yourself?” “Have you been devising evil?” His questions include a bit of wisdom, “Cover your mouth because foolish talk produces outcomes that you will regret.”
Wisdom knows when to stop talking and seek God. I’ll admit I’m a talker. But, I am encouraged by this passage that God has placed wisdom all around me if I will stop in humility, linger in awe, and learn from Him.