Proverbs 8:23 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.

NIV: I was formed long ages ago, at the very beginning, when the world came to be.

NASB: From eternity I was established, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

CSB: I was formed before ancient times, from the beginning, before the earth began.

NLT: I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began.

KJV: I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.

NKJV: I have been established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an earth.

Once again, wisdom is seen as existing before the earth was created (Proverbs 8:22). God's wisdom is infinite and eternal. The words "set up" may be translated as "established" or "installed." The root Hebrew term, nā'sak, is also used in reference to casting such as with molten metal. Wisdom's establishment was not haphazard, or accidental, or flimsy. God's eternal wisdom was present and sure before there was any universe, at all. It did not begin in an academic classroom or in the halls of government or in the mind of a renowned philosopher. Wisdom began with God. Without Him, there would be no wisdom.

However, it pleases God to grant wisdom to those who believe on His Son Jesus. The apostle Paul urged the Colossian believers to avoid being deluded by false teachers, because in Christ "are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). Because believers are linked by faith to Christ, they can "walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time" (Colossians 4:5). Jesus embodied perfect wisdom, and He was the agent through which everything came into existence. John 1:2–3 states: "He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made."

Proverbs 8:22–31 pays tribute to wisdom as having existed from the very beginning of beginnings. In this chapter, wisdom speaks as a woman, in a poetic style used by Solomon. Since the wisdom in question is godly truth, rooted in the knowledge and nature of God, that wisdom predates the creation of the world and everything in it. Like God's goodness and justice, His wisdom has always been part of who He is and how He creates.

In this passage, wisdom is once again imagined as a woman who cries out to be heard (Proverbs 1:20–21). Wisdom extols her own truth and value. Wisdom was part of God's creative power long before even the creation of the universe. The chapter again returns to the many benefits of godly wisdom, before completing those declarations at the start of the next chapter.

Thus far in Proverbs, Solomon has spoken about the virtues of wisdom and the need to acquire it and live by it. He has also warned about the dangers of rejecting wisdom. Chapter 7 ended with a description of a promiscuous woman seducing a foolish young man. Now, in chapter 8, he lets wisdom speak, once again personified as a woman. She speaks about her existence before creation and her gift of life to all who find her. This analogy continues into chapter 9.

Proverbs is best understood in context with the books of Ecclesiastes and Job. In Proverbs, “wisdom” is given in short, simple, general terms. Ecclesiastes represents wisdom based on observation and experience. This often shows how the general principles of the book of Proverbs don’t apply in absolutely every circumstance. Job represents wisdom based on the experience of suffering and injustice. All three come to the conclusion that God does indeed know best, and the most sensible course of action is to follow His will.