Beginning of Wisdom

The WORD in other words by Fr Randy Flores SVD – Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish, Quezon City

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time – A

What is wisdom? In my class in Old Testament literature, a course that I have been teaching since 1999, I tell my students to have this one as a working definition: “practical knowledge of the ways of life and of the world based on experience.” The definition came from Gerhard von Rad, a well-known biblical scholar in the 60s. What Solomon had asked from God, to put it simply, is common sense, rather than riches, honor, and long life. In the Bible, wisdom, also known as common sense, is founded on the fear of the Lord. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” is a favorite teaching of the Old Testament sages.

The reign of King Solomon in the first book of Kings ended in catastrophe. The historian in 1 Kings 11, the last chapter in the Solomon cycle (chaps. 1-11), narrates the deep turmoil in the kingdom. Solomon had become the number one idolater. He even led the building of worship places in Jerusalem for Chemosh and Molek, two of the detestable gods of the Gentiles. In the prophetic books, the sin of idolatry is deeply connected with the violation of mishpat (or social justice). Solomon built his kingdom, increased his wealth, and cemented his power at the expense of the weak and the poor. He imposed heavy taxation on the people and resorted to corvée or forced labor.

The historian’s judgment on the behavior of the king is harsh but true: “Solomon did what was evil (hara in Hebrew) in the sight of the Lord, and he was not a wholehearted follower of the Lord, as his father David had been” (v. 8). Consequently, the Lord is now furious at Solomon, allows rebellion in the king’s court, and pronounces a curse on the fate of Solomon’s kingdom: “I will surely tear the kingdom from you and give it to your servant” (v. 11). Right away, the curse fulfills its way into the kingdom, which has split into two after Solomon’s death.

What happened to the wisdom of Solomon? He was not wise after all! 

Wisdom, then, is not just technical knowledge, administrative skill, the increase of wealth, or the preservation of power. Since it is a divine gift, wisdom necessarily involves a deep commitment to the God of Israel, in which the promotion of social justice (mishpat) is an essential demand. That is why the sages in the Old Testament kept reminding their learners that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”