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Wisdom Personified
“The Lord created me at the beginning of his work,
the first of his acts of long ago.
Ages ago I was set up,
at the first, before the beginning of the earth.
When there were no depths I was brought forth,
when there were no springs abounding with water.
Before the mountains had been shaped,
before the hills, I was brought forth…”
Proverbs 8:22-25
My favorite character from J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” is Tom Bombadil. He is one of the most mysterious and unique characters in Tolkien’s legendarium. He appears early in “The Fellowship of the Ring” when the hobbits first leave home and he is unlike any other figure. While he didn’t make the cut in any of the Peter Jackson movies, Bombadil is a fan favorite. Readers love Bombadil because of his whimsical, joyful nature — a welcomed departure from the darker tone of much of the story. He’s quirky too: he sings non-sensical songs, wears a bright blue coat, a yellow hat and yellow boots, but he’s a mystery. No one knows where he came from or even what he is. And, what’s more, he’s older than creation. Here’s a brief description:
“Eldest, that’s what I am. Mark my words, my friends: Tom was here before the river and the trees; Tom remembers the first raindrop and the first acorn … When the Elves passed westward, Tom was here already, before the seas were bent.”
“The Fellowship of the Ring,” p. 132.
When I read this description of Tom Bombadil, I immediately think of Proverbs 8. In Proverbs 8 we read that wisdom existed prior to the created order, “Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth…” (Proverbs 8:25)
Wisdom, like Tom Bombadil, is old — really old. It was there before God created the material world, but, perhaps more striking, is the Bible’s repeated personification of wisdom. Wisdom is not a set of rules to follow, nor a list of self-help tactics, but a person. If we fast-forward to the New Testament, we see the personification of wisdom come to its fulfillment in the person of Jesus. St. Paul calls Christ “the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:24, 30) In short, Christ is wisdom personified.
We often think of wisdom as living the right way or making sound decisions. And to be sure, it does include these things, but wisdom is fundamentally wrapped up in the personhood of God. This is why Proverbs begins with the statement: “The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of wisdom.” (Proverbs 1:9)
God wants us to pursue wisdom. He wants us to be wise and the first step in this pursuit is relational. Get to know God. If you know Him already, get to know Him better. Do this and you will be on the path of wisdom.
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