Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 8:10

Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.

Pro 8:10

Receive my instruction, and not silver.

The commendation of wisdom

I. Knowledge must be received.

1. Do not refuse knowledge offered you in the Book of God.

2. Do not refuse instruction offered you by Gods ministers.

II. Knowledge must be received by way of instruction. Instruction is necessary, as it does not come by nature, and God does not teach it now by miracle.

III. Knowledge must be more readily received than silver or gold. It can do that which gold and silver can never do. It is the best riches. More is gotten by labouring for knowledge than for money. (Francis Taylor, B. D.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Verse 10. Receive my instruction, and not silver] A Hebrew idiom; receive my instruction in preference to silver.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

And not silver, i.e. rather than silver, as such negative expressions are understood, Gen 45:8; Exo 16:8; Jer 7:22; 16:14,15, and in many other places. Though withal he seems to intimate the inconsistency of these two studies and designs, and the great hinderance which the love of riches gives to the study of wisdom.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

10. not silverpreferable toit, so last clause implies comparison.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Receive my instruction, and not silver,…. Not but that silver may be desired, sought after and received, consistent with the instructions of wisdom; though an anxious, immoderate, sinful pursuit after it, hinders the reception of them; and when they are in competition, the one is to be preferred to the other: the doctrines of the Gospel are of more worth, and more to be desired, than thousands of gold and silver; and therefore the meaning is, that the instruction of wisdom should be received rather than silver; it should have the preference; so Gersom interprets it, and with which agrees the following clause:

and knowledge rather than choice gold; that is, the knowledge of Christ, and the knowledge of God in Christ; the knowledge of the Gospel, and the truths of it; a spiritual and experimental knowledge of these things is of more value than the finest gold, than the gold of Ophir; see Ps 19:10.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

Her self-commendation is continued in the resumed address:

10 “Receive my instruction, and not silver,

And knowledge rather than choice gold!

11 For wisdom is better than corals,

And all precious jewels do not equal her.

12 I, Wisdom, inhabit prudence,

And the knowledge of right counsels is attainable by me.”

Instead of influenced by , is with to be supplied; besides, with most Codd. and older editions, we are to accentuate with the erasure of the Makkeph. “Such negations and prohibitions,” Fleischer remarks, “are to be understood comparatively: instead of acquiring silver, rather acquire wisdom. Similar is the old Arabic ‘l – nar w – l’ – ‘l – ‘ar , the fire, and not the disgrace! Also among the modern Arabic proverbs collected by Burckhardt, many have this form, e.g., No. 34, alhajamat balafas wala alhajat alanas , Better to let oneself be cut with the axe then to beg for the favour of another” 10b is to be translated, with Jerome, Kimchi, and others: and knowledge is more precious than fine gold ( , neut.: auro pretiosius ); and in view of Pro 16:16, this construction appears to be intended. But Fleischer has quite correctly affirmed that this assertatory clause is unsuitably placed as a parallel clause over against the preceding imperative clause, and, what is yet more important, that then Pro 8:11 would repeat idem per idem in a tautological manner. We therefore, after the Aramaic and Greek translators, take together here as well as at Pro 8:19, inasmuch as we carry forward the : et scientiam prae auro lectissimo , which is also according to the accentuation. Equally pregnant is the in of the passage Pro 3:14-15, which is here varied.

Pro 8:12

Ver. 12 follows Pro 8:11 = Pro 3:15 as a justification of this estimating of wisdom above all else in worth. Regarding with Gaja, vid., the rule which the accentuation of this word in the three so-called metrical books follows in Merx’ Archiv, 1868, p. 203 (cf. Baer’s Torath Emeth, p. 40). We translate: ego sapientia involo sollertiam , for the verb is construed with the accusative of the object, Pro 2:21; Pro 10:30; 37:3 (cf. , Psa 5:5), as well as with , Gen 26:2, Ps. 69:37. Wisdom inhabits prudence, has settled down, as it were, and taken up her residence in it, is at home in its whole sphere, and rules it. Bertheau not unsuitably compares with , 1Ti 6:16. Regarding , vid., Pro 1:4; Pro 5:2. It denotes well-considered, carefully thought out designs, plans, conclusions, and is here the knowledge that is so potent. This intellectual power is nothing beyond wisdom, it is in her possession on every occasion; she strives after it not in vain, her knowledge is defined according to her wish. Wisdom describes herself here personally with regard to that which she bestows on men who receive her.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

CRITICAL NOTES.

Pro. 8:11. Rubies, pearls.

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPHPro. 8:10-11

WISDOM BETTER THAN WEALTH

I. Wisdom is to be preferred to wealth because it belongs to a higher sphere. The wisdom by which men succeed in finding gold and silver reveals the superiority of mind over matter. The apparatus of the miner or digger reveals that his thought, by which he is enabled to find the precious metal, is more than the metal itself. The precious stones which the merchant gains by trading are inferior to the wisdom he puts in operation to gain them, even though it is a wisdom which is only devoted to gaining money. The mental power which he puts forth shows that he is possessed of intelligence, which, belonging to the region of mind, belongs to a higher sphere than material wealth. When the wisdom is that spoken of in the text, the wisdom which springs from the very Fountain of goodness, it is not only preferable because it is the offspring of mind, but because it belongs to the higher region of spiritual purity.

II. Wisdom is to be preferred to wealth, because it had an existence before wealth. The world, with all its precious stones, and rich mines of gold and silver, is but of yesterday compared with wisdom. The mental and spiritual wealth of God was before matter; upon that wisdomas we learn in this chapterdepended the existence of the material (Pro. 8:22-32; chap Pro. 3:19-20). Mental wealth is eternal, material wealth belongs only to time. Gold had a beginning, because the earth had a birthday, but wisdom is as old as God.

III. Wisdom is to be preferred to wealth, because it is an absolute necessity to mans well-being, which gold is not. The first man, in his state of sinlessness, had no need of what men now call wealth, but wisdomspiritual wisdomwas absolutely necessary to his continuation in a state of blessedness. Men need worldly, intellectual wisdom, even to make money. Many who inherit wealth lose it because they lack wisdom to use it rightly. But they can be blest without wealth, but not without the wisdom which leads to holiness. Wealth may bring pleasure with it, but to do so it must be united to true wisdom. Many who roll in riches have no pleasure in them; sometimes their very wealth adds to their unhappiness. Mental wealth enables men to extract some enjoyment from material wealth, but the riches of goodness makes gold and silver a means of increasing mens happiness.

IV. Wisdom is to be preferred to wealth, because the latter may be destructive to character, and the former is its constructive power. Many men have been morally destroyed by their riches. But true wisdom is that by which a holy character is formed, the sustenance of the spiritual life. Riches may ruin; the wisdom which God gives to those who seek it at His hand can but bless.

OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS

Pro. 8:10. Thou canst not make as thy chief aim the acquisition of silver and that of true wisdom at one and the same time, for those aims mutually conflict, and each claims the whole man (Mat. 6:24). To accept the one involves the rejection of the other as the chief portion. He who lives for money is void of wisdom (Luk. 12:16; Luk. 12:20), and is called in Scripture a fool.Fausset.

Had it been said, Receive silver, who would not have held out his hand to receive it? Had it been said, Receive gold, who would not have been forward and glad with both his hands to have taken it? But it is instruction and not silver, wherein, lest a worldly heart be afraid that the taking of silver were forbidden him, the next words show the meaning, that it is but instruction rather than silver, as it is knowledge rather than gold. He that seeketh gold and silver diggeth up much earth, but finds little of them, but he that receiveth instruction and knowledge, which are, indeed, of a golden nature, even in a little shall get and find much. Wherefore Clemens Alexandrinus saith, It is in the soul that riches are, and they alone are riches whereof the soul alone is the treasure.Jermin.

The first warning uttered by this wisdom from above is the repetition of a former word. The repetition is not vain. Another stroke so soon on the same place indicates that he who strikes feels a peculiar hardness there. The love of money is a root of evil against which the Bible mercifully deals many a blow. There lies one of our deepest sores. Thanks be to God for touching it with line upon line of His healing Word. A ship bearing a hundred emigrants has been driven from her course and wrecked on a desert island, far from the tracks of men. The passengers get safe ashore with all their stores. There is no way of escape, but there are means of subsistence. An ocean unvisited by ordinary voyagers circles round their prison, but they have seed, with a rich soil to receive, and a genial climate to ripen it. Ere any plan has been laid, or any operation begun, an exploring party returns to head quarters reporting the discovery of a gold mine. Thither instantly the whole company resort to dig. They acquire and accumulate heaps of gold. The people are quickly becoming rich. But the spring is past, and not a field has been cleared, not a grain of seed has been committed to the ground. The summer comes, and their wealth increases, but the store of food is small. In harvest they begin to discover that their stores of gold are worthless. A cart-load of it cannot satisfy a hungry child. When famine stares them in the face a suspicion shoots across their fainting hearts that their gold has cheated them. They loathe the bright betrayer. They rush to the woods, fell the trees, till the ground, and sow the seed. Alas! it is too late! Winter has come, and their seed rots in the soil. They die of want in the midst of their treasures. This earth is a little isleeternity the ocean round it. On this shore we have been cast, like shipwrecked sailors. There is a living seed; there is an auspicious spring time; the sower may eat and live. But gold mines attract us; we spend our spring thereour summer there: winter overtakes us toiling there, with heaps of hoarded dust, but destitute of the bread of life.Arnot.

Pro. 8:11. First, because everything else without it is a curse, and with it is just what is needed; second, because it is necessary to all beings, and even to God himself, as the spring of action; third, because it is glory and wealth in its very nature.Miller.

Surely he that thinketh himself adorned with precious stones, showeth himself to be of less price than the stones are. To whom Clemens well applieth that saying of Apelles, who, when one of his scholars had painted Helena set out with much gold, said unto him, Alas, poor young man, when thou couldst not draw her fair thou hast made her rich, for so, when many have neglected the jewel of the soul they seek to prank out the body with jewels.Jermin.

The wisdom of goodness, or virtue.

1. Is absolutely and without any limitation good, absolutely and without any limitation useful and desirable. It alone can never be misapplied, can never be criminal. This we cannot pronounce of any other good. Riches may be a snare, honours a burden, even the endowments of the mind may be a snare to us.

2. It is far more unchangeable than the value of all other goods and endowments. The value of riches is regulated by our wants and the wants of the society in which we live. The value of honour changes according to the opinions, the usages, the political institutions of mankind. The value of sensual pleasure depends much on our constitution, age, and health. Even the value of mental endowments is subject to vicissitudes. The value of true wisdom alone is invariably the same.

3. It is much more independent of station than any other good. Riches would cease to be riches if all men lived in abundance. Honour would lose much of its value if it gave us no precedence over others. A great proportion of the value of sensual and mental pleasures would be reduced to nothing if every man possessed them, and each in the same degree. But no man loses anything if another be virtuous likewise, but if all were virtuous all would infinitely profit thereby.

4. It has a pre-eminent value, by the effects it produces in us. It renders us:

(1) much better,
(2) more useful,
(3) more happy.
5. It alone fits us for a better life. It passes for as much in heaven as it does upon earth, and much more. It alone assimilates us with God. What we call riches, power, and knowledge, are poverty, weakness, and darkness, with Him.Zollikofer.

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

10, 11. Receive, etc. Having recommended the character and quality of her instructions, she again urgently presses the acceptance of them.

Instruction Discipline, correction, precepts of restraint. See Pro 1:2, and note.

Rubies Or, pearls.

Things that may be desired All desirable things. Comp. Pro 8:19. Wisdom had begun to specify silver, gold, pearls; but cuts the matter short by including all valuable and desirable things. Her teachings are more valuable than all else. Comp. Pro 3:15.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Pro 8:10. Receive my instruction, and not silver Rather than silver; that is to say, preferably to silver; or it may be, “Give not your heart to money, if you would possess wisdom.” It is impossible to join these two things, the love of this world, and the love of wisdom.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Pro 8:10 Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.

Ver. 10. Receive mine instruction, and not money. ] That is, Rather than money; as, “I will have mercy, and not sacrifice” – that is, rather than sacrifice. Knowledge of the Scriptures is the greatest riches. “Let the word of Christ dwell richly in you.” Col 3:16 The Corinthians were enriched in all knowledge. 1Co 1:5 Plato gave three hundred florins for a book that he liked. a Dionysius said that Aristippus was always craving money from him, but Plato desired nothing but books. What spending of money and lavishing out of the bag is there for human learning! And yet Aristotle himself could say, that a little knowledge, though but conjectural, about heavenly things, is to be preferred above much knowledge, though certain, about inferior things.

a Called Sophron.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)