Blogging Through Proverbs Part VI - 2:6

Studying: Romans 13-14

Memorizing: Romans 1:1-9

Reading: 900 Days, The Siege of Leningrad

Entertainment: 30 minutes

Thoughts: Good

I wanted to spend a little more time on verse 6 alone, particularly these two words translated in the NASB "knowledge" and "understanding."  It seems that throughout Proverbs different words are used synonymously with "wisdom," or at least are used to collectively define wisdom. Some of those words are, understanding, prudence, knowledge, discernment, discretion, and a number of others.  It becomes evident as one reads throughout Proverbs that to be wise is to have these qualities.  If one is wise, he will possess understanding and he will be prudent, knowledgeable, discerning, etc.  But each has their own nuance of meaning, and true wisdom possesses all of these qualities to some extent.  It would seem plausible though that one could be stronger in some of these areas than in others.  For example, one may have a tremendous amount of knowledge, yet be very weak in discernment.  One may have a lot of understanding about a matter, yet lack prudence.  Thus to "grow in wisdom" is to improve in these areas.

Knowledge - Heb. daath - I'm going to simply define knowledge as "to have the facts." To have knowledge is to have mental assent to what is true. This same word was used back in 1:7 where it says that "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." That God is to be feared is a fact.  This is not to negate the place of emotion and feelings in the "fear" of God.  But regardless of how one may feel about the matter, God is still to be feared, and he who knows this has the beginning of knowledge.

From the mouth of God we attain knowledge, that is, from his Word, as stated yesterday.  The Bible is factual truth from beginning to end.  "Who created the world?" we ask.  "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." the Bible states.  "Why do we die?" we ask. "For the wages of sin is death." the Bible states.  These are facts.  These are true things that are to be read and believed.  If we would have knowledge we must begin with simply studying God's Word.  

Understanding - Heb. tebunah - Simply defined "using the fact profitably."  Understanding takes what is learned and believed as fact and puts it to good use.  It's more than just possessing head knowledge.  

For example, I like to collect coins.  Over the past few years, I put together a few interesting pieces.  About 25 years ago "serious" collectors began to get their more valuable coins graded by a third-party service.  The way it works is, the collector submits his coin to this service.  The coin is looked at by three independent graders, each not knowing what the other thinks of the particular coin. The coin is then given a number grade on a scale of 1-70.  A coin with a grade of 1 is practically worthless unless it is inherently rare or made up of a precious metal, having intrinsic value in and of itself.  A coin graded 70 is essentially flawless, and it most cases was minted specifically for collectors without any intent of ever being circulated.  Most coins fall somewhere in between.

Among collectors the "Mint State" (MS) grade is the most prized.  Mint state means that the coin has essentially never been circulated among the general public.  Older coins can fall into the category often because they managed to sit in mint bags inside bank vaults for years, never being released to the public. But not all MSs are equal.  The grades for MS are from 60-70, and a coin can receive a lower grade if, for instance, rolling around in a mint bag for years has scuffed it or put nicks and scratches on the surface.  A MS60 barely makes the cut.  An MS65 is quite sought after, and an MS 67-69 draws quite the premium.  Now I'm going somewhere with this, bear with me.

I have two 1881-S Morgan Silver Dollars both in MS condition.  One is graded MS64 and the other MS65.  To my untrained eye I see very little difference.  If both coins were not sealed in their graded holders and were simply laid out on a table in front of me, I confess I would not be able to accurately distinguish them.  What's the difference?  The MS 64 is worth about $60, while the MS65 is worth about $185.  That subtleties which distinguish one coin from another make a difference of about $125 in value. 

Now the point is this; I have some knowledge of this subject.  I can sit here and write about how an MS64 isn't as valuable as an MS65.  I can tell you a little about how the grading process works. But in this area, I am still not well-trained enough to discern between the two grades and thus turn a profit.  

From the mouth of the Lord we receive both knowledge and understanding.  From him we may learn not just the facts, but how to put those facts into action, how to apply them, how to make them practical.  If we seek, listen, bend, etc. (2:1-5), we will gain from the Lord the knowledge and understanding to discern the most profitable paths.