Proverbs (Part 097) - Pro 8:23-25

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23. Pro 8:23 - "I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was." A. I was set up from everlasting, i. "I" in this verse is wisdom personified (Pro 8:1, 12). ii. Wisdom n. - The quality or character of being wise, or something in which this is exhibited. 1. a. Capacity of judging rightly in matters relating to life and conduct; soundness of judgement in the choice of means and ends; sometimes, less strictly, sound sense, esp. in practical affairs: opp. to folly. iii. Wise adj. - 1. a. Having or exercising sound judgement or discernment; capable of judging truly concerning what is right or fitting, and disposed to act accordingly; having the ability to perceive and adopt the best means for accomplishing an end; characterized by good sense and prudence. Opp. to foolish. iv. Wisdom was set up from everlasting. a. Set v. - 154. set up. a. (a) To place in a high or lofty position; to raise to an elevated situation. j. (a) To place in an exalted, eminent, or superior position; to raise to power or authority; sometimes spec. to put on the throne. l. (a) To speak highly of, extol, praise (obs.); to put forward as a model, ‘put on a pedestal’. b. From eternity past, God placed wisdom in a high, lofty, exalted, and eminent position in His mind. c. Wisdom has always been the principal thing in God's estimation (Pro 4:7), even from everlasting. d. Principal adj. - 1. First or highest in rank or importance; that is at the head of all the rest; of the greatest account or value; foremost: = chief a. 3. e. We are to exalt wisdom (Pro 4:8) because God exalts it. (i) Exalt v. - 1. trans. To raise or set up on high; to lift up, elevate. 2. In various fig. or non-material senses: a. To raise in rank, honour, estimation, power, or wealth. d. To praise, extol, magnify. (ii) God spoke highly of wisdom, praised her, and raised her to a prominent rank in His estimation from everlasting. B. from the beginning, or ever the earth was. i. From the beginning of time and even before the earth was created, God placed wisdom on a pedestal. ii. Since God exalted wisdom from everlasting, it then follows that Jesus Christ who is the embodiment of God's wisdom (Col 2:3, 9; 1Co 1:24) would in due time after His resurrection be given the preeminence over all things (Col 1:18). iii. Preeminence n. - 1. Higher rank or distinction; priority of place, precedence; superiority. 24. Pro 8:24 - "When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water." A. When there were no depths, I was brought forth; i. "I" in this verse is wisdom personified (Pro 8:1, 12). ii. When there were no depths a. Depth n. - II. Something that is deep. 7. a. A deep water; a deep part of the sea, or of any body of water. Usually in pl.; now only poetic and rhetorical. b. The great abyss of waters; the deep. 1611 Bible Prov. viii. 27 When he set a compasse vpon the face of the depth. b. The depths refer to the oceans and seas (Exo 15:4-5, 8; Psa 77:16; Isa 51:10). c. God created the depths on the first day of creation (Gen 1:1-2). d. There were no depths prior to the first day of creation. iii. Therefore, before the creation of the world, God brought forth wisdom. a. Bring v. - 16. bring forth. a. To produce, give birth to, bring into being, bear, yield (offspring; fruit, flowers, etc.; natural products; products, effects, results). c. To utter, express; to put forth, adduce, advance. d. To bring to light, or public view. b. In scripture bring/bought forth often means to bring to light into public view (Lev 24:14; Jos 2:3; Gen 14:18; Gen 24:53). c. Why did God bring forth wisdom before He created the world? (i) Because He used His wisdom to create the world (Psa 136:5; Pro 3:19; Jer 10:12). (ii) God brought forth His wisdom before He began creating for the same reason you would bring forth your blueprints before you started to build a house. (iii) It would take an infinite amount of wisdom to conceive, design, and fabricate the heavens, earth, and all that's in them. (iv) Hence the reason God brought forth wisdom before He began creating. B. when there were no fountains abounding with water. i. Fountain n. - 1. a. A spring or source of water issuing from the earth and collecting in a basin, natural or artificial; also, the head-spring or source of a stream or river. ii. Fountains of water spring up from the depths below (Deut 8:7; Psa 78:15). iii. The LORD created fountains of the great deep, deep below the surface of the earth which He used to flood the earth (Gen 7:11). iv. Before God created all of the fountains abounding with water on the earth, from fountains which He made to bless man with life sustaining water, to the fountains of the great deep which He made to be used to destroy man in the flood, God first brought forth wisdom in order to design them. 25. Pro 8:25 - "Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth:" A. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth: i. "I" in this verse is wisdom personified (Pro 8:1, 12). ii. God existed for all eternity before He created the earth and brought forth the mountains (Psa 90:2). iii. The mountains and hills were created on the third day of creation when God gathered the waters together into one place and made the dry land appear (Gen 1:9-10). iv. Settled ppl. - 7. That has sunk down or subsided. Of earth: Compacted, consolidated. v. Before the mountains and hills had sunk down and dried out, God had brought forth wisdom. vi. Just as in Pro 8:24, the LORD is telling us that before the creation of the world He brought forth wisdom. a. Bring v. - 16. bring forth. a. To produce, give birth to, bring into being, bear, yield (offspring; fruit, flowers, etc.; natural products; products, effects, results). c. To utter, express; to put forth, adduce, advance. d. To bring to light, or public view. b. In scripture bring/bought forth often means to bring to light into public view (Lev 24:14; Jos 2:3; Gen 14:18; Gen 24:53). c. As was noted in the comments on Pro 8:24, God used His wisdom to create the world (Pro 3:19) which is why He brought it forth before He began creating.