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The Fear Of The Lord

                 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight; for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair; for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and discretion to the young— let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance— for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:1-7)

                Going from Song of Solomon to Proverbs, while still reading writings of the same person, is like going from a rave to a cloister cell. One follows the excitement of a romance, which can be true, real, and good, but is still new and exciting. The other follows the humdrum of healthy relationships with everyone and everything. Wisdom isn’t exciting or fun, but it is challenging.

                In today’s passage, wisdom is presented as the means of reaching the point where you don’t need the help of others, and where you provide useful help to others who need it. In a sense, it’s about being your own hero, and the social justice warrior who steps forward to rescue others and stand for what is right. It’s about being just and fair. But how do we know what just and fair are?

                The key to having healthy relationships is to learn. It doesn’t matter what one things should be true or what we want to be true. What matters is what is actually true. This is why the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Whatever you claim to be your lord or your god, whatever dictates how things work and how you should relate to things and people sets the rules. If you reject those rules, you have rejected that god. And if those rules contradict reality, wisdom suggests that you find a new god.

                This does not mean that you will always understand the universe, the rules, or God, or approve of them. The point is that God and reality are inextricably linked. Wisdom deals with and shows respect for reality, therefore, respect (AKA fear) of God is the beginning of wisdom. 

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