New: 26 April 2025
A Prayer for
divine Wisdom
Psalm 90
So teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 90:12
Wisdom is the Principal Thing
Life is often challenging and sometimes complicated. We need wisdom to know what to do, how to do it and when to do it.
Wisdom is more than 'knowledge applied.' Wisdom is the ability to do the right thing with the best outcome in a given situation, affecting positively all aspects of it. Wisdom is, simply put, the principal thing in life (Proverbs 4:7 NKJV). Therefore, we need to gain wisdom. But how? The feat of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because it places us in a position of humility and teachability before the all-wise God, Creator and Life-giver (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10; see Q7 for more). Moses, the great Law-giver, pointed out that numbering our days (understanding that life on earth is finite) helps gaining a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12). He elaborated in the psalm about it. We can learn helpful insights from it for our own lives. Ancient wisdom is precious, even in a modern world. We despise 'old things' to our own detriment.
Learning Wisdom from Life
There are basically two ways to learn: from instruction and from experience. The former requires humility, the latter involves pain. Learning by 'trial and error' is costly, but has lead to many great inventions. Companies who follow a policy of not being afraid to make mistakes, speed up the process of new inventions. Creative thinking and eager experimentation lead to progress. Yet in life, learning by 'trial and error' is painful. But there is no way to avoid it. We all learn from mistakes. Well, sometimes we don't and the pain is even worse! Learning by instruction is helpful, for it draws on what others have learned. This is beneficial. As the saying goes, 'You don't have to reinvent the wheel.' Simply meaning, something are properly established, so work with it. However, I might add to this wise saying, let us learn from the ones who invited the wheel! Isaac Newton famously said that the only reason he sees farther in science, is because he stands on the shoulders of giants. He benefited and built on what others before him had achieved. He certainly was a scientific giant in his own right, yet even the great Isaac Newton, as others before and after him, did not do science in vacuum. They all benefits from one another.
What is true in science is true for life. We can learn from others. Scripture is full of insight and wisdom. Yet even wisdom from instruction has to be applied, and sometimes we learn only in life how to apply it properly in a given situation. There is no 'one size fits all,' yet there are timeless principles and divine wisdom we can benefit from.
And let the beauty of the LORD
our God be upon us,
and establish the work
of our hands for us;
Yes, establish
the work of our hands.
Psalm 72:18-19 NKJV
Wisdom is Life
In the biblical understanding, wisdom is life. We cannot live without wisdom. It establishes our house (Proverbs 24:3-4), literally and figuratively speaking. Jesus compared a person who lives by His words to a wise man who built it house in such a way that it would withstand all storms (Matthew 7:23-27). We are wise to live by the wisdom of the Law-giver.
The above is the learning from instruction. Moses, too, gave instruction in the Torah, the Law of God. Torah literally means 'instruction.' It is the way of divine wisdom for life. But Moses also pointed to the importance of understanding life in its finite state: teach is to number our days, with the result that our heart would become wise (Psalm 92:12). He starts the psalm by declaring that God is the everlasting One who existed before time (v 2). This God was their hiding place (v 1). He places himself in a position of humility before the eternal God. To Him, a thousand years are but a day (v 4). Human life is short and vulnerable (vv 3, 5-6). Moses reflects on the hardships their own sin had brought upon them (vv 7-11) and notes how short life actually is (v 10). Living in the fear of God is a good thing, for it prevents us from becoming proud and then fall (v 11). This leads Moses to the conclusion to number our days and learn wisdom (v 12). We should see life as a gift from God. We should know that there is meaning to life and that is in relation to our Creator.
Moses pleads for God's mercy, compassion and joy after all the hardships (vv 13-15). Moses endured much as leader of a large group of people of whom sum were real trouble makers and constant complainers. Paul warns about such an attitude (1 Corinthians 10:1-13). We can go through life as a victim and blame others, or we can be humble and live life as God intended. There is blessing in the latter, misery in the former. The choice is ours, the consequences too. Moses wishes for us to have a heart of wisdom. Paul wants us to learn from past history so that we, too, can be wise and live a life pleasing to God (Romans 15:4). If we want God to establish the work of our hands, to have success and happiness in life, we must make sure that His beauty and favour are upon us (Psalm 92:16-17). We cannot live apart from God in selfish and sinful ways and expect all to be well. There are consequences for wrong behaviour, yet God offers us to way to life. Moses had set life and death, blessing and curses before Israel, and encouraged them to choose life by living for God (Deuteronomy 30:15-20). The same offer applies to us today.
God is a good God and has good plans for us. To give as a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11). We can embrace His will for our lives and experience His blessings on our lives. May we number our days and live in gratitude with a wise heart before the Life-giver.