Wisdom has been sought out by man since the deception of Eve in the garden of Eden. Man's desire for wisdom is encouraged (Pv8:10-11). Yet it has brought destruction when gained outside of God's instruction (Gen3:24).
Adam and Eve had everything they needed for life. They enjoyed the company of the Creator, our father. Wisdom was there for the taking each time they walked with God in the cool of the day (Genesis 3), displayed for them to see. They longed for nothing, then they were deceived into believing more could be had by taking what was forbidden.
The first written account of the quest for wisdom was in the garden. The serpent confused the truth and Eve succumbed to what could be described as the first fleshly desire. The original documented lie told in the bible brought the very first human desire for wisdom. The desire to be like God, in a sense (Gen4-6). A desire that seems to remain prevalent in man to this very day.
We see in verse 6, that Eve was persuaded to desire what she had been told was forbidden. Once her focus was turned and she was told she would not die, but rather God was withholding, from His creation, something to be desired. It was then she began to covet. Eve's focus was now her desire. Her desire to please her palate, to please her eyes and overall she desired to be wise, like God. And thus began the human quest for wisdom. A fleshly desire to be respected and admired, rather than to truly be wise. The first desire for wisdom was attained by sin. Yet wisdom was not attained, only knowledge of good and evil.
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom (Ps111:10). True wisdom is found in humility. When one sees another as wise there is the implication of reverence. The fear of the LORD is not fear by worldly standards. Fear in this instance, translated from the Hebrew, means many things, from reverence and respect, to awe . So we see that this scripture says that respect for the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. When we respect or revere someone we tend to follow their lead or ways. Only when we revere the LORD will we attain the beginning of wisdom.
Proverbs 3 shines a different light upon one's understanding of Genesis 3. It conveys direction to attain Godly wisdom. The wisdom of God that leads one to health and happiness. Unlike the human wisdom that Adam and Eve attained on that fateful day.
We see in verses 13-18 that we are encouraged to desire wisdom as a thing of high value. Godly wisdom is to be desired. Eve's desire for wisdom was turned to destruction, from life to death. In verses 19-20 we see that wisdom is displayed in creation. Adam and Eve had this in front of them, revealed by God in the garden. It was there to teach them the wisdom of God all along. God was not withholding His wisdom from them as the serpent had deceived (Gen2:5). In verses 11-12 we see that discipline is recognized as evidence of God's love for His creation. Again Eve was deceived into seeing this backwards. The serpent having convinced her that God was withholding the fruit because He was selfish and unloving toward them. In verses 1-2 one sees that wisdom is a result of obedience. Eve was persuaded that wisdom could be attained by disobedience. In essence, that she could attain wisdom by thinking and deciding for herself. In verses 5-6 we find that one must trust God's wisdom in all things and His commands, having faith. Not relying on one's own perceptions or understanding. Only in this way, do we attain true spiritual wisdom. In verses 2 and 18 we see the tree of life as the way to Godly wisdom. This being the true reason the serpent sought to turn Eve's focus and desires to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When the serpent succeeded in turning Eve's focus, he essentially caused the reversing of the meanings of good and evil. What was good before was now perceived as bad or evil in the couple's eyes. We experience this deception, this reversal still today.
When it comes to wisdom we can learn much from the lives and deception of Adam and Eve. In our daily lives our search for wisdom can lead us to folly in an instant. In the Book of Romans we are instructed to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil (Rm16:19b). We must turn our desires to what is good. We must discipline those desires.
Wisdom is not knowing good and evil. It is knowing good from evil. The fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was not good for eating, because God had forbade it. Wisdom was not attained from this tree, it was not "the tree of wisdom", it was "the tree of knowledge of good and evil". Once having eaten from it Adam and Eve knew good and evil, by the experience of sin. However, what was good before had become evil in the eyes of the couple. Before the deception there was no shame in their nakedness (Gen2:25). Immediately after eating of the forbidden fruit the couple found their nakedness shameful (Gen3:8).
Proverbs 3 guides the young Christian to follow God. To trust God and not one's own understanding, as we have been corrupted by the thinking of the world (Pv3:5-6). Genesis 3 clearly describes what happens when we cease to trust God in all things and begin to think for ourselves.
Proverbs 3 tells us that the world was founded upon the wisdom of God (Pv3:19-20). That God's wisdom will bring life to one's soul. For clarity, soul is not one's eternal being, it is one's mind. Therefore, verse 21's guidance is that God's sound wisdom and discretion brings life to the mind or thinking. The chapter goes on to tell us that it causes us to walk safely and safeguards us from fear.
The bible says that God is the Creator of all things (Pv3:19-20). It further tells us that God's ways and thoughts are higher than our human abilities (Isa55:8-9). Human wisdom, education and philosophy, is foolishness in God's eyes (1Cor3:19). God directs us to seek wisdom from Him alone (Ja1:4-6). God, alone, gives true wisdom, keeping nothing back. God gives to us liberally and without reproach because He loves us. We are directed to do our asking in faith, only. Outside of faith we naturally question direction, thus leading our focus away. We must ask God in faith and we will be led to His wisdom.
We are told that wisdom is better than jewels, silver and even gold (Pv8:10-11). Wisdom, Godly wisdom, is to be desired. Godly wisdom cannot be learned in school. Yet human wisdom and philosophy repeat the serpent's original lie. Paul advises the Corinthians that man's faith needs to have it's basis on God's power, not the wisdom of man (1Cor2:5).
Humanity appears to be ignorant of the fact that there is false wisdom and that it needs to be rejected. The wisdom of God and man are in opposition to one another. We see this in James 13. James asks who among man is wise and understanding. He goes on to describe the difference between God's wisdom and man's wisdom. We see clearly the opposition in 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 and 2:1-7.
God's wisdom is the tree of life, as has been clarified through scriptures here. One cannot become wise by studying sources outside of scripture. One must focus on the teachings of God through Christ Jesus to attain the true and living wisdom of God. We are told that all wisdom and insight is made know to us the mystery of His will (Ep1:8-9; 3:8-13).
We must look for God's wisdom, that brings life to one's soul, in God's Word, and pursue it by keeping God's commands. We must not seek wisdom from the worlds view. It will do exactly to us what was done to Eve in the garden. It will bring confusion and turn our focus from God to our fleshly desires. Ultimately leading to the possibility of our choosing death over life.
We must remain innocent of the evils of this world (Rm16:19b). To do this we must be disciplined. We are encouraged not to despise or be discouraged by the chastening of the LORD, because He only disciplines those He loves (Hb12:5b-6). In this way we are able to attain the wisdom of God for our lives, now.
It may seem odd to find correlation between Genesis and today in reference to wisdom. What better place to begin to seek the answers, though, than at the beginning.
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom (Ps111:10; Pv1:7, 9:10). We begin the journey properly by following God's commands, as said before. There is much more to be found, and learned, concerning the pursuit of God's wisdom. While the first desire for wisdom was born of deceit, God's thoughts on wisdom are vast. From beginning to end we must understand that God always intended us to share in His wisdom. What father does not wish to hand down such things to His child? (Matt7:11;Lk11:13). We need only seek the correct sources in our search (Ja1:5), we need only ask.