"My son, eat honey, for it is good, yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste"
This proverb is the opening of a discussion about two characteristics of wisdom that are often overlooked. Wisdom is beneficial and it feels good. Wisdom is not like medicine – good for you but tastes lousy. It is not like pastry – tastes good but is bad for you. God wants us to have something that is very enjoyable and is beneficial for us. The search for wisdom is not the search for necessary fiber.
honey
This is the Hebrew word debas which is used fifty-three times in the Old Testament. It referred to the honey from bees but also date syrup. Seventeen times is the phrase "the land flowing with milk and honey." The land where God was sending His people was a very fruitful and productive land. God loves His people and constantly seeks to bless them. Many times believers focus on what they can't do instead of realizing in how many areas that God is blessing them. God is constantly trying to introduce into our lives honey – valuable sweetness. God does love you and has a wonderful plan for your life. The only things that he restricts are those things that would harm you.
Honey was the chief sweetener at that time as there was no refined sugar. Honey was very valuable and highly prized.
good
This is the Hebrew word tob which means good, good things; that which is beneficial, desirable, helpful. Solomon is trying to get us to realize that we are not searching for a bad thing but for something that is really helpful and beneficial to us. It will give us energy and stamina. Many times people approach the search for "what they should do" as though it is not really beneficial for them. This is not the truth. What you should do is the best possible thing you could do. Wisdom does promote self-interest; it does not promote selfishness. It does not elevate self to the primary target, but the person finding wisdom wins and wins big. Never forget this aspect of wisdom. Finding wisdom is not being the martyr; it is finding the best course of action through life. You personally will be benefited by wisdom.
sweet
This is the Hebrew word moteq which means that which is pleasant to the taste, sweet, desirable. God's word is sweet, the wisdom from the Torah, the speech of a friend, water can be sweet, the fruit of an apple tree, sound sleep, the first light of day. This is the quality of strong desirability. Wisdom is not just true; it is extremely desirable. What should you do in a given situation? The answer is extremely desirable. It is beneficial.
All of us are facing decisions, problems, difficulties, and opportunities that require us to find wisdom. Sometimes we shrink back from the pursuit of wisdom or the application of wisdom because it does not sound as exciting as sin. Sin does sound exciting, and it is wonderful for a very short season. Wisdom, however, is good for a very long time; it keeps giving benefits. Wisdom also is very pleasant and desirable. One does not give up pleasure by living God's way. We do avoid the corrosive power-perverted pleasure, but we do not give up joy and delight. God is for us. He wants the best for us. He just does not want us to be destroyed in the process. His pleasures are more long-term and not corrosive.
Do not shrink back from implementing God's wisdom when you find it. It will be a beneficial and pleasant road. Looking for the triple-win: God's glory, others' benefit, and you win is the bulls-eye of God's wisdom. Find these together and you will prosper and be delighted.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz