What an idiot!

Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. Proverbs 26:12

The Bible has much to say about wisdom. Wisdom is a precious gift. So precious a gift that Solomon chose wisdom above every other treasure in this world.

The Bible speaks of Jesus as the personification of wisdom. In Isaiah 11:2 it was prophesied that the Spirit of the Lord would be upon Jesus. When the prophecy further describes the Spirit it is first and foremost described as the Spirit of wisdom and understanding.

Do you know any wise people? I am not talking about knowledgeable people, but wise people. There is a difference here. Being smart does not mean I am wise. Wisdom is the ability to make maximum use of the knowledge one has, but knowledge does not equate to much wisdom nor does little knowledge equate to little wisdom.

The Book of Proverbs is often spoken of as the book of wisdom. In my devotion today I came across Proverbs 26:12. Essentially it says that an idiot is worse off than a moron.

Our English word idiot is derived from the Greek work idios which is translated one's own, belonging to one, or personal. An idiot is essentially someone who lives in their own world.

To go along with this, the English word for moron is derived from the Greek word moronos which is translated as fool.

Now keep in mind this passage was originally written in Hebrew and not Greek. But according to the Phil Ressler translation: don't get too wrapped up in yourself and live in your own world. Better yet, listen to what others have to say and value their input. It is bad enough to be a fool, but a fool who thinks they know it all is even worse yet.

There is a great leadership lesson here. It is easy for a leader to think they know what is best for others. And that might be true to a degree. But every good leader also needs to listen and be open to input of others. Too often we do not give credit to others that they deserve. It just might happen that someone else might actually know something.

When Solomon's son, Rehoboam, seceded his father upon the throne of Israel and Judah he decided he would not listen to his father's advisers. It says he gathered around him, his friends from youth who basically told him what he wanted to hear. In his mind his father's advisors did not know what they were talking about. They had only helped to prosper the kingdom beyond anything that had been previously known. Stubbornly, Rehoboam went forward with what he thought and believed was best. We know how the story ends. The kingdom was divided and Rehoboam almost lost his life.

So where do we gain wisdom? It is not from within. Rather wisdom comes from God. It comes through his Word and also through others. To gain wisdom we first listen to God. Then we listen to others. Finally, we listen to ourselves.

If your wisdom comes from yourself, then you are only fooling an idiot.