God Alone: The Fountain of True Wisdom

For the LORD giveth wisdom (Proverbs 2:6). The fountain of wisdom springs from Elohim alone—not from human cunning or the false oracles consulted by the Gentiles, even by Socrates himself in his weightiest affairs. Men often confound wisdom with craft (cunning), yet they are opposites. A truly wise man cannot maintain his character without doing always that which is just and right. He refuses the sophistry that evil serves good purposes. The crafty man, by contrast, adopts a rule: gain his point by whatever means necessary. When truth opposes his aim, he bespatters it with defamations before striking it in disguise. The wise man studies to be thoroughly and substantially good; the cunning man contents himself with the shadow and appearance of goodness.

The only way to draw wisdom from this divine fountain is by studying and practising the sacred oracles of Elohim. The Word of God contains the precepts of sound wisdom because it teaches men to possess their souls in patience, trusting in Yahweh whose commands they obey. The Proverbs of Solomon, which seldom can lift our views beyond this present life, nevertheless vehemently inculcate strict adherence to the rules of piety and virtue as what will most effectually conduce to our present welfare, whatever chances and accidents befall our condition.