In Proverbs 8, wisdom is described like a person who talks to us. One verse in this chapter, verse 22, has caused a lot of arguments over the years. Let’s look at why.
The Notorious Verse
Proverbs 8:22 The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old.
Here, wisdom says it was “brought forth” before anything else. Some groups have used this verse to say Jesus was created by God. But this chapter is a poem about wisdom, not a description of Jesus. God has always been wise. There was never a time when he wasn’t!
Jesus Was Never Created
John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
The Bible says Jesus was with God in the beginning and that everything was made through him. Jesus isn’t part of creation. He is the Creator.
God Made the World With Wisdom
Proverbs 8:27 I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep.
Proverbs 8 says God created the world with wisdom, carefully and on purpose. The world isn’t an accident. And the same God who made the stars invites us to know him (Proverbs 8:17).
The Takeaway
Proverbs 8 is a poem about God’s wisdom, not a claim that Jesus was created. God made the world with wisdom, and Jesus is the Creator who was there from the beginning.
