Keep Searching as for Hid Treasures
HOW priceless the gems of wisdom found in God’s Word, the Bible! These jewels reveal the divine purpose and set thrilling prospects before us. They provide comfort and show us how to please God. (Romans 15:4) These gems also help us to act wisely in our dealings with others. Indeed, wisdom from God assists us to walk in “the path of life” with satisfaction and happiness.—Psalm 16:11; 119:105.
Since the benefits of wisdom are many, we should prize it highly. “All the sayings of my mouth are in righteousness,” says wisdom personified. “Among them there is nothing twisted or crooked. All of them are straight to the discerning one, and upright to the ones finding knowledge. Take my discipline and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it.”—Proverbs 8:8-11.
Why Keep Searching?
Usually, a search for buried jewels, gold, or silver is fruitless. This need not be true of a search for godly wisdom. But how can we succeed in this quest? Well, success depends on how keenly we desire this treasure and how hard we will work to find it. If we recognize its true worth, we will cherish it above all other valuables. After all, “the getting of wisdom is O how much better than gold! And the getting of understanding is to be chosen more than silver.”—Proverbs 16:16.
Proverbs 2:1-6 urges: “My son, if you will receive my sayings and treasure up my own commandments with yourself, so as to pay attention to wisdom with your ear, that you may incline your heart to discernment; if, moreover, you call out for understanding itself and you give forth your voice for discernment itself, if you keep seeking for it as for silver, and as for hid treasures you keep searching for it, in that case you will understand the fear of Jehovah, and you will find the very knowledge of God. For Jehovah himself gives wisdom; out of his mouth there are knowledge and discernment.”
Since buried treasures are concealed, it is necessary to search for them. While digging, some sacrifice recreation time, food, and sleep. But such effort is deemed worthwhile when the treasure is found. We need to make similar sacrifices to seek out God’s wisdom. As searching for buried treasures calls for strenuous digging, so the quest for wisdom requires perseverance. It is not enough to skim the Bible and Christian publications. Time, research, and meditation are needed to find spiritual gems. But what a delight when we gain insight into the Scriptures!—Nehemiah 8:13.
Successful Treasure-Seeking
Yes, happiness results from digging into God’s Word and finding gems of wisdom. (Proverbs 3:13-18) To that end, we are wise if we build a good personal or family library. But what should it contain? Besides a good dictionary, Jehovah’s Witnesses find it useful to have various translations of the Scriptures, together with Christian Bible publications, including each year’s copies of The Watchtower and its companion journal, Awake! Of course, a library must be used properly if it is to help us as treasure-seekers.
In our quest for wisdom, we can consult the subject and Scripture portions of the Watch Tower Publications Index or indexes at the back of the Watch Tower Society’s books or magazine bound volumes. These are basic tools for seeking godly wisdom. In fact, they are like a map that can lead us to “hid treasures” of godly wisdom. (Proverbs 2:4) If we do not have certain publications needed for research, they may be available at the local Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Now, let us illustrate successful treasure-seeking. In our Bible reading, we may wonder how Judas Iscariot died after betraying Jesus Christ. Matthew 27:5 states that Judas “went off and hanged himself.” But Acts 1:18 says: “Pitching head foremost he noisily burst in his midst and all his intestines were poured out.” So how did Judas die? An answer can be found by checking the listings for these texts in the “Scripture Index” of the publication Insight on the Scriptures. It tells us: “Matthew seems to deal with the mode of the attempted suicide, while Acts describes the result. Combining the two accounts, it appears that Judas tried to hang himself over some cliff, but the rope or tree limb broke so that he plunged down and burst open on the rocks below. The topography around Jerusalem makes such an event conceivable.” (Volume 2, page 130) Regarding Insight on the Scriptures, please see page 10 of this magazine.
Use of a concordance enables us to locate Bible texts. Of course, when discussing a scripture, we should take note of the context. To illustrate this, let us consider Psalm 144:12-14. These verses represent some people as saying: ‘Our sons are like plants, our daughters like corners carved in palace style, our garners full, our flocks multiplying by thousands, our cattle loaded down with no abortion.’ We might think that these words apply to God’s people, but the context shows that they do not. In Ps 144 verse 11, the psalmist David pleads for deliverance from speakers of untruth. They boasted about their sons, daughters, flocks, and cattle. According to Ps 144 verse 15, such wrongdoers said: “Happy is the people for whom it is just like that!” To the contrary, however, David exclaimed: “Happy is the people whose God is Jehovah!”
Spiritual Gems Abound!
Happiness certainly results from successful quests for wisdom. And spiritual gems that can be found through research include satisfying answers to Bible questions. What answers we find if we keep searching! For example, where did Cain get his wife? Said The Watchtower (October 1, 1981): “The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve had many children, not just two [Cain and Abel]. ‘The days of Adam after his fathering Seth [another son] came to be eight hundred years. Meanwhile he became father to sons and daughters.’ (Gen. 5:4) With that information, from where would you say that Cain got his wife? Yes, he must have married one of his sisters. Today this might be dangerous for any children born to such closely related parents. But near the beginning of human history, when mankind was so much closer to perfection, it was not a problem.”
Suppose we are reading the Bible book of Proverbs. Noting what is said at Proverbs 1:7, we may wonder: ‘What is “the fear of Jehovah”?’ Research may lead us to The Watchtower of May 15, 1987, which said: “It is awe, profound reverence, and a wholesome dread of displeasing him because we appreciate his loving-kindness and goodness. ‘Fear of Jehovah’ means acknowledging that he is the Supreme Judge and the Almighty, with the right and power to bring punishment or death upon those disobeying him. It also means serving God faithfully, trusting in him completely, and hating what is bad in his sight.”
Keep Searching!
The Watchtower is published to help earnest searchers for wisdom to find priceless spiritual gems. All of us need wisdom and understanding of God’s Word. Says Proverbs 4:7, 8: “Wisdom is the prime thing. Acquire wisdom; and with all that you acquire, acquire understanding. Highly esteem it, and it will exalt you. It will glorify you because you embrace it.”
Only by gaining insight into the Scriptures and using wisdom aright can we find true happiness. Yes, and only by exercising godly wisdom can we please Jehovah God. So let nothing prevent you from searching for wisdom as for hid treasures.
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Searching for buried treasures calls for strenuous digging. Should we not persevere in our quest for godly wisdom?