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Fondly Embrace Wisdom Tightly with Tender Love

Proverbs 4:8 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
⁸Prize her, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.

Prize her, and she will exalt you: The Hebrew verb (סָלַל salal) prize means to highly value, extol, praise, to speak words that elevate the status of a person. This means to raise someone or something higher and higher in value. The Hebrew verb (רוּם rum) exalt means to honor, be lifted up, exalted, elevate. When you prize or esteem wisdom, she will exalt you into a higher position of respect and honor.

She will honor you if you embrace her: The principal Hebrew term denoting honor is (כָּבַד kabad or כָּבֵד kabed), which literally means “to be heavy, weighty.” Thus, an honored person is seen as being weighty; that is, they amount to something. To Honor someone means that we hold them in high esteem, to recognize them as being great and worthy of our respect. The Hebrew verb (חָבַק chabaq) embrace means to fondly hold someone tightly in your arms, showing close association and affection. You need to fondly embrace wisdom with tender love, holding her tightly close to you, for she will then honor you with self-respect and respect for others.

Acquiring wisdom is well worth the effort! She will make you far more valuable to all who listen to you. If you honor and embrace her, she will make your advice, guidance, and counsel highly respected. This does not necessarily mean that you are going to be sought after by the powerful of the world. It means that everyone you touch in life, by their hearing your voice, they are going to be the better for it. Are you diligently improving our knowledge of God’s Word, doing so steadily? Are you taking in accurate knowledge, pressing on to the goal of being a full-grown in the faith?