6). Wisdom Brings Blessing On Those Who Hear Her For Through Her They Find Life And Come Into The Favour Of God (Proverbs 8:32-36).
Because her delight was with the sons of men Wisdom calls on men to listen to what she says, and that is because she wants them to be blessed by God. And she assures them that those who find her will find life, and will obtain YHWH's favour. For she is His wisdom, and therefore to follow her is to walk in the fear of YHWH. And that is why those who sin against her wrong their own souls, and those who hate her love death. It is because by doing so they have turned against YHWH.
The subsection is in the form of a minor chiasmus:
A Now therefore, sons, listen to me, for blessed are those who keep my ways, hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not (Proverbs 8:32-33).
B Blessed is the man who hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors (Proverbs 8:34). A For whoever finds me finds life, and will obtain favour of YHWH. But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul. All those who hate me love death (Proverbs 8:35-36).
In A those are blessed who keep Wisdom's ways, hear disciplinary instructions, and are wise (and therefore have wisdom), and who do not refuse it. In the parallel those who find wisdom find life and obtain YHWH's favour, and therefore are doubly blessed, whereas those who do refuse wisdom destroy themselves. In B Wisdom herself blesses those who steadfastly seek her.
“Now therefore, sons, listen to me,
For blessed are those who keep my ways,
Hear instruction, and be wise,
And refuse it not.”
These words are similar to previous exhortations and would not have been out of place on the lips of Solomon, but they are actually the words of Wisdom. However, this is not too surprising as she is Solomon's wisdom (Proverbs 5:1). And yet at the same time she is God's wisdom, far transcending the wisdom of Solomon, for this follows immediately after the passage where wisdom came forth from God and was continually with God, long before Solomon existed. She calls on ‘sons', a regular pattern of address for Solomon, to listen to her, because ‘blessed are those who keep her ways'. For this reason they are to hear disciplinary instruction and be wise enough not to refuse it. Hearing, of course, involves obeying. They are to hear and obey God's wisdom. Then they will be truly wise. In contrast are those who refuse it. The consequence of such refusal is found in Proverbs 8:36. They wrong their own inner selves, and forfeit true life.
Blessed is the man who hears me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at the posts of my doors,
A general statement is now made about the blessing that comes on the one who does ‘hear' with an intention of obeying, and who eagerly watches and waits. We learn in Esther of the way in which important officials waited in the gateways to the king's palace in expectancy of being called on to fulfil some duty or of being summoned into the king's presence (Esther 3:3). Alternately the idea may of suitors eagerly awaiting admission (Proverbs 4:6; Proverbs 8:17; Proverbs 8:21; Song of Solomon 5:2). But the emphatic point is of eagerly watching and waiting at Wisdom's gates and doors. Blessing come to the one who does it.
There may here be a reference back to Proverbs 8:3 where Wisdom cries out ‘beside the gates at the entry to the city, at the coming in of the doors', with the idea being of those who eagerly gather there to listen before she comes, waiting and watching for her arrival. Others, however, see it as signifying that Wisdom is in her house (Proverbs 9:1), and people are to wait eagerly outside for her to appear (as newspaper photographers wait eagerly outside a house for an important person who lives there). But however we see it the important lesson is not to be missed which is the eagerness and desire with which we should seek wisdom.
‘Blessed is the man.' We can compare here the blessedness of the man who delights in the Torah (Law, Instruction) of YHWH, and meditates on it day and night (Psalms 1:1-3). He too rejects the way of the wicked, of sinners and of the scornful.
For whoever finds me finds life,
And will obtain favour of YHWH.
But he who sins against (or ‘misses') me wrongs his own soul.
All those who hate me love death.”
Solomon points out that finding wisdom is a life and death issue. For the one who finds true wisdom finds life, whereas the one who hates true wisdom ‘loves death'. ‘Life' includes not only longevity (Proverbs 3:2; Proverbs 3:16; Proverbs 3:18; Proverbs 9:11), but also wellbeing and spiritual prosperity (Proverbs 1:9; Proverbs 1:23; Proverbs 3:8; Proverbs 3:18; Proverbs 3:24-25; Proverbs 4:8-9; Proverbs 4:16; Proverbs 8:21). It is the way of security and peace (Proverbs 1:33; Proverbs 3:2; Proverbs 3:18; Proverbs 3:24-25). And it is the opposite of entering into the grave world (Proverbs 2:18; Proverbs 5:5; Proverbs 7:27; Proverbs 9:18), for that is the threat made against those who reject wisdom. It is a ‘life more abundant' (John 10:10), and it promises, on death, entrance into the presence and joy of YHWH (Psalms 16:11; Psalms 17:15).
Finding wisdom also results in obtaining the favour of YHWH (compare Proverbs 3:4), possibly here indicating that the reception of life indicates YHWH's favour (compare Proverbs 18:22). For the one who follows God's true wisdom finds life because he is pleasing to God and acceptable in His sight. In contrast are those who ‘sin against wisdom', that is who do not receive her and follow her ways, or who ‘miss wisdom' because of their own carelessness. By failing to find wisdom they wrong their own inner lives. They do not find life. For those who hate God's wisdom, love death, which is not only physical death (compare Proverbs 2:18; Proverbs 5:5 a; Proverbs 7:27), but also spiritual death (the opposite of spiritual life - Proverbs 1:31-32; Proverbs 2:19; Proverbs 4:19; Proverbs 5:6; Proverbs 6:32), and entry into the emptiness of the grave world (Sheol - Proverbs 5:5; Proverbs 7:27).