Seeking Wisdom, Like Solomon

Know Thyself, But Know You Are Not On Your Own
(for a list of sources of inspiration, see below)

“Know thyself.”
That’s what they told me.
From carved stone in Delphi
to concrete in the Bronx.
From Plato’s scrolls
to KRS-One’s punch.

So I looked.
In mirrors.
In books.
In pain.
In rhythm.
In grind.
In gain.

I peeled back the masks,
and found... more masks.
I searched the noise...
but silence always lasted longer.

I tried success.
Tried pleasure.
Tried being better.
Smarter.
Sharper.
Cleaner.
Faster.

Like Solomon, I tasted it all.
And like him, I whispered:

“Meaningless.”
“Vapor.”
“Chasing wind.”

Because knowing myself - without purpose -
was a circle without a center.
A flame with no fire.

Then I heard the prophet over the beat:

“Knowledge of self is like life after death.”

And something inside me stirred.
Because maybe “Know Thyself”
was never meant to end in me.

Maybe it was the start...
of being searched by a higher eye,
held by a deeper grace,
named by the One
who formed galaxies and
still sees moi

Now I know:
I am dust
but breathed into by Glory.
I am broken
but bought.
I am not my own
but Known.

So when I say:
Know thyself
I say it with fear of the Lord,
with open hands,
with Psalm 139 in my bloodstream,
with Ecclesiastes in my breath.

Because only in His light
do I see Light.
And only when I see Light
do I see Right

Inspired by:

- The Book of Ecclesiastes, one of the Ketuvim (or: 'Writings' ) of the Hebrew Bible and part of the Wisdom literature of the Christian Old Testament. Suspected to have been written by King Solomon, who touched God's heart by asking him only for Wisdom and nothing else. (1 Kings 3:5–14). Also said to be the author of The Book of Proverbs, which shares divine wisdom, while in Ecclesiastes, Solomon shared his search in finding meaning without God (only by seeking what is "under the Sun" ) (Ecclesiastes 1:14) .

Ecclesiastes 12:13 (ESV)
“The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”

- Know Thyself, a rap song written by KRS-One: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmVF7_plIUo

Seneca said it, Pythagoras (famous ancient philosopher and mathematician) said it, Aristotle said it, before Paul said it, and KRS-1 spread it (likely quoting them all, as he is well-known to be well-read):

Know Thyself, and thou shalt know, the Universe and God.

Paul in 2 Corinthians 3:5 (ESV):
"Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?"

Jesus has talked of hypocrisy, before, but would have it ever gotten to that point if the mob had self-knowledge in the first place?

John 8:7 (KJV):
"So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."

Why did Jesus have to tell them? Why did it have to come to that?

Every accusation should begin with introspection - and lead with love and compassion.

Not to be nice, but being kind out of Love pleases God, which is far more important than pleasing people.

Loving people is important, but that is not the same as loving their approval or longing for their love more than you long for God's.

The first principle for saying, “No” to people-pleasing is to know human nature, which often demands heavy sentences for others but only the highest of mercy upon itself.

The second principle is to know your own identity. Jesus refused to be made an earthly king because he knew who he was:
“When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.” (John 6:15 (KJV))

And who are you other than The King's Daughter?
Everything is meaningless, without the Highest Love, without a Purpose higher than yourself.

- Plato's theory of anamnesis. Plato was a famous philosopher from Athens, former city state that is now part of Greece. Plato, like his teacher Socrates, shaped a big part of modern European thought on education. From Wikipedia (edited for readability by me):

"In Plato's theory of epistemology, anamnesis (/ˌænæmˈniːsɪs/; Ancient Greek: ἀνάμνησις) refers to the recollection of innate knowledge acquired before birth. The concept posits the claim that learning involves the act of rediscovering knowledge from within oneself.

This stands in contrast to the opposing doctrine known as empiricism, which posits that all knowledge is derived from experience and sensory perception. Plato develops the theory of anamnesis in his Socratic dialogues: Meno, Phaedo, and Phaedrus."

To tie it back to my theological christian and pure bible study. In Christian mysticism, there is a theory that beyond the physical body, (spoken of in Gen. 2:7; 1 Cor. 6:19) there are two spiritual layers:

* the soul, which consists of the spiritual heart and mind, (Deut. 6:5; Matt. 10:28; Heb. 4:12), and
* the spirit, which is God's (even if one's soul dies by going to Hell) (Eccl. 12:7; Job 32:8; 1 Thess. 5:23).

Before the Spirit’s work, Scripture teaches that the human heart is hard, rebellious, or dead in sin.

This is the heart we are told not to trust. (Jeremiah 17:9, Ephesians 4:17–18, Mark 7:21–22)

Ephesians 4:17–18 (ESV)
“…you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God… due to their hardness of heart.”

One of the clearest prophetic promises of the Holy Spirit’s work is in changing the heart.

Ezekiel 36:26–27 (ESV)
"And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules."

Jesus teaches that spiritual rebirth is through the Holy Spirit:

John 3:5–6 (ESV)
"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

Once your heart is touched by the Holy Spirit, He continues to dwell in the believer, leading, comforting, and empowering them.

So all of these teachings spur me on to keep balancing my bible study with my search for wisdom and knowledge of self, which no longer feels meaningless...

Although it is my own responsibility to keep my heart comfortable for the Holy spirit, so to say, it cannot be changed by my own willpower alone. The changing of the heart is by God's mercy and the Spirit’s renewal.

Not by any merit of my own, but by God. Just as I keep seeking him, without arrogance with regards to my role. It is by His grace that one is transformed, however unlikely that is, to the outside world, sometimes.

1 Corinthians 6:19 (ESV)
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you…?”

Ephesians 4:30 (ESV)
“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

Titus 3:5 (ESV)
"He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit."

Romans 5:5 (ESV)
"God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us."

Romans 8:14 (ESV)
"For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God."

Titus 3:5 (ESV)
"He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit."

Jeremiah 29:13 (ESV)
“You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

James 4:6 (ESV)
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

Matthew 5:5 (KJV) - toch wel de taalkundig mooiste Engelse vertaling van de Bijbel, KJV.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."

(The word translated as "meek" in the Greek is πραΰς (praÿs) and does not mean weak or passive, but gentle, humble, and controlled strength. It refers to someone who submits to God's will rather than asserting their own force or pride.

Psalm 37:11 (ESV)
“But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”

When thinking of unlikely candidates for transformation, consider:
Acts 9 – Saul the persecutor becomes Paul the apostle.
Genesis 50:20 – What others meant for evil, God meant for good.
Romans 8:28 – “For those who love God all things work together for good…”

Do not join in sin:

Ephesians 5:11 (ESV)
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.”

Loving someone does not mean celebrating sin. Of course, maintain discernment.

Not-celebrating sin also doesn’t mean isolating ourselves in judgment or pride.

Romans 12:2 reminds us to be transformed, not conformed to the world,
yet Romans 12:18 also says:
“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

Guide lovingly, and pray to God for wisdom, rather than relying on your own understanding of what's right or what is the right way to "expose".

Every person has a role in God's plan
Even those who are currently far from Him. Consider also:

Matthew the Tax Collector, working for the Roman oppressors — hated by his own people
Manasseh, one of Judah’s most evil kings, who even practiced child sacrifice (2 Chronicles 33)
Mary Magdalene, a woman from whom Jesus cast out seven demons (Luke 8:2) and not to be confused with Mary the Virgin btw. (She is the one Mary who is often mistakenly conflated with a prostitute, but the Bible does not say this.)


God’s redemptive plan is bigger than we understand, and no one is beyond His reach.