I suppose we would all agree that it’s a good thing to be wise. When you face hard decisions, it’s good to be able to decide which way is best. It would be good to have a power to discern what is true and right in all kinds of circumstances.
But do you have any idea how men get to be wise? Maybe it’s in the genes. Maybe it’s just luck. But what if it is not that way? What if there is something that makes the difference—something that you can do about being wise in any generation? What do you suppose that would be?
One thing we can do is to learn from the experience of others—of those who have gone before us and faced the same struggles. And this is what Solomon had in mind in his introduction to the Book of Proverbs.