Today we are going to dig into another one of the lamps of revelation pictured on the Lampstand in Isaiah 11:1-2:

There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse,
And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him,
The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and might,
The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.

Please note that there are three sets of pairs in this scripture. God never says anything haphazardly. There are reasons for His pairing. Wisdom and understanding are partners. They need each other to know and do God’s will.

Nancy Missler wrote an article in 1996 about the Mind of Christ. She proposed that in our everyday life, our thinking needs transformation. To know and act on God’s Word, we need understanding.

Sometimes understanding comes through God’s written word. Sometimes it comes through a thought dropping into our minds. Or He may give us a vision or a dream. Or how something on T.V. or something acted out before us as we go about our day? His ways of bringing wisdom and understanding are endless and they rarely happen at the same time.

Solomon wrote in Proverbs 4:7, Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.

Solomon, of all people, knew these two had to go together.

Let’s look at the word understanding in this scripture and see what it means in Hebrew.

It is Strong’s #998 and it looks like this: בִּינָה

The definition says – knowledge, meaning, and understanding.

The letters tell us more.

Bet/Vet 2 = Divide or Division Means: House/Family; God’s word, God’s dwelling place (Temple) Son of God, physical tent or body.

Yod 10 = The outcome or completion of something. Means: Hand, Right Arm, Power, Right hand of God’s power, a Deed Done, To Work, to Cover, Allow, Hollow, Open Hand

Nun 50 = Restoration, Holy Spirit, Jubilee. Means: Life or Action

Hey 5 = Grace. Means: Revelation – 5 is the number of Torah, Behold, Give Attention, unfold or look upon – (if it comes at the end of a word: the meaning is based on the letter before)

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When we put this together, Understanding is found in God’s House, in His Son, in His Word. It comes with God’s power by Holy Spirit. It is Revelation that we need to pay attention and to put into Action for our Lives.

Nancy Missler says, “The Spirit of Understanding is God’s supernatural revelation-His secret insights to His Word. Understanding simply means a “putting together” or a comprehending or a grasping of His Word. The Spirit of God illuminates our hearts and gives us understanding of His Wisdom. In other words, He “turns on the lights for us.”

We may read right over a scripture today and not receive anything from it. Or read another scripture and realize God is speaking to us but have no idea how to apply it. When the Spirit of Understanding is present, we see and understand for the first time what it means and how it means for us. Of course, God’s Word is full of wisdom, but again, without understanding we don’t know what we need to apply today or how to apply it.

In the building of the Tabernacle, God told Moses what He did to help their building to go according to His pattern.

He told Moses about Bezalel—the chief creator of the Tabernacle furniture and trappings.

Exodus 31:3 And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,

Exodus 36:1 “And Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whom the Lord has put wisdom and understanding, to know how to do all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, shall do according to all that the Lord has commanded.”

In Moses’ closing address to the Israelites, he said:

“Surely I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess. Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ ” Deuteronomy 4:5-6

Do you think we could use some wisdom and understanding in our nations today? I sure do.

Then in 1 Kings 4:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.

And then in 1 Kings 10:24, it says, Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.

Yeshua told us in Matthew 5:13-14 that we are the salt of the earth and light of the world. How many people do you see rushing to the church for salt and light, wisdom and understanding? Without receiving from the LORD, we have nothing to give them.

Or how about Daniel and his three friends? Daniel 1:17 As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.

Kings called for Daniel to interpret their dreams. Without wisdom and understanding, he and his three friends would have been killed.

And then there was Yeshua.

Matthew 7:28-29 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Matthew 13:54 When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?

Mark 6:2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands!

Luke 2:47 And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.

John 7:15 And the Jews marveled, saying, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied?”

Here are some words Paul wrote a prayer in Ephesians 1:17-18.

I pray… that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints

This prayer needs to be the cry of our hearts every day. We need God’s wisdom and with it, we need His understanding. The ‘I’ll do it my way’ shout of our culture today is not leading us to freedom, peace, or God’s way. If we are to be His salt and light in the world we need to start speaking, acting, and looking like Him. This can only happen if we are looking to Him for instructions.

David wrote in Psalm 119:98-99

You, through Your commandments (wisdom instructions), make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.

Let’s spend time with the LORD. Let’s open His Wisdom manual, read it, meditate on it, and ask Him for understanding. These are keys to living a true Christlike life.

Shalom ♥