A Battle for Truth
Yael Eckstein | April 22, 2022
Buy the truth and do not sell it—
wisdom, instruction and insight as well. —Proverbs 23:23
We continue with devotional thoughts from the Book of Proverbs every Friday. One of the 11 books in the Torah known as the Ketuvim, Hebrew for “writings,” Proverbs is part of the “wisdom tradition,” which also includes Job and Ecclesiastes.
I was walking in Jerusalem the other day. I walked past the hustle and bustle of the business district where The Fellowship’s offices are located and turned a corner into the more residential parts of the neighborhood. As I approached a park where some children were playing, my mind went to Zechariah’s prophetic vision of the rebuilt Jerusalem: “The city streets will be filled with boys and girls playing there” (Zechariah 8:5).
In that same vision, only two verses earlier, Zechariah said that when Jerusalem is rebuilt it will be called ir ha’emet, literally “the city of truth,” often translated less precisely as “the faithful city.” I thought about this for a while. Why did Zechariah single out “truth” in his prophetic description of Jerusalem of the future?
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that no name could be more appropriate for Jerusalem.
A Battle for Truth
Our verse from Proverbs states, “Buy the truth and do not sell it—wisdom, instruction and insight as well.” But what exactly is this verse teaching us? Why is “truth” singled out separately, with “wisdom, instruction and insight” only added on “as well”?
The battle for God’s will is always a battle for truth. In Israel we know this all too well. Israel’s enemies constantly resort to lies to defame and discredit Israel and the Jewish people’s right to our homeland. There was even a resolution in the United Nations that denied any Jewish connection to Jerusalem! I can’t think of anything further from the truth than that!
Yet, when our enemies resort to such ridiculous lies, it serves as a reminder that the truth is on our side. Maybe this is what Zechariah meant when he called God’s Holy City “the city of truth.” The battle for Jerusalem is a battle for truth.
So how do we battle for truth? In today’s world, unfortunately, it’s not enough to just declare truth from the rooftops. We must present the truth in the most effective way we can in order to defeat the liars who come against us.
That’s what our verse is admonishing us to do: “Acquire truth.” Hold onto it. Defend it. Battle for truth. And the way to do that most effectively is with “wisdom, instruction and insight.”
Your Turn:
Share truthful news about Israel with a friend or two today.