"My son, let them not vanish from your sight; keep sound wisdom and discretion"
vanish
This is the Hebrew word “luz” which means to turn aside; to depart. It is translated vanish to convey the idea that wisdom and discretion must always be on our radar system.
sound wisdom
This is the Hebrew word tushiyyah, which is a rare word which means sound wisdom or efficient wisdom. There is a large part of this word which means the application of knowledge that has proven to be effective. It is not potential wisdom; it is known ways to allow a triple-win to take place.
Solomon is saying that young people need to be surrounded by what has worked in the past so that they can embrace proven ideas and add the new twists and applications to the unique situation they find themselves in.
discretion
This is the Hebrew word mezimmah, which means discretion, purpose, device, schemes. The idea here is clearly a goal and the plan to get there.
Solomon wants young people to realize that they must always know where they want to go; what they are after; what their goal(s) in life are; and have a satchel of proven strategies and methods that produce win/win outcomes for people.
We all have a tendency to believe the world is all new to us and that we can shoot from the hip or do not need to do things the same way that they have been done in the past. Solomon is saying that this orientation is a mistake. He is screaming at us to realize that proven methods are proven for a reason and that your goals keep you from being seduced away from accomplishing your purpose in life.
Keep goals and proven methods in your satchel at all times. What are you trying to accomplish with your life? What is your goal in life? What is your dream? It is amazing the number of people that get turned aside from their dream by lust, by a relationship, by a mistake, by greed, or by laziness at a critical juncture. You have to stay focused to accomplish your dream.
Solomon is giving us critical insight into how to live the life we know we were meant to live. Don't throw it away by ignoring this ancient wisdom.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz