Wisdom to Scale and Bring Down – Proverbs 21:22

Would you believe there’s a wisdom to scaling a wall?  Of course there is, and there is more than one wisdom.  Here are a couple of mini-video examples of how you can climb a wall (a and b).  Maybe you can become a Ninja Warrior.

A wise man scales the city of the mighty and brings down the stronghold in which they trust. (Proverbs 21:22, ESV)

I’m not by nature bold.  But I am moved by the courage of those who are and who change the course of their communities for good by the big things they do.  I’m thinking of Diane Hight, who decided that World War II veterans deserved special honor and as they were dying off from old age maybe deserved a chance to be honored and to see once again the battlefields they fought on and their comrades died on.  She created Forever Young and began leading trips to Europe for veterans, covering their costs, of course.

The proverb above reflects the truth that the wise (that is, the godly) are meant for big things.  The wise are not the might, necessarily.  They don’t necessarily have powerful positions.  But their knowledge of Yahweh and their character position them to “scale cities” and “bring down strongholds,” strongholds it seems that are at odds with Yahweh’s purposes.

What is the stronghold God has moved you to stand against?  One of my favorite preachers, Bill Hybels, talks about each of us having a Popeye moment.  In each episode of the cartoon series Popeye a conflict arises against evil and Popeye is brought to a point at which he says, “That’s all’s I can stands and I can’t stands no more.”  Then he mops up the enemy, with the help of his spinach, of course.

What do you see as an obvious enemy of the kingdom, a stronghold that needs tearing down?  Have you had a Popeye moment concerning it?