Wisdom Calls Aloud in the Street

Midrash Mishlei 1:12

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

[12] (Proverbs 1:20): "Wisdom calls aloud in the street" - When a wise person sits and engages in Torah, all sing after him, saying 'Blessed is he who has merited learning Torah.' "She raises her voice in the public squares" - these are the Torah scholars, who are pleasant and sit in synagogues and study houses, and make their voices heard in words of Torah. (Proverbs 1:21): "At the head of the noisy streets she cries out" - just as the sea roars with its waves, so do the Torah scholars. When they sit and explain the words of Torah, they are loud and passionate, and more than that, all of them are pleasant before the Almighty, as it is said (Song of Songs 2:14): "for your voice is sweet, and your appearance is pleasant." "At the entrance of the city gates, she speaks her words" - even a wise person who sits at the city gates and at the gate of the country and engages in words of Torah, is not ashamed of passersby, not before kings, nor before officials, as it is said (Psalms 119:46): "I will speak of your statutes before kings, and will not be put to shame." Alternatively, "she speaks her words" - when a person comes before him in judgment, he says to the deserving 'deserving' and to the liable 'liable', both the poor and the rich.

Themes

DavidSolomonTorahWisdomJudgment

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