The Meaning of Wisdom: Biblical Foundations and Neville Goddard’s Insights

Wisdom occupies a central place in Scripture and in the metaphysical teachings of Neville Goddard. While the Bible presents wisdom as a divine attribute—guiding right living and revealing God’s order—Neville reframes wisdom as the conscious use of imagination to craft one’s reality. This post explores the biblical meaning of wisdom, then draws out Neville Goddard’s perspective, before showing how the two converge.

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1. Biblical Portraits of Wisdom

1.1 Wisdom Personified

• Proverbs 8:12–14

  “I, Wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.
  The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil; pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverse speech I hate.”
  Here, Wisdom speaks as a divine companion—present at creation, abhorring wickedness, and offering prudence and discretion.

1.2 The Beginning of Wisdom

• Proverbs 9:10

  “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”
  Wisdom begins with reverent relationship to God. It’s not mere intellectual knowledge but a heart‑attitude that honours divine truth.

1.3 Wisdom’s Source

• Proverbs 2:6

  “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”
  True wisdom is a gift, not self‑generated. It flows from God’s own character and purposes.

1.4 Wisdom’s Blossoming

• Proverbs 3:13–18

  “Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding,
  for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold.
  She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her.
  Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honour.
  Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.”
  Wisdom yields enduring benefit—riches that outlast material wealth, and a path of peace and honour.

1.5 New Testament Clarification

• James 3:17

  “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.”
  This “heavenly wisdom” mirrors Proverbs: it produces purity, peace, mercy and sincerity—fruit of a spirit‑led life.

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2. Neville Goddard on Wisdom and Imagination

Neville Goddard (1905–1972) taught that “imagination is God within us” and that the creative act begins in the mind. For Neville:

• Wisdom = Skillful Imagination
  Wisdom is the art of directing imagination to experience the “state of the wish fulfilled.” It’s not just dreaming, but feeling the desired reality as already accomplished.

• Feeling as Creative Fuel
  In lectures such as “Feeling Is the Secret”, Neville emphasised that emotion (feeling) is the energy that drives imagination into manifestation. True wisdom lies in mastering one’s feelings to sustain the imagined state.

• Revising Past and Present
  Neville’s technique of revision—re‑imagining past events to alter one’s inner state—reflects biblical wisdom’s theme of transformation (see Romans 12:2: “be transformed by the renewal of your mind”).

• The Law of Assumption
  This is Neville’s shorthand for wisdom in action: assume the feeling of your wish fulfilled, persist in that assumption, and the outer world will conform.

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3. Convergence: Divine Wisdom Meets Creative Imagination

Biblical Wisdom	Neville’s Wisdom
Gift from God	Imagination as divine endowment
Begins with “fear” (reverence)	Begins with assumption (inner conviction)
Yields peace, honour, long life	Yields fulfilled desire, joy, harmony
Produces purity, mercy, sincerity	Produces inner states that shape reality

1. Reverence and Assumption
   Just as biblical wisdom begins in the fear of the Lord, Neville teaches starting in the assurance of the wish fulfilled—an inner reverence for one’s own divine capacity.

2. Wisdom as Pathway to Peace
   Proverbs promises peace and pleasantness; Neville affirms that a disciplined imagination brings inner tranquillity and outward harmony.

3. Transformation of Mind
   Romans 12:2 and Neville’s revision both underscore that true wisdom involves renewing the mind—changing inner narratives to reshape experience.

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Conclusion

Wisdom, in the biblical sense, is divine instruction for right living—beginning with reverent awareness of God and yielding purity, peace, and purpose. Neville Goddard re‑interprets this wisdom as the mastery of imagination, teaching that our inner world—guided by faith, feeling, and assumption—is the soil from which every outward effect grows. Together, they invite us to honour the creative power within, to direct it wisely, and to manifest our deepest desires in alignment with divine truth.

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“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”
— Proverbs 9:10

“Imagine that which you desire to see—assume that feeling—and wisdom will light your path.”
— (Paraphrased from Neville Goddard’s lectures)