Wisdom & Courage (2 Samuel 14:20)
In order to change the course of things your servant Joab did this. But my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of the angel of God to know all things that are on the earth.”
—2 Samuel 14:20
This verse comes in the middle of a chapter revolving around David, Absalom, and Joab. While we do not have time to explore all the details of the story here, I wanted to read this verse and lead us to pray according to it because it contains an acknowledgment that God has given King David wisdom to lead.
Think about all the promises we have in the Bible; 1 Corinthians 1 tells us that for those who are in Christ, he is our wisdom. James 1 says that whenever you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault. God promises to give wisdom, and those of us who are followers of Jesus have the Spirit of wisdom within us.
2 Samuel 14:20 reminds us that true wisdom requires faithful action.
Returning to 2 Samuel 14:20, what David lacks is the courage to act upon the wisdom he possesses. This is something I pray for all the time in my own life, in the lives of those closest to me, and for the members of my church family: I pray for wise courage—or, phrased another way, courageous wisdom.
Consider how unhelpful it is to have one of those traits without the other. If you have wisdom and know what to do, but you lack the courage to do it, that is not good. Conversely, if you have courage and boldness without fear, but you lack wisdom, that is not good either. No one wants to be bold and courageous yet foolish at the same time. Therefore, I want to encourage you to pray continually for wise courage, or courageous wisdom, in your life.
I want to lead us to pray for that for each other right now, based on 2 Samuel 14:20.
2 Samuel 14:20 reminds us to rely on God’s wisdom instead of our own.
God, we pray for wise courage—for courageous wisdom—in each of our lives. Please grant us wisdom today, just as you promised to do in your Word. Amidst everything going on in our lives today, we pray for wisdom. Help us not to be foolish. Help us to be wise today—not with the wisdom of this world, as James 3 describes, but with the wisdom that comes from your Spirit. Give us godly wisdom, not worldly wisdom.
We pray for the courage to live based on the wisdom you give—courage to act according to the leadership of your Spirit, the Spirit of wisdom in us, and your Word to us. God, help us to live out 2 Timothy 1:7, not with a spirit of timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline, guided by the wisdom you grant.
God, we pray for wise courage in so many ways, including the wise courage to share the gospel with the people around us and to spread the good news of your love. Grant us wisdom and courage to speak the gospel faithfully and effectively to those around us today.
A Prayer for the Midobi People
We pray this for our brothers and sisters around the world as well. As we pray for the Midobi people in Sudan—over 100,000 of them—God, we pray for the spread of your love to them. We pray for wise courage over all our brothers and sisters in Christ in Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, neighboring countries, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. God, grant them courageous wisdom, even where they are few in number, to spread the gospel. Raise up more laborers to join them with courageous wisdom to spread the gospel alongside them. Help us as your Church to spread your gospel to all the nations with wise courage.
We pray all this in light of your Word in 2 Samuel 14, in Jesus’ name—in the name of the One who is all-wise and lives in us. Amen.
