Proverbs 8:22-31
“Yahweh possessed me in the beginning of his work, before his deeds of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, before the earth was. When there were no depths, I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was brought forth; while as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the beginning of the dust of the world. When he established the heavens, I was there. When he marked out a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when the springs of the deep became strong, when he assigned to the sea its boundary, that the waters should not transgress his commandment, when he marked out the foundations of the earth; then I was beside him, like a master craftsman; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in his whole world. My delight was with the children of men.”
This passage is from the book of Proverbs, a collection of ancient Israelite wisdom literature. Here, Wisdom is personified as a female figure, speaking about her role in creation, presenting herself as pre-existent and intimately involved in God's foundational work.
What does personified wisdom being present at creation suggest about the nature of the world around us and our place within it?