is a creature that is limited in space and time, and an infinite gap exists between the creatures and the infinite, uncreated, and eternal God. At the same time, all of creation and everything within creation is sustained in existence by the infinite presence of God. He is within everything, and yet without being merely one thing among the rest of creatures. He sustains all creatures, but they do not sustain him in the least.
The passage further reveals that the omnipresence of the Spirit of the Lord goes beyond simply sustaining all creation. The Spirit also corrects human beings when they sin against God. The goal of his moral correction is that “they may be freed from wickedness and put their trust in you, O Lord” (Wis 12:2, RSV-SCE). Jesus will teach that the Holy Spirit of truth will have the same role of correcting people about “sin and righteousness and judgment” (Jn 16:8; also see Jn 16:9-11). In this way, Wisdom indicates that moral virtue and faith are linked to each other, and that both are connected to the action of the Spirit of the Lord acting within creation. People cannot claim to have faith and yet ignore their need for moral improvement. Such is God’s way of leading and guiding people ever closer to himself.
Consider
Wisdom 7:21-30 is a statement that flows from the secrets learned from wisdom about a Spirit that permeates wisdom itself, all other spirits (including the human spirits), and everything else that exists.
The first important point is to accept that the Spirit is capable of penetrating wisdom itself. In saying this, the Book of Wisdom is recognizing that the Spirit is superior to wisdom. Also, the Spirit is able to penetrate all “intelligent and pure and most subtle” spirits (Wis 7:23). This indicates that he is superior to the angels, who are super-intelligent, pure spirits. He is superior to human spirits, who are intelligent, though less intelligent and less pure than the angels. The obvious conclusion one should draw from this teaching is that human spirits should have at least as much respect for God’s Spirit as do the angels, especially since human intelligence and goodness is so inferior to the angels, yet alone God’s Spirit. Having asserted that the Spirit is superior to wisdom, and to angelic and human spirits, the sage then lists some of the qualities of this Spirit.
Investigate
Qualities of the Spirit
Read Wisdom 7:22-30 and list the qualities of the Spirit.
Each quality bears reflection to help us deepen our understanding of the Spirit of the Lord. Some of the characteristics are intellectual — as when the Spirit is described as intelligent, manifold, and keen. Some characteristics are moral qualities — holy, unpolluted, loving the good. Some characteristics belong more to the divine nature — invulnerable, irresistible, all-powerful. Human beings cannot fully understand these characteristics, but they can consider them prayerfully and meditatively so as to grow in wonder and awe at the greatness of God’s Holy Spirit. This is a way to avoid taking him for granted or thinking we are more intelligent than he.
Discuss
1. What was, and still is, the role of the Spirit in creation?
2. Which of the Old Testament passages you’ve read this week gave you new insights into the Holy Spirit?
3. What quality of the Holy Spirit do you wish to incorporate into your daily life?
Practice
This week, think about how the Holy Spirit is active in the creation of your life. What areas of your being need the enlightenment and work of the Spirit to activate them? How can you live a richer and fuller life with the assistance of the Spirit? Choose one of the qualities of the Spirit and look for ways to bring it to life in your own life over the next few days.
Session 2
Authority and Power Come by the Holy Spirit
“The Church, therefore, instructed by the words of Christ, and drawing on the experience of Pentecost and her own apostolic history, has proclaimed since the earliest centuries her faith in the Holy Spirit, as the giver of life, the one in whom the inscrutable Triune God communicates himself to human beings, constituting in them the source of eternal life.”
— Pope St. John Paul II, Dominum et Vivificantem (n. 1)
Another very distinct theme in the Old Testament is that the Spirit of God grants authority to various human beings, either to hold particular offices or to have particular powers. This will be a very important background and prefiguring for the New Testament teaching on the Holy Spirit as the source of gifts, or charisms, in the Church. In this session, we will be looking at how the Holy Spirit dealt with Joshua, Moses’ successor; the judges, the rulers of Israel; and the kings of Israel.
Joshua
The Lord God had famously called Moses from the burning bush to lead Israel to freedom from slavery in Egypt. This was a unique role and not a hereditary or elected office or institution. Still, after Moses died, someone needed to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land. That role fell to a younger man — Joshua, son of Nun — who had been at his side in various roles from the time right after the people’s escape from Egypt.
Investigate
Joshua and the Wilderness
Look up the following passages and note Joshua’s actions.
| PASSAGE | NOTES |
| Exodus 17:1-14 | |
| Exodus 24:13-14 | |
| Exodus 32:17-18 | |
| Exodus 33:11 | |
| Numbers 11:27-29 | |
| Numbers 13:1-16 | |
| Numbers 14:1-38 |
Study
Throughout the wandering in the wilderness, Joshua showed himself to be courageous in battle, loyal to Moses, and faithful to and trusting
