There will likely be more overlap going deeper into the Old Testament, and that is probably acceptable, if not desirable. The Book of Proverbs combines principles of the divine feminine, the Tree of Life, wisdom, Council of the Gods, and temple liturgy. Old Testament scholar, Margaret Barker, establishes the basis for a Heavenly Mother in her book, The Mother of the Lord, volume 1: The Lady in the Temple. Zina Petersen wrote a review for this book in the Interpreter, noting “that worship in the first temple venerated not a monotheistic supreme Creator God, but a Family of divine beings within an even larger Council of Gods. This Family consisted of the Father, called the Highest; the Mother, identified with the consort-Goddess Asherah and known as the personification of Wisdom; and the Son, who was named the Lord. She presents arguments to show how the Son and Father were collapsed and convoluted into the One God of the Hebrew Bible we read now, and Wisdom the Mother was banished entirely, surviving only in clues and fragments.”
Early prophets, extending into the First Temple period, supported the concept of a divine feminine and “Lady Wisdom.” The Shekinah glory was a representation of the divine feminine. Israelite worship shifted to a more monotheistic form during the reign of King Josiah. The emphasis moved from wisdom literature to strict adherence to the Book of the Law.
Barker observed that there was a migration away from Jerusalem during this period, including Lehi and his family. The Book of Mormon restores much of the earlier worship and symbolism. Nephi’s vision of the Tree of Life connects the Tree with “the mother of the Son of God,” and supports the idea of the consort goddess Asherah and her connection with sacred trees.
We encounter “Lady Wisdom” in the Book of Proverbs. We see feminine personification in Proverbs with verses like,
“Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets” (Proverbs 1:20).
“Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman.” (7:4)
“Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars.” (9:1)
The Hebrew word for house in Proverbs 9:1 (bayith) is a form of banah (mentioned in the previous post) and can mean “to build a temple.” The video at the end of this post defines wisdom as creating something “true to form” and likens wisdom to the Creation of the cosmos and Solomon’s wisdom to the precise building of the temple. The temple is a micro model of the cosmos. Scholars have linked the “seven pillars” to the seven periods of Creation and the idea of a perfect work. This idea is supported by Proverbs 8:27-29:
“When he prepared the heavens, I (wisdom) was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:
“When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:
“When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth.”
The Lord uses a compass in these verses to create the vault of the heavens. Such precise measuring tools would be used in the construction of the temple to make it true to form. Psalm 89:8 equates the compass with truth.
The Book of Mormon also personifies wisdom as a divine feminine. Mosiah 8:20 states, “O how marvelous are the works of the Lord, and how long doth he suffer with his people; yea, and how blind and impenetrable are the understandings of the children of men; for they will not seek wisdom, neither do they desire that she should rule over them!”
The video from “Heaven’s Code: Temples and Texts and Scripture Central,” explains how gaining wisdom comes from being invited into the divine council (cowd or sode) where heavenly secrets are revealed. “When men and women come together in perfect balance and union, when they, by living the covenants they make in temples, become master builders who wield a compass and a square, they together can build an eternal house, or a kingdom of God.”