PC401
The Classis, Vol. 4, No. 1, January, 1997, Covenant Media Foundation, 800/553-3938
The Trivium in Biblical Perspective
By
Pastor Randy Booth
The
fear of the Lord is the starting place (Prov. 1:7) and the ending place (Eccl. 12:12-13)
of all legitimate learning. It is God’s
creature functioning in context. Absent
the recognition of God as Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer of life, the
learning of particular facts is vain and the assembling of those facts into a
cohesive whole is impossible. It is
somewhat like lifting sentences at random from a novel and trying to organize
them into something that makes sense without acknowledging there ever was a
novel or novel writer.
The unbeliever
learns, but to what end? Perhaps he becomes
proficient, or even excellent at performing particular tasks—he gets a good
job—he makes a lot of money.
Nevertheless, “what shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world
and loses his own soul?” It does not
matter how smooth and fast the train is if in the end the bridge is out. It was the rich man that found himself on the other side of the great chasm
from Abraham, crying for a drop of water.
While the unbeliever swerves into the truth
on a regular basis, without the fear of the Lord he has no means of discerning
good from evil (Heb. 5:14). He is a
creature, made in God’s image, living in God’s world. However, since he does not acknowledge any of this, the truths he
does pick up fall short of accomplishing their intended purpose which is to
glorify God.
The development of the trivium model of
classical learning is, perhaps, an example of how unbelievers borrow truth from
God’s world and yet fail to give God the credit. As believers we should adopt or reject the trivium model of
learning not for pragmatic reasons but because it is either true or false. Our primary concern should be: is it biblical? The Scriptures are our only
rule of faith and life, not the Romans or modern pedagogues. All truth claims must pass the biblical
standard.
What is the “Trivium”?
I believe the trivium model of learning (as
far as it goes), passes the biblical test.
While the Romans did not start or end with the fear of God (though some
in the medieval period perhaps did), nevertheless, they did get part of it
right. The “trivium” has reference to
educational method—how to
educate. The model is comprised of
three phases of learning: 1) grammar, 2) dialectic, and 3) rhetoric. These are but new labels for the biblical
concepts of: 1) knowledge, 2) understanding, and 3) wisdom. All learning will involve these three
steps: gathering particular information
(grammar or knowledge phase), assembling that information into its proper
relationships (dialectic or understanding phase), and then applying that
understanding of the particulars to various situations in an effective way
(rhetoric or wisdom phase). This is
simply the way God made us and the world in which we live. The jigsaw puzzle illustrates the
process—particular pieces must be arranged in the right relationship to one
another before we can see the big picture.
These three areas of learning interact,
each one with the other. Without knowledge there can be no
understanding or wisdom. Knowledge and
understanding are likewise necessary if there is to be wisdom. The wise man is able to acquire even more
knowledge and understanding, thus becoming more wise—he has learned how to
learn.
Child development is the maturing
process—proceeding from the simple to the complex—knowledge, understanding and
then wisdom. There are plenty of smart
six-year-olds but not very many wise ones.
Thus the trivium begins with young children focusing on learning the grammar
of every subject—multiplication tables, parts of speech, spelling, books of the
Bible, events in history, etc. At about
age 12 or so, children ask more and more the “why” questions. This is where the trivuim focuses on
dialectic or logic. The student begins
to understand the place and importance of each subject of study. The final focus of the trivium is on
rhetoric. The older students now learn
how to articulate and apply the various fields of study to life.
Biblical Terminology
The Bible clearly distinguishes these three
types of learning while also revealing their interdependency. Each aspect of learning comes as a gift from
God. Moses commended Bezalel saying,
“And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding and
in knowledge and in all craftsmanship” (Ex. 35:34). Proverbs declares, “For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth
come knowledge and understanding” (2:6) and “Wise men store up knowledge...”
(10:14). Daniel describes God as the
One who “gives wisdom to wise men, and knowledge to men of understanding”
(2:21).
In Scripture, knowledge (grammar) seems to
be focused on particular words, information or instructions that must be received
or rejected by the hearer. A wise teacher instructs a willing learner who receives
particular information from his instructor.
Balaam spoke of, “The oracle of him who hears the words of God,
and knows the knowledge of the Most High” (Num. 24:16). The Proverbs also make this connection
evident: “Leave the presence of a fool,
or you will not discern words of
knowledge” (14:7); “the lips of the
wise spread knowledge” (15:7): “the ear
of the wise seeks knowledge” (18:15); “Cease listening, my son, to discipline, and you will stray from the words of knowledge” (19:27); “when the
wise is instructed, he receives knowledge” (21:11); “Incline
your ear and hear the words of the
wise, and apply your mind to my knowledge” (22:12); in Ecclesiastes, “the
Preacher taught the people knowledge”
(12:9) and in Malachi, “for the lips
of a priest should preserve knowledge, and men should seek instruction from his mouth”
(2:7).
Understanding (dialectic) in Scripture is
directed toward discerning good from
evil, truth from falsehood. In other
words, the one who has understanding has good judgment. He comprehends the
right relationship of the particular pieces of knowledge to the whole. This is the syntax or logic of
learning. King Solomon prayed, “So give
Thy servant an understanding heart to judge
Thy people to discern between good
and evil” (1 Kings 3:9). Job observes,
“And to depart from evil is
understanding” (28:28). Genuine
understanding is evidenced in obedience to the truth as we see in these
passages from Psalms: “A good understanding have all those who do His Commandments” (111:10); “Give me
understanding, that I may observe Thy law,
and keep it with all my heart” (119:34); “Give me understanding, that I may learn Thy commandments”
(119:73); “From Thy precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way” (119:104). The Proverbs observe: “a man of
understanding walks straight” (15:21)
and “The rich man is wise in his own eyes, but the poor who has understanding sees through him” (28:11). God complains to Jeremiah, “For My people
are foolish. They know Me not; they are
stupid children, and they have no understanding. They are shrewd to do evil,
but to do good they do not know” (4:22).
Daniel and his companions were described as those who were “endowed with
understanding, and discerning knowledge” (Dan. 1:4). The apostle John points us to the ultimate purpose of
understanding when he writes, “And we know that the Son of God has come, and
has given us understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true...” (1
John 5:20).
Wisdom (rhetoric) is the ability to arrange, articulate and apply
knowledge and understanding in a variety of circumstances. “In addition to being a wise man, the
Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs” (Eccl.
12:9). “The tongue of the wise makes
knowledge acceptable...” (Prov.
15:2). “The lips of the wise spread knowledge...” (Prov. 15:7). Israel recognized Solomon’s wisdom, “for
they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to
administer justice” (1 Kings 3:28). The Psalms declare: “The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom” (37:30); “My mouth will speak wisdom” (49:3).
Again, the Proverbs support this aspect of learning: “The mouth
of the righteous flows with wisdom”
(10:31); “She opens her mouth in
wisdom” (31:26). Wisdom is the
practical application of knowledge and understanding as revealed in
Ecclesiastes: “For wisdom is protection
just as money is protection. But the
advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves
the lives of its possessors” (7:12); “Wisdom strengthens a wise man more than ten rulers who are in a city”
(7:19); “Wisdom is better than strength”
(;16); “Wisdom is better than the weapons
of war” (9:18); “Wisdom has the advantage of giving success” (10:10).
You are to have the “word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all
wisdom teaching and admonishing one another...” (Col. 3:16);
the Scriptures are “able to give you wisdom that
leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15);
and we are told, “conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity”
(Col. 4:5).
The use of classical terminology (e.g., the
“trivium,” “grammar,” “dialectic” and “rhetoric”) is useful, provided we
comprehend that the substance of this model is rooted in Scripture. It is only in the context of the fear of God
that genuine knowledge, understanding and wisdom can be attained. All other efforts, in the end, prove to be
folly. Tota et sola Scriptura. Our
final allegiance is to all of
Scripture, and only Scripture.