God, Bitcoin, and Proof-of-Work: How Ancient Wisdom Powers the Blockchain

It is indeed a total blessing to wake up this Sunday morning to the sound of the wind blowing through the trees. Lastight I watched the God Bless Bitcoin full documentary for the 3rd time. I fell asleep in the middle of the movie, while diving deep into Bitcoin's proof-of-work system. I woke up and stumbled upon a Bible verse from Proverbs 23:23 on my screen.

Here's what hit me like a bolt of lightning: in the Passion Translation, which tells us to "Embrace the truth and hold it close. Don't let go of wisdom, instruction, and life-giving understanding. The Hebrew word for "buy" in this context means "acquire" – suggesting that real truth, genuine wisdom, requires effort. Sound familiar? It should, because this is exactly what Bitcoin's proof-of-work system is all about.

Think about it. When Satoshi Nakamoto gave us Bitcoin, he/she/they didn't just create another digital currency. They built a system where you can't just buy your way into consensus – you have to prove your commitment through actual work. It's like they took this ancient biblical principle and coded it into the very DNA of Bitcoin.

I've written before about how proof-of-work is reshaping everything from presidential politics to governance in places like the Kingdom Tonga. But seeing it through this biblical lens adds a whole new dimension. When we talk about miners expending computational power to validate transactions, they're not just securing a network – they're participating in a ritual as old as wisdom itself: proving their commitment to truth through effort.

This hits especially hard when you look at what's happening in the political sphere. When 17% of U.S. adults hold crypto, they're not just investing in a new asset class. They're putting skin in the game, proving their dedication to financial self-determination through tangible effort. Every satoshi they hold represents proof of their commitment to this new truth.

Remember how Satoshi disappeared without converting his/her/their early-mined coins? That selfless act makes even more sense now. They understood what the ancient wisdom was telling us: truth isn't something to be hoarded or sold – it's something to be earned and shared.

And here's where it gets really interesting for the future of governance. In my work with Tonga's decentralized governance model, we're essentially creating a system where citizens become "truth miners" in their own community. Every time they participate in shaping their local policies, they're not just earning "govTokens" – they're proving their stake in the community's shared truth through actual effort.

The parallels are striking. Just as Bitcoin's network becomes stronger with each block mined, each piece of proof-of-work added, a community becomes stronger when its members actively participate in creating and validating its shared truths. You can't buy this kind of legitimacy – you have to earn it.

In a world where we're increasingly questioning what's real and what's not, where trust in traditional institutions is eroding, maybe we need this ancient wisdom more than ever. The idea that truth must be earned through effort, not bought with money, feels revolutionary. But it's not new – it's as old as wisdom itself.

Bitcoin's proof-of-work system isn't just clever cryptography. It's a digital implementation of a timeless principle: that truth requires effort, that wisdom must be earned, that real value comes from genuine commitment. In a way, every Bitcoin miner is participating in a tradition that goes back thousands of years – proving their dedication to truth through tangible work.

As we build this new digital future, maybe we should pay more attention to this ancient wisdom. After all, whether we're talking about spiritual truth or digital consensus, the principle remains the same: you can't buy your way to legitimacy. You have to prove it, one block at a time, one effort at a time.

The future of human organization might be digital, but the principles that make it work? Those are timeless.