What does Proverbs 8:23 mean?

Once again, wisdom is seen as existing before the earth was created (Proverbs 8:22). God's wisdom is infinite and eternal. The words "set up" may be translated as "established" or "installed." The root Hebrew term, nā'sak, is also used in reference to casting such as with molten metal. Wisdom's establishment was not haphazard, or accidental, or flimsy. God's eternal wisdom was present and sure before there was any universe, at all. It did not begin in an academic classroom or in the halls of government or in the mind of a renowned philosopher. Wisdom began with God. Without Him, there would be no wisdom.

However, it pleases God to grant wisdom to those who believe on His Son Jesus. The apostle Paul urged the Colossian believers to avoid being deluded by false teachers, because in Christ "are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). Because believers are linked by faith to Christ, they can "walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time" (Colossians 4:5). Jesus embodied perfect wisdom, and He was the agent through which everything came into existence. John 1:2–3 states: "He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made."