Proverbs 9:1-18

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Let’s take our Bibles together and turn to the passage just read, Proverbs 9:1–18. I have one point for the message today. There is one central truth that Solomon is communicating here, and it is identical with the sum-total of all that he has been communicating in the previous eight chapters. Here it is: 

1. Heed Wisdom and Forsake Folly (9:1–18)

Now I want to flesh that out for you with four subpoints: a, b, c, and d. But the essential message here boiled down to its most basic components is “Heed Wisdom and Forsake Folly.”

Proverbs 9 describes a great faceoff between two powerful, attractive, competing foes in this world. This is a colossal, cosmic showdown. But despite the similarity of their call and their appeal in this world, these two are not evenly matched foes. 

In this corner is Lady Wisdom. She loves you. She will bless your life. She will give you life. She is derived from the God of the Universe. In the other corner, there is Lady Folly. She is a seductress. She is a deceiver. She brings death not life. And she will suck your soul down to the gates of Sheol. 

The image that comes to my mind when I read this passage is a boxing match that took place in 1995 between the great fighter, Mike Tyson, and a no-name contender named Peter McNeeley. You’ll have to forgive me for this. If you remember that fight or have studied it in history, you know how unevenly matched those two opponents were. Mike Tyson had just been released from prison and his reentry into the boxing world garnered much attention. He was at the peak of his career as a boxer. And in a heavily televised event his first opponent was a nobody named McNeeley. And despite a lot of trash-talking and grandiose promises by McNeeley, he stepped into the ring with Tyson and got pummeled. The fight lasted 89 seconds. It was embarrassing. He was totally outmatched. 

Now probably that’s not the best illustration for Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly—two sweaty boxers in a boxing ring. And besides that, Lady Folly and Lady Wisdom aren’t fighting each other, not directly anyway. They are fighting for the affections of the simple, impressionable young man. 

Think of it instead like this. Let’s change the genders of Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly. Think of these two as two gentlemen callers. Think of them as two suitors, who are courting a particular woman. Both men are handsome, well-spoken, and well-connected. Both men are convincing in their declaration of love for the woman they are courting. Yet one man, let’s call him William Wisdom has this woman’s best interest at heart. He wants to love her and bless her. He will cherish her. 

The other man who we’ll call Fred Folly, wants to use her. He attempts to deceive her with his smooth words, but in the end, he will be the death of her. And the young woman must look behind the superficial attributes of these two men and discern their true intent. 

That’s what’s going on here in Proverbs 8. We’ve got two suitors. We’ve got two paths. And you’ve got to choose which way you will go. Notice that the call is essentially the same at the beginning. Lady Wisdom says in verse 4, “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” Lady Folly says likewise in verse 16, “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” She might as well be saying, “Anything she can do, I can do better.” 

But even though their message at the beginning is similar, the results of one versus the other are drastically different. One woman leads to blessing, and the other leads to curse. One path leads to life, and the other path leads to death. And Solomon wants to help you peak behind the curtain of superficial similarities with these two callers and see what really lies behind their beckoning. 

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Here’s a peak behind the curtain at Lady Wisdom. Look with me at verse 1.

1 Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.

Now much ink has been spilt trying to identify what these seven pillars symbolize. Is this the seven days of creation? Is this a reference to the seven planets from our Solar System that were known in the ancient world? Etcetera. Etcetera. Much of that effort has been, I think, fruitless. All that I think Solomon is saying here is that Lady Wisdom has built a killer house. It’s fantastic. 

A house with seven pillars is a mansion. Also “seven” is symbolically a number that represents completion or perfection in the Hebrew mind. And so Lady Wisdom has built a fabulous house, something you would see and long for on HDTV. She has a large, palatial, perfect dwelling place, and she is beckoning simpletons to come join her. 

But that’s not all. Look what else she is doing in verse 2. 

 2 She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table. 

Meat was a rare treat in the ancient world, and so she’s preparing a great feast. She has mixed the wine, but not with water. That would make the wine less appealing. In ancient civilizations, hosts would mix wine with spices or herbs or even honey to make the wine more potent and enjoyable. So this is a description of someone preparing a great blessing for her guests. 

You might remember that the adulteress tried to do something similar in Chapter 7 with meat and with luxury and with sex. She was trying to woo her victim with delicacies. Well Lady Wisdom knows how to woo as well. But her blessings last longer than just one night. And instead of death and impoverishment, there is life and enrichment with Lady Wisdom. 

Look at verse 3.

3 She has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town, 

Tremper Longman believes that there is an oblique reference here to the Temple, the house of worship in ancient Israel, and I agree with him. The Temple was typically located in the highest place in town. In Jerusalem that was Mt. Zion. So that everyone in the city went up to the Temple. If this oblique reference to the Temple holds, then the idea here is that Wisdom has sent her messengers to the Temple to draw men unto herself. God has placed his heralds in the Temple to proclaim Wisdom and the fear of the Lord, and to bring men ultimately to himself. 

This is similar to what we saw with Lady Wisdom in chapter 1 and chapter 8. Lady Wisdom is not aloof or standoffish. She is accessible and she is authentic. She is sending out an open invitation to all who will listen to her to come and enjoy the goodness that she offers.

And she even says in verse 4.

4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”

 To him who lacks sense she says, 5 “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. 

6 Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.”

The word for “simple” here is once again the Hebrew פֶּתִי, which is the word for “naïve” or “gullible.” And a פֶּתִי is not a “scoffer.” We’ll deal with the scoffer momentarily. 

This Hebrew word is not the word for “stupid,” it’s not the word for “fool,” and it’s not the word for “scoffer.” In fact, the word is derived from a Hebrew verb which means “to open.” So, there is a simple-minded open-mindedness to this person. He is innocent and impressionable. He (or she) is vulnerable. And before Lady Folly gets her grubby little hands on this simpleton, Lady Wisdom gives him an opportunity to “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your naiveté! Leave your gullibility! Leave your senselessness! Leave your vulnerability! And walk in the way of insight.” 

Listen, church Lady Wisdom has a feast of blessings prepared for you. She is anxious to enrich your life and ennoble you. But she will not impose herself on you. She’s a gentlewoman, not a seductress. She will not seduce you or take you by force. So you’ve got to respond to her call. 

So, heed wisdom and forsake folly. Here’s the first sub-point from our passage today. Write this down as subpoint a) in your notes. 

a. Be attentive and stay attentive to Lady Wisdom’s call (1–6)

I know that this is presented in Proverbs 8 as a kind of once-for-all-time decision—choose wisdom not folly. But the reality is that wisdom and foolishness are constantly vying for our attention. And we’ve got to respond to Lady Wisdom’s call every day and every hour of the day. We’ve got to keep our ear attentive, and our minds engaged in the instruction that God gives us. 

Every day, there’s a crossroads. Every day we’ve got to decide. Am I going to fear God and choose the wise course of action or am I going to play the fool? 

Now there may be prominent moments in your life where you make a dramatic decision to heed wisdom and forsake folly. When you gave your life to Christ, for instance. That was the most important wisdom decision that you’ve ever made. But that wasn’t your last. It’s not as if God just imparted to you instantaneous, superlative wisdom that would spare you from ever having to make a hard decision ever again. He didn’t choose that path for us. 

And it’s not as if when you choose a wise course of action, your life gets instantaneously better. It’s not like if you honor God, then the cavities in your teeth will disappear and your hair will stop turning gray. If that was the case, then everyone in this world would choose wisdom. But we are not called to live by sight, we are called to live by faith (2 Cor 5:7). And we believe that God’s best is coming even when it isn’t instantly perceptible. 

And sometimes the results of foolishness aren’t instantaneously perceived either. It’s not like those who have illicit sex are immediately hit by an asteroid from heaven. If that was the case, then people would stop having illicit sex immediately! We are called to live by faith not sight. 

God has given us these commands. He has given us his wisdom. And he wants us to embrace it by faith. Also, God has given us his Holy Spirit. He has given us his Word. He has given us everything we need. 2 Peter 1:3 tells us, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.”

And the Christian life is not a life of passivity. God has called us to beat our bodies (1 Cor 9:27) and take every thought captive (2 Cor 10:5), and cleanse this vessel from what is dishonorable, so that we it will be a vessel for that which is honorable, “set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work” (2 Tim 2:15). 

1 Thessalonians 4:3–5 says, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification. That you abstain from sexual immorality. That each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles that do not know God.” 

So there may be significant crossroads in your life where you have made a definite decision to embrace wisdom and forsake folly. But there are little crossroads in your life everyday where you are making a decision between wisdom and foolishness. And Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly are vying for your affection. 

Look, every time you pick up the remote control and choose something to watch on TV or look at on your smart phone, there’s a crossroads: wisdom or foolishness. Every time your blood starts to boil with your kids, and you are tempted to lose it! … There’s a crossroads: wisdom or foolishness. So take a deep breath. Take a walk, if you have to. Gather your senses. And tell Lady Folly to take a hike. And then choose the path of wisdom. Every time you get hurt deeply by someone you love, there’s a crossroads: forgiveness or unforgiveness. freedom or bondage. Wisdom or foolishness.

Wisdom isn’t a flash in the pan; it’s a lifestyle. My hope for each of us today is not that you will leave here with only a once-for-all-time decision to heed Lady Wisdom. My desire for each of us today (me included) is that we will be at Wisdom’s beck-and-call for the duration of our lives. Don’t just be attentive to Lady Wisdom, stay attentive to her. 

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Secondly, write this down under 1b. 

b. Be teachable, stay teachable, and invest in those who are teachable (7–9)

Now attentiveness and teachability are virtually synonymous in some contexts. But I want to nuance them slightly to emphasize the importance of not just being a hearer, but also being a doer (Jas 1:22–25). Someone who is teachable not only heeds the wisdom that God gives, he or she puts it into practice. Wisdom is never received in one ear and out the other. The teachable person is a learner, a disciple. He receives what Lady Wisdom says and he assimilates it into his person. It becomes imbedded deep into his soul. 

There’s another admonition here as well. Lady Wisdom not only says “Be teachable,” she also admonishes us to “invest in those who are teachable.” Here’s what she says: 

7 Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. 

Now a scoffer is different from a simpleton. The Hebrew for scoffer is this word לֵץ. This is not somebody who is naïve and gullible like the פֶּתִי. This is someone who is wise in his own eyes. This is someone who scoffs or mocks the instruction of others. 

This is that skeptic relative of yours who ridicules your faith. This is the Christian who thinks that he has found some corner on the truth that no one else in the world has. This is the person who comes to church with arms folded and mind closed, criticizing every aspect of the worship service, unwilling to humble himself or repent when the word of God is spoken. The scoffer’s error is pride. The scoffer is comfortable to remain in a state of ignorance, and they will injure anyone who gets in their way. 

Here, let me give you some pastoral counsel this morning. Watch out for individuals like that both inside and outside of the church. You might think that scoffers are only found outside the church. They aren’t. Don’t waste your precious energy on scoffers.

Jesus said this about teaching the unteachable, “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you” (Matt 7:6). “Jesus said that, Pastor Tony.” Yes, Jesus said that! Jesus didn’t suffer fools gladly. 

8 Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you.

The Jewish sage, Joshua ben Sirach said once, “Teaching a fool is like gluing a broken pot.” You just can’t stop the leaks.

9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.

Let’s turn our attention outside the church for a minute. Be careful that you do not waste your limited evangelistic energy on prideful, unyielding, unbroken scoffers. Don’t waste time trying to make Christianity more palatable for unrepentant people. It doesn’t work. You run the risk of creating false converts when you do that. Be bold in your evangelistic efforts. Be truthful. Be loving and kind, too, don’t be obnoxious. But state the truths clearly and directly and let the chips fall where they may. Let me say it this way—be like Lady Wisdom!

That’s true of evangelism, but that’s also true in discipleship. It is essentially impossible to disciple an unteachable person. It’s like swimming in molasses. You can’t do it. If you do find yourself in a position where you are discipling an unteachable person, you’re better off cutting your losses and saying, “This isn’t working” and stewarding your energies more effectively.

You might say, “That’s so mean. That’s so unkind.” No, it’s wise. And by the way, that’s exactly what Jesus did. Jesus was very deliberate about who he chose as his disciples. He made a general call to everyone to come follow me, but then when he discerned an unteachable heart, like the rich young ruler for instance, he weeded them out (cf. Matt 19:16–22). He didn’t waste time on the unteachable. 

The rich young ruler is, I think, a perfect example of someone who thought that he was righteous, he thought he was mature, and he wasn’t. And Jesus sniffed him out and sent him packing. The worst situation that you can find yourself in is discipling somebody who is woefully immature spiritually but thinks that they are mature. That’s an impossible situation. 

It took me a while to really embrace this principle as a Christian and as a pastor. I have spent too much time pleading with those who are unteachable and trying to correct scoffers. I have overestimated my ability to change people, and I have underestimated the stubborn resilience of a scoffer. And I used to read these verses when I was a teenager, and think, “What? What’s he talking about? “Do not reprove a scoffer.” Now I read these verses and think to myself, “Truer words have never been spoken.” 

Now that’s one side of this exhortation, “Invest in those who are teachable not unteachable.” The other side of this passage is this—be teachable! Let me say it this way—be teachable and stay teachable! 

Just so you know verse 9 gets me fired up.

9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.

That gets me fired up for God’s Word and God’s church. It gets me fired up about the discipleship process in our church. It also gets me fired up about the discipleship process that God is doing right now in my life. 

9 Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;

The truth of the matter is that you and I are still a “work in progress.” And God will never say to me or you, “Yeah, I’m done with him… Put a fork in him, he’s done.” God is still at work in my life. He still wants to bless me and you with wisdom. In the areas of my life that I am foolish, God wants to impart new wisdom to me, and in the areas of my life where there is wisdom, God wants that to increase. 

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Church, let me encourage you to be teachable, stay teachable, and invest in those who are teachable. Also write this down as 1c. 

c. Be vertical and live a vertical life (10–12)

Solomon reminds us again, as he does throughout Proverbs, that wisdom originates from the Lord. Look at verse 10 with me. 

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. 

The Hebrew for “the Holy One” here is a plural of the Hebrew קָדוֹשׁ. But this is not a reference to “Holy Ones,” like the angels or something like that. This is what’s called a plural of majesty. It’s like Elohim in Genesis 1. God is so majestic that sometimes authors use plural nouns to capture his grandeur.

And as we’ve seen before in Proverbs, wisdom is derived from the Lord. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. And the beginning of insight is knowledge of the Holy One. 

And notice too, that Solomon indelibly links wisdom and knowledge to holiness, i.e. the Holy One. Hebrew wisdom is intrinsically moral. It’s not like the wisdom that’s valued in this world. Worldly wisdom is often ethereal and abstract and irrespective of morality. That’s not true of godly wisdom. Godly wisdom flows from God, and God is intrinsically a God of holiness. The Bible knows nothing of a person who is wise but is lacking in morals. That’s not possible! Because…

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. 

11 For by me your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to your life. 

I think one of the reasons that people scoff and people remain in an unteachable state is because they don’t have an accurate view of God. They don’t know how awesome he is. They don’t know how majestic he is. They don’t know the extent of his power and the grandeur of his glory. And because of that they don’t fear him.

There are very smart people in our world, by the way, that don’t have a lick of wisdom. There are very intelligent, well-educated people who are dumb. That’s because wisdom doesn’t begin with Aristotle or with Plato. Wisdom doesn’t reside at Oxford or Cambridge or Harvard or Yale. Wisdom originates from God. And if you want wisdom you’ve got to stop looking horizontally or internally; you’ve got to look vertically. 

12 If you are wise, you are wise for yourself; if you scoff, you alone will bear it. 

In other words every person is morally responsible for his own actions. Derek Kidner says about this verse that this is one of the strongest expressions of individualism in the Bible. “Your character is the one thing you cannot borrow, lend or escape, for it is you.” 

Salvation likewise is for you and for yourself only. You can’t grandfather a person in. You can’t save another person’s soul. You can’t offer a sacrifice for another person. You can’t buy salvation for another person. You can’t buy indulgences for another person—people doing that in the sixteenth century made Martin Luther furious and birthed the reformation. Each person is accountable to God for himself and no one else. 

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And fourthly, write this down as 1d. 

d. Be on your guard and stay on guard against folly (13–18)

It’s interesting to me here how this passage, even Proverbs 1-9 as a whole, ends as a downer. It ends as a tragedy. Solomon begins with Lady Wisdom and the promise of something wonderful, but he ends with another cautionary tale of some naïve simpleton who is seduced by Lady Folly. As if to say, the way of Wisdom is available to you; wisdom is there for the taking, yet don’t be surprised when many, even most ignore Lady Wisdom’s call and are seduced by Lady Folly to their own destruction. So Proverbs 9 ends with a caution: Be leery. Be vigilant. Sleep with one eye open. Be on your guard.   

13 The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing. 

14 She sits at the door of her house; she takes a seat on the highest places of the town,

Notice Lady Folly has a spot at the highest places of the city just like Lady Wisdom. She is a beautiful counterfeit. In fact the Israelites would place altars and idols on high hills and under the tall trees (Deut 12:12; 1Kgs 14:23; Jer 2:20). These are places that would compete for the worship that was rightly due Yahweh. In this way Lady Folly represents Marduk, Baal, Ishtar, Anat, Asherah, Chemosh, Molech—all the pagan deities that lured the Israelites away from Yahweh. 

14 She sits at the door of her house; she takes a seat on the highest places of the town, 

15 calling to those who pass by, who are going straight on their way, 

Just some people, passing by. They are oblivious to what’s going on. They aren’t looking for trouble, but they’re about to find it. 

16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” And to him who lacks sense she says, 

Those are almost the exact words that Lady Wisdom used in verse 4. Lady Folly is a beautiful counterfeit. And what she offers is a counterfeit. Look at verse 17.

17 “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” 

She doesn’t offer the feast and drink of Lady Wisdom. She’s got stolen water and secret bread. The only delight in this is the delight of sin. There is pleasure in sin for a season. People don’t get hit by an asteroid when they engage in illicit sex. In fact, people enjoy illicit sex! But we know that those pleasures don’t last.

By the way, there are some sexual overtones here in verse 17. 

17 “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” 

Lady Folly is presented as similar to the seductress of Proverbs 7. I think the idea here is that stupidity is more than just stupid sex. There are other sins that are just as seductive and just as stupid as adultery. I mentioned the fruit of the spirit last week and its connection to wisdom. Here’s the fruit of the flesh which I see as other examples of godless foolishness: “idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness.” Now add to that the sexual sins of the flesh, “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality… orgies,” and you got yourself quite a list. Paul says, “those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal 5:21). 

Similarly Solomon says, 

18 But he does not know that the dead are there [i.e. hanging out at Lady Folly’s house], that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

Do you know what this is? This is Pinocchio. Remember that crazy movie? They lure young kids to “Pleasure Island.” They can do anything they want to do. It’s total self-gratification. It’s paradise for a few days. They are enjoying their sin for a season. But then, they turn into donkeys to go work in the salt mines. Remember that? What a crazy, bizarre kids’ movies! What parents allow their kids to watch that? I guess it works as a cautionary tale.

And it’s just like Lady Folly in Proverbs 9. You party like it’s 1999 in the evening, but in the morning, you turn into a donkey. Actually it’s worse than that in Proverbs 9. You turn into a ghost. 

18 But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

You go down into the depths of Sheol. In other words, you die a fool’s death.

So what do we take away from all this? Be vigilant. Don’t be an oblivious dope walking around like there’s nothing to worry about. Be on your guard and protect yourself from Lady Folly.

1 Cor 16:13 says, “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.” Similarly 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

Last week, I cautiously made connections between Lady Wisdom and Christ. I didn’t equate them, but I did connect them. Similarly, I wouldn’t equate Lady Folly with the Devil. There is plenty of folly that resides in the human heart without the assistance of the Devil. But certainly the Devil exacerbates the situation by tempting us towards sinfulness and stupidity. His desire is to lead us away from God’s wisdom and towards our own destruction. And what’s sad as we look out on our world today is this—people are flocking to Lady Folly in droves. 

More often than not people would rather eat the pittance of sinful satisfaction that Lady Folly offers than the banquet of delights that wisdom offers. And if you are going to win the battle against sin and stupidity in this day and age, you are going to have to fight an uphill battle. You’re going to have to cultivate a lifestyle that is radically dissimilar from this world. Welcome to Christianity, folks!

 If you are going to live a life that is characterized by wisdom and by the fear of the Lord, you are going to have to part ways with the world. And you are going to have to swim upstream. I don’t say that to you today to discourage you. Actually I say that to encourage you, because many of you have felt that already—the sensation that you are swimming upstream. Don’t be put off by that. That’s a confirmation that you are in the right place, and you are in a position that God blesses. 

So heed wisdom and forsake folly. Let’s embark on this together as the people of God.

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Last week I said that the quest for wisdom begins at the cross. And that’s true for us as NT Christians. Our quest for wisdom begins at the feet of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I want to come back to that as a final statement for today. In fact I want to reinforce that statement with some of Jesus’s own words. 

Jesus, the great espouser of wisdom, the perfect embodiment of divine wisdom, told a parable to his disciples about a wise man and a foolish man. And the picture that Jesus paints is a little different then the two women vying for the affections of the simpleton in Proverbs 9. 

In Matthew 7:24–27, Jesus portrays the wise man as a person who builds his house upon the rock. He said, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.”

I was first exposed to this passage in a song, a song that I learned in VBS. Almost every great spiritual truth I’ve learned in life, started as a VBS song. “The wise man built his house upon the Rock!” The foolish man, though. He’s got his own little ditty. And he doesn’t fare so well. His story ends in tragedy, the same way the simpleton’s does in Proverbs 9. Why? Because the foolish man rejected the rock. 

So what’s the rock in Jesus’s parable? I’ll give you a two-part answer to that question. The rock is the Word of God, and it’s the WORD of God made flesh. Build your life on those things. 

What’s the rock? It’s the Wisdom that God gives, the wisdom found in this book. And it’s also the perfect embodiment of Wisdom, Wisdom-incarnate, Jesus Christ. Build your life on him, and when the storm comes, you’ll be okay.

Taught by Tony Caffey

Senior Pastor of Verse By Verse Fellowship

Proverbs