Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars: She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table. She hath sent forth her maidens:
She crieth upon the highest places of the city, "Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither": as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,
"Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled. Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.
He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot. Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased.
If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone shalt bear it."
A foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing. For she sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city,
To call passengers who go right on their ways: "Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither:", and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, "Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant."
But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell.
--- Proverbs 9:1-18
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This week marks the last of our meditations on the preamble to the book of Proverbs, prior to our beginning to tackling the vast amount of wisdom therein.
An outline of the book looks something like this... we have taken ours from Dr J Vernon McGee...
I. Wisdom and folly contrasted, Chapters 1—9
II. Proverbs of Solomon, written and set in order by himself, Chapters 10—24
III. Proverbs of Solomon, set in order by men of Hezekiah, Chapters 25—29
IV. Oracle of Agur, unknown sage, Chapter 30
V. Proverbs of a mother to Lemuel, Chapter 31
A lot of material! .... Well, the way we propose to navigate it is as follows. We will start with the first proverb, and find references to the subject treated there throughout the rest of the book, and look at them all together. We will then move on to the next proverb and subject, and so on, till we have exhausted the subjects or completed the book.
This way, we might get a better feel for all the subtleties and shades of truth expressed about a particular subject, instead of having to revisit the same material when a proverb ...seems to be repeated... sometimes it is a simple repeat, sometimes it isn't.
Thus far, we have looked at Chapters 1-9 as a unit, and it has helped us to understand the source, nature, and correct application of Wisdom. Wisdom is a Spiritual Gift, given to us by the Spirit of God, it is a Spiritual discipline to absorb that wisdom and apply it skillfully to make practical choices in the reality of our daily life.
Lets look at that last chapter, chapter 9, reproduced in full this week, for some final insights.
Wisdom and Folly are represented to us as two women.
Wisdom builds a house supported by hewn pillars.. 7 of them! Please recall our quote from Isaiah 11:1-2 -- "And the —spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of -wisdom and -understanding, the spirit of -counsel and -might, the spirit of -knowledge and of the -fear of the LORD;" --- 7 pillars... reinforced by the Chap 9 text also saying... " The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy/sacred (One) is understanding."
She prepares a feast, slaughtering animals, mixing wine, and INVITES her guests via her servants. Not content with that, she herself cries to the highest places in the city... to the simple, to the one that wants understanding.
Folly is presented to us as almost similar. She prepares no feast, and there are no invitations that go out, but she is shown as seated in a high place of the city, at the DOOR of her house. She is not making any effort, but is simply "clamorously" or noisily... calling out to whoever passes by.
Please note... her target demographic ---is the same as--- that targeted by Wisdom... in fact, the opening words are exactly IDENTICAL! ( "Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither": as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, ....." )
The difference is in what is IN the house, and what advice is being given to the young and naive ("simple"), or them that lack "understanding" ... the word rendered there could mean heart, intellect, courage or wisdom.
What does Wisdom offer? Lets take a look...at what she has to say?
"Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled."
Bread and Wine! Its an invitation to Communion in the book of Wisdom! To eat and drink, partaking of the body and blood of the Lord, to give us wisdom in our mind and health in our body! What an amazing foreshadowing.... elsewhere in the Gospels we have the parables of the Great Supper (Luke 14:16-24 ) and the Marriage of the King's Son (Matthew 22:1-14) that sound very similar!
Those parables were spoken to impart a different lesson ... the invited reject the invitation, and the invitation is then extended to those that were formerly excluded. That goes deep into the plans God had from everlasting when He chose the Nation of Israel to be His peculiar treasure, and their history to be an illustration of His Righteousness, Justice, Wrath, Mercy and Grace! (Check them out... indeed check out our studies on the Parables of Jesus if you have time.... it will be well worth it we promise!)
That is not all she says. "Forsake the foolish, and live." Bad company corrupts. There is no clearer indication of that then these five words right here! The forsaking goes beyond just avoidance.... Wisdom ACTIVELY discourages the wise from engaging the foolish in an attempt to enlighten them!
"He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot. -----Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. -----Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. " True dat!!! ?, we can say from our personal experience !!!! .... and the words of Christ... " Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you. " (Matt 7:6) .... there is no inconsistency here.
Finally, what is the most true and scariest statement of all... "If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone shalt bear it."
We have said previously, the work of the Spirit is not to bring us to God against our free will, but to draw us to Him with gentle wooing, to the point where we joyfully submit to His Lordship, He having opened our eyes to His wisdom. If you want to be wise, YOU will benefit.... others may, but you should desire to be wise for your OWN SELFISH REASONS... to benefit from God's wisdom in this life, and to have a long and happy one!
If you are scornful, (exercising your free will to reject the leading and prompting of the Spirit) -- you alone are accountable for the consequences!!
You cannot blame dad, mom, the environment, your upbringing, social station... nothing. You will be held INDIVIDUALLY, and PERSONALLY accountable for how you have personally dealt with the truth revealed to you, and as the text clearly says.... It's your decision, and YOU ALONE... will have to bear the consequences of rejecting the Bread and Wine of communion with our Lord!
Lets look at the promises of Folly, as we close. The invitation is universal, and is extended to people going about their daily business as they pass her house.
The promises though..... "Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant." The invitation is to enjoy the pleasures of Sin! "Thou shalt not steal" is the Commandment... and folly says... Stolen waters are sweet, come eat bread in secret... why ? .... because it is not proper for those people to eat that bread in public... mixed as it is with the leaven of sin.
The rewards of foolishness... ..."the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell." The company of fools is as the company of dead people. When Christ asks a man to follow Him, He says, "Let me first go bury my Father.."... in other words, I have family responsibilities, and I need to take care of my parents before I follow you. Seems fine right? Not so... because to refuse an invitation from Christ Himself is foolishness of the first order... hence the rather (seemingly) harsh remark... "Let the dead, bury the dead" (Mat 8:22, Luke 9:60).
If you are not a part of God, and He is not IN you, you are already a dead person walking. You will have no inclination to pursue the things of God, but are in active pursuit of hedonism, power, fame and prestige, riches.... putting your trust in your OWN capability to acquire them, RATHER THAN... .listen to the LORD, rest in Wisdom and let these things CHASE AFTER you!! ? Who's the fool now?
And the ultimate folly is rejecting the Son of God Himself, and His message, as the people of Israel did when Christ was alive, when Paul preached to Jews/Gentiles, and the gospel and apologetics over the last 2000 years.
When will the leaders of Israel listen? That is whom God holds accountable. Christ told the Pharisees ... " Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. " ( Mat 21:31 ). There were people of the children of Israel (the "Lost Sheep") that joyfully received Christ and His Message, just as there are Messianic Jews today. The Orthodox Jews and the leaders of of the modern nation of Israel, however, still reject Christ and His invitation!
The invitation is out... the Gospel is going all over the world -- saving yes, but also judging those who reject it. If they accept the gospel, they are wise for themselves, but if they scorn it, they are accountable and cannot accuse God of being unrighteous!
Please pray for God to be merciful to His people, to open more eyes and hearts in these times, and to bring more and more people to a saving knowledge of Christ, the Holy Spirit and God almighty Himself!
Hallelujah!