Invitation to Life and Death. Proverbs 9:1-18
The Bible designates that it is the man
that is the head of the home, the spiritual leader in the home, the one who is
responsible for teaching and training the children on the path of wisdom, which
is a major emphasis as we have seen throughout these first nine chapters of
Proverbs. We make choices in life, and they reflect which direction we are
going to go. We make basically two choices in life every single day. These
choices may relate to a number of sub-choices but the choice that we make is:
Are we going to choose today the path of life or the path of death?
The way of wisdom is described in
chapter nine in the first six verses. The path of the fool, the simple, is in
vv. 13-18, the last six verses. Those are antithetical, opposites; they
contrast with one another. In between in vv. 7-12 is an aside focusing on the
difference between how the scoffer, the fool responds to the cry of wisdom and
the invitation of wisdom versus the one who is wise.
Both wisdom and folly are set forth as women
and they are setting forth an invitation. So in one sense there is a choice of
which party we are going to attend in life. Are we going to attend the party
that looks like it is a lot of fun and very exciting? Or are we going to take
the more serious group which has accepted the invitation of the lady wisdom?
That is a choice each of us makes every day, and this is the appeal in these
first nine chapters.
The role of the father is to teach and
train the family in the path of wisdom. There are a lot of different ways to do
that. If you dont know how to teach or have never had any kind of instruction,
I would encourage you if you are a Dad, a male of the house, that it might be a
good idea to attend the Child Evangelism Fellowship event next Saturday morning
just to find out a few things. They have tremendous materials that can be used
as a parent in teaching and training children in the Word of God.
As we come to our final chapter in the
introduction we are faced with this choice that we are faced with numerous
times every day: the path of wisdom or the path of the fool. In chapter eight the focus was
ultimately on the one who is responsive to wisdom. He is blessed (8:34). But
here in chapter nine wisdom is portrayed as a lady who is setting forth a
banquette and sending out invitations to all. There is no limitation on the
invitation, and not only that, but she is providing a sumptuous banquet and
there is no cost. It is a great illustration of grace. Grace means that
something is given to us freely. It doesnt mean there is no cost associated
with it. For example, with salvation the cost was the death of the Son of God.
But to receive the blessings, the benefits of that death, we simply accept a
free gift. We are given the opportunity of receiving eternal life by trusting
in Jesus Christ for our salvation. It is a free offer but it was not free to
God; it cost something, the death of Christ on the cross.
Proverbs 9:1 NASB Wisdom
has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars. The picture here at
the beginning is an extended metaphor where wisdom is preparing for this
banquet. It involves the construction of the place where the banquet will be
held, all of the preparation of the food and the wine and the other furnishings
of the table. [2] She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine; She has
also set her table; [3} She has sent out her maidens So the picture here is
of someone preparing a banquet. The first word in v. 1, wisdom, is accurate.
However, it is in the plural in the Hebrew. The plural use of the noun here is
really a plural of excellence. In the Hebrew it is to be treated as a singular
concept even though the plural is there which intensifies the meaning of
wisdom, the fullness of everything related to wisdom. The verb that is
associated with it, has built, is a third person singular verb. A plural noun
requires agreement with a plural verb, but having a singular verb here
indicates that the noun is to be treated as a singularity, not as a
multiplicity. It is not wisdoms but it intensifies the meaning of wisdom as one
complex of ideas.
The word translated built is the same
word used to describe Gods creation of Eve in the garden of Eden. It is a word
that means to carefully build and construct something through the use of
craftsmanship. It describes the creative power and it shows that it is
something that is thought out, something that has been prepared for and
planned, not something that is done haphazardly. And it presents a sort of
overview of what the next couple of verses will focus on: that wisdom has built
the house.
Then the second part clarifies the
first part. How did she build her house? She did it by hewing out her seven
pillars. What are the seven pillars? Where did that idea come from? Over the
years there have been a number of guesses over what these seven pillars are.
They reflect the fact that over a lot of church history the interpretation was
based upon some sort of allegorical method of spiritualizing, where you just
try to guess what that meaning might be and look for some kind of spiritual,
hidden connotation there. One of the more creative was the idea they
represented the first seven chapters in the introduction. But that really
doesnt work; there is no indication anywhere in the text that indicates that.
Others have suggested that this is a
reflection of the ancient concept of dividing the liberal arts into seven
categories. In the ancient world the liberal arts were divided into a set of
three and a set of four: the trivium included grammar, rhetoric and dialectics,
and then the quadrivium which represented the four, which were music,
arithmetic, geometry and astronomy. In Jewish thought the Midrash talks about
the seven heavens, or seven climates, or seven parts of the earth; but again,
that doesnt really fit the context here.
In the early part of the church age in
what is called the Patristic period and then the Middle Ages within the Roman
Catholic church there was the development of seven sacraments. And then there
were a lot of people in the Middle Ages and later who mystically said the seven
pillars are the seven sacraments. There is nothing in the text that indicates
that.
Others tried to be a little more
textual and thought, what else has seven in the Old Testament. And there is the
mention of the seven spirits of God, which are the seven different ministries
of the Holy Spirit in Isaiah 11:2 related to the Messiah. That is a little more
created and tries to be a little more textual, but it doesnt seem to fit the
context.
In fact, we really have to look at the
context when we see any kind of metaphor and just ask: What are they talking
about? They are just using figurative language to talk about the construction of
a house. Wisdom is building a house. And so we look more towards archaeology to
understand something of the construction of a house than we would any of the
other things that have been mentioned in church history. The way homes were
often constructed, especially among the aristocracy, was to have an open
courtyard with a portico along one side with supporting pillars. There was an
Arabic proverb that said a rich man has a house that stands on twelve pillars.
It has to do with something that gives structure and stability to the house.
When wisdom is building your house it is constructed on something that gives it
a foundation, gives it stability, and gives it strength. Regarding the fact
that there are seven pillars here, the number seven in Scripture often relates
to the idea of perfection. And so this shows the idea of the completedness of
the house that wisdom builds. It is sufficient for those who come to dwell in
the house of wisdom.
Then in verse 2 we have the preparation
of the house or preparation for the feast in celebration of wisdom. She
slaughters her animals, and this relates not only to just the process of the
original slaughter of the animal but also stands for the entire process of
preparation. In the ancient world this took some time. Proverbs 9:2 NASB
She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine; She has also set her
table. It talks about her complete preparation of everything necessary for
physical sustenance. Slaughtering is a difficult activity, it demands strength,
capability and knowledge of an animal. Wisdom represented here as a woman is
fully capable of slaughtering the animals. Then she furnishes her table. She is
concerned not just with the functionality of the food but also the presentation
of the food and how the table would be set. This emphasizes the concept of
something that is done skillfully and beautifully, not just doing the right
thing the right way.
Once that has been
provided what we see here is that wisdom has provided everything that we need
in a place where we are going to reside. So we live in a house that has
stability and it provides our every need at no cost. This is a great picture of
the teaching of Gods Word. Gods Word is free to us, just as salvation is free
to us. We are to study it, and it will give us stability and sustenance for
every area of our life.
Wisdom, once having set
the table and provided everything for us, is going to send out her handmaid to
invite all to this place, to come to the party. Notice how wisdom is presented
as being thoughtful in planning and preparing and covering every exigency
possible, and in contrast there is noisy, foolish wisdom. She is open to any
idea and often is absorbed with contradictory ideas, there is no sense of order
there. She is simple; she actually knows nothing. She may have a lot of
information but she has no structured knowledge, no truth. Proverbs 9:13 NASB
The woman of folly is boisterous, {She is} naive and knows nothing. Verse 15,
she cries out, and so she, too, is offering an invitation. She sits in the high
places of the city so, like the lady of wisdom she is offering what she has to
everyone. So we are presented with this choice.
Now the invitation from
lady wisdom is that she has sent out her maidens. Who are the maidens of
wisdom? These would be the prophets of the Bible. These are the ones who are
calling out through the highways and byways of life. In the New Testament we
have the apostles, the pastors and evangelists. These are the ones who are
calling people to come and dwell in the house of wisdom. Now that the banquet
is all prepared and the home is prepared she sends out her handmaidens in order
to invite people to come.
There are some who have
raised an objection here, that in the ancient world you wouldnt have female
messengers going out to invite male guests to the banquet. However, this is
seen even in the culture of the time, in a Ugaritic legend that has been
uncovered in recent years, called The Legend of King Keret, where the king
instructs his wife to prepare a meal, to slaughter the fattest animals of the fat stock, to open up the wine
flasks, to invited the dignitaries and troop leaders, and then she is the one
who sends out the invitations to one and all within the community.
Then we begin to read how
the invitation is phrased: Proverbs 9:4 NASB Whoever is
naive, let him turn in here! This word nave we have seen before. It is a
word that indicates one who is open to just any idea. They are the nave,
foolish person. They havent established themselves, they havent sunk down
their roots deeply into their foolishness yet and so are convertible, winnable
to the side of wisdom. This would be contrasted to the one identified as the
scoffer in vv. 7-12 because the scoffer is one who is already set in his ways and
refuses to respond to the invitation of wisdom and is set on his path of
self-destruction.
This is the call of the gospel as
well—to anyone. It doesnt matter what your station in life is, what
mistakes in life you have made, what your past is. The invitation is there to
freely respond to the offer of salvation freely through Jesus Christ. The offer
is to you to come and to learn wisdom so that you can avoid the mistakes, the
pitfalls, the disasters, that come from those who reject the wisdom of the Bible,
the wisdom of Christianity.
To him who lacks understanding she
says. [5] Come, eat of my food And drink of the wine I have mixed. This is
where we get our action plan. We see this through the imperative in the text.
This is the only section (vv. 5, 6) where we have imperatives (commands) in
this passage. [6] Forsake {your} folly and live, And proceed in the way of
understanding. There is a pattern to this. First of all we have to take in the
Word of God. The metaphor of eating and drinking in Scripture is taking
something and making it a part of ourselves. When we eat or drink something it
comes into our body and it then metabolized and becomes part of our being.
Eating and drinking is often used in the Scripture of believing in Christ. What
is meant by that metaphor is that if we dont accept His gift of salvation, if
we dont believe or receive it by faith alone then it will end up in eternal
condemnation. The same it true about our ongoing relationship with the Lord. We
need to take in the Word, we need to eat the Word of God, take it in so it
becomes part of our life. Eat of my food (v.5), which is true wisdom,
biblical thinking.
There is a choice here (v.6). We have
to turn from the foolish choices that we have made, the foolish patterns that
we have adopted, and turn our back on the path that leads to death; and by
doing so we are going to live; we are going to choose life rather than death,
and this means we are going to choose a different path. We are going to go in
the path of understanding and not in the path of foolishness.
Then the next set of verses describe
what happens to those who refuse the offer, the invitation of wisdom. They
become a scoffer. A scoffer is a fool or a simple person that has basically
become fossilized in their negative volition. They have hardened their heart to
God, they are no longer responsive and, in fact, anyone who tries to correct
them is just going to bring misery upon themselves.
Proverbs 9:7 NASB He who
corrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself, And he who reproves a wicked man
{gets} insults for himself. [8] Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you,
Reprove a wise man and he will love you. These two verses are tied together.
This represents the consequences of the path of the one who chooses wisdom
versus foolishness. So if you are wise and you attempt to correct a scoffer,
i.e. someone who is hardened in their opposition to God (sometimes translated
as a mocker), just brings shame upon himself. The idea that he brings shame
upon himself can be either a result of the fact that the scoffer just ridicules
and rebukes the wise person and acts in hostile opposition to the person trying
to correct them, or it could be a process that is going to end in failure. So
it can be a shame because you are trying to correct somebody who is not ever
going to respond, it is a waste of time and energy.
There are several passages in Proverbs
that talk about the scoffer, e.g. Proverbs 21:24; 3:34. The scoffer is a proud
an haughty man. He is driven by arrogance towards God and a rejection of
truth.
Proverbs 21:24 NASB
Proud, Haughty, Scoffer, are his names, Who acts with insolent pride.
God has a specific attitude towards the scoffer. Proverbs 3:35 NASB
Though He scoffs at the scoffers, Yet He gives grace to the afflicted. He
rejects the arrogant. In the New Testament it is more the idea of God declares
war against the arrogant.
Proverbs 19:29 NASB
Judgments are prepared for scoffers, And blows for the back of fools. This is
a dramatic description of the divine discipline that will come in the path of
the one who has rejected truth.
Proverbs 14:6 NASB
A scoffer seeks wisdom and {finds} none How many times have we heard people
say they have read the Bible but just couldnt make any sense of it? They may
have gone to church or even read some good books, but they just reject it
because they have already become so deeply embedded in a foundation of arrogant
boastfulness against God that they wouldnt see truth if it slapped them in the
face. So a scoffer will never find truth no matter how visible it might be to
him. But on the opposite side, But knowledge is easy to one who has
understanding. If you have humbled yourself before God; if you have fear of
the Lord, then you can easily see the truth that God makes clear to you.
Proverbs 9:9 NASB Give
{instruction} to a wise man and he will be still wiser He loves being
corrected, he desires to do well, and so he is not governed by subjectivity and
personal antagonism who is trying to help him in pointing out the path of
wisdom. Teach a righteous
man and he will increase {his} learning. So we see just the opposite between
the wise and the fool.
Proverbs 15:31 NASB
He whose ear listens to the life-giving reproof Will dwell among the wise. So
we need to be responsive to those who are honestly correcting us, and that
correction comes from this Scripture.
Proverbs 17:10 NASB
A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding Than a hundred blows into
a fool. The fool just wont respond.
Proverbs 19:25 NASB
Strike a scoffer and the naive may become shrewd They are not going to be
responsive. But reprove one who has understanding and he will gain
knowledge.
Proverbs 10:8 NASB
The wise of heart will receive commands, But a babbling fool will be ruined.
The core value is humility.
Proverbs 12:15 NASB
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But a wise man is he who listens
to counsel. Are you willing to listen to others who are more mature and more
advanced in the spiritual life than yourself?
Proverbs 15:32 NASB
He who neglects discipline despises himself, But he who listens to reproof
acquires understanding.
The core value: Proverbs 9:10 NASB
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy
One is understanding. Three key words there are linked together: wisdom,
knowledge, and understanding. We cant get down the path of wisdom unless we are
responsive to Gods Word. We have to want to know God. We have to humble
ourselves before God, and in doing so we will begin to develop a knowledge of
the Word of God and an understanding of how to apply it in our lives. Only the
wise and the humble person appreciates rebuke because he can learn from it.
Proverbs 9:11 NASB For by
me your days will be multiplied, And years of life will be added to you. This
is the benefit of following the invitation to wisdoms party, because that is
where there is real life. This is not just the length of life but the richness
of life. If you want to live life to the full and enjoy the benefits then it
has to be based on wisdom.
Proverbs 9:12 NASB If you are
wise, you are wise for yourself, And if you scoff, you alone will bear it.
What this is emphasizing is that your life is the result of the decisions that
you make. We make many decisions every single day in life and it is the
accumulation of those decisions that determine the quality of our life.
Ultimately our life is determined by our volition. Are we going to choose the
path of life or chose the path of death. The one who benefits is the
individual. The one who responds to wisdom is going to experience all of the
benefits and blessings of wisdom but the one who is a scoffer, boastfully
arrogant, is the one who reaps the negative consequences of his arrogance.
Then we come to the closing statement
describing the path of folly, the way of the foolish woman; going to this party
that foolishness throws. It looks great and a lot more fun than the other
party. Its trappings are a lot more enjoyable on the surface but it is really a
party celebrating death. The foolish lady sits at the door of her house. She
hasnt constructed the house, she hasnt built anything, she hasnt planned
anything; it is just there. She doesnt care about those things.
Proverbs 9:13 NASB The
woman of folly is boisterous, {She is} naive and knows nothing. [14] She
sits at the doorway of her house, On a seat by the high places of the city
– A vantage point where she can make her invitation known to all. [15]
Calling to those who pass by, Who are making their paths straight: [16]
Whoever is naive, let him turn in here, And to him who lacks understanding
she says, [17] Stolen water is sweet; And bread {eaten} in secret is
pleasant. Whatever the area of temptation is sin always seems to present a
faade of fun, a faade of joy and pleasure. And even though we know it is wrong
and is ultimately going to hurt us we think, Well if nobody is watching and
nobody sees. Ill get away with it. That is the seduction of sin.
But what we learn is,
Proverbs 9:18 NASB But he does not know that the dead are there,
{That} her guests are in the depths of Sheol. This is not necessarily those
who are going to be eternally condemned because that is not really the focus;
this is in life today, the walking dead, not experiencing the richness of life,
the pleasure of life as God intended.
The conclusion is that if
we dont follow the path of wisdom it leads to a death-like experience. If we
reject the wisdom of the gospel then it will indeed lead to an eternal death
and condemnation. But if we are believers and we reject God then it will lead to
a death-like experience. It may be a lot of physical pleasure and fun for a
while but the end result is a death-like existence, we will develop our own
self-developed tragedy.