Bird's-eye view
In the first nine chapters of Proverbs, we are presented with a stark and fundamental choice. This is not a choice between multiple shades of gray, but rather a choice between two competing hostesses, two rival invitations, two ultimate destinies. On the one hand, we have Lady Wisdom, a noble and generous matron who has prepared a lavish feast in a well-established house. On the other hand, waiting in the wings, is Dame Folly, the harlot who offers stolen waters and bread eaten in secret. This chapter brings the conflict to a head. Wisdom issues a public, gracious, and life-giving invitation. Folly will issue her own invitation later in the chapter, and it is a call to death. The choice presented here is not complicated, but it is ultimate. Whom will you dine with? The answer to that question determines everything.
The entire book of Proverbs hinges on this contrast. It is not a collection of disconnected ethical maxims for self-improvement. It is a book about two ways to live, personified by two women. One builds up, and the other tears down. One leads to life, and the other leads to the chambers of Sheol. The feast that Wisdom prepares is a picture of the gospel feast, the marriage supper of the Lamb. It is a feast of fellowship with God, made possible through the ultimate Wisdom of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. This passage, then, is a call to come to Christ, to forsake the empty promises of the world, and to find true life and understanding in Him.
Outline
- 1. Wisdom's Preparation (Prov 9:1-2)
- a. A Solid Foundation (v. 1)
- b. A Lavish Provision (v. 2)
- 2. Wisdom's Invitation (Prov 9:3-6)
- a. The Public Call (v. 3)
- b. The Intended Audience (v. 4)
- c. The Gracious Offer (v. 5)
- d. The Required Response (v. 6)
Context In Proverbs
Proverbs 9 serves as the climax and conclusion to the book's introductory section (chapters 1-9). This section has been characterized by extended discourses from a father to his son, warning him against the allure of folly, immorality, and wickedness, and urging him to pursue wisdom above all else. Lady Wisdom has been personified before (e.g., Prov 1:20-33; Prov 8), culminating in the magnificent declaration of her eternal nature and role in creation in chapter 8. Now, in chapter 9, the teaching is dramatized. We move from lecture to a vivid scene: Wisdom has not just spoken; she has acted. She has built a house and prepared a feast. This sets the stage for the direct contrast with the foolish woman in the second half of the chapter (Prov 9:13-18), making the choice as clear as possible before the book transitions into the short, pithy proverbs of the following sections.
Verse by Verse Commentary
1 Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars;
Wisdom is not an abstract concept floating in the ether; she is a master builder. She is constructive, architectural, and stable. She builds a house, a place of dwelling, security, and permanence. This is in stark contrast to Folly, who sits by the way, going nowhere, building nothing. Wisdom is substantive. The world built on foolish principles is a house of cards, but the house of wisdom is built to last. The seven pillars speak of completeness and perfection. Commentators have had a field day trying to assign specific meanings to each of the seven pillars, but the main point is that this house is well-designed, perfectly stable, and complete. It is not a shack. It is a mansion. This is the structure of a righteous life, the framework of a godly society, the very architecture of God's created order. Ultimately, this house finds its fulfillment in the Church, which is the household of God, a pillar and buttress of the truth, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone.
2 She has slaughtered her cattle, she has mixed her wine; She has also prepared her table;
Having built the house, Wisdom now furnishes it for a feast. This is no meager potluck. She has slaughtered her beasts, indicating a rich and costly celebration. This is a sacrificial meal, a covenant meal. The wine is mixed, likely with spices and water, a sign of careful and thoughtful preparation. The table is set and ready. All this points to the sheer generosity and abundance of what Wisdom offers. There is no cost to the guests; the hostess has borne all the expense. This is a picture of God's grace. The gospel is a feast for the starving, and the invitation is free, but the feast itself was purchased at an infinite cost, the slaughter of the Lamb of God. God has prepared a table for us in the presence of our enemies, and He invites us to come and dine.
3 She has sent out her maidens, she calls From the tops of the heights of the city:
The invitation is not a secret whispered in a corner. Wisdom is not ashamed of her feast. She sends out her servants, her maidens, to issue a broad and public summons. The call goes out from the highest places of the city, the most prominent and public locations. This is where business was transacted, where news was shared, where everyone would hear. The gospel is to be proclaimed from the housetops. There is nothing clandestine about the offer of life. It is a public announcement, a royal summons to all who are within earshot. Wisdom wants to be found. She cries out, desiring that men would come to her.
4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” To him who lacks a heart of wisdom she says,
And who are the invited guests? Not the proud, not the self-sufficient, not those who believe they have it all figured out. The invitation is for the simple. The word here means one who is open, naive, or untaught. It is the person who knows he doesn't know. It is the man who lacks a heart, which in Hebrew thought refers to the seat of understanding and will. Wisdom calls out to those who recognize their own emptiness and need. This is the first requirement for coming to God: you must know that you need to come. The gospel is for spiritual paupers. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. You cannot come to Wisdom's table if your belly is already full of your own self-righteousness.
5 “Come, eat of my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed.
The invitation is direct and personal. Come. Eat. Drink. This is the language of fellowship and participation. Wisdom does not offer a set of abstract rules to be admired from a distance. She offers herself. She offers sustenance. Her bread is the bread of life. Her wine is the wine of joy and covenant. To accept her invitation is to partake of her very nature. This is what Jesus says: "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." To come to Wisdom is to come to Christ, to feed on Him by faith, and to find in Him all that our souls require.
6 Forsake your simplicity and live, And step into the way of understanding.”
The invitation requires a response, and that response is one of radical abandonment and redirection. Forsake your simplicity. The simple man is invited precisely because he is simple, but he is not invited to remain so. He must leave his former foolishness, his naivete, his simple-minded ways. This is the call to repentance. Turn from your old life. And in turning from the old, you must turn to the new. Step into the way of understanding. This is not a one-time decision but a new path to walk. It is a "way," a course of life. To accept Wisdom's feast is to embark on a lifelong journey of discipleship, walking in the light as He is in the light. The result is nothing less than life itself. Forsake foolishness and live. The alternative, which Dame Folly will soon offer, is to embrace foolishness and die.
Application
The central application of this passage is to hear and heed the call of Wisdom. The world, like Dame Folly, is constantly calling out, offering its own feasts. It offers the bread of materialism, the wine of sensual pleasure, the table of self-worship. These invitations are loud, clamorous, and enticing. They promise much but deliver only death.
Wisdom's call is different. It is a call to forsake all that and come to a feast prepared by God Himself. It requires humility, an admission that we are "simple" and "lack understanding." It requires repentance, a turning away from our foolish ways. And it requires faith, a stepping into the way of understanding by partaking of the bread and wine she offers.
This is the gospel call. Christ has built His house, the Church. He has prepared the feast of salvation, paid for by His own blood. He sends out His servants to proclaim this good news from the highest places. The invitation is for you, if you will but acknowledge your need. Do not be deceived by the clamor of Folly. Her house is the way to Sheol. Come to the house of Wisdom. Eat the bread of life, drink the wine of the new covenant, and you will find true life and understanding.