The Tale of Two Hostesses Text: Proverbs 9:1-6
Introduction: An Invitation You Must Answer
The book of Proverbs is not a collection of folksy platitudes for cross-stitching onto pillows. It is a book of spiritual warfare. It presents the world as it truly is: a stark choice between two ways, two paths, two masters, and ultimately, two eternal destinations. There is no middle ground, no neutral territory, no demilitarized zone. You are either walking in the way of wisdom, or you are stumbling down the path of folly. You are either building your life on the rock, or you are content with the sand.
In this ninth chapter, this conflict is brought to a dramatic and personal climax. The choice is presented to us not as an abstract philosophical decision, but as a personal invitation to dinner. Two women, two hostesses, have prepared a feast, and both are calling out from the high places of the city. Lady Wisdom has built a stately house and prepared a rich, life-giving meal. And, as we will see later in the chapter, Madam Folly has thrown together a shoddy operation, offering stolen water and secret bread. Both are calling to the same person: the simple man, the naive soul standing at the crossroads of life.
Every person in this room, every person on the planet, has received both invitations. The air we breathe is thick with these competing calls. Every advertisement, every university lecture, every political speech, every song on the radio is an invitation to one of these two tables. The question is not whether you will eat, but at whose table you will dine. The choice is before us, and to refuse Wisdom's invitation is, by default, to accept Folly's. Let us therefore consider the glorious invitation that Wisdom extends to us.
The Text
Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars; She has slaughtered her cattle, she has mixed her wine; She has also prepared her table; She has sent out her maidens, she calls From the tops of the heights of the city: “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” To him who lacks a heart of wisdom she says, “Come, eat of my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed. Forsake your simplicity and live, And step into the way of understanding.”
(Proverbs 9:1-6 LSB)
The House of Reality (v. 1)
We begin with the preparations of our first hostess, Lady Wisdom.
"Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars;" (Proverbs 9:1)
Wisdom is not a disembodied idea or a floating abstraction. Wisdom builds. Wisdom establishes. She creates a place of order, stability, beauty, and permanence. This house is the created order. It is the cosmos, structured and established by the mind of God. It is a well-ordered life, a well-ordered family, a well-ordered church. Folly, by contrast, lives in a hovel. She throws things together. Her way is the way of chaos, shortcuts, and eventual collapse.
Notice the architecture. This house is founded on seven pillars. In Scripture, the number seven signifies perfection, completion, and covenant. Think of the seven days of creation. This house is not a temporary shack; it is a completed temple. It is utterly stable, perfectly designed, and covenantly secure. These are the foundational principles of reality as God designed it. To live in Wisdom's house is to live in alignment with reality. To reject her is to attempt to build your own reality, which is like a toddler trying to build a skyscraper out of mud and spit. It is a fool's errand, destined for a great crash.
This Wisdom, of course, is a personification that points us to a Person. The Apostle Paul tells us that Christ is the Wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1:24). It is Christ who has built His house, the Church, upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Himself as the chief cornerstone (Eph. 2:20). He is the architect of our salvation, and His house is the only structure that will withstand the coming storm.
The Lavish Feast of Grace (v. 2)
Next, we see the meal that has been prepared. This is no meager potluck.
"She has slaughtered her cattle, she has mixed her wine; She has also prepared her table;" (Proverbs 9:2 LSB)
This is the language of a great, celebratory, covenantal feast. The slaughtering of cattle was for a significant sacrifice, a peace offering. This is not a quick snack; it is a banquet that cost something. It signifies fellowship, reconciliation, and joy. The wine is "mixed," not to dilute it, but to enhance it with spices and honey, making it all the more delightful. Wisdom's way is not a path of grim, gray, joyless asceticism. It is a feast. It is abundant life. True holiness is happy.
And notice the most important detail: "She has also prepared her table." Everything is ready. The work is done. The invitation is not, "Come and help me in the kitchen." The invitation is, "Come and eat." This is a portrait of pure grace. The hostess has done all the work. The guests are simply invited to come and enjoy the benefits of her labor. This points us directly to the cross. Christ has slaughtered the sacrifice, Himself. He has shed His blood, the wine of the New Covenant. He has prepared the table of salvation, and He invites us to come, not on the basis of our work, but entirely on the basis of His.
The Public Proclamation (v. 3)
The feast is ready, and now the invitation must go out.
"She has sent out her maidens, she calls From the tops of the heights of the city:" (Proverbs 9:3 LSB)
The invitation is not a secret whispered in a corner. It is a public proclamation from the highest, most visible places in the city. This is where the life of the city happens. The gospel is not a private, personal spirituality for you to keep in your closet. It is a public truth, a royal announcement to be declared to the whole world. Christ commanded His disciples to go and proclaim the good news to all creation.
And the messengers are her "maidens." This suggests a gentle, winsome, and earnest appeal. Wisdom does not send soldiers to drag you to her table. She sends messengers to invite you. The call of the gospel is a gracious and compelling summons, not a coercive threat. It is an appeal to come and receive a gift that has been freely offered.
The Target Audience (v. 4-5)
Who is this grand invitation for? The elite? The intelligent? The morally upright? No, quite the opposite.
"Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” To him who lacks a heart of wisdom she says, “Come, eat of my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed." (Proverbs 9:4-5 LSB)
The call goes out to the "simple." The Hebrew word is pethi. It describes the naive, the gullible, the uncommitted person who is easily led astray. He is standing in the street, vulnerable to every passing ideology. He is the one who "lacks a heart," meaning he lacks sense, judgment, and discernment. This is a picture of every man in his natural state. We are born simpletons, spiritually speaking, lacking the heart to choose God.
And Wisdom's call is for precisely this person. She doesn't say, "Go get your act together and then you can come to my party." She says, "You, the simple one, turn in here now." The gospel is for sinners. Jesus said He did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. The first step into Wisdom's house is to admit that you are a fool standing out in the street.
The invitation is direct and personal: "Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed." This is sacramental language. This is communion. Jesus Christ is the bread of life, and His blood is the wine of the new covenant. To accept Wisdom's invitation is to partake of Christ Himself by faith. It is to receive His life, His righteousness, His joy as your own.
The Call to Repentance (v. 6)
To accept this invitation requires a definitive action. It requires a break with the past.
"Forsake your simplicity and live, And step into the way of understanding.” (Proverbs 9:6 LSB)
You cannot accept Wisdom's invitation and remain a simpleton. You cannot come to her table and keep one foot in the street. The call is to "forsake" your simplicity. This is the Bible's word for it: repentance. It means to turn your back on your old way of life, your foolishness, your lack of heart. You must leave the old path to walk on the new one. You cannot have it both ways.
And the result of this forsaking is life. "Forsake... and live." Folly's path ends in death, but Wisdom's path is the path of life. And it is not a static life, but a dynamic one. You are to "step into the way of understanding." This is discipleship. It is a walk, a journey, a process of continually learning and growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord. You enter the house, and then you learn to live in it. You come to the feast, and you continue to be nourished by it, day after day.
Conclusion: Whose Table?
The scene is set. The two hostesses have issued their calls. Lady Wisdom offers a feast of grace, substance, and life, served in a house of perfect stability. Madam Folly, as we see just a few verses later, offers stolen water and bread eaten in secret, a cheap thrill that leads to the depths of Sheol.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God, who has prepared the great feast of salvation. He has done all the work. The sacrifice has been made. The table is set. He sends out His messengers into the whole world, calling from the high places. And His call is to you, the simple, the one who lacks a heart.
He says, "Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." He says, "Whoever comes to me I will never cast out." The invitation is free, but it will cost you your foolishness. It will cost you your sin. You must forsake your simplicity to live.
Do not be the man who stands dithering in the street, thinking he can remain uncommitted. To delay is to decide. To ignore Wisdom's call is to drift toward Folly's door. The choice is life or death. So turn in. Come to the table. Eat the bread and drink the wine that He has prepared. Forsake your folly, and live.