Proverbs9

Wisdom is personified as a hostess who builds her house, prepares a feast, and invites the simple to partake of her provisions, urging them to forsake foolishness and live. In contrast, Folly, a clamorous woman, entices passersby with promises of stolen pleasures, leading them unknowingly to death and the depths of hell. The chapter also contrasts the reception of reproof by a scorner versus a wise man, emphasizing that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
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Lady Wisdom Prepares a Feast

1
Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars: ​
2
She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table. ​
3
She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth upon the highest places of the city,
4
Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, ​
5
Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled. ​
6
Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

The Difference Between Wise and Scornful

7
He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot. ​
8
Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. ​
9
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.
10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. ​
11
For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased.
12
If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone shalt bear it. ​

Lady Folly's Deadly Invitation

13
A foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing. ​
14
For she sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city, ​
15
To call passengers who go right on their ways:
16
Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, ​
17
Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant. ​
18
But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell. ​

Study Notes for Proverbs 9

Verse 1

The image of Wisdom building a house with seven pillars signifies completeness, stability, and the thoroughness of the foundation she offers for a righteous life.

Verse 2

The detailed preparation of the feast (meat, mixed wine, furnished table) emphasizes the abundance and richness of the sustenance Wisdom provides for her followers.

Verse 4

Wisdom targets the 'simple' (the naive or undecided) and those lacking understanding, showing her purpose is to rescue the immature before they commit to folly.

Verse 5

Eating and drinking are metaphors for internalizing and accepting Wisdom’s teachings, which promise spiritual and physical life (v. 6, 11).

Verse 7

This section serves as a practical warning: attempting to correct a 'scorner' (one who actively mocks truth) is futile, dangerous, and will only result in hostility toward the instructor.

Verse 8

The contrast is stark: the proud scorner hates correction, while the humble wise person welcomes rebuke as an opportunity for growth.

Verse 10

This is a foundational theological axiom for the entire book of Proverbs, equating true wisdom with reverence for God (piety) and defining understanding as the experiential 'knowledge of the holy.'

Verse 12

This verse stresses the deeply personal consequences of moral choice: wisdom benefits the individual directly, but scorn brings ruin only upon the scorner, emphasizing accountability.

Verse 13

Lady Folly is introduced as the antithesis of Wisdom—loud, reckless, and fundamentally ignorant—setting the stage for the final moral choice of the chapter.

Verse 14

Folly positions herself publicly, mimicking Wisdom’s accessibility (v. 3). This highlights that the choice between life and death is openly presented to all travelers.

Verse 16

Folly uses the exact same invitation language as Wisdom (v. 4), demonstrating how temptation often masks itself in language that appeals to the naive and simple.

Verse 17

This verse refers to illicit pleasures, particularly sexual transgression ('stolen waters'), which are desirable precisely because they are forbidden and secret.

Verse 18

This climactic verse reveals the devastating truth: Folly’s feast leads to the *rephaim* (the shades, or the dead). Her path ends in Sheol, contrasting starkly with Wisdom's promise of life.

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