1Wisdom has built her house;

she has hewn out its seven pillars.

2She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;

she has also set her table.

3She has sent out her maids, and she calls

from the highest point of the city.

4Let all who are simple come in here!"

she says to those who lack judgment.

5 "Come, eat my food

and drink the wine I have mixed.

6Leave your simple ways and you will live;

walk in the way of understanding.

7 "Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult;

whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse.

8Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you;

rebuke a wise man and he will love you.

9Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still;

teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

10The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,

and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

11For through me your days will be many,

and years will be added to your life.

12If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you;

if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer."

13The woman Folly is loud;

she is undisciplined and without knowledge.

14She sits at the door of her house,

on a seat at the highest point of the city,

15calling out to those who pass by,

who go straight on their way.

16 "Let all who are simple come in here!"

she says to those who lack judgment.

17 "Stolen water is sweet;

food eaten in secret is delicious!"

18But little do they know that the dead are there,

that her guests are in the depths of the grave. Prov 9:1-18

An invitation to dinner is always welcome, until you get invitations to two different dinners, each held at the same time as the other. Then you have to decide which one to accept and which one to decline. Proverbs 9 presents this very dilemma—invitations to two dinners held simultaneously. How do you decide which invitation to accept?

No doubt you’ll make your decision based on many factors—the reputation of the host and hostess, the prospects for a good time, your own tastes in people and food. All these factors appear in the two invitations that conclude Solomon’s introduction to the book of Proverbs. Other factors appear as well—such as how long you’ll live and how prosperous you’ll be.

You see, these are no ordinary dinners, and the invitations come from no ordinary hostesses. Which one you attend will largely determine your health, your wealth and your happiness for the rest of your life.

1. What benefits do you expect to receive from studying the Proverbs of Solomon?

2. Read Proverbs 9:1-18 above. Do Lady Wisdom and Woman Folly invite the same people or different people to their feasts? Explain.

3. Do you think you’re among those specifically invited to this dinner? Explain.

4. Do you think Lady Wisdom would welcome the mocker of verses 7-8? Why or why not?

5. How are the two hostesses alike, and how are they different?

6. Which hostess has the greater resources to deploy in her guests’ behalf?

What are some of these resources?

7. Which hostess appears to offer the most pleasure to her guests? Explain.

8. What do verses 7-12 tell us about how Lady Wisdom imparts benefits to her guests?

9. After reading verse 10, do you think that knowledge and understanding must be explicitly Judeo-Christian in order to be genuine? Why or why not?

10. Proverbs 9 is, of course, an extended metaphor—an allegory. Wisdom is like a wealthy woman inviting guests to a feast. What people do you know who embody the person of Lady Wisdom in their relationship to you?

11. In whom, or where, or in what circumstances have you encountered Woman Folly?

12. No matter which "invitation" you accept, your decision will result in both pleasure and pain. How do the pleasure and pain from dining at Lady Wisdom’s house differ from the pleasure and pain one finds at Woman Folly’s abode?