Wisdom and Folly, Both Clamoring for Attention

I’ve long contended the Old Testament book of Proverbs is one of the most easily applicable parts of the Bible. My book, Business At Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace, focuses on principles from Proverbs that can enhance one’s life and work.

 

One of the Bible’s “wisdom books,” Proverbs emphasizes just that – wisdom. It opens by stating its purpose, “for attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight; for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair…”(Proverbs 1:2-3). 

 

Then it makes what some may view as an audacious statement, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). Throughout Proverbs we find comparisons of wisdom and foolishness, underscoring the truth that to reject wise teaching inevitably leads to foolish decisions and calamity.

 

Proverbs’ 9^th chapter talks about two contrasting “women,” one named Wisdom and the other named Folly. Both, the chapter declares, are actively beckoning for our attention. Which we respond to is literally a life and death decision. 

 

The chapter opens, “Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars…she calls from the highest point of the city. ‘Let all who are simple come in here!’ she says to those who lack judgment” (Proverbs 9:1-4). We find a similar image in Proverbs 1:20-21, “Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech.”

 

We encounter the contrast to Wisdom a bit later in Proverbs 9: “The woman Folly is loud; she is undisciplined and without knowledge. She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city; calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way. ‘Let those who are simple come in here!’ she says to those who lack judgment. ‘Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!’” (Proverbs 9:13-17).

 

At first glance we might think, ‘Okay, but I don’t see the big deal.’ That was my thought too, until July 9, 1997, when I was traveling in Eastern Europe with my uncle and aunt. We had just finished several days in Hungary, along with brief stops in Vienna, Austria and Prague, Czech Republic, and were looking for somewhere to spend the night.

 

I had just read Proverbs 9, the “Proverb of the day” portion of my daily Bible reading routine. We were on a highway driving past a city called Teplice. We had momentarily considered stopping there, but for some reason it did not seem inviting, so we continued on our way.

 

As we drove up a hill leading away from the city, we saw some small buildings along the road. They looked like the drive-through coffee shops we see in our communities today. Outside these little “shops” were women frantically waving to capture the attention of approaching motorists. At first, I thought they were part of the advertising strategy for the businesses, but as we got closer I realized, based on their skimpy attire, they were obviously engaged in a different type of “business.”

 

There were several of these “establishments” along the highway. The sight was shocking to me at first, but then the verses from Proverbs 9 came to mind again. Like both Wisdom and Folly described in the passage, those women were calling out to “all who are simple…those who lack judgment.”

 

What a vivid metaphor for what confronts each of us every day as we navigate this adventure called life. Whether we live in a city made up of hills and mountains or a town with flat terrain, Wisdom and Folly are shouting at us, clamoring for us to come near.

 

Each day we make choices whether to pursue wisdom or to engage in the folly of our times. Even if we faithfully attend weekly worship services, it’s so easy to forget the teaching and challenges we hear and proceed into the week living as if God doesn’t exist. And our society isn’t at all shy about offering godless alternatives.

 

The sad part is that to forgo wisdom, choosing foolishness instead, we risk a devastating outcome. After the empty promise that “Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” come the sobering words, “But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave” (Proverbs 9:18).

 

The most obvious application here is sexual immorality, but it applies equally to anything we worship or idolize, anything that receives our devotion other than the one true God. As it says in Exodus 20:5, in the midst of Ten Commandments, “for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.”

Proverbs 9:10 gives this assurance: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” The question each of us must consider is whether we will pursue Wisdom, or whether we will yield to the enticements of Folly. How we answer that question makes all the difference, both for now and for eternity.