The Way of Folly
July 16, 2022
Commentary
Wisdom and folly are depicted by two female characters in this chapter. First wisdom is seen as a queen in a fine house attended by her maidens. Both make invitations. Wisdom’s invitation (vv. 1-6) and Folly’s invitation (vv. 13-18). Wisdom prepares a lovely banquet which is held at the highest point of the city (vv. 2-3). Folly is portrayed as a harlot who uses sexual immorality to attract as she also calls from the highest point of the city.
Folly follows the path of the foolish, clamorous woman who prepares a feast of “stolen waters” and “bread eaten in secret” (v. 17). Sin is no less anxious to destroy than wisdom is to save. Both have attractive offerings but how opposite are the consequences. Folly yields habits that cannot be broken and ends with destruction of soul and body in hell forever.
Folly offers immediate gratification whereas wisdom offers long-term satisfaction. In this passage it is pointed out that wisdom and folly result in either life or death. Almost every verse in the remainder of Proverbs points to one or both of these paths and their consequences.
Application
It would be good for me to make a list some of the benefits of listening to wisdom. Then I need to list some of the consequences of not listening to wisdom. What are some things I could do as a husband and dad to increase my wisdom.
Proverbs 9:13– 18 (NET)
13 The woman called Folly is brash, she is naive and does not know anything.
14 And she has sat down at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15 calling out to those who are passing by her in the way, who go straight on their way.
16 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,” To those who lack understanding she has said,
17 “Stolen waters are sweet, and food obtained in secret is pleasant!”
18 But they do not realize that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave.
Illustration: The Gun That Was Known as “Orban’s Folly”
In the middle of the sixteenth century one of the strangest military weapons was developed. It was a huge cannon with a 25-inch bore that could be fired only seven times a day because it took so long to reload it. Huge piles of powder were required for each shot; the barrel had to be greased each time. It could shoot only one mile, but could be heard for twelve miles. Over 650 men were needed to operate it. There were no wheels; it had to be dragged over the ground on rollers and weights. Another 250 carpenters went on ahead to strengthen bridges and roads. The gun was cast by a Hungarian founder at the directions of its inventor, a man named Orban, who presented the unwieldy weapon to Mohammed II to use in the siege of Constantinople. The giant gun did not last long, however. After a few days it blew up, blowing the body of its own creator into bits. Hence it was known as Orban’s Folly. (Encyclopedia of Illustrations).