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Proverbs 9:4-6 meaning

Wisdom calls out to the naïve and the fools, inviting them to the table she has prepared.

Having set the stage for Wisdom’s prominence and intentional activity, Solomon describes a scene in which wisdom is calling from the heights. And this is what she is saying: Whoever is naïve, let him turn in here! (vs 4).

Throughout Proverbs, the stated audience of the book has been the youth, naïve, or “simple ones” (Proverbs 1:4 and 8:5, for example). The word is not necessarily derogatory. It is about those who are unsure. The people who lack certainty. This is, in the end, all of us. Here it likely focuses on young men being tutored by Solomon’s teachings—those lacking in knowledge and experience.

To these naïve ones, wisdom says, “turn in here!” This turning is a kind of breaking away. Move away from your path of naivety and into the path of wisdom. This makes clear that acquiring wisdom requires making a choice. Solomon asks his students to be intentional.

This is the great hope of Solomon’s book of Proverbs, that his pupils will choose the path of wisdom over the path of folly. Wisdom is something that can be chosen. It can be sought and found. Solomon desires that these young listeners see the way of wisdom, value its path, and turn toward it—aligning their lives with God, reality, and their best self-interest.

Solomon breaks the voice of Lady Wisdom here and adds: To him who lacks understanding she (Wisdom) says…

The phrase him who lacks understanding is most often used of fools in The Book of Proverbs. It is used in Proverbs 6:32 and Proverbs 7:7 to talk about the foolish young man making a mistake with the adulteress. So, there is a difference here. In the first phrase, Lady Wisdom was addressing those who were naïve, who didn’t know better. Here she is about to address those who have already gone astray. Those who have made mistakes.

To them, her invitation is the same: Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed. In the first three verses (see notes on Proverbs 9:1-3), we saw Lady Wisdom busy at work preparing food, wine, and a table for a meal. Here we see why. The invitation is for the foolish to eat my food and drink of the wine I have mixed. In other words, to engage in fellowship with Wisdom. To come into her home, her dwelling, and share a meal with her.

This is reminiscent of Jesus’s invitation to His wayward servants in the Laodicean church. Jesus speaks words of chastisement to them, because He disciplines those He loves (Revelation 3:19; Proverbs 3:12). Jesus tells His wayward followers that they can have the great riches they are lacking by hearing His voice and entering into fellowship with Him at His table (Revelation 3:20). It seems Jesus’s admonition in Revelation echoes the divinely-inspired words of Solomon recorded in Proverbs.

Forsake your folly and live (vs 6). To those who have shown a lack of understanding, there is still hope. Turn away from your folly. And live. Again, the emphasis here is that each person has a choice to pursue wisdom or folly. The path of wisdom leads to life, benefit, and fulfillment. We gain life when we connect with God’s design for us. But the way of folly leads to separation from God’s design; and separation is death.

The imagery of the food and the wine, the meal at wisdom’s table, is a clear symbol of the source of life. Foolishness is death. Wisdom is life. Turn from death and live. This is the same basic proposition God offered Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:17). It is the same basic choice Moses offered Israel (Deuteronomy 30:19). It is the choice Jesus offered His disciples (Matthew 7:13-14). It is the choice the Apostle Paul poses to each New Testament believer (Galatians 6:8).

“Life or death” is also the choice Solomon poses to each of his students. It is the choice between living in God’s design or living apart from God’s design. To choose life is Wisdom’s invitation to us all. Partake of the sustenance of life and you will find the energy and ability to live life for all it is worth. It is there that abundance and blessing will be found.

Lady Wisdom follows this with a wonderful invitation to proceed in the way of understanding (vs 6). This sounds very similar to the words of Jesus: “Go. From now on sin no more” (John 8:11). Fellowship with Wisdom sets any person on the path of understanding. It realigns them with God’s design. And this is Wisdom’s great and lasting invitation, to redeem our journey from one of death and confusion and put us on course for a vibrant and successful life.

Biblical Text

⁴ “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here!”
To him who lacks understanding she says,
⁵ “Come, eat of my food
And drink of the wine I have mixed.
⁶ Forsake your folly and live,
And proceed in the way of understanding.”

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Additional Resources

Book Theme

These are the proverbs of Solomon, one of the most renowned kings in the history of Israel. The word translated “proverb” is the Hebrew word “mashal.” The root of the word contains the idea of “compare”—it is translated throughout Scripture as “parable” just as often as “proverb.”

This gives us some insight into the nature of these sayings. Proverbs are not prescriptions. It is not about a formula for how to manipulate circumstances and bend them to our will. That might be wishful thinking, but doesn’t work in reality. The proverbs are, in a sense, “comparing” our human perceptions to the reality of God’s world; trying to connect the two by providing principles that shape our perspective and inform our choices such that we live constructively—that is to say, wisely.

Like parables, the proverbs are meant to guide us “to wisdom”, that is, into a way of living. A way of thinking and perceiving. It is about molding and shaping our perceptions, values, and character into something that is consistently in tune with God, not just as a rule-follower but as someone who understands and practices the essence of the divine. One who sees the world through God’s eyes, and acts accordingly.

Ecclesiastes might be thought of as a philosophical foundation for wisdom. It shows the way to properly view the many aspects of life we cannot control, the “hebel” or vaporous nature of all that surrounds us. The main thing Ecclesiastes shows us is the importance of choosing to trust God, and make good choices based on that trust.

Proverbs will reiterate the philosophical foundations of Ecclesiastes, then zoom in and expand upon the practical application of trusting God and choosing a true perspective within certain areas of life. Proverbs leads us to choose a true perspective in all areas of life, and creates a foundation from which we can choose actions that are constructive, beneficial, and fulfilling.

There are only three things we control in life: who we trust, our perspective, and what we do—our actions. Ecclesiastes makes this reality abundantly clear. Trying to control what we cannot leads to complete futility. Trusting God, however, provides a foundation for constructive living. Proverbs teaches us how best to steward the choices we have—how to trust God, how to choose His perspective, and the key actions to take that lead us to the path of wisdom.

Chapter Context

In Chapter 9, Solomon gives a direct juxtaposition between the way of folly and the way of Wisdom. The ways of Wisdom are described in verses 1-6 and the ways of folly in verses 13-18. In the middle, verses 7-12, there is a strong and direct description of the differences between these two paths, with “the fear of the Lord” the focal point of that distinction.

In the first third of this chapter, Lady Wisdom is seen building her house at the very top of the city (the place of prominence and visibility), constructing her sturdy and grand dwelling (complete with seven pillars). She is preparing food and wine, setting a table for a communal meal. With the preparations ready, she calls out for the naïve (untrained novices) to turn in and join her at the table she has prepared.

In the latter third of the chapter, the woman of Folly is unabashedly stealing many of Wisdom’s tactics. Her house is “near” the top of the city, she is looking to intercept those who might otherwise land at Lady Wisdom’s table. She calls out to the impressionable.

But Folly’s message reveals that she is not like Wisdom at all. Whereas wisdom invites others to a table she has prepared, Folly promotes hoarding, thievery, and isolation. Wisdom offers wine and food as symbols of life, to be enjoyed in fellowship with one another. Folly suggests food and wine (symbols of life) are meant to be consumed in secrecy.

The way of Folly leads to death and the way of Wisdom to life, abundant and eternal.

The heart of Chapter 9 is the middle third (vv 7-12). In it, Solomon says wisdom is the key to abundance. It adds quality (and sometimes quantity) to life. Wisdom serves our best interest. Folly’s mimicking ways are a perversion. They are untrue and ineffective. And those who reject the message of Wisdom are committing themselves to the danger of Folly’s path. The way back begins with fearing the Lord, heeding the instruction of Wisdom’s messengers and turning away from Folly into the dwelling of Wisdom, which has been carefully prepared for us.

Proverbs 9:4-6 meaning

Check out our other commentaries:

Proverbs 3:11-18 meaning

Matthew 19:23-26 meaning

Deuteronomy 5:8-10 meaning

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Numbers 2:32-34 meaning

Additional Resources

Book Theme

Chapter Context

Maps and Charts

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The Bible Project - Proverbs Summary

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