Proverbs 7:1-9:18

THE YEAR OF BLOGGING BIBLICALLY: DAY 196

Look out, boys. There are loose women out there. They'll snare you with their feminine wiles, sexy clothes, perfume, and meat. Like the deer caught in the headlights, you won't know what hit you. So keep away from them.

So says Proverbs 7. And yes, the attitudes of a patriarchal culture are evident here. So is a certain binary thinking.

Chapter 8 is a stark contrast to Proverbs 7. Here Wisdom is personified once more as a woman. In verses 22-36 she is described as YHWH's consort and partner in creation.

Chapter 9 is yet another poem about Lady Wisdom, a refined and lovely woman. She invites those who seek wisdom to her feast (vv. 1-6). In contrast Dame Folly, brash and loutish, entices the simple to drink stolen water and eat bread in secret, luring them down a path that leads to death (vv. 13-18).

Sanwiched between these two descriptions are a few more short aphorisms. The wise accept correction. The foolish take offense at reproof. The fear of YHWH is the beginning of wisdom. Wisdom and folly benefit or harm the individual.




Next: Proverbs 10-12