Welcome to Unveiled Faces, a Redeemer Presbyterian Church podcast. Please enjoy our feature presentation. Let us hear the holy and inspired word of God. Wisdom has built her house. She has hewn her seven pillars. She has slaughtered her beasts. She has mixed her wine. She has also set her table. She has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town. Whoever is simple, let him turn in here. To him who lacks sense, she says, come, eat of my bread and drink of my wine that I have mixed. Leave your simple ways and live and walk in the way of insight. Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury. Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you. Reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will still be wiser. Teach a righteous man and he will increase in learning. The fear of the Lord is a beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. For by me, your days will be multiplied and the years will be added to your life. If you are wise, you are wise for yourself. If you scoff, you alone will bear it. The woman folly is loud. She is seductive and knows nothing. She sits at the door of her house. She takes a seat on the highest places of the town, calling to those who pass by who are going straight on their way. Whoever is simple, let him turn in here. And to him who lacks sense, she says, stolen water is sweet and the bread eaten in secret is pleasant. but he does not know that the dead are there and that her guests are in the depths of Sheol. This concludes a reading of God's holy and inspired word. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. We pray that as we contemplate this chapter, as well as those which precede it, Father, we pray that you would show us Jesus, that you would lead us to him, and that you would give us the strength and the faith to embrace him and to be led by him. This we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Well, here in chapter nine, Solomon is contrasting the words and character of two very opposite women. At the beginning of chapter nine, Solomon writes about lady wisdom. She calls out to those who are simple, to those who lack sense, it says in verse four. She invites them to walk in righteousness. Leave your simple ways and live, she promises in verse six. And then there's the other woman that Solomon writes about. He refers to her as woman folly in verse 13. She also calls out to those who are simple and lack sense, it says in verse 16. Her invitation is to walk in unrighteousness. She is seductive, it says in verse 13. And what Solomon is doing in chapter nine is depicting a contest between lady wisdom and woman folly. Both of these women are calling out to the same people. Both of these women are speaking promises to men who are described as simple and who lack sense. And both of these women are making promises to these men, trying to encourage these men to go in a certain direction. But the direction Lady Wisdom is encouraging is a drastically different direction than what Woman Folly is encouraging. Lady Wisdom is calling the simple men to life. while woman falling is calling the simple men to death. Both of them are competing for the hearts and lives of the simple men who lack sense. When I read through chapter nine, the contest that these two women are engaged in reminds me of a game that I used to play with my brother. As a boy, I used to argue with my brother about which of us our pet dog liked the most. And to settle this argument, we would go outside in the front lawn, place the dog in the middle of the lawn, and then we'd both go to opposite sides, and then we would begin to call the dog to us. And we had agreed that whoever the dog would go to is the person that the dog liked the most. That's kind of similar to what's happening here in Proverbs 9. You take a simple man who lacks sense, and you put him in the middle of the lawn, and you have lady wisdom on one side of the lawn, and you have woman folly on the other side of the lawn, and then both of these women begin calling to the man, trying to convince him to come to them. As my brother and I played this game over and over, because the results were never decisive, as we played this game over and over, we quickly learned that the most effective way to win, that is, to get the dog to come to us, was by appealing to the dog's natural desire for affection. And so rather than just standing there and calling the dog's name, hoping that that dog would be obedient, we discovered that it was much more effective to fall down to the ground and to start wiggling and clapping your hands and pretending like you were all excited to show this dog some affection. And it worked. The winner was always the person who could gain the dog's attention first by yelling and rolling on the ground and clapping his hands and squealing and making funny voices and putting on a pretense for wanting to show this dog affection. That's the type of silly behavior that Solomon is depicting woman folly with as she participates in this contest with Lady Wisdom. Without any regard for her own dignity, woman folly uses all forms of deception, flirtation, seduction, in order to appeal to the simple man's natural desires for affection. She pretends that she really wants to love him. And that she has a desire to show affection towards him. And her hope is that she can gain the man's attention before Lady Wisdom does. So that he'll go to her side and not go to where Lady Wisdom is. Woman Folly wants the man to come to her so that she can do the same thing to him that she has done to all of her victims. And that is to bring him down to Sheol. Lady Wisdom, however, she doesn't participate in a contest that way. Lady Wisdom doesn't engage in any form of pretense. Rather, she maintains her dignity, speaking only truth. She holds forth promises that are real, things that she can truly deliver upon, things like life and honor and understanding and nobility. When we read Proverbs 9, we need to see the contest between these two women for what it really is. It's an allegory of the life that we live here on earth. It's a symbolic narrative of the persistent tension that exists between right and wrong, good and evil, righteousness and sinfulness. You and I are the simple men to whom these two women are calling. That's us. It doesn't matter if you're a male or female. You are represented in this allegory by the simple man who lacks sense. Woman folly is the personification of Satan, along with everything else that's evil. Her aim is to capitalize upon the simple man, our lack of sense, by compelling that person to pursue a life that's dedicated to fulfilling our own carnal desires. Lady Wisdom, on the other hand, she's a personification of Jesus Christ. Lady Wisdom recognizes that the simple man lacks sense, and therefore she holds forth knowledge and understanding as a free gift to all those who are willing to forsake their simple ways. So the allegory is of a struggle between, the struggle that people experience as we walk through the streets of this world. We hear these two women calling to us, and we need to choose which of these women that we will listen to. The fact that Woman Folly is presented as, throughout these nine chapters of Proverbs, that she's presented as an adulterous woman, It's really not the point here. Far too many students of the Bible have read through these first nine chapters and have seen only the warnings and prohibitions against sexual impurity. And while that's definitely a component to the message that God the Holy Spirit is communicating through the pen of Solomon, there's more to it than just warnings against immorality. The more comprehensive message of these nine chapters, not just chapter nine, but of all nine chapters, is that we live in a world where lady wisdom and woman folly are constantly, constantly calling to us. And every day of our lives will be spent choosing between the promises of these two women. The choice you make will have eternal consequences. Choose the instruction of Lady Wisdom and you'll enjoy eternal life. Choose the empty flattery of woman folly and you'll suffer eternal damnation. Don't make the mistake to think that just because woman folly serves as a personification of evil, that this somehow cancels the more literal application of Solomon's warnings against adultery. All the warnings and prohibitions against sexual impurity that we read about here in Proverbs are true and in their plain understanding of what's written. You must recognize that there are two levels of application to these chapters. First, there is the plain and the obvious application, which has to do with specific sexual sins. And then there is the allegorical application, which has to do with all forms of sin and temptation present in our lives. And let's not forget what the stated purpose for the book of Proverbs is from the very start. In Proverbs 1-4, Solomon openly declared that his intention in writing this book was to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to youth. And this verse is helpful for us to understand what it means to be quote-unquote simple, how that term is used throughout the book of Proverbs. For Solomon to write that the man is simple is not an indication that he's dim-witted. Simple is a term that's used to describe people who lack experience in life. It's a term that's most often applied to youth. And when Solomon wrote that his intention is to give prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to youth, he's not describing two different goals, or he's not describing two different sets of people. Instead, this is what's called parallelism, or parallel poetry. Solomon is making the same statement twice. He says the same thing, just using different words the second time. And so to give prudence to the simple, is a parallel statement to giving knowledge and discretion to the youth. And therefore, the simple man is the youthful man. And we see the correlation between these two sentences and these words combined to communicate the same thing. And therefore, the youth or the simple is that person that today we would refer to perhaps as a teenager or somebody who is in their early 20s. It's the person who's venturing into new areas of social life, starting a career, starting a family, starting to live in a manner which is much more independent from his or her own parents' oversight. It's the person who lacks experience in the real world. That's what gives him or her the title simple. That's not a put down. That's not a slander or derogatory term. It's just a condition that youth find themselves in. The same goes for Solomon writing that the youthful people lack sense. It's not that the man who lacks sense is dim-witted, but that he's naive to the ways of the world. He's venturing into new territory for the first time. So Solomon knows, he knows with certainty that his son is young and simple and lacks sense in this regard. And so Solomon wants to train his son so that he will be wise to the ways of the world. Hence the reason for writing the book of Proverbs, to give prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the youth. But here's the controversial part. Solomon's training in prudence, knowledge, and discretion takes the form of explaining to his son the general nature and character of woman folly. I say that this is controversial because many Christians believe that they should not teach their children about the ways of woman folly. They believe that exposure to lady wisdom is the only appropriate form of training and knowledge and wisdom and prudence. And a popular illustration that's often used, I would venture to guess you've heard this, is a story about how the US government supposedly trains people to detect counterfeit currency. The story claims that the only training necessary to detect counterfeit currency is to become so familiar with the real currency that all the counterfeits will be seen because of their inconsistencies and deviations from what's real. To study counterfeit currency is fruitless, they say, because the counterfeiting techniques are always changing. So once you become familiar with one form of counterfeiting, then that form stops and a new form is devised and that results in the constant need to study additional more and more counterfeiting techniques. When all a person really needs to do is just become so familiar with the real currency that they will be able to spot any deviations. That's the illustration. Well, that belief doesn't reconcile very well with the Book of Proverbs. Solomon obviously doesn't resist from training his son to see the errors and lies of woman folly. And when we understand that the entire book of Proverbs is the inspired word of God, we quickly realize that God has not held back from informing his people about the seductive methods of woman folly. Moreover, the counterfeit money illustration fails because the methods of sin in general, and the adulterous woman specifically, haven't changed since the fall of man. Whether it's Lot's daughters, Tamar, Potiphar's wife, Delilah, or whoever else, there are only a few basic methods immoral women use to lure a man into sin. Solomon identifies those methods to his son, and God identifies those methods to us. The truth is, the Christian who says that we shouldn't give attention to the methods of woman folly is the very person who is most vulnerable to fall prey to her lies. On what grounds can I make such a bold statement? On the grounds of what's written in Proverbs 5.23. Solomon writes that such a man shall die for lack of instruction. he shall die for lack of instruction. And what instruction is Solomon referring to? Well, the 22 verses that immediately precede that statement. The 22 verses that describe the character and the methods of the immoral woman. The 22 verses that begin with the words, my son, pay attention to my wisdom, lend your ear to my understanding that you may persevere preserve discretion, and your lips may keep knowledge. For the lips of the immoral woman drip honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil. But in the end, she is as bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death. Her steps lay hold of hell. And listen to this, lest you ponder her path of life. Her ways are unstable. You do not know them. Lest you ponder her path of life, Solomon says. Lest you ponder her path of life. Lest you are trained to recognize the methods and techniques of her counterfeit love. You will not know how unstable her ways are and you will not know that her feet go down to death until it is too late. Brothers and sisters, Consider the overwhelming volume of words that the Holy Spirit has given us to ponder about woman folly's path of life. Just here in the first nine chapters of the book of Proverbs. All of chapter five is about woman folly's path of life. Half of chapter six is about woman folly's path of life. All of chapter seven is about woman folly's path of life. Half of chapter nine is about woman folly's path of life. It seems to me that God wants us to know something about the methods and the devastation and the destructive consequences of getting too close to woman folly. Do not desire her beauty in her heart, in your heart, Solomon warns in 625, and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes. Can a man carry a fire next to his chest and his clothes not get burned? Or can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? So is he who goes into his neighbor's wife. None who touches her will go unpunished. Chapter seven begins with Solomon making the following plea to his son. My son, keep my words and treasure up my commandments with you. Keep my commandments and live. Keep my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers. Write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to Wisdom, you are my sister and call Insight your intimate friend. Now why does Solomon want his son to remember all these things? Verse five, to keep you from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words. Now if Solomon were to stop chapter seven right there, I would agree with those who believe that parents should not teach their children about the ways of woman folly. But Solomon doesn't stop right there. He proceeds with the elongated description of how dangerous it is when a simple man encounters woman folly. Continuing on, verse six, for at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice, and I have seen among the simple, I have perceived among the youth, a young man lacking sense, this all describes the same person, these are all parallel terms, passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness. Now what we need to know is that the simple man Solomon is describing here is not intending to go to woman Folly's house. He's not intending to go there. Rather, he's just simply going about his business, not even knowing that he's going to be walking past her house. This is a similar description to what Solomon gives of the simple man in chapter seven. I'm in chapter 9, verse 14. She, woman Folly, sits at the door of her house. She takes a seat in the highest places of the town, calling to those who pass by, who are going straight on their way. Whoever is simple, let him turn in here, she calls. The predator nature of woman folly is clearly seen in both of these descriptions, the one from chapter seven, as well as the one from chapter nine. And verse 15 of chapter nine actually says that the simple man to whom woman folly is calling out to was, quote, going straight on his way, end quote. In other words, this young man was not looking for trouble. He was not intending to visit Woman Folly. He was going straight on his way, meaning he was going about his legitimate daily business. But when Woman Folly spotted him, and he began, because he passed by her house, she began to pursue him. And this is the exact same thing that happened to the simple man in chapter seven. And I'm gonna resume reading in verse 10, and as I read this, Keep in mind that woman folly not only represents the real life threat of an adulterous woman, but Solomon is using her as a personification of sin itself. These verses that depict woman folly as a predator, preying upon the simple, show just how aggressive sin, aggressively sin pursues you. Solomon is unveiling the methods of sin. He's showing how the devil and how the world try to appeal to whatever your desires are, whatever desires lie in your heart. Whether those desires are righteous or unrighteous, that is the appeal that sin makes. It's to your desires in order that then, having latched onto your desires, sin may pull you astray. Verse 10, and behold, the woman meets him dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart. She is loud and wayward. Her feet do not stay at home, now in the street, now in the market, and at every corner she lies in wait. She seizes him and kisses him, and with bold face she says to him, I had to offer sacrifices, and today I paid my vows. So I now have come out to meet you, to seek you eagerly, and I have found you. So not only does woman folly aggressively pursue the simple man, But verse 13 says that with bold face, she lies to him in an attempt to deceive him and to disarm his defenses. Several commentators have noticed how woman folly makes mention that she has just performed her religious duties. She's hoping that this will make the simple man believe that she's a moral woman and that he will then be more trusting of her. How often don't the temptations to sin come from those who call themselves Christians? How often aren't people led astray and taken advantage of by someone who claims to be a Christian? One of the reasons Solomon is identifying women with all these methods and tactics is so that we're forewarned to never let our guard down just because somebody says that he or she is a Christian. If a wicked person believes that he can gain something by claiming to be a Christian, then you better bet that he's going to do exactly that. When I was 18 years old, one of my friends had a sister who wanted to date a guy who was a non-Christian. And the girl's parents noticed how this guy had been hanging around their daughter a lot. And so they began to ask questions. What's going on here? And when they learned that there was a mutual interest between their daughter and this non-Christian guy, the girl's father said to her, no. You cannot date him because he's not a Christian. Well, guess who showed up for church the next Sunday? The guy, the non-Christian guy who wanted to date the Christian girl. He went to church. He went to church one time. And at the end of church, he says to the girl, do you think your dad will let me date you now? What this guy was doing is the exact same thing woman Foley is doing in 714. She says to the simple man, I'm just on my way back from offering sacrifices at the temple and paying my vows to God. Can I invite you in for some coffee? For not all those who are descended from Israel belong to Israel. Paul wrote in Romans 9.6. Not everyone who says that he is a Christian is really a Christian. And even those who are Christians still require that we exercise godly wisdom and maintain appropriate boundaries within relationships. Now coming back to Proverbs 7, after approaching the simple man who was minding his own business, just walking down the street, woman folly begins to make some highly inappropriate suggestions. And I want you to understand that verses 16 through 20 in our English translations is the clear play version of this movie. Okay. Our English translations, translations have done a lot to clean up the proposition being made by women falling in his commentary on these verses, Adam Clark, who knew how to read Hebrew, who knew what it really said. He wrote, the original itself is too gross to be literally translated, but it's quite in character as coming from the mouth of an abandoned woman. When the true nature of sin is exposed, it's ugly. It's ugly. Once Lady Folly has gained the simple man's attention, she begins to reveal her true nature. The true nature of sin begins to be seen. Here's how our English translations read. I have spread my couch with coverings, colored linens from Egyptian linen. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love till morning. Let us delight ourselves with love, for my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey. He took a bag of money with him. At full moon, he will come home. Now, up to this point, The simple man has yet to give in to woman folly's temptation. Up to this point, there's no indication that he can be charged with sin. He has been enticed, to be sure. James 1.14 says, but each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. And so the simple man is being tempted by woman folly. But what is he going to do about it? That's the question. The next verse in James says, then when desire has conceived, gives birth to sin. And sin, when it's fully grown, brings forth death. So whenever sin tempts you by appealing to your desires, again, whether those can even be righteous desires, but when sin tempts you to fulfill your righteous desires in an unrighteous manner, this is the critical moment when you will either successfully resist sin or you will give in to sin and become a victim of woman folly. And when woman folly reveals her true intentions to this simple man, he should have realized right then that the best thing he could have done was to turn and run as fast as he can. Just like Joseph when he was propositioned by Potiphar's wife, run away, get yourself out of there. But that's not what the simple man does in Proverbs 7. Instead, he stays there and he continues to listen to her. He allowed her to continue to appeal to his desires, and in doing so, he allowed himself to be persuaded by her. In verse 21, with much seductive speech, she persuades him, and her smooth talk, with her smooth talk, she compels him. And these words tell us that the simple man was initially apprehensive. He was probably somebody who was amused by the whole thing. thought it was kind of fun. Curious what woman folly would say or do next. He probably thought that he was strong enough to remain in that situation to go just a little further down that road because he hadn't really crossed the line of sin yet. He had the moral strength to go a little further down that road and then he would decide a little bit further down when and where he would stop. But the power of sin was so much stronger than he expected. After woman folly used much persuasive speech, we're told, he eventually gave in, and it was a snap decision. It was impulsive, verse 22. All at once he followed her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast till an arrow pierces its liver. as a bird rushes into a snare, so he does not know that it will cost him his life. Why doesn't he know that it'll cost him his life? Because he's young, because he's simple, because nobody took the time to correct his naive perspective by explaining to him the destruction that comes upon those who dance with woman folly. But Solomon is not going to let that happen to his sons. Solomon is not going to let them remain simple. Verse 24. And now, O sons, listen to me, and be attentive to my words, the words of my mouth. Let not your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray into her paths, for many a victim she has laid low, and all her slain are a mighty throng. Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chambers of death. This is the same explanation, this conclusion, is the same conclusion that Solomon ends chapter nine with. But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol. He does not know. The knowledge that the simple man needs in order to understand the evil and destructive nature of woman folly is the knowledge that comes from lady wisdom. It's a remarkable act of God's grace, grace to sinners, that the voice of Lady Wisdom can be heard crying in the streets, in the markets, in the high places of the city. Proverbs 9, 4 depicts Lady Wisdom as she is calling out to the same people that woman folly is so actively pursuing. Whoever is simple, let him turn in here, Lady Wisdom says. To him who lacks sense, she says, come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine that I have mixed. Leave your simple ways and live, walk in the way of insight. And all throughout these first nine chapters. We've heard the voices of Lady Wisdom and of Woman Folly, volleying back and forth. Our first introduction to Lady Wisdom was back in chapter one. Half of Proverbs one is about Lady Wisdom calling out to the temple. Again, half of chapter three is about Lady Wisdom calling out to the simple. All of chapter four is about Lady Wisdom. All of chapter eight is about Lady Wisdom. And the first half of chapter nine is about Lady Wisdom. As you study these various interchanges between Lady Wisdom and woman folly, you begin to see that woman folly attempts to masquerade as Lady Wisdom. Isn't that interesting? Woman Folly attempts to masquerade herself as Lady Wisdom. Just as 2 Corinthians 11, 14 tells us that Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, so woman Folly disguises herself as Lady Wisdom, at least to the best of her ability. And although there is really no comparison between the two, woman Folly will attempt to the best of her ability to imitate Lady Wisdom just enough to deceive the simple. Think of woman folly like Pharaoh's magicians who tried to replicate the miracles that God was performing in Egypt. At first, Pharaoh's magicians seem like they can actually use their secret arts to imitate God's miracles, but then that quickly proved to be false when Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods, and so it is with woman folly. She attempts to masquerade as Lady Wisdom. She makes the initial efforts that look rather consistent but she cannot sustain it. Proverbs 9.3 says that Lady Wisdom calls out from the highest places in town. Proverbs 9.14 says that Woman Folly calls out from the highest places in town. Proverbs 9.4 says that Lady Wisdom addresses the men by saying, whoever's simple, let them turn in here, referring to her house. Proverbs 9.16 says that Woman Folly addresses the men with the exact same words, whoever's simple, let them turn in here, referring to her house. But that's about the extent of Woman Folly's ability to imitate Lady Wisdom. And from here, the differences quickly become evident. For example, chapter nine describes Lady Wisdom as having a magnificent and grand house that contains seven hewn pillars. Not so for Woman Folly. Verse two says that Lady Wisdom prepares a banquet, a banquet. She sets her table and she slaughtered her beasts. And this is a reference to killing the fatted lamb or the choicest animals in order that she can prepare a feast for her guests. And notice that the word beasts is plural. Lady Wisdom spared no expense in preparing the finest foods for her guests. Verse two also says that Lady Wisdom mixed her wine, which tells us that she's serving only the finest beverages that her guests can participate in. Woman Folly, on the other hand, she has only scraps to offer her guests. Verse 17 says that she offers stolen water and bread that must be eaten in secret. And this refers to the illicit and sinful nature of what Woman Folly really has to offer. And we see the same theme in the previous chapters. In 7, 16 through 18, woman folly can only offer carnal pleasures that were fleeting at best. But in 8, 12 and 33, lady wisdom offers noble virtues that are enduring for all eternity. In 726, we're told that woman folly produces a mighty throng of slain victims. But in 815 through 18, Lady Wisdom produces people who are kings and rulers and princes and nobles, all possessing riches and honor and wealth and righteousness and most importantly, eternal life. Eternal life. So when we see these two women for who they truly are, there's really no contest. It's only Lady Wisdom that has real and lasting promises. It's only Lady Wisdom that can provide a righteous and meaningful relationship. That's because Lady Wisdom represents the person and work of Jesus Christ. Her voice, as it's depicted in the book of Proverbs, is the voice of Jesus Christ. Her voice is the message of the gospel of grace going out into all the world, calling sinners to abandon their sinful ways, calling sinners to turn to Jesus for their salvation, calling sinners to trust the grace of God and place their faith in Jesus as their savior. In Proverbs 8, 17, Lady Wisdom says, I love those who love me and those who seek me diligently find me. That's the voice of Jesus, the same voice that proclaimed in John 14, 21, he who loves me will be loved by my father and I will love him and I will manifest myself to him. Same message, exact same message, same person talking. That's the gospel that we're hearing in Proverbs as well as John. Jesus is not an elusive or evasive savior, quite the opposite. He manifests himself to those, to everyone who truly loves him. In Proverbs 8.35, Lady Wisdom promised, whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from God. That's, again, the voice of Jesus, the same voice that promised in John 11, 25, I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, he shall live. Again, that's the gospel being proclaimed in the book of Proverbs as well as the gospel of John. And after having promised to manifest himself to all those who love him, Jesus then says that everyone to whom he has manifest himself will then receive eternal life and obtain favor with the Lord. Woman folly can never make such a promise. She has nothing to offer anybody that even remotely compares with the life and love that Jesus offers in the gospel. So, brothers and sisters, What I hope you're seeing here in these first nine chapters is a very real and very practical advice that Solomon presents to us. And he tells us, about our need to listen to our parents. He tells us to avoid being a shorty for others. He tells us not to be a sluggard. He tells us to steer clear from the wayward woman. And all these things are very real. These are very real. They all have very positive real life application in our lives. There's nothing that we should never diminish anything that he said on the basis that there's an allegorical interpretation. The literal interpretation is real and must be heeded and accepted by us. But what I'm challenging you to receive is that this practical advice that Solomon gives in addition to the fact that to look beyond the obvious message in order to discern the bigger message. and we can call that bigger message a metanarrative. The prefix meta simply means beyond or behind, and so when I say that these nine chapters contain a metanarrative, what I'm saying is that there is a message beyond the obvious message, or there is a message behind the literal understanding of these chapters, and that metanarrative is the story of two women calling out to you. Think back to the story I told you about my brother and I standing on the front lawn trying to compel the dog to come to us. That dog is you. You are in the middle of the lawn. you hear a voice, the voice of Jesus from one side of the lawn calling out to you. And you hear the voice of Satan from the other side of the lawn calling out to you. And what this meta narrative is telling you is that if you love Jesus more than yourself, if you love Jesus more than yourself, then you will go to him. You will go to Jesus and you will find life and peace and joy and acceptance. You will sit down at the banquet table with the triune God, and you will feast upon all manner of blessings. But if you love yourself more than you love Jesus, then you will go to the other side of the lawn, where Satan is calling you. And he will promise you all the desires of your heart. He cannot really provide those things, but that doesn't mean he's not gonna promise them. And what he'll give you is stolen water, Bread that must be eaten in secret, which is just enough to lure you in, into the door, house of woman folly, so that that door can be slammed closed and locked, and that you will then be pulled down to the fires of hell before you even know what happened to you. The metanarrative is about words. Words of death that come from woman folly, words of life that come from lady wisdom. So whose words are you going to follow? Heavenly Father, we thank you for your grace and your mercy in giving us the words of life, the words of lady wisdom, that we may hear them, that we may respond to them. Father, that they are instruction and knowledge that educates us in our simple and naive ways. Father, we lack sense in so many ways of understanding that. Father, we, left to our own devices, would certainly run headlong to the door of woman folly. But Lord, you, in your grace, have given to us Lady Wisdom, your son Jesus Christ, who calls to us, indeed intercedes on behalf of us, who reaches out and manifests himself to us and shows himself to us so that we may see the splendor of his glory and just how lovely he is. And Father, you, even open up our eyes, that we may see Him in a new light, and that we may know Him for who He is, and that you draw us to Him so that we may find life and peace and joy, and that we may dine at the table of the Master, that we may eat of the wonderful provisions, the banquet that's been set for us, and that we may participate in all the nobility of being a child of God. And so, Father, these are the The options before us, and we understand that so many people in this world choose to remain in their folly, choose to remain simple, discard the words of life that come from the Lady Wisdom. And Father, we just pray that we, as those who have heard these words and accepted these words, that we would be the ones who repeat and reiterate these words so that those who remain simple may find understanding and knowledge, and that they too may find Jesus as their Savior. And so Lord, we pray that you would equip us for such a task, and we just thank you again for the grace and mercy you have shown to each person who you have already regenerated in their heart. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. This has been a presentation of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. For more resources and information, please stop by our website at visitredeemer.org. All material here within, unless otherwise noted. Copyright Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Elk Grove, California. Music furnished by Nathan Clark George. Available at nathanclarkgeorge.com.