Wisdom’s counterfeits have been around from the beginning.
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 the wine I have mixed.
Leave your simple ways, and live,
And walk in the way of insight.’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 bread eaten in secret is pleasant.’
But he does not know that the dead are there,
That her guests are in the depths of Sheol”
(Proverbs 9:1-6, 13-18, ESV).
Wisdom and Folly are two women who both want to have you over for dinner. One of them has done the hard work of building her house, setting the table, and sending her servants out with a personal invitation for you. The other woman is a moocher. She just sits in her doorway moaning, and the best she has to offer you is what she stole from the first lady. She’s a phony, a fake, and a counterfeit.
Today, there are all kinds of phony beliefs people have about wisdom, and becoming wise. The sneakiest of these are not total falsehoods, but rather half-truths. The woman Folly offers a real, albeit unsatisfying, banquet. In other words, these counterfeits sound and feel credible on the surface, but they don’t fully capture the truth of God’s wisdom. Here, and in next week’s post, I’ll give a few examples of wisdom’s counterfeits prevalent in our culture. For each one, I’ll state the common perception, identify the true part of it, and expose the foolish part of it.
1. Wisdom comes from something inherent in our status, like noble birth or wealth.
What is true about this idea? By living wisely, someone may actually be able to improve his circumstances or status (Proverbs 3:16). However, the folly surfaces when we realize that even rich people can be fools (Psalm 49:20).
2. Wisdom comes with education.
The truth here is that godly people should value good education (Proverbs 23:23). What part of this example is foolish? Those with education, degrees, titles, or letters after their names are still fools if they haven’t been with Jesus (Acts 4:13).
