Wisdom calls aloud outside;
She raises her voice in the open squares.
She cries out in the chief concourses,
At the openings of the gates in the city
She speaks her words:
“How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity?
For scorners delight in their scorning,
And fools hate knowledge. Proverbs 1:20-22

Wisdom is very clearly the theme of the book of Proverbs. Throughout the book of Proverbs, wisdom is portrayed as a resource of greater value than silver or gold (Proverbs 3:13-15; 8:10-11; 16:16), and as such, is something that we should “pursue” (Proverbs 2:4-5; 4:5-7).

Analogies like “pursue” and “search” might lead one to believe that wisdom is hidden and hard to find, but the book of Proverbs also portrays wisdom as a woman calling out, desiring to be found.

In Proverbs 9:3, wisdom is personified as a woman calling out from the highest places of the city. Her cry is beautiful: “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” (Proverbs 9:4). Wisdom gives an open invitation to those who consider themselves simple and desire to grow in wisdom and instruction (how many of us would consider ourselves simple and in need of growth in wisdom?). The verses that follow this invitation serve as basic wisdom as viewed by the author of Proverbs.

The first step of wisdom in this passage is to forsake foolishness (Proverbs 9:6). A common theme of Scripture is the call of God’s people to not just pursue godliness, but to reject ungodliness (e.g., 1 Timothy 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:22). Biblical wisdom is the ability to recognize evil and foolish things that are contrary to the will of God, and the strength and desire to reject them (Hebrews 5:12-14).

The next few verses in Proverbs 9 speak to the wisdom of investing our time and energy in those who are humble. Proverbs 9:7-8 speaks of the “scoffer,” which is one of the most condemning titles in Proverbs. The scoffer is portrayed as someone proud (Proverbs 21:24), who rejects correction (Proverbs 22:10; 29:8) and causes strife and discord (Proverbs 13:1; 15:12). Instead of devoting countless hours purely to those who will stubbornly reject biblical counsel, the wise considers the importance of redeeming his or her time (Ephesians 5:15), and intentionally seeks to invest in the humble (Philippians 2:1-4; 1 Peter 5:5-7), lest they be ignored—often scoffers are loud and demanding attention, while the humble are typically quiet and less assuming.

The third step of wisdom mentioned is the beginning of biblical wisdom: the fear of God (Proverbs 9:10). Charles Bridges describes the fear of God as “that affectionate reverence, by which the child of God bends himself humbly and carefully to his Father’s law.” The holy fear of God revealed in Proverbs is not a paralyzing terror, nor is it legalism led by fright in a hateful deity, but it is a reverential love and desire to serve and obey. The fear of God is a fear that should lead to humble dependance (Proverbs 14:26-27) and should cause one to depart from evil (Proverbs 3:7; 16:6).

Wisdom is not the only female personification found in Proverbs 9; “folly” is also portrayed as a woman calling from the highest places of the city (Proverbs 9:13-14). The author of this section of Proverbs terrifyingly describes folly making an identical declaration to wisdom’s cry: “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” (Proverbs 9:16). Both wisdom and folly are calling out to the one seeking help, but only one is capable of actually providing help.

Whereas wisdom’s counsel to the simple was a holy pursuit of godliness, folly’s poor advice to the simple is focused on seeking what is forbidden and the pursuit of fleshly pleasure (Proverbs 9:17-18). Up to this point in Proverbs, fleshly pleasures such as sloth (Proverbs 6:1-11) and adultery (Proverbs 5:1-23; 7:6-27) have been recognized as things that are to be avoided by God’s children in the pursuit of wisdom. John Bunyan warned of folly’s pull of the flesh in his work “Pilgrim’s Progress” when he spoke of the dangers of Vanity Fair (a fantastic allegory I highly recommend).

Proverbs 9 is not the only chapter that personifies wisdom; Proverbs chapter 8 also illustrates wisdom crying out to mankind. The geography of Proverbs 8:34 deserves attention:

Blessed is the man who listens to me [wisdom],
 Watching daily at my gates,
 Waiting at the posts of my doors.

As wisdom’s cry concludes in Proverbs chapter 8, the wise man is said to be watching daily at wisdom’s gates, awaiting the words of wisdom with great anticipation. Simply put: it is easier to hear someone’s call if you are nearby, and harder to hear it if you are farther away. The man or woman who truly desires to grow in biblical wisdom will value wisdom enough to put him or herself in the most advantageous place to receive wisdom.

The heartbreaking truth about our current generation is that there are far too many believers who claim to want to grow in wisdom, but will not value wisdom enough to aggressively put themselves in good places to hear wisdom’s call. If we truly desire to grow in biblical wisdom, we must prioritize public worship on Sundays, we must make time each day for Scripture reading and prayer, and we must value fellowship with believers who are humble, loving and wise (Proverbs 13:20).

The book of Proverbs makes clear that wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10). We are incapable of hearing the call of wisdom if we do not first receive Christ as Lord (John 1:12), then have a holy, reverential fear of the sovereign Lord. May we be a humble people that zealously pursue hearing the cry of wisdom!