The Cry of Two Voices

The Appeal of Two Voices
Proverbs 6-10
Prov. 8:1 “Does not wisdom call, and understanding lift her voice?”
 In Proverbs 6-10, we see the contrast between two women. The first is the adulterous woman who goes into the street with her appeal to pleasure (ch 7). She makes her case and appeals to those who lack a moral sense, promising pleasure without consequences. She is boisterous and rebellious, lurking at every corner to make her entreaty. In 9:13-18, we find that she makes her call to any passersby. She represents the wisdom of our world, with its desire for pleasure and happiness. Today, morality is not governed by an unchangeable moral law instilled within creation and revealed by divine revelation; rather, it is governed by what brings us happiness and gives us pleasure. In the 70s, a song by Debbie Boone captured the essence of our modern morality when she sang, “It can’t be wrong when it feels so right." This has become the moral mantra of today: do what makes you happy. Our morality is not governed by an unchanging moral law established by God; it is established by the quest for personal fulfillment. But this is not new. In the garden, the appeal of the forbidden fruit was that it was “good for food and a delight to the eyes.” So, Madam Folly makes her appeal, promising pleasure without consequence. Wrong becomes right as pleasure becomes the appeal (9:17). However, in the end, what she delivers is not happiness by death and hell (vs 18).
In contrast to Madam Folly is Lady Wisdom, who, like folly, walks in the street making her appeal. But her appeal is not the pursuit of pleasure; it is the pursuit of truth and righteousness.She promises wisdom and understanding. Instead of starting with the platform of pleasure as the goal of our pursuit, she begins with the fear of God (vs 13). Instead of embracing sin, she calls upon us to hate sin and abhor what is perverted. While the pursuit of pleasure leads to fluid morality, her morality is the one constant. From the beginning of creation, the truth of wisdom was established and woven into every fabric of creation (8:22-31). In Michelangelo’s famous painting of the creation of Adam, he masterfully points us to the presence of wisdom. If one looks closely, we see that with his left hand he is reaching out to touch Adam, but his right arm is grasping a woman—Lady Wisdom.  While Madam Folly brings death, Lady Wisdom brings blessing and life, not just life as the pursuit of happiness, but life in its truest sense of personal fulfillment, righteousness, and the delight of God.
Every day we live on this earth, we hear these two women calling from the streets. They make their cries over TV, radio, and the Internet. Madam Folly promises pleasure and happiness, but in the end, we only find destruction and misery. Lady Wisdom promises truth and joy and delivers what is more valuable than the greatest wealth of the world (8:19). Daily, we are confronted with the choice of which voice we will listen to. Paul describes the choice this way: “I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the will of God — that which is good, acceptable, and perfect (Romans 12:1-2). The choice is clear, the results are eternal, and we must decide which voice we will follow.