1. The Two Roads
The book of Proverbs is very much like a map that helps us find the way to a level of happiness in life that we might not find without guidance. But it also maps out a separate road full of dangers and pitfalls that we need to avoid if we are to escape many of life's heartaches. In fact, Proverbs uses this exact analogy in frequently talking about the "way" or "path" of wisdom and happiness, and the alternative way or path of foolishness and failure:
The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. (Proverbs 4:18) In the paths of the wicked are snares and pitfalls, but those who would preserve their life stay far from them. (Proverbs 22:5) If you have read Proverbs before, you probably noticed that the first nine chapters – the first third of the book – is an extended introduction that provides explanations and examples of these two ways. In fact, the words "path" or "way" occur over fifty times in these chapters. Proverbs 1-9 illustrate the two roads through life by speaking to the reader in a number of voices that represent each of these divergent paths. On the one hand, in the first chapter, we hear the voice of a guiding human father (1:8-19; etc.) and that of the female personification of God's wisdom (Proverbs 1:20-33; etc.) urging us to take the good way. On the other hand, in the second chapter, we hear the voices of two personifications (again, a male and a female) who represent those who take the other way and who try to entice us to join them. We are told that we need wisdom in dealing with those wrongful influences: to deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perversity, from those who leave the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness, from those who enjoy doing evil and rejoice in the twistedness of evil, whose paths are crooked and whose ways are devious. (Proverbs 2:12-15) The second chapter of Proverbs is actually an elaborate acrostic or alphabetic poem, the first line of each of its verses beginning with one of the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. It uses this structure to highlight what is said, much as using italic or bolded type does in modern printed books. The chapter warns the reader especially of the aggression of evil men (Proverbs 2:12-15) and the seduction of evil women (Proverbs 2:16-19). This does not imply that women cannot be aggressive or men seductive, of course; it simply personifies the two problems in an easily understood manner that represented the most likely situations in that time and place. What is so perceptive about Proverbs' use of these personifications is that they clearly show us how natural it is for many human beings to take the way of evil and how unnatural it is to take the opposite and often harder way of what is right. That is an approach that obviously does not agree with many modern views of human nature as being "essentially good." Proverbs denies that view, however, and urges us to do what is necessary to find and follow the path of what is right:
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet. (Proverbs 4:26) Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. (Proverbs 2:9) The Bible nowhere suggests that we are inherently good or wise. Instead, it shows that these are aspects of the character of God, not humans, that we must learn and grow in. Proverbs in particular shows that this quest is not always easy, but that seeking the right road is always worthwhile:
The path of life leads upward for the prudent to keep them from going down to the realm of the dead. (Proverbs 15:24) This proverb shows that the two paths of life are not simply parallel – one leads constantly upward, while the other leads continually down. Taking the right path may be an uphill climb, but upwards is where we want to be going in life! Another proverb describes the path of good even more succinctly:
In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality. (Proverbs 12:28) This is advice that is echoed throughout the rest of the Bible, not just in terms of future life, but also in fuller and happier life in the here and now. We see it clearly, for example, in the words of the prophet Jeremiah who uses the language of Proverbs in conveying the word of God:
This is what the Lord says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." (Jeremiah 6:16) That is why, in the conclusion of its nine-chapter introduction, the book of Proverbs pits the appeals of its two female personifications – "Lady Wisdom" and " The Foolish Woman" – against each other. In Proverbs 9:1-12 we are told what wisdom says, and in verses 13-18 we are given the words of foolishness. But this is no petty squabble between two disagreeing women. If we look carefully, we find that both women live at "the highest point of the city" (Proverbs 9:3, 14), which is where the temples, palaces, and courts were located in most ancient cities. This seemingly small detail would have been an important statement to ancient readers of Proverbs. The speeches of wisdom and foolishness are actually the final arguments in a power struggle that affects every aspect of the guidance of life.
The setting of these arguments is, in both cases, a banquet – because the Bible uses meals and banquets as symbols of the ultimate expression of a way of life (Proverbs 15:17; etc.). Typical of their respective approaches, wisdom has "prepared her meat and mixed her wine" (Proverbs 9:2) for the banquet she offers, and foolishness offers that "Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!" (Proverbs 9:17). While wisdom offers a way that requires work and honesty, foolishness offers instead an easier, but corrupt, approach to enjoying life. But once again, the difference is not just in temporary or physical results, but in permanent and spiritually important outcomes. The end result of wisdom's ways is seen in her urging "Leave your simple ways and you will live" (Proverbs 9:6), which is contrasted with the way of foolishness taken by those who find death instead of life (Proverbs 9:18).
This introduction of Proverbs sets the stage for what is to come – the many individual proverbs that comprise the body of the book and that argue for the way of wisdom. In the next chapter of this book, we will analyze some of those proverbs to see exactly how we go about choosing and following the way to wisdom. We may have found the map, but we need to be sure we know how to read it!