Proverbs 9:13
By Jay Crout
“The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing.” (Proverbs 9:13)
It can be easy for us to forget what it was like to be a non-Christian. In fact, many of us probably don’t even remember a time when we didn’t know Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior. So, for us, it can be easy to read a verse like this and understand it only in the context of living out the Christian life – our sanctification.
Yes, Lady Folly presents a constant challenge for believers every day of our earthly life. We struggle to battle against her, and we often fail to accurately see the dangers of our sin. Worse, sometimes we even choose to follow the foolish paths even when we know how they will end.
But we, as believers, are no longer under the bondage of sin. And this means that Lady Folly – as seductive as she may be – no longer has dominion over us. But far too often we forget (or cannot even remember!) what it was like when we were unable to see the foolishness of Lady Folly’s loud and seductive calls.
Non-Christians live every minute, of every day, of every year, of their entire lives in this state. And without intervention, the result of Lady Folly’s dominion over them is found a few verses later: “But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.” (Proverbs 9:18)
Lady Folly knows nothing and yet is proud to boast in it. Her words are smooth and cunning. And they bring with them deadly results. But the Lord has given us a greater word – the word of the cross. And while it is folly to those who are perishing, it is the power of God to those whom are being saved. It is this word – the word of the cross – that we have been given to proclaim. And it is our responsibility to make sure that those around us never cease to hear this call. Lady Folly may be loud and seductive, but the word we proclaim is truly transformative. Proclaim it!
By Jay Crout
“The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing.” (Proverbs 9:13)
It can be easy for us to forget what it was like to be a non-Christian. In fact, many of us probably don’t even remember a time when we didn’t know Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior. So, for us, it can be easy to read a verse like this and understand it only in the context of living out the Christian life – our sanctification.
Yes, Lady Folly presents a constant challenge for believers every day of our earthly life. We struggle to battle against her, and we often fail to accurately see the dangers of our sin. Worse, sometimes we even choose to follow the foolish paths even when we know how they will end.
But we, as believers, are no longer under the bondage of sin. And this means that Lady Folly – as seductive as she may be – no longer has dominion over us. But far too often we forget (or cannot even remember!) what it was like when we were unable to see the foolishness of Lady Folly’s loud and seductive calls.
Non-Christians live every minute, of every day, of every year, of their entire lives in this state. And without intervention, the result of Lady Folly’s dominion over them is found a few verses later: “But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.” (Proverbs 9:18)
Lady Folly knows nothing and yet is proud to boast in it. Her words are smooth and cunning. And they bring with them deadly results. But the Lord has given us a greater word – the word of the cross. And while it is folly to those who are perishing, it is the power of God to those whom are being saved. It is this word – the word of the cross – that we have been given to proclaim. And it is our responsibility to make sure that those around us never cease to hear this call. Lady Folly may be loud and seductive, but the word we proclaim is truly transformative. Proclaim it!