Proverbs 9 Footnotes

9:7-9 According to Proverbs, the basic difference between the fool and the wise person has far more to do with attitude than with intelligence. The wise person is open to advice and correction and welcomes it, while the foolish person rejects counsel, even to the point of directing anger and hostility toward anyone who offers advice.

9:11 Proverbs makes the point that, in general, wise people will live longer than foolish ones. This is in part because they are careful and refuse to take inappropriate risks, while the foolish person rushes into danger with little thought about consequences. Books such as Job and Ecclesiastes, along with careful observation of how things work in the world, make it clear, however, that the length of a person’s life involves more variables than just wisdom or fear of the Lord (Pr 11:27).

9:13-18 These verses are not demeaning to women in general, but apply to a certain type of woman, the foolish and immoral woman.