Date: March 27, 1987
Place: Intersection of 7th and Main, Los Angeles, CA
At that location, atop a liquor store in downtown L.A., U2 brought the area to a screeching halt as they filmed the music video for “Where the Streets Have No Name.” They are not the only band to have done something like this. They got the idea from the Beatles, and other bands have done the same in the over 30 years since. The broader point is, when someone picks the right place from which to shout, she is going to get people’s attention.
In Proverbs 9, Solomon tells us about two competing voices vying for our attention from the rooftops.
Both offer celebration.
One offers life.
The other offers death.
“Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars. She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table. She has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town,
“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” To him who lacks sense she says, “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live and walk in the way of insight.”
Proverbs 9:1-6 (ESV)
There are a couple points worth noticing here. First, Solomon reveals that having wisdom is fun. How many of us think of someone with wisdom as stuffy, old, and sage-like, spouting off wise sayings and making little sense to most people? That’s not the picture Solomon paints. Wisdom is preparing a celebratory feast and inviting anyone willing to come and partake. That’s the second thing worth noticing. Wisdom is ours for the having. As stated in Proverbs 8, “…those who seek me [wisdom] diligently find me.” The trouble is, Wisdom isn’t the only one trying to get our attention.
The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing. She sits at the door of her house; she takes a seat on the highest places of the town, calling to those who pass by, …”Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” And to him who lacks sense she says, “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
But he does not know that the dead are there…
Proverbs 9:13-18a (ESV)
Two voices, always competing for your attention.
The results of which voice you choose can be life-giving or disastrous.
Whom will you seek?
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