Babylon Study • Connected to God’s Image and the Ten Commandments
An invitation can sound welcoming while leading somewhere the hearer does not recognize. Proverbs 9 places two women’s invitations within one chapter, giving us another comparison for examining Babylon’s appeal.
Wisdom Prepares and Calls
Wisdom builds her house with seven pillars, prepares her food and wine, and sets her table. She sends her maidens and calls from the city’s heights.
Her invitation includes leaving simplicity, receiving understanding, and living. Read Proverbs 9:1–6.
Preserve the roles: Wisdom, the maidens she sends, and those invited to receive.
Folly Also Calls
Folly sits at her doorway, positioned in the city’s high places. She calls to those passing by, including people making their paths straight.
Both invitations contain these words:
“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here”
— Proverbs 9:4, 16, LSB, excerpt
The invitation’s familiar wording does not establish that both speakers offer the same thing.
Folly presents stolen water as sweet and secretly eaten bread as pleasant. The hearer does not recognize that her guests are in the depths of Sheol. Read Proverbs 9:13–18.
What Happens When Correction Comes?
Between these invitations, the chapter addresses correction. A scoffer responds with hatred; a wise person receives reproof with love and grows through instruction.
Then comes the foundation:
“The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom”
— Proverbs 9:10, ASV, excerpt
Our response to correction belongs within this examination. Being wise does not mean having nothing more to learn. The chapter describes wisdom increasing through instruction. Read Proverbs 9:7–12.
Bring the Comparison beside Babylon
Babylon’s cup and adornment are impressive, while the account identifies corruption, deception, and bloodshed associated with her. Read Revelation 17:4–6 and 18:23–24.
Proverbs supplies a comparison through invitation and outcome. Folly’s appeal emphasizes what seems desirable while the person entering does not perceive where it leads.
This helps us examine the counterfeit: similar language and an attractive offer must still be tested by what is given, what is required, and where the invitation leads.
Questions for Honest Examination
Do familiar scriptural words make me assume a teaching must agree with Scripture?
Am I examining the whole invitation, or only the part that appeals to me?
Could something pleasant be drawing me away from the path I should follow?
When corrected, do I become more attentive—or more determined to defend myself?
Do those I follow encourage growth through examination, or treat questions as a threat?
Am I seeking understanding from YHWH (יהוה), or reassurance that my existing choice is right?
Would I recognize a false invitation if it borrowed the language of a true one?
Threads to Follow
What belongs to another: Follow stolen provision alongside Babylon’s commerce and claims.
The woman and the beast: Preserve their distinct roles and examine what happens to their relationship.
Two cities and their fruit: Continue comparing Babylon with the Jerusalem shown as the Bride.
The books were opened…
🌿 By Maria Emilia
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