Why does Solomon refer to wisdom as a woman in Proverbs?

Bible Question:

Bible Answer:

The theme of the book of Proverbs is wisdom and Proverbs 2:6 tells us that this wisdom comes from the Lord our God. The word wisdom occurs more often in Proverbs than in any other book in the Bible. But in Proverbs 1:20 and other passages we discover that wisdom is personified and referred to as a woman. Why did this happen?

Wisdom Is Personified As a Woman In Proverbs

Wisdom Is Personified Multiple Times

Wisdom is personified in Proverbs 1:20-33; 3:14-18; 4:7-8; 8:1-36 and 9:1-6 as a woman. There are several grammatical reasons. The first is that wisdom is feminine. The second is the third person singular pronoun was intentionally used in Proverbs 1:20-21. That reinforces the point that we are supposed to understand as a woman. Woman is personified as a woman in Proverbs.

Now, here are the details. The first time wisdom speaks in the book of Proverbs is Proverbs 1:20-21.

Wisdom shouts in the street,
She lifts her voice in the square;
Proverbs 1:20 (NASB)

The Hebrew word for wisdom in verse 20 is hokma. A literal rendering of the first line is “Wisdoms shout in the street.” F. C. Cook authored a commentary the book of Proverbs. He writes,

In the Hebrew the noun is a feminine plural . . . as though this Wisdom were the queen of all wisdoms, uniting in herself all their excellences.[1]

So, that is the first reason why widom personified as a woman?

The second reason wisdom is personified as a woman is that the word “her” in the second line of verse 20 is a feminine third person singular pronoun. In the Hebrew language a male third person singular pronoun could have been used, but King Solomon did not use it. He used the feminine form.

At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: Proverbs 1:21 (NASB)

Then in verse 21, “her” appears again in the second line. That is, wisdom is intentionally personified as a female. “Her” appears again twelve times in the personification passages (Proverbs 3:14, 15, 16, 17, 18; 4:8; 8:1, 11, 17; 9:1, 2, 3). This reveals that King Solomon intentionally personified wisdom as woman.

This is reinforce the personification in Proverbs 9:1-6. The first three verses say,

Wisdom has built her house,
She has hewn out her seven pillars;
She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine;
She has also set her table;
She has sent out her maidens, she calls
From the tops of the heights of the city:
Proverbs 9:1-3 (NASB)

Once again notice the “her” pronouns occur. But also notice that the descriptions of “her house”, ” food”, “mixed her wine”, “set her table”, and “her maidens” are things that are clearly of interest to a woman. The point is that King Solomon clearly wanted wisdom to be personified as a woman.

Why Is Wisdom A Woman?

Therefore, why is Proverbs wisdom is personified as a woman. The answer is we do not know because Scripture never tells us. However, some have speculated that wisdom is personified as a woman in order to appeal Solomon’s son in Proverbs 1:1, 8, 10, 15. The idea is that wisdom is personified as feminine in order to make wisdom appear more attractive to the sons , especially since Proverbs 5:15-20 warns men to avoid prostitutes.

A second concept is that wisdom is feminine because the Hebrew word is assigned the feminine gender. But this conclusion is wrong as explained above.

The third and the most likely reason that wisdom is personified as a woman is that it is simply a figure of speech. We refer to a car as “she” or ships as “she,” for example. But that does not mean that a car or a ship is a female. It is a figure of speech and nothing more.

Conclusion:

Wisdom in the book of Proverbs comes from God. Proverbs 3:19 and Colossians 2:2-3 teach us that God Himself is the source of all wisdom. James 1:5 says that if we need wisdom, we should ask God gives it. Proverbs 2:6-7 says,

For the LORD gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, Proverbs 2:6-7 (NASB)

The book of Proverbs is wisdom from God. For she has been given directly to us by God.