“6 was afraid of 7 because 7, 8, 9, but why did 7 eat 9?” (joke)

“Why is 6 afraid of 7?”/“Because 7 8 9” is a classic joke. A new riddle was posted on Reddit—Jokes on June 26, 2017:
 
Q: 6 was afraid of 7 because 7, 8, 9, but why did 7 eat 9?
A: Because you’re supposed to eat 3 squared meals a day.
     
“Gottta get my 3 squared meals (9) a day” was posted on Twitter on January 6, 2010.
 
 
Twitter
Franklyn Addo‏
@FRANKLYNMUSIC
Gottta get my 3 squared meals (9) a day 😊
5:27 AM - 6 Jan 2010
   
Twitter
rogue jones‏
@nirvanic_s
Anyone else notice “three squared meals a day” is actually nine? DDDD8
9:03 AM - 7 Jan 2010
 
Twitter
Mrs Crockets‏
@MrsCrockets
My friend Jeanie is overweight but she eats about nine times a day.  She says she’s just having three squared meals
11:07 PM - 23 Aug 2011
 
Twitter
Joseph Paradis‏
@AvailJoseph
Wait a minute, its three-square meals a day? Crap! I’ve been eating three-squared meals a day!
4:51 PM - 27 Jun 2012
 
Twitter
Connor‏
@EdgarAllanLo
*finishing ninth meal of the day*
“I know it seems like a lot, but my doctor told me to eat three squared meals a day.”
11:01 AM - 3 Aug 2015
 
Reddit—Jokes
6 was afraid of 7 because 7, 8, 9, but why did 7 eat 9?
submitted June 26, 2017 by ____okay
Because you’re supposed to eat 3 squared meals a day.
 
Twitter
Stephen Ardanowski‏
@SArdanowski
6 is afraid of 7 because 7 ate 9, but why did 7 eat 9?
Because you’re supposed to eat three squared meals a day… I’ll see myself out
1:40 AM - 27 Jun 2017