Proverbs 7 is the third part of a three part warning Solomon delivers to his son in the opening chapters of Proverbs. In the first warning, found in chapter 5, Solomon contrasts the deadly allure of the strange, or profane, woman with the pure delights of marital faithfulness. In the second warning, Solomon addresses several different areas where there is temptation to be drawn away from the ways of wisdom: the financial traps of debt co-signing and slothfulness, frowardness in various forms, and turning away the ear from familial counsel given by father and mother. The last area of temptation discussed in chapter 6, evil females, is a warning Solomon takes all of chapter 7 to give.
Notice first, at the beginning of the chapter, how truth is emphasized. Before this wise father proceeds with his warning, he takes the first three verses to remind his son of the value of truth. “Keep my words,” the father says, “Keep my commandments. Keep my law.” Solomon’s inspired words, commandments, and law in this book are all truth. Just as in other chapters, this father reminds his son, and us of the outcome. His message in verse 2 is that, if we keep his commandments, we will live. This father wants his son to make truth “the apple of our eye.”
Second, Solomon quickly exposes the danger of not following the truth. Notice the trap set in verses 4-12. It’s the same old snare—the strange woman, a female who’s on the prowl. This father has already warned the son about the strange woman in the previous two chapters, yet here he issues another lengthy warning.
I like how the father says it: to avoid temptation, make wisdom your “sister, and call understanding thy kinswoman” (v. 4). A young man’s sister, a female in his family who loves him, can quickly discern a female on the prowl. Godly sisters can be a source of wisdom for a “young man void of understanding.”
If the young man does not heed his sister’s wise words, he is vulnerable to the strange woman. She is a danger because she is everywhere! She “lieth in wait at every corner” (v. 12) so she can catch a man in her trap. Adultery, fornication, pornography—the everywhere-present temptations in our generation—are all a trap as well. Hear the warning call of wisdom: “Don’t be the fool who falls for it!”
Lest we be fools taken by temptation, we are in the third place prompted to consider her tactics. Not only will she use flattery, and dress in the attire of a harlot (vv. 5, 10), but she may also present herself as religious (v. 14), as if God approves of such debauchery. Her wicked tactics include decking her “bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt” (verse 16). She creates a pleasurable environment, then she “perfumes her bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon” (v. 17). It all sounds so alluring. But they are merely tactics.
The fourth aspect of this warning is the way the strange woman’s tactics lead a man to temptation, which Solomon describes in verses 18-21. The young man is in the center of temptation when this evil woman says, “Let us take our fill of love until the morning.” The strange woman tries to remove any reluctance by saying that “the goodman [her husband] is not at home. He is gone a long journey” (v. 19). No one will know what they do, this harlot says with smooth words; after all, her husband is gone. Unfortunately, her temptations are successful. “With her much fair speech she caused him to yield” to her temptation, verse 21 says.
Once the young man has yielded to temptation, the fifth aspect, the “therefore,” is described. Verses 22-27 explains all the consequences that come upon him as a result of giving into the strange woman’s speech. Violent terms like “slaughter” and“strike through” and “slain“ all climatically lead to the word “death” in verse 27. Any kind of adulterous, pornographic relationships ultimately lead to death. Sexual sins kill your reputation. They kill your relationships with others. They kill you emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Eventually they kill your dreams and your future. This is a wise father’s warning to his son. It’s an urgent plea. Read his plea in verse 24 and 25.
Do you remember how the father began the chapter by telling his son to cling to truth? “Embrace the truth, son, and avoid her trap,” he said. “Avoid her tactics, and don’t give into her temptation. Otherwise, you will reap a violent ‘therefore’. There are consequences, and they are deadly.” The Holy Spirit issues the same warning to us. The strange woman ought not be the apple of our eye. Instead, wisdom tells us to cherish the book of wisdom. The words of Proverbs’ divine Author, and our relationship with Him, is to be what we set our affections on. There is safety in wisdom.
The above article was written by Pastor James C. Johnson. He is the pastor of NorthStone Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fl. To offer him your feedback, comment below or email us at strengthforlife461@gmail.com.
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