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As we begin a new year, we’ll be studying the book of Proverbs for the first 31 days of the year. The new year is a great opportunity to invite your friends, families, and Life Groups to read along with you in 2023. If you missed the first day’s reading or are looking for an overview of the book, click here to catch up!
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Read Proverbs 7
Warning Against the Adulterous Woman
7 My son, keep my words
and store up my commands within you.
2 Keep my commands and you will live;
guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.
3 Bind them on your fingers;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and to insight, “You are my relative.”
5 They will keep you from the adulterous woman,
from the wayward woman with her seductive words.
6 At the window of my house
I looked down through the lattice.
7 I saw among the simple,
I noticed among the young men,
a youth who had no sense.
8 He was going down the street near her corner,
walking along in the direction of her house
9 at twilight, as the day was fading,
as the dark of night set in.
10 Then out came a woman to meet him,
dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
11 (She is unruly and defiant,
her feet never stay at home;
12 now in the street, now in the squares,
at every corner she lurks.)
13 She took hold of him and kissed him
and with a brazen face she said:
14 “Today I fulfilled my vows,
and I have food from my fellowship offering at home.
15 So I came out to meet you;
I looked for you and have found you!
16 I have covered my bed
with colored linens from Egypt.
17 I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning;
let’s enjoy ourselves with love!
19 My husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey.
20 He took his purse filled with money
and will not be home till full moon.”
21 With persuasive words she led him astray;
she seduced him with her smooth talk.
22 All at once he followed her
like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer stepping into a noose
23 till an arrow pierces his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
little knowing it will cost him his life.
24 Now then, my sons, listen to me;
pay attention to what I say.
25 Do not let your heart turn to her ways
or stray into her paths.
26 Many are the victims she has brought down;
her slain are a mighty throng.
27 Her house is a highway to the grave,
leading down to the chambers of death.
Go Deeper
What a picture Proverbs 7 is of the deceitfulness of sexual sin (and sin in general). Throughout this chapter we watch the simple man become ensnared by the adulterous woman in the same way a fly is caught in a spider web. If we are not careful and vigilant, this will be our story. There is much for us to learn from this text but there are two immediate warnings we should learn from this chapter: we should be careful about where we walk and we should never try to walk through temptation by ourselves.
As the simple man walked down the street, the young man was undoubtedly fantasizing about what his night would hold. He was so consumed by his lust that he didn’t realize that every step he took moved him closer to the destruction and pain that would come for him in the morning. It is so easy to become distracted by the false promises of sin. Think about the false ways sin promises to fulfill us:
- “This is where life is found.”
- “You will feel better if you just…”
- “No one will ever know.”
The reality is that sin will always lead to death, and it will rot you from the inside out if it goes unconfessed. The key to defending ourselves is in the first four verses of this proverb. We should memorize and live according to God’s Word. Ephesians 6 refers to God’s Word as the Sword of the Spirit, and we see Jesus defending against the Devil’s attacks with this sword in Matthew 4. We need to heed the warnings of these scriptures, or we will be defenseless when the time comes for us to decide which path we are going to take.
If there is somewhere in our lives that matches the description of “the street near her corner,” let us be weary of it. Do not wait another minute to loop in someone in your Life Group. Give them the tools to help you take another path. Make sure certain apps or websites are blocked on your phone, take a different route to the water cooler, or switch the time you go to the gym. There is no sacrifice that is too great if it will save you from something that “will cost (you your) life.
Questions
- What area in your life can be described as “the street near her corner?” How can you eliminate it from your path?
- Do you trust the scripture written on your heart right now to help you fight temptation as it comes?
- Is there anything in your life that is currently unconfessed that needs to be confessed to someone in your Life Group?
By the Way
Psalm 51 is a helpful look at the heart of a believer (David) who has made a similar mistake to the man in Proverbs 7. Let us learn from the mistakes of others and cling to God and his word when temptation comes.
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3 thoughts on “Proverbs 7”
I’m reminded how we encounter sin through our 5 senses-what we see, hear, touch, taste & smell. That little song I learned in Sunday school years ago came to mind, “oh be careful little eyes what you see, oh be careful little feet where you go, etc. For the Father up above is looking down in love, so be careful little ears what you hear.” Only through the wisdom of God are we able to pivot and flee the traps that so appeal to our sinful nature. Jesus addressed this strongly in his discourse of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:29, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body, than for your whole body be thrown into hell.” This hyperbole Jesus used declares how heinous sin is, and how we should be prepared to make exceptional sacrifices if we want to follow Christ. (Got Questions). It’s about denying ourselves, taking up the way of the cross and following closely after Him.
If you have a place that you must go that there is a stumbling block go armored up. Pray pray pray and have an accountability person to whom you know be praying for you when it is happening, then you talk with that person after so that you can acknowledge all the thoughts roaming around in your head. We all stumble BUT GOD has made ways to help us up and out if we will use them. Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. If we keep our hearts willing to obey what He says to us then we can succeed. Gal 5: 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. We have to bring all our thoughts captive 2 Cor 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.
God thank You for giving me the tools to fight when attacked. Thank You for Holy Spirit to give me direction and that I listen. God I desire to be a very fruity tree. Thank You for helping me in the areas of fruit that give me difficulty. God thank You for healing in my foot. Thank You for time off to be still in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOO!!!
While the adulterous woman is very real, I believe she can be replaced with any of the temptation of sin, or substance, that leads us out of relationship with God. The adulterous woman is the temptation to walk the wide; the path that is illuminated with the neon of the world; the idea that “just one more” won’t hurt; you have survived it before, you’ll survive it again, and enjoy it; it will be a “good time”; but every time, you are left with a void space in your soul, a hole that hurts and is difficult to fill. Yes the adulterous woman is real, she should be feared and avoided as she is the personification of the “devil on your shoulder” that encourages you to poor choices and bad decisions. We are to be aware, she is to be avoided.