Proverbs 7

My son, keep my words

and treasure up my commandments with you;

keep my commandments and live;

keep my teaching as the apple of your eye;

bind them on your fingers;

write them on the tablet of your heart.

• And again – a repeat performance.  Are you getting the impression that you should keep God’s commandments?
• Commit to them.  He is the only infinitely wise, all-knowing being in existence.  He knows.  We don’t.  Just do it and trust Him.

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”

and call insight your intimate friend,

to keep you from the forbidden woman,

from the adulteress with her smooth words.

• You can count on your sister.  You can count on wisdom.
• Your most intimate friends have your back.  So does God’s insight.  Make it YOUR insight, by default.

For at the window of my house

I have looked out through my lattice,

and I have seen among the simple,

I have perceived among the youths,

a young man lacking sense,

passing along the street near her corner,

taking the road to her house

in the twilight, in the evening,

at the time of night and darkness.

And behold, the woman meets him,

dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.

She is loud and wayward;

her feet do not stay at home;

now in the street, now in the market,

and at every corner she lies in wait.

She seizes him and kisses him,

and with bold face she says to him,

“I had to offer sacrifices,

and today I have paid my vows;

so now I have come out to meet you,

to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.

I have spread my couch with coverings,

colored linens from Egyptian linen;

I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,

aloes, and cinnamon.

Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;

let us delight ourselves with love.

For my husband is not at home;

he has gone on a long journey;

he took a bag of money with him;

at full moon he will come home.”

With much seductive speech she persuades him;

with her smooth talk she compels him.

All at once he follows her,

as an ox goes to the slaughter,

or as a stag is caught fast

till an arrow pierces its liver;

as a bird rushes into a snare;

he does not know that it will cost him his life.

• Don’t worry – your temptations will come to you.  Certainly avoid your greatest temptations, which will remove most of your problem, but the Devil does NOT like it.  He will send it your way however he can.  A pop up ad leading you to pornography, a drink offered to the alcoholic, the pretty flirty woman at the company party, etc.
• The forbidden fruit will be VERY tempting.  You will need to fully leverage your trust in God – that He will get you past it.  In the beginning, it will take everything in you to avoid it.  As time goes on – with His help – it will become easier and easier to fight it off.
• “As an ox goes to slaughter” - pretty graphic imagery.  Give in to your temptation and expect a slaughter – expect spiritual death.
• Those without God’s wisdom aren’t aware that this will cost them life itself.

And now, O sons, listen to me,

and be attentive to the words of my mouth.

• Listen up.  Focus.  This is important …

Let not your heart turn aside to her ways;

do not stray into her paths,

for many a victim has she laid low,

and all her slain are a mighty throng.

Her house is the way to Sheol,

going down to the chambers of death.

• Again with Sheol.
• Top tier advice:  Don’t do it.  The eventual pain is not worth the momentary pleasure.
• This is the Devil’s business – to tempt you.  He’s REALLY good at it.  Remember that giving in makes the Devil VERY happy.  And it makes God VERY sad.
• Again, “the wages of sin is death” - no escaping this truth.  But with faith in Jesus and living a repentant life based on trust in God’s promises, you can not only avoid death, but gain eternal life.  Pretty sweet, eh?