Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

My son, keep my words
    and store up my commands within you.
Keep my commands and you will live;
    guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.
Bind them on your fingers;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
    and to insight, “You are my relative.”
They will keep you from the adulterous woman,
    from the wayward woman with her seductive words.
At the window of my house
    I looked down through the lattice.
I saw among the simple,
    I noticed among the young men,
    a youth who had no sense.
He was going down the street near her corner,
    walking along in the direction of her house
at twilight, as the day was fading,
    as the dark of night set in.
Then out came a woman to meet him,
    dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
(She is unruly and defiant,
    her feet never stay at home;
now in the street, now in the squares,
    at every corner she lurks.)
She took hold of him and kissed him
    and with a brazen face she said:
“Today I fulfilled my vows,
    and I have food from my fellowship offering at home.
So I came out to meet you;
    I looked for you and have found you!
I have covered my bed
    with colored linens from Egypt.
I have perfumed my bed
    with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning;
    let’s enjoy ourselves with love!
My husband is not at home;
    he has gone on a long journey.
He took his purse filled with money
    and will not be home till full moon.”
With persuasive words she led him astray;
    she seduced him with her smooth talk.
All at once he followed her
    like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer stepping into a noose
    till an arrow pierces his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
    little knowing it will cost him his life.
Now then, my sons, listen to me;
    pay attention to what I say.
Do not let your heart turn to her ways
    or stray into her paths.
Many are the victims she has brought down;
    her slain are a mighty throng.
Her house is a highway to the grave,
    leading down to the chambers of death.

• Proverbs 7:1-27

“Proverbs 7:10 ‘a crafty heart’. ”Lit. ‘hidden.’ This is an unfair contest between the simple young man, who lacks wisdom and is void of the truth, and the evil woman, who knows her goal, but hides her true intentions. See … 6:26; 23:27, 28.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

We are again reminded that the first nine chapters of Proverbs are fatherly encouragement to pursue wisdom.  In this case, the author speaks to “my son” and warns against the seduction of evil.

Then most of this chapter is a parable, of sorts.  A young man with no wisdom, literally saying “no sense’ is beguiled by a woman dressed as a prostitute.  We find out that the woman is married, and the husband is away.  The woman is crafty, defiant, and unruly.  Her feet never stay home.

She lures the young man away like an ox to slaughter or a deer in the noose.  It will cost the young man his life.

Then it concludes with a reminder that it really will cost the man his life.  In Leviticus 20:10-12, adultery is punishable by death to the adulterer and the adulteress.  This is repeated in Deuteronomy 22:22-24.  I have heard sermons on the woman caught in adultery in John 8.  They ask, where was the man?  Who was the man?  How influential was the man?  And Jesus did not go there in His response, but in a way, He might have.  In not applying the punishment to both parties, those who wished to stone only the woman saw their sin exposed.

But there is a parallel here with the prostitute of Babylon in Revelation 17.  Adultery is often used as a symbol for a variety of evil or even evil itself.  This does not mean adultery is the worst of sins.  It is the easiest to spot.  As Tim Keller said in a filmed interview, the man goes to bed and exclaims, “Oh, this is not my wife.”  But how do you see greed, murderous hatred, or a lying tongue, or even cursing God or dishonoring your parents.  Sure, in repeated actions or by testing what people say, you can figure out those other deceptions that lead people astray.  But the adulterous woman is obvious, and the sin is obvious.  Thus, adultery is often used as the illustration.

Yet, before we move adultery into a view of sin itself, the pornography epidemic is terrible these days.  It is habit forming.  It changes the way the people look upon each other.  Men objectify women, and some vice versa.  And it is available for free on the internet.

But looking at the seduction aspect in Proverbs 7:5, greed has its seduction.  Giving a false witness has many seductions: greed, power, even fame or notoriety.

So, let’s not get hung up on the idea that God has sex on His mind.  God is warning us through Solomon, the author of Proverbs, at least most of the chapters.  We should seek wisdom so that evil does not seduce us from following God.

And now let us sing.

The following song is sung by the East Falls Chancel Choir, East Falls Presbyterian Church, East Falls, Philadelphia, PA, USA, Take Thou Our Minds, Dear Lord.

“Take Thou our minds, dear Lord, we humbly pray,
Give us the mind of Christ each passing day;
Teach us to know the truth that sets us free;
Grant us in all our thoughts to honor Thee.

Take Thou our hearts, O Christ, they are Thine own;
Come Thou within our souls and claim Thy throne;
Help us to shed abroad Thy deathless love;
Use us to make the earth like heaven above.

Take Thou our wills, Most High! Hold Thou full sway;
Have in our inmost souls Thy perfect way;
Guard Thou each sacred hour from selfish ease;
Guide Thou our ordered lives as Thou dost please.

Take Thou ourselves, O Lord, heart, mind, and will;
Through our surrendered souls Thy plans fulfill.
We yield ourselves to Thee—time, talents, all;
We hear, and henceforth heed, Thy sovereign call.”

• William H. Foulkes, Take Thou Our Minds, Dear Lord

Closing Prayer

Dear Lord,
We need Your wisdom.  We are so easily seduced.  If I saw a slice of strawberry cheesecake right now, I might stop this prayer to eat it.  For someone else, it might be beef stroganoff.  Both of those are not sin, but the distraction away from keeping our gaze upon You leads to a wide variety of sin.  Solomon may have put the focus on the adulterous woman, but seduction comes in many forms.  They can all be deadly.  You are our only way to salvation and getting distracted as we keep our eyes on You causes us to stumble.  Please, You have given us the reasons to not be distracted.  We need to hone our attention span also.  Give us that strength and desire to take sanctification seriously.  The more we desire You, the more like You we become.
In thy Name we pray.
Amen

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.