(Proverbs 7:1-27)
1 My son, keep my words
And treasure my commandments within you.
2 Keep my commandments and live,
And my teaching 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 call understanding your intimate friend,
5 So that they may keep you from an adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the naive,
And discerned among the youths
A young man lacking sense,
8 Passing through the street near her corner;
And he walks along the way to her house,
9 In the twilight, in the evening,
In the middle of the night and the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
Dressed as a prostitute and cunning of heart.
11 She is boisterous and rebellious,
Her feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now in the public squares,
And lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him,
And with a brazen face she says to him:
14 “I was due to offer peace offerings;
Today I have paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence diligently, and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with coverings,
With colored linens of Egypt.
17 I have sprinkled my bed
With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning;
Let’s delight ourselves with caresses.
19 For my husband is not at home;
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a bag of money with him.
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hurries to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me,
And pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways,
Do not stray into her paths.
26 For many are the victims she has brought to ruin,
And numerous are all those slaughtered by her.
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,
Descending to the chambers of death.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
And treasure my commandments within you.
2 Keep my commandments and live,
And my teaching 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 call understanding your intimate friend,
5 So that they may keep you from an adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the naive,
And discerned among the youths
A young man lacking sense,
8 Passing through the street near her corner;
And he walks along the way to her house,
9 In the twilight, in the evening,
In the middle of the night and the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
Dressed as a prostitute and cunning of heart.
11 She is boisterous and rebellious,
Her feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now in the public squares,
And lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him,
And with a brazen face she says to him:
14 “I was due to offer peace offerings;
Today I have paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence diligently, and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with coverings,
With colored linens of Egypt.
17 I have sprinkled my bed
With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning;
Let’s delight ourselves with caresses.
19 For my husband is not at home;
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a bag of money with him.
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hurries to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me,
And pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways,
Do not stray into her paths.
26 For many are the victims she has brought to ruin,
And numerous are all those slaughtered by her.
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,
Descending to the chambers of death.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
Just recently, I started to read these scriptures in Spanish as well as in English... NOT because my Spanish is that good, but because I want to really work on knowing and speaking more Spanish. My Spanish is actually very pathetic, and learning another language has never been easy for me. ENGLISH (my only language) hasn't been easy to learn!!! And as I get older, it becomes even more challenging. BUT it is never too late, and we are never too old to learn. In fact, we should continue learning and growing - especially in the Lord.
All that to say, I've never understood the English idiom, "apple of my eye." I mean, apples are okay, so, I just figured that whoever came up with that phrase must have really loved apples! But, in verse 2, we are told to consider God's teachings as the apple of our eye. Well, in Spanish, they say, "como a la niña de tus ojos." A direct translation is "like a DAUGHTER of your eyes!"
Wow, okay, even if you don't have children, you can just imagine how precious a little daughter is! As a loving parent, we will want to protect her, embrace her and cherish her. Hey, I have a daughter, and I know they have their moments of meltdowns and times when they are anything but cute, but they never stop being our daughter, and we never stop loving them. But we also see and remember those moments when they demonstrate their adoring love, their nurturing, gentle nature, and their eagerness to help, serve and please us, with such great delight.
Another thing about daughters, is that as parents, we don't want to disappoint them. I remember my parents advising one of their cousins about the dangers of pornography, because they had magazines out in the open for anyone to see... including their little daughter. My parents asked him if he would be happy to see his daughter grow up to become a porn star, to be seen and treated like a worthless object of lust. Oh! Of course not! Well, all of those women in those magazines and movies, are someone's daughters. How sad is that?! He did remove the magazines. And eventually, he and his entire family become Christians!
So, there's also that aspect of how our daughters (as well as sons) so closely watch and learn from us. It is amazing, and sometimes alarming, as to what they will all pick up. And most often they will copy us in what we do! Therefore, if we love our children, we will not only cherish them and protect them, but we will also live in such a way that we will teach them how they should try to live. Being an example is another way that we protect, teach and demonstrate our love to our children. Live as if your child is closely watching us at all times, and know that God definitely sees and knows everything!
Then, we see in verse 4, we are to consider wisdom as our sister. Even if you don't have a sister, maybe you can imagine how blunt a sister who loves you can be. Since I am the older sister of two brothers, I can see how I have certain insights and "privileges" regarding how I can speak to my brothers. Since I know them so well, I also can anticipate how they are probably going to react to anything that I do say. And because we are family, I love them, they know that I love them, and nothing will change the fact that we are so closely related. And when we truly love someone, the advice we try to give, is not meant to hurt them, but to help them.
SAME THING with a very close friend! Verse 4 tells us to consider understanding as an intimate friend... a very close friend who you can trust to confide in! I've only had a few very good close friends in my life, because these are difficult to find. These are the people who work to get to know us well, well enough to know our heart's intentions. These are the ones who listen to us without judging. Even when we mess up, they are the ones who won't unfriend us, or run away, or hold grudges, but stay to work things out. And WHEN they give advice, these are the ones who will give us helpful, constructive advice to guide us towards God and His will.
Therefore, to keep us away from the world of selfishness, self-centeredness and self-reliance, and its misleading desires and temptations, let's consider God's commandments (instructions) as a precious daughter who you want to protect; consider God's wisdom like a sister who you know loves you and wants the best for you; and consider understanding (God and God's word) like a best friend who you trust with all the details of your life. Life is so much better when we are surrounded by those who love us and want the best for us! How much more should we surround ourselves with the Lord and everything He has to offer!
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