The story of seduction in Proverbs 7 has always grabbed my attention. The book of Proverbs, for the most part, is a series of random thoughts, but here in chapter seven, Solomon breaks from the verse-by-verse randomness to tell a rather in-depth story.
Let's read verses 6-27: "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. And now, O sons, listen to me, and be attentive to the words of my mouth. 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."
While the subject here is adultery and harlotry, we can derive from the story many valuable lessons that ought to help us in overcoming sin in general. As I consider this story, there are three points that stand out to me. First of all, there are the two mistakes of the young man that ultimately led to his fall. Second, there is the general seductiveness of sin.
This young man made two grave errors in judgment that led to the temptation itself.
In verses 7-9, the young man is said to be a simple youth, a "young man lacking sense." He passed along the street near the corner of the prostitute's house. The structure of the passage indicates that the young man could have avoided this situation entirely. In other words, the implication seems to be that the young man knew where the prostitute lived and was foolishly passing by her house. Whether he was looking for the prostitute (one might argue, based on the words of the prostitute in verses 14-15 that they knew each other) or simply passing by her house innocently, he clearly exercised poor judgment in approaching her place of residence.
This was his first mistake, and it is a mistake that we make all too often. We put ourselves in situations where temptation is likely to occur. We may not enter into the situation with the intention of violating God's will, but we know that temptation is at least possible. It may be that we watch a certain movie knowing that it contains inappropriate scenes and/or language. It may be that we spend time with certain people that negatively influence us. Whatever the case may be, we need to learn from the story of Proverbs 7. If you can avoid temptation, avoid it. Stay far from sin. Don't give the devil an opportunity to lure you away from the Lord. Back in Proverbs 5:8, the wise man tells us, "Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless." The her in this passage is, once again, the harlot, and Solomon tells us to stay far away from her house. In Romans 13:14, Paul gives us similar advice when he says, "Make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." In other words, guard your heart. Be circumspect (Eph.15).
This may mean not watching certain movies, not hanging out with certain people, not going to certain events, not listening to certain kinds of music, etc. But our soul is worth the precaution!
Okay, let's go back to Proverbs 7.
The young man's first mistake was his foolish decision to pass by the prostitute's house. He could have chosen another route, but he chose to put himself in a precarious situation. Of course, the woman, according to verse 10, came out to meet him. She was "dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart." And this is where he made his second grave error...
He had to be able to tell that she was a prostitute, for she was dressed like one. The implication here is that prostitutes dressed a certain way that distinguished them from other woman who were NOT prostitutes. Upon seeing the harlot, the young man should have fled. Do you remember the story of Joseph? When Potiphar's wife tried to seduce him, he turned and ran away, even leaving his clothes in her hands (Gen. 39:12). Joseph, recognizing the dangers of the situation, knowing that the temptation would grow stronger if he tarried, left the scene ASAP. And that's exactly what the young man of Proverbs 7 should have done.
Instead, he not only stayed, but he listened to her as she seduced him. She seized him and kissed him (vv. 13), described to him her bedroom (vv. 16-17) and convinced him that no one would ever know (vv. 19-20). "With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him" (vv. 21). The more we listen to our flesh, the harder it will be to resist sin.
As Christians, we need to (1) avoid temptation whenever possible and (2) flee from it when we do encounter it. If we don't entertain the flesh, if we maintain our focus and our resolve, we will have much greater success in our war against sin.
Before I conclude this article, I want to point out one more thing: the seductiveness of sin.
As a human being, you have to read this story in Proverbs 7 and recognize the prostitute's appeal. What if you had been the young man here, and what if you had found yourself being kissed and seduced by the prostitute? Certainly, you can understand how alluring this might be, and that's the way sin is. It is called temptation for a reason.
But notice what Solomon says about it. "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...Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chambers of death" (vv. 21-23, 27). The point is this: sin is seductive and appealing at the time, but that glee doesn't last long. The end is slaughter! Proverbs 5:3-4 says, "For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword."
Whatever the sin is, whether it is lust, adultery, wrath, drinking, foul language or cruelty, we must look past the temporal pleasure to the long-lasting consequences. One act of adultery can separate you from God, destroy your marriage, damage your children, split a church and ruin your good name. One moment of wrath can change the entire dynamic of your family for the worse. One night of sinful pleasure, even though repented of, will forever stain the purity of your mind. Sin is not worth it. Avoid it if possible, run away from it when you encounter it, and of course, repent of it when you fall prey to it.
Let us learn from the story of Proverbs 7.
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