Proverbs 5:1-14
We all have seen the warning labels on items not good for human consumption. WARNING!! CAUTION! HAZARDOUS to your health! It usually is followed by ways to treat someone if they have been exposed to that poison or chemical.
In Proverbs, Solomon is the voice of wisdom, the warning voice. Teaching and instructing in order to spare the listener pain and even possibly death. Today as we read the warnings that Solomon wrote we MUST pay attention.
1My son, pay attention to my wisdom; listen carefully to my wise counsel. 2 Then you will show discernment, and your lips will express what you’ve learned.
LISTEN carefully! Pay attention! Here comes a warning. . .
3 For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil. 4 But in the end she is as bitter as poison, as dangerous as a double-edged sword. 5 Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.
Proverbs includes many warnings against prostitutes and sexual sin. It is an example of being charmed to do wrong or being led away from God’s wisdom. Sexual immorality destroys what God has deemed to be right and good. It destroys families, it degrades human beings, it causes some to lose the ability to love. Most importantly it comes between us and our relationship with God.
Solomon continues to plead with young men:
7 So now, my sons, listen to me. Never stray from what I am about to say: 8 Stay away from her! Don’t go near the door of her house! 9 If you do, you will lose your honor and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved.
One of the saddest scriptures in this portion of Proverbs is vs. 13 Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers? Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?
Brothers and sisters, listen, be on guard! Prepare yourself for temptation long before temptation comes.
1 Corinthians 16:13
Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.
Photography: @mattglenn