Proverbs 5
Proverbs 5:1-23 (NLT)
1 My 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.
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.
6 For she cares nothing about the path to life. She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t realize it.
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.
10 Strangers will consume your wealth, and someone else will enjoy the fruit of your labor.
11 In the end you will groan in anguish when disease consumes your body.
12 You will say, “How I hated discipline! If only I had not ignored all the warnings!
13 Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers? Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?
14 I have come to the brink of utter ruin, and now I must face public disgrace.”
15 Drink water from your own well—share your love only with your wife.
16 Why spill the water of your springs in the streets, having sex with just anyone?
17 You should reserve it for yourselves. Never share it with strangers.
18 Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you. Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19 She is a loving deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts satisfy you always. May you always be captivated by her love.
20 Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman, or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?
21 For the LORD sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes.
22 An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him.
23 He will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his great foolishness.
The urges and cravings of the flesh are powerful forces that can destroy those with great potential for good and virtue who have not developed a pattern of submission to wisdom’s protections. Once the pleasures meant to enhance a Godly union are allowed to gratify apart from commitment in love, they fasten their grasp on a soul that becomes enslaved to their demands and consequences. While sexual sin wreaks havoc on relationships and identities, it is most devastating in its effect on perceived proximity with God. Its acts favor darkness and isolation, where the illusion of hiding from exposure and judgment liberates their spiral to perversion that the light would prohibit. Hope for all, however, lies in the light of God’s presence and words of wisdom that are embraced as a way of life that is not only lived but also proclaimed. The ensnaring that so easily and commonly overtakes loses its power in the honor of the Presence that is always there with an overcoming way of self-control. Recognizing His nearness and allowing the shining of His righteousness makes possible a walk that will get brighter and brighter in holiness and purity. Here, life has its greatest pleasures – relationships, confidence, faith, productivity, and purpose that perversion disallows and dissuades. Walking in alliance with His heart and vision makes way for actions that don’t devalue and destroy but establish the foundation for a complete life of pleasures at His right hand.