Thy Strong Word — Proverbs 7: Her House is on the Highway to Hell

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In this chapter, Solomon provides a stern warning against the dangers of adultery, using the narrative of a young man seduced by an adulterous woman to illustrate the severe consequences of succumbing to such temptation. The chapter emphasizes the importance of adhering to wisdom and moral discipline as safeguards against destructive choices. It depicts the young man’s path to ruin as inevitable, likening him to an animal led to slaughter.

The Rev. Stewart Crown, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, CA, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Proverbs 7.

Step into the spiritually rich landscape of the Book of Proverbs, a text divinely inspired and attributed to Solomon, the sage king endowed by God with unsurpassed wisdom. This ancient scripture begins with heartfelt lessons from a father to a son, laying a foundation of moral and ethical guidance before unfolding into a collection of timeless proverbs. It uniquely personifies wisdom and folly as two paths that stand before humanity, offering a choice between a life filled with virtue, fear of the Lord, and understanding, and one marred by shortsighted pleasures and foolishness. Proverbs serves as a compass for those seeking to walk in righteousness, offering insights that resonate deeply with the human experience, guiding us toward a life of purpose and discernment according to God’s will.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations.

Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Through the mission gifts of people like you, LHF translates, publishes, distributes and introduces books that are Bible-based, Christ-centered and Reformation-driven. Learn more at lhfmissions.org.

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Proverbs 7

Warning Against the Adulteress

7 My son, keep my words
and treasure up my commandments with you;
² keep my commandments and live;
keep 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 insight your intimate friend,
⁵ to keep you from the forbidden^[a] woman,
from the adulteress^[b] with her smooth words.

⁶ For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
⁷ and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
⁸ passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
⁹ in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.

¹⁰ And behold, the woman meets him,
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.^[c]
11 She is loud and wayward;
her feet do not stay at home;
¹² now in the street, now in the market,
and at every corner she lies in wait.
¹³ She seizes him and kisses him,
and with bold face she says to him,
¹⁴ “I had to offer sacrifices,^[d]
and today I have paid my vows;
¹⁵ so now I have come out to meet you,
to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.
¹⁶ I have spread my couch with coverings,
colored linens from Egyptian linen;
¹⁷ I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.
¹⁸ Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
let us delight ourselves with love.
¹⁹ For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey;
²⁰ he took a bag of money with him;
at full moon he will come home.”

²¹ With much seductive speech she persuades him;
with her smooth talk she compels him.
²² All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast^[e]
23 till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
he does not know that it will cost him his life.

²⁴ And now, O sons, listen to me,
and be attentive to the words of my mouth.
²⁵ Let not your heart turn aside to her ways;
do not stray into her paths,
²⁶ for many a victim has she laid low,
and all her slain are a mighty throng.
²⁷ Her house is the way to Sheol,
going down to the chambers of death.

Footnotes

1. Proverbs 7:5 Hebrew strange
2. Proverbs 7:5 Hebrew the foreign woman
3. Proverbs 7:10 Hebrew guarded in heart
4. Proverbs 7:14 Hebrew peace offerings
5. Proverbs 7:22 Probable reading (compare Septuagint, Vulgate, Syriac); Hebrew as a chain to discipline a fool

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. esv.org