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Perilous Preoccupation Proverbs Reflection

Read

6From the window of my house,

I once happened to see

7some foolish young men.

8It was late in the evening,

sometime after dark.

9One of these young men

turned the corner

and was walking by the house

of an unfaithful wife.

10She was dressed fancy

like a woman of the street

with only one thing in mind.

11She was one of those women

who are loud and restless

and never stay at home,

12who walk street after street,

waiting to trap a man.

13She grabbed him and kissed him,

and with no sense of shame,

she said:

14“I had to offer a sacrifice,

and there is enough meat

left over for a feast.

15So I came looking for you,

and here you are!

16The sheets on my bed

are bright-colored cloth

from Egypt.

17And I have covered it

with perfume made of myrrh,

aloes, and cinnamon.

18“Let's go there

and make love all night.

19My husband is traveling,

and he's far away.

20He took a lot of money along,

and he won't be back home

before the middle

of the month.”

21And so, she tricked him

with all of her sweet talk

and her flattery.

22At once he followed her

like an ox on the way

to be slaughtered,

or like a fool on the way

to be punished

23and killed with arrows.

He was no more than a bird

rushing into a trap,

without knowing

it would cost him his life.

24My son, pay close attention

to what I have said.

25Don't even think about

that kind of woman

or let yourself be misled

by someone like her.

26Such a woman has caused

the downfall and destruction

of a lot of men.

27Her house is a one-way street

leading straight down

to the world of the dead.

Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®) © 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
See this passage in other languages or Bible versions

Reflect

I wish the peril was down the street or around the corner from our homes. Those days are long gone. Now, it is as close as the computer you are sitting at or the phone in your son’s or daughter’s pocket.

It is deeply disturbing to see the growing trend in our society. There is a growing movement right now for “soft porn” targeting middle aged women—these books are on the best sellers list. The battle is not just for youth.

I have been raising three sons for 25 years now; my youngest is twenty years old.

Raising boys or girls to grow up to be people who love God and seek to live a life that reflects the heart of Christ is no small task.

The Scriptures are not silent about seduction. In this passage a clear and unapologetic instruction goes out to the youth. The calculated tactics of seductive people are laid out as is the cost of yielding to their perilous invitation. The path that is being offered is poison to the soul. It rots in us like gangrene in a wound. It destroys slowly but surely.

James 1:5 tells us that any who lack wisdom can ask God and he is not stingy with it. That is good news! I have done a lot of asking over the years. Prayer along with open and honest conversation with our children is our strategy.

We are told to fix our eyes on Christ. We are also told that Christ provides for us a way of escape in temptation. “He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” (1 Cor.10:13b NIV)

Respond

Heavenly Father, you promise me that you provide a way of escape when the path is treacherous. I ask you for eyes to see the way provided and the strength to take it. I need you in my life and the life of my family every day and at every moment. Amen.

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Donna Dyck

Donna and her husband Bill are parents of 4 adult children and have 9 grandchildren. They have been pastoring at Toronto Alliance church for 28 years. Donna has written 2 books, Confessions of a Not So Average Girl and Confessions of an Unlikely Pastors wife. She has spoken at many conferences, seminars, and events over the years. She and her husband have just written a Devotional called Hope for an Unwanted Journey which will be published soon and is for parents, especially those who are walking through the valley of addiction or mental illness with their loved ones.

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