(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)
(Proverbs 7:1-27)
1 My son, keep my words
And treasure my commandments within you.
2 Keep my commandments and live,
And 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 understanding your intimate friend,
5 So that they may keep you from an adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the naive,
And discerned among the youths
A young man lacking sense,
8 Passing through the street near her corner;
And he walks along the way to her house,
9 In the twilight, in the evening,
In the middle of the night and the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
Dressed as a prostitute and cunning of heart.
11 She is boisterous and rebellious,
Her feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now in the public squares,
And lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him,
And with a brazen face she says to him:
14 “I was due to offer peace offerings;
Today I have paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence diligently, and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with coverings,
With colored linens of Egypt.
17 I have sprinkled my bed
With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning;
Let’s delight ourselves with caresses.
19 For my husband is not at home;
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a bag of money with him.
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hurries to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me,
And pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways,
Do not stray into her paths.
26 For many are the victims she has brought to ruin,
And numerous are all those slaughtered by her.
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,
Descending to the chambers of death.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
And treasure my commandments within you.
2 Keep my commandments and live,
And 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 understanding your intimate friend,
5 So that they may keep you from an adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the naive,
And discerned among the youths
A young man lacking sense,
8 Passing through the street near her corner;
And he walks along the way to her house,
9 In the twilight, in the evening,
In the middle of the night and the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
Dressed as a prostitute and cunning of heart.
11 She is boisterous and rebellious,
Her feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now in the public squares,
And lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him,
And with a brazen face she says to him:
14 “I was due to offer peace offerings;
Today I have paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence diligently, and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with coverings,
With colored linens of Egypt.
17 I have sprinkled my bed
With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning;
Let’s delight ourselves with caresses.
19 For my husband is not at home;
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a bag of money with him.
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hurries to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me,
And pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways,
Do not stray into her paths.
26 For many are the victims she has brought to ruin,
And numerous are all those slaughtered by her.
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,
Descending to the chambers of death.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
Notice in verses 10 to 14, evil lurks and looks for us and tries to find opportunities to entice us with lies, trying to look good and wholesome. It is not good. It never is. And if there is a temporary moment of "satisfaction," just know that it will only drag a person down.
When we live for ourselves, we will only think of the temporal - what feels good in the moment. Even striving for riches, power or fame is temporal, because this life is fleeting when you put it into perspective and see it within the realm of eternity. But when we seek God and put Him and His will first in our lives, besides eternal life, the Lord will protect us, as well as lead us into a life of blessings, fulfillment and true satisfaction.
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