Chapter 6 deals with three enemies that can destroy a person financially, physically, morally, or spiritually: unwise financial commitments (vv. 1–5), laziness (vv. 6–11), and lust (vv. 20–35). It is not unusual for one person to be guilty of all three, because laziness and lust often go together; people who can easily be pressured into putting up security for somebody can be pressured into doing other foolish things, including committing adultery. “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt. 6:21).
We will consider Proverbs 6:1–11 in our study of wealth and work. Verses 12–19 will be included in chapter 5, in our study of “the wicked people” mentioned in the Book of Proverbs. In verses 20–35, Solomon deals with adultery and points out what people will lose who commit this heinous sin.
They lose the Word of God (vv. 20–24). In chapters 5–7, each of the warnings against adultery is prefaced by an admonition to pay attention to the Word of God (5:1–2; 6:20–24; 7:1–5). It is by our trusting and obeying His truth that God keeps us from believing the enemy’s lies. Certainly children have the obligation to honor their father and mother (6:20; see 1:8), and God’s children have the responsibility and privilege of bringing glory to their Father’s name. “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge” (Heb. 13:4, NKJV).
The Word should be bound to the heart (Ps. 119:11), because the heart is “the wellspring of life” (Prov. 4:23, NIV). God’s truth should also control the neck, because a man might be tempted to turn his head and look at a beautiful woman for the purpose of lusting (Matt. 5:27–30). He may not be able to avoid seeing the woman the first time, but it’s looking the second time that gets him into trouble.
The Word of God in the mind and heart is like a guide who leads us on the safe path and protects us from attacks. It’s also like a friend who talks to us and counsels us along the way (Prov. 6:22). We walk in the light because the Word is a lamp (v. 23; Ps. 119:105, 130). If we listen to God’s voice in His Word, we won’t fall for the enemy’s flattery (Prov. 6:24).
Read 1 John 1:5–10 and note that “walking in the light” assures us of hearing the Word of God, while “walking in darkness” causes us to lose His Word. If we disobey Him, we don’t do the truth (1 John 1:6), we don’t have the truth (v.
, and His Word is not in us (v. 10). There is a gradual erosion of the spiritual life, from light to darkness, and with this erosion comes a deterioration of Christian character.They lose wealth (vv. 25–26). This parallels 5:7–14, and see 29:3. To be “brought to a piece of bread” means to be degraded to the lowest level of poverty (see Luke 15:13–16, 30). If the adultery results in scandal, a lawsuit, and a divorce, the price will not be cheap; in this day of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, the adulterer is taking chances with his health and his life.
They lose enjoyment (vv. 27–31). Fire is a good thing if it’s confined and controlled. It can keep us warm, cook our food, drive our turbines, and manufacture our electricity. Sex is a good gift from God but, like fire, if it gets out of control, it becomes destructive. What begins as a “warm” experience soon becomes a burning experience, like holding a torch in your lap or walking on burning coals.
“But sex is a normal desire, given to us by God,” some people argue. “Therefore, we have every right to use it, even if we’re not married. It’s like eating: If you’re hungry, God gave you food to eat; if you’re lonely, God gave you sex to enjoy.” Some of the people in the Corinthian church used this argument to defend their sinful ways: “Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods” (1 Cor. 6:13, NKJV). But Paul made it clear that the believer’s body belonged to God and that the presence of a desire wasn’t the same as the privilege to satisfy that desire (vv. 12–20).
Solomon used a similar approach in Proverbs 6:30–31. Certainly hunger is a strong force in human life, and the only way to satisfy hunger is to eat, but if you steal the bread that you eat, you’re breaking the law. You’ll end up paying more for that bread than if you’d gone out and bought a loaf at the bakery. As you sit in jail or stand in court, the enjoyment you had from that bread will soon be forgotten.
Adultery is stealing. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality … and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter” (1 Thes. 4:3, 6, NASB). When adultery enters a marriage, everybody loses.
They lose their good sense (v. 32). King David was a brilliant strategist on the battlefield and a wise ruler on the throne, but he lost his common sense when he gazed at his neighbor’s wife and lusted for her (2 Sam. 12). He was sure he could get away with his sin, but common sense would have told him he was wrong. Every stratagem David used to implicate Bathsheba’s husband failed, so he ended up having the man killed. Surely David knew that we reap what we sow, and reap he did, right in the harvest field of his own family.
They lose their peace (vv. 33–35). The angry husband will use every means possible to avenge himself, for a loving husband would rather that his neighbor steal his money than steal his wife. “For love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame” (Song 8:6, NIV). The offender will have no peace, and no amount of money he offers the husband will be accepted. The adulterer loses his reputation in the community and might actually suffer physical punishment. Of course, he and the woman were supposed to be stoned to death (Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22), but we’re not sure this penalty was always exacted.
In today’s society, if a person has enough money and “clout,” he or she might be able to survive an adulterous scandal, but life is still never quite the same. Whether in this life or the next, sinners can be sure that their sins will find them out. Indulging in sexual sin is always a losing proposition.
I HOPE YOU ENJOYED AND RECEIVED FROM THIS DEEP STUDY.
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PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM