Proverbs 5

"He dies for lack of discipline, and because of his great folly he is led astray"Proverbs 5:23. The heart of this chapter is concerned with adultery and lust. This is the first time in this book where we see a depiction and warning about a specific event in life as told by the intro to the book. I find it interesting that this is the first target of Proverbs, perhaps signaling the message's importance.

Here, the word acknowledges the temptation and pull that lust has, "For the lips of a forbidden woman drop honey, and her speech is smoother than oil"Proverbs 5:3. It is the "easy" option to give in to sin, thats the whole pointI think its important to note that while the Bible goes after the "adultress", the same lessons must also be applied in the other direction. But, as we saw all the way back in Proverbs 1, it is imperative to stay on the righteous path. "Keep your way far from her"Proverbs 5:8 the text claims, and protect your character and honor. "Drink water from your own cistern"Proverbs 5:9, be self-contained in your journey with God, do not waste anything on those that are not deserving. Instead, "Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth"Proverbs 5:18. Your love and intimacy is special and it should be respected as such. To "know" someone is sacred, and is not meant for any man or woman that treats it less than that.

The last few parts of this chapter are interesting to me: "The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin"Proverbs 5:22. While clearly Proverbs 5 deals mainly with adultery and lust, the overarching message that we've seen so far is still abundantly clear: sinning is easy and can only be defeated through discipline and love for God. We are not meant to overcome sin alone, it is a snare meant to trap us. It is only with the help of the Lord that we escape what brings us down.