Posted on 03/05/2019 6:33:02 AM PST by Pilgrim's Progress
“Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them” (Proverbs 5:6 KJV).
“Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established” (Proverbs 4:26 KJV).
The strange woman staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t even realize where it leads. Her ways are never established. Our verse says such a woman never knows this way: she is “unstable”, undependable, and has nothing that she can hold onto.
“Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life,” provides the reader with a choice. At this point, he still has a chance to consider a way to get out of her hands and ways, and escape death, and obtain eternal life. This is the young man standing at a crossroads. To the left is a broad way, to the right is the narrow way. Salvation is free and available to all, but a choice must be made. It is a choice between a horrible pit, in the miry clay and a solid foundation—a rock. Otherwise man is on the slippery slope facing a chasm from which no man can return.
“. . . her ways are moveable,” she appears in different shapes; changes her dress and habitation; makes use of a thousand arts to ensnare men, to entangle their affections, and retain them in her nets; she first puts them upon one thing, and then on another; she leads them into various mazes and labyrinths of sin, till they have lost all sense of religion, and sight of the path of life. Truly, sin is a chameleon.
“. . . that thou canst not know them,” he knows about her, at least as much as she is willing to reveal about herself; but of her strategies, gimmicks, and tricks he is totally ignorant. To escape her clutches requires effort which he just doesn’t feel inclined to spend. He is not only foolish, but Solomon tells us in other places, he is lazy. To free oneself of her hold requires much soul-searching and an honest examination of one’s life. It is required that the man calculate the future results of his present predicament. But all he can see is what his starry eyes see—lust falsely renamed love—he believes that this woman has his best interests at heart, and his mind is clouded to the degree that he can not see the whole trap being set.
PONDER this chapter—you that know not the poison and corruption of fleshly lusts. Such is the picture of sin. Its "pleasure is but for a season;" "its wages death eternal." The result is a loss of honor, and quite possibly an immediate death, should the family or spouse of the woman seek their rightful duty, and certainly eternal damnation if one remains a traveler on the broad path which leads to destruction and rejects God's provision for salvation.
Let’s read a chapter of Proverbs a day and see what God might have for us. As the Lord leads, share with us what God has shown you in a special way and by His grace let us build up a devotional repository. Let’s keep our knives and forks handy for some daily bread!
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Go figure. I read the Proverbs all the time after my pop died when I was 14.
They were of great comfort.
Then I dont know. I guess I got “too busy” or “too sophisticated’, the curse that life and higher education bestows upon you if you let it.
I DON’T EVEN HAVE TO OPEN A BOOK ANYMORE!!
I’m sure they’re all right here on this laptop on some website.
“But I got MORE IMPORTANT THINGS to do than read these things. And I’m too cynical now anyway.”
I am sure I’m not the only nitwit to rationalize this way.
It’ very hard to un-rationalize your way back.
Then go on about your life, mindful that an answer, a communication of some kind, is on its way.
Any time you can drop in and read the daily verse, perhaps you’ll find a little comfort in your busy day. Often when I feel like I’ve gotten away from God I will wonder where He is, but He always seems to say . . . “Right here! Where you left Me!”
He’s never hard to find!
Not judging a person. A great final touch to your great post!
Many would have simply said “Fine. You’re going to hell though.”
I shall read some today and honestly, my life isn’t that busy anymore so there’s no reason not to read them.
Amazing how people 2,000 years plus ago, had the same emotions and fears and hope that we have today.
You’ll make me guilty of the sin of pride with that comment :)
Yeah it’s actually the UTTERLY timeless ability of the Bible to apply to every person of every generation that is the strongest proof to me that it is the Word of God.
Mere men couldn’t be so accurate in addressing our nature.
Especially when you get into the areas of biblical prophecy and the things that are still future, the Bible reads very much like our daily newspaper for current events and relevancy.
I began years ago to read about future things with the Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsay. Much of what he says is as current as can be.
God, the Holy Spirit, is the Author of the scriptures—yet He used human beings to write it down with all their foibles, emotional highs and lows, and human experiences. Even Jesus, our great High Priest is able to empathize with His people because He went through most of what we have.
“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:14-16 KJV).
James even tells us that Elias was a man of “like passions” as we, and I believe that is true for all the humans that God used to pen the Word.
It is God telling us, “Hey! You are not alone!”
You wonder which folks were touched by God and which folks just had great insight.
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