God, Solomon, and Mary Poppins – Proverbs 7-9

Joy: You’re listening to Season 2 of the Lifting Her Voice podcast.  This is Episode #196 and today we’ll read Proverbs 7-9 together.   We’re going to take these cues from God, Solomon, and Mary Poppins.  

Welcome

Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Season 2!  I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me – from the beginning – simply reading God’s word together.  We built some spiritual muscles in 2020 with just the New Testament.  But this year we’re going all out, cover-to-cover, Old Testament and New.  So, whether with your first cup in the morning, your commute to work, or as the last thing on your mind before sleep, God’s Word will equip you for every good work.  I’m really glad you’re here!

Proverbs 7

My son, obey my words,

and treasure my commands.

Keep my commands and live,

and guard my instructions

as you would the pupil of your eye.

Tie them to your fingers;

write them on the tablet of your heart.

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”

and call understanding your relative.

She will keep you from a forbidden woman,

a wayward woman with her flattering talk.

A Story of Seduction

At the window of my house

I looked through my lattice.

I saw among the inexperienced,

I noticed among the youths,

a young man lacking sense.

Crossing the street near her corner,

he strolled down the road to her house

at twilight, in the evening,

in the dark of the night.

A woman came to meet him

dressed like a prostitute,

having a hidden agenda.

She is loud and defiant;

her feet do not stay at home.

Now in the street, now in the squares,

she lurks at every corner.

She grabs him and kisses him;

she brazenly says to him,

“I’ve made fellowship offerings;

today I’ve fulfilled my vows.

So I came out to meet you,

to search for you, and I’ve found you.

I’ve spread coverings on my bed —

richly colored linen from Egypt.

I’ve perfumed my bed

with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

Come, let’s drink deeply of lovemaking until morning.

Let’s feast on each other’s love!

My husband isn’t home;

he went on a long journey.

He took a bag of silver with him

and will come home at the time of the full moon.”

She seduces him with her persistent pleading;

she lures with her flattering talk.

He follows her impulsively

like an ox going to the slaughter,

like a deer bounding toward a trap

until an arrow pierces its liver,

like a bird darting into a snare —

he doesn’t know it will cost him his life.

Now, sons, listen to me,

and pay attention to the words from my mouth.

Don’t let your heart turn aside to her ways;

don’t stray onto her paths.

For she has brought many down to death;

her victims are countless.

Her house is the road to Sheol,

descending to the chambers of death.

Proverbs 8

Wisdom’s Appeal

Doesn’t wisdom call out?

Doesn’t understanding make her voice heard?

At the heights overlooking the road,

at the crossroads, she takes her stand.

Beside the gates leading into the city,

at the main entrance, she cries out:

“People, I call out to you;

my cry is to the children of Adam.

Learn to be shrewd, you who are inexperienced;

develop common sense, you who are foolish.

Listen, for I speak of noble things,

and what my lips say is right.

For my mouth tells the truth,

and wickedness is detestable to my lips.

All the words from my mouth are righteous;

none of them are deceptive or perverse.

All of them are clear to the perceptive,

and right to those who discover knowledge.

Accept my instruction instead of silver,

and knowledge rather than pure gold.

For wisdom is better than jewels,

and nothing desirable can equal it.

I, wisdom, share a home with shrewdness

and have knowledge and discretion.

To fear the Lord is to hate evil.

I hate arrogant pride, evil conduct,

and perverse speech.

I possess good advice and sound wisdom;

I have understanding and strength.

It is by me that kings reign

and rulers enact just law;

by me, princes lead,

as do nobles and all righteous judges.

I love those who love me,

and those who search for me find me.

With me are riches and honor,

lasting wealth and righteousness.

My fruit is better than solid gold,

and my harvest than pure silver.

I walk in the ways of righteousness,

along the paths of justice,

giving wealth as an inheritance to those who love me,

and filling their treasuries.

Listen to Instruction and be Wise

“The Lord acquired me

at the beginning of his creation,

before his works of long ago.

I was formed before ancient times,

from the beginning, before the earth began.

I was born

when there were no watery depths

and no springs filled with water.

Before the mountains were established,

prior to the hills, I was given birth —

before he made the land, the fields,

or the first soil on earth.

I was there when he established the heavens,

when he laid out the horizon on the surface of the ocean,

when he placed the skies above,

when the fountains of the ocean gushed out,

when he set a limit for the sea

so that the waters would not violate his command,

when he laid out the foundations of the earth.

I was a skilled craftsman beside him.

I was his delight every day,

always rejoicing before him.

I was rejoicing in his inhabited world,

delighting in the children of Adam.

“And now, sons, listen to me;

those who keep my ways are happy.

Listen to instruction and be wise;

don’t ignore it.

Anyone who listens to me is happy,

watching at my doors every day,

waiting by the posts of my doorway.

For the one who finds me finds life

and obtains favor from the Lord,

but the one who misses me harms himself;

all who hate me love death.”

Proverbs 9

Wisdom versus Foolishness

Wisdom has built her house;

she has carved out her seven pillars.

She has prepared her meat; she has mixed her wine;

she has also set her table.

She has sent out her female servants;

she calls out from the highest points of the city:

“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here!”

To the one who lacks sense, she says,

“Come, eat my bread,

and drink the wine I have mixed.

Leave inexperience behind, and you will live;

pursue the way of understanding.

The one who corrects a mocker

will bring abuse on himself;

the one who rebukes the wicked will get hurt.

Don’t rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you;

rebuke the wise, and he will love you.

Instruct the wise, and he will be wiser still;

teach the righteous, and he will learn more.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,

and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

For by me your days will be many,

and years will be added to your life.

If you are wise, you are wise for your own benefit;

if you mock, you alone will bear the consequences.”

Folly is a rowdy woman;

she is gullible and knows nothing.

She sits by the doorway of her house,

on a seat at the highest point of the city,

calling to those who pass by,

who go straight ahead on their paths:

“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here!”

To the one who lacks sense, she says,

“Stolen water is sweet,

and bread eaten secretly is tasty!”

But he doesn’t know that the departed spirits are there,

that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

Close

It’s interesting to me that so much of these chapters in Proverbs are spent on the avoidance of adultery.  Let’s face it.  Commitment today is something of a fluid concept.  And a marriage vow, in many cases, turns out to be what Mary Poppins referred to as a pie crust promise…easily made; easily broken.

Solomon started yesterday back in Chapter 5, verses 15-20, where he places such a high value on the benefits found in marriage.  It’s such a blessing!  He even ends the passage by asking why anyone would want to throw that away?  I hope that passage causes all of us to take a step back and to look our spouse through God’s eyes, to see him or her as a gift not to be shared with anyone.  

I love my husband dearly.  He completes me.  He is, without exception, the most disciplined person I know.  Some might say he is rigid.  But I know it’s the result of his incredible integrity.  Neither of those qualities were present in me when Mitch found me.  Everything I know about discipline and integrity, I’ve learned from him and God knew how much I needed him.  I will never drink from anyone else’s well…how foolish that would be.  

There’s so much more here!  I love how Solomon personifies wisdom.  Share your thoughts with me at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

See You Tomorrow!

Thank you for joining me here today.  I pray that by spending time in His Word every day, you will by changed.  Visit me at Lifting Her Voice.com with your comments and questions.  And don’t forget to visit the Blog page while you’re there.  If you like the podcast, it would be great if you’d give it a five-star review and share it with everyone you know.  Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.  See you tomorrow!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.