Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets?  Let them be yours alone And not for strangers with you. Proverbs 5:16-17

Part of sexually sane living is realizing what is at risk when we begin having sex outside the bounds of our marriage.  Here we have a reference to where our seed as men will go when we decide to begin committing adultery. 

The father tells his son not to have his springs dispersed abroad - like streams of water in the streets.  The picture here is how a man's seed should be kept for his wife - and only his wife.  When a man begins committing adultery and resorting to women who do the same, he is risking pregnancy with a woman who is not his wife.  Unfortunately we have myriad examples of this in our current day.  Men, who do not care with whom they have sex, wind up impregnating women who are not their wives.  Thus their seed is like a spring dispersed abroad - like water in the streets.  The result is a society where there are illegitimate children running around - without fathers.  A man who does such things is a man who will have his name and his reputation damaged over time.  Since he does not care for the children properly they tend to go astray and to cause problems.  When people learn that they are the illegitimate children of a man - that man's name suffers greatly - as do the children whom he has sired - but does not rear for God.

God says to let our seed by ours alone - and not something that is shared with strangers.  God intended for a man and a woman to be married, then to share in sexual intercourse.  It was never His intention or will that men should have multiple children with multiple wives.  This creates very serious problems over time.  It causes problems for the family - for the husband and wife - for their children - and for the child who is uncared for by a father later in life.  There is also the problem of what happens to the woman who is used in this way.  Quite often this woman grows very bitter and angry at the man who has used her for sex - but is unwilling to commit to her . . . or to her child. 

God knows the damage that comes from ignoring His Word and the principles upon which it is based.  This is multiplied many times over when a man fathers illegitimately.  Unfortunately most men do not even consider such things - they are looking only for the pleasure of the moment rather than thinking about the long-term affects of their immorality.  That is why it is left to godly fathers to warn their sons of such things.  May we be wise and do such things with our sons and daughters - to hopefully promote a little more sexual sanity in our world.  

"I was almost in utter ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation." Proverbs 5:14

This is the final statement made by the one who is lamenting their sexual sin of adultery.  It is filled with a tremendous amount of regret - and yet even in this cry of horror over sin, there is hope for those who will be instructed by it.

First we have a warning to those who think that adultery and sexual sin only inhabit the world outside the church.  This person - David - said that he was almost to the point of utter ruin in the midst of the assembly and congregation.  To think that the devil, the flesh, and the world only are problems for those outside the church is to set yourself up for ruin. 

David experienced these things "IN THE MIDST OF THE ASSEMBLY AND CONGREGATION."  Oh, how we need to take heed from this statement that we are not beyond the reach of sin just because we go to church.  The fact is that we are WELL WITHIN THE REACH OF SIN no matter where we are on earth.  David unfortunately forgot this as he walked upon the roof of his house in Jerusalem.  He forgot that it was the time when kings should be going out to war.  He forgot that even if he was king - he needed to be doing God's bidding rather than his own.  He forgot that being lazy and undisciplined will cost us in the end.  He forgot that being in the wrong place at the wrong time - will lead to wrong actions.

God never promises to us a "place" where we can be safe from all temptation and sin.  There is NO place on earth where this exists.  No matter where you go on earth - there will be temptation and there will be a need to draw near to God and look to Him for protection.  There is only a "person" of safety - and that is the Lord our God.  When we draw near to Him we find deliverance and safety.  When we walk with Him and turn to Him - we are with the Only One Who can deliver us from all our temptations and sins.  If David had remembered this he would have realized that he was in far greater danger at home without the presence of God in his life - than if he were in the midst of a fierce battle with God there within. 

The one thing that grants me hope in reading this verse is the word "almost."  One would think that David would have been utterly ruined by his adultery.  Please do not misunderstand that he was going to have to pay a very heavy price before this was over.  He would lose no less than 4 children in this situation.  He would have 10 concubines raped by his own son in broad daylight in front of all Israel.  His kingdom would be divided and many would lose their lives in battles that would ensue.  The losses would be huge - and yet it was "almost" utter ruin. 

God offers grace and forgiveness even in the most horrible of situations.  David took advantage of this grace and fell upon the mercies of God in the end.  God would forgive him and restore him to the joy of his salvation.  Truly this is one of the most amazing stories of mercy and grace in all the Scriptures.  Yet, David, in offering this glimmer of hope in the midst of his cry of despair still is warning us - pleading with us to remember him.  He is pleading with us to remember the high cost of adultery and unfaithfulness to God's call for purity in our lives.  May we see both the warning and the wonder of this passage.  A warning against adultery and sexual sin - and the wonder of God's grace and forgiveness that can save us even in the worst of sitautions and circumstances.

He will not accept any ransom, Nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts. Proverbs 6:35

Adultery is always stupid.  There is no amount of money or ransom that a man will accept for the love and purity of his wife.  God gave us marriage and is the very essence of love - and bequeathed to us the gift of loving someone else.  One of the most wonderful expressions of His love is seen when a man and woman commit to one another in marriage.  That picture is used in Ephesians 5 to show the love of Christ for His church.  The love that exists in marriage is supposed to be very strong - and thus breaking it is not something that can be paid back by any amount of money.

We read in Song of Solomon 8:6-7 these words that will help us understand why there is no ransom for adultery.  "Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flashes are flashes of fire, The very flame of the LORD. Many waters cannot quench love, Nor will rivers overflow it; If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love, It would be utterly despised."  Love is as strong as death - that is why often a divorce is described as being as devastating as a death in a family.  Love is as powerful as death, jealousy is like death, and again is described as like "flashes of fire" and "the very flame of Jehovah."  These are not light, fluffy passing descriptions.  They are powerful and honestly, frightening!  When you choose to love someone and commit to them for life in marriage, this is the power that is released.  That is why no ransom will be accepted for adultery - no gift will seem appropriate.  We read in Song of Solomon that if a man were to give all the riches of his house for love - the one offered the money would utterly despise the offer.  Love is more powerful than ANY amount of money ever offered. 

Unfortunately, a movie I know of but have not seen, illustrates our point.  The move was called, "Indecent Proposal."  I would NOT encourage anyone to see it - so I will describe what I've read about it.  In the movie a young couple are given an indecent proposal by a rich man to pay them $1,000,000 for the wife to commit adultery once with him.  After weighing what they could do with that much money, they unwisely agree to this indecent proposal.  The wife commits adultery and they are paid the money.  But the film examines the carnage that follows as, you guessed it, jealousy begins enraging this man over what has happened.  Just like it says in Song of Solomon - no amount of money is worth love.  Any amount is utterly despised.  The man comes to realize too late that the purity and sanctity of their relationship is not worth any sum of money - not even a million dollars.  Even a ransom of that enormous amount is something despised and abhorred by a husband and wife.  Thus when one partner sins for usually far less, it is a foolish choice indeed that they are making.  They are selling out their vows for nothing more than a fleeting promise of forbidden pleasure.  What they will pay in the end would make them recoil from such actions.  The problem is that "in the moment" they do not think, nor do they reason with any kind of biblical or moral judgment.  They destroy themselves and their marriage in a bid for the illusive promise of a night of passionate pleasure.  What they most likely do not know is that the indulgence will cost them more than they could ever imagine.  This is why, dear saints, Adultery is always stupid.

For jealousy enrages a man, And he will not spare in the day of vengeance. Proverbs 6:34

Adultery is always stupid.  This is never more clearly seen than in the reality of the reaction of the husband who has learned that his wife has committed adultery with another man.  His reaction toward that man is predictable.  He reacts with jealousy - in fact what is written here is that he reacts with enraged jealousy.

Jealousy, which is referred to in this proverb, is the Hebrew word "qinah."  This word means zeal or jealousy.  It describes an intense passion and fervor.  It describes an emotion that is greater than wrath or anger.  Scripture calls this jealousy a rottenness in a man's bones (Prov. 14:30).  It is used to speak of a spirit of jealousy that comes upon a man in Numbers 25:11.  But the frightening description of this word is that it is used of God's zeal which He has toward his own people - and which He has for accomplishing His own will and purpose.  The word is used six different times to speak of the way God's wrath is expressed in judgment.  This is a strong word - and is made even stronger by the fact that it is used in connection with the word, "enrages."  This word is the Hebrew word "hemah" and it means wrath or heat.  It signifies great fury, anger, indignation, poison , or rage.  When put together these two words create quite a terrifying description of the emotions that come over a man who learns of an adulterer seeking to destroy his relationship with his wife. 

This enraged jealousy moves this man to seek the maximum penalty for adultery.  I've watched this in court battles and divorces.  The injured party, when given over to this enraged jealousy, wants to make the other person pay everything possible.  There is a desire for them to truly pay the highest price possible for their indiscretion.  They want a "day of vengeance."  That is why adultery is always stupid.  It always injures someone - and makes for emotions that rival any in life.  The wise man sees this and realizes that no promise of sexual pleasure will ever match the release of rage, anger, and wrath that will come when their deeds become known. 

Men do not despise a thief if he steals To satisfy himself when he is hungry; But when he is found, he must repay sevenfold; He must give all the substance of his house. Proverbs 6:30-31

Adultery is always stupid.  In fact adultery here is being called dumber than stealing.  We are offered a comparison between these two sins - and in the end, adultery is considered the worse of the two.

This passage is interesting, because although it does compare stealing and adultery, it does not condone either.  The comparison is to how the theif is viewed vs. the view of the adulterer.  The thief is actually shown compassion, especially if his stealing is due to being hungry.  The passage tells us that a thief is not despised if he steals to satisfy his own hunger.  We all understand hunger and the drive to satisfy our appetite when we have not eaten in a while.  The thing about this proverb though is that after saying this - we are brought back to justice.  If caught though, the thief will have to repay sevenfold for what he has stolen.  This is the case even if the thief has to given everything in his house to pay that debt.  There is mercy toward his situation - but not mercy toward the actions he took to remedy it. 

But the adulterer is by default NOT given the same grace.  We all probably know lust as well - but to actually go out and take another man's wife to satisfy it is wickedness.  The adultery is also guilty of stealing - stealing the sanctity of another man's marriage.  He is stealing another man's wife - taking her affections - and taking from him the vows that were made to him in the sight of God.  This is not viewed with a gracious attitude here.  Whereas a thief is not despised for his actions to alleviate his hunger - the adultery IS despised for taking another man's wife.  If justice falls on the hungry man for his stolen food, how much more will God's justice fall on the adultery for stealing the sacredness of marriage and a home?  There is going to be a cost - and that cost is high. 

Ask David and Bathsheba what that cost involves.  They will tell you that the cost far outweighs the pleasure of the moment.  Ask David's family who also paid a high price for the attitude toward marriage and sexuality that was unfortunately passed in that family?  Ask Samson if it was worthy his two eyes to commit sexual sin and satisfy his lusts in ungodly ways?  Ask the people of Sodom and Gomorrah whether it was worth it to despise God's plan for marriage and go their own way?  These are all examples of those who had to pay - and some pay with the very substance of their house.  Adultery costs - and to think that we can get around that cost is ignorant.  That is why dear saints, "Adultery is always stupid."

The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense; He who would destroy himself does it. Proverbs 6:32

This passage deals with the stupidity of committing adultery, plain and simple.  Several years ago Randy Alcorn wrote a book called, "The Purity Principle."  In it I felt that Alcorn made a statement that is one for the ages.  "Purity is always smart, impurity is always stupid."  That is what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us today in Proverbs.  "The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense."  This is a very genteel way of saying what Alcorn said.  We could restate his principle by saying that faithfulness in marriage is always good, adultery is always stupid. 

The actual words used here are the ones that are used often in Proverbs.  The one who commits adultery with a woman lacks heart.  We are being told that adultery shows that we have a heart problem more than anything else.  We've allowed our hearts to be captured by lust and sexual immorality rather than by God.  While reading a series of purity prayers I've run into the statement again and again where the puritans asked God to capture their heart so that they would not be satisfied by trifling affections.  The heart can be captured in this way - and given to things that are so far less than what God wants to give us.  The truth is what He wants to give us in Himself.  We settle for so much less and so less fulfilling things than Him.  And that is what the fool has done - he has settled for adultery rather than finding in God and in His provision of his wife true fulfillment.

We are also warned in this passage that, ". . . he who would destroy himself does it."  The literal Hebrew says that the destruction is in this man's soul.  He finds his mind strangely drawn and lied to by the enticements of the adulterous woman.  He finds his emotions stimulated by a false love and false promises of intimacy and pleasure.  As he foolishly begins to embrace these thoughts and these concepts he also begins to lose the war within his will to continue in God's ways and in God's path.  Soon he gives in to the onslaught that is coming toward his soul.  He no longer lives out of his spirit - where the Spirit of God would give him strength to resist and overcome temptation - but instead allows himself to be taken over by his body and its lusts.  As he does this He submits himself to the adultery - and in so doing he "destroys" himself in the process and the sinful choice.  Destroy here is the Hebrew word, "sahat" and it means to spoil, ruin, destroy, pervert, or corrupt.  When you look at these ways of translating this word they all fit this passage - and all take place as this man acts foolishly by committing adultery. 

For the next several days we will look at the terrible consequences and the wise warnings that God gives us in this area.  Remember that this entire conversation is one that takes place between a man and his sons.  How wise we would be to have this kind of conversation with our sons as they get older and begin to face the temptations of this present world.  How wise we would be to also have these kinds of conversations with our adult sons who are married, as well as with our brothers in Christ with whom we share fellowship in God's church.  Since these things are written about so many times in Proverbs - it is a reminder that the wise also warn one another with the very warnings given to us by God.

"They struck me, but I did not become ill; They beat me, but I did not know it. When shall I awake? I will seek another drink."  Proverbs 23:35

The life and times of the drunken fool comes to an end with this last verse.  Yet this last verse as much as any of the others describes perfectly what alcohol can do to someone.  It makes them a fool.  The problem is that they do not know it - nor do they really care.  Their life is spent going from one drunken episode to another - or as we see in today's world - they live from one party to the next.  They are unaware of the real damage that is being done to their lives - and even when it is evident it is worn more as a badge of honor than as what it is - the marks left on a fool in the midst of his pursuit of more and more sensuality.  When this drunken episode and party is over - his thought when he awakens is the next party, the next time he can drink, the next time he can act the fool.

This last verse is the drunken fool speaking to himself.  He is remembering some of his most recent party experiences.  He remembers that someone hit him - but the inebriated deadening of his senses did not remember it.  His thought is that he was not badly injured - or at least not injured enough to be incapacitated.  That is the idea behind the word "ill" here.  It speaks of being ill enough to be weak or incapcitated.  It speaks only of a severe wounding.  Since this drunken fool was not so badly injured that he was laid up for days - he doesn't even consider the fact that he was struck. 

Even worse he repeats this again when he says, "They beat me, but I did not know it."  The first statement was a single blow received from someone.  This second statement speaks of being beaten with multiple blows.  His answer to this is that he did not even know he was being beaten.  I've actually met people who were beaten badly - but did not realize it until someone else told them the next day when they were questioned as to why they had bruises on their body.  What is truly sad is that they laughed about the situation, finding it funny that they were in a serious fight and didn't even know it.  At this point I must also mention another sin of the drunken fool - and that is that some of them beat others.  What I refer to is those drunken fools who beat their wives and their children.  Some of them do not even remember the pain their inflicted on their loved ones while in the midst of their drunken stupor.  The point here is that these fools are so drunk that they do not know what is happening during their beatings. 

The last statement here is the worst of all.  "When shall I awake?  I will seek another drink."  As the drunken fool falls asleep after his binge - he knows that he will wake up eventually.  Does he awaken to seriously consider what he as done - the damage that is in the wake of his indulgent lifestyle?  He does not.  In fact, most alcoholics will blame everyone else for their choices and the havoc that follows in their wake.  Their thought when they awaken is getting another drink.  The literal statement here is this, "I will yet again drink."  His thoughts are dominated by the next party, the next binge, the next over-indulgence, his next drunk.  His life has become his drunkenness - and his desire to drown his miserable life in another bout of partying. 

I know that some of you who read this may be thinking that I am too hard on the drunken fool.  In fact you are pretty offended that I use that term to describe this man or woman.  You prefer calling them an alcoholic - referring to their situation as a social disease rather than a series of foolish choices.  You almost cringe at the strong statements that have been made in this post.  God desires to deliver the drunken fool - and He loves him as He does any other sinner.  But God makes it clear here and elsewhere that drunkenness is not funny, neither is it something we should treat lightly.  God would not spend seven verses in a book that promotes wisdom unless this lifestyle was a breeding ground for fools.  Having been a drunken fool in my past also gives me a pretty clear perspective on this sin.  I know first hand the damage that comes from living this way.  I also know that since I was in high school and college things have gotten progressively worse.  Living in a college town and ministering to college students has made me aware that drunkenness on our campuses is running rampant.  We don't even blink any longer - nor do we weep and pray for those who are caught in these lifestyles.  We just say that they're kids and that is the way that kids act these days.  We shrug our shoulders and walk away.  Yet the damage increases every weekend.  I know because I often deal with the young men and women who ache from it.  Maybe instead of just winking at this - we should begin to fall to our knees and pray that God would so revive His church and restore us.  Maybe we should not just complain and vote for dry counties - but also wade into the world of these young men and women who desperately need Jesus Christ in their lives.  Maybe we should fight drunkenness with the greatest weapons we have in our arsenal - the gospel of Jesus Christ - and the truth of God's Word.  Maybe then we could begin to see a harvest - not of drunken fools - but of redeemed ones who have turned to Jesus Christ and, as a result, have become wise!

Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it goes down smoothly; At the last it bites like a serpent And stings like a viper. Proverbs 23:31-32

As we continue our look at the dangers of alcohol abuse we are warned that wine will look good when we see it.  There is a certain asthetic beauty to a beautiful glass with wine in it.  We see its color and note that it sparkles in the cup.  The alcohol industry does everything that it can to enhance the look of their product.  Beer is sold to us with people pouring it into a glass where we watch the foam grow along with the beer itself in the glass.  Everything is done to make sure that we are enamoured with the sight of this drink.  Consider as well that every commercial that seeks to sell these things is filled with skinny people who all look amazingly good - and voila - they are all drinking what we are supposed to be buying as well.  The secret message to us is that we can look that good too if we drink their beer, wine, or whiskey.  But, the proverb warns us that there is a different experience awaiting us when we actually drink this stuff in abundance. 

We are told the truth here - that alcohol bites like a serpent and stings like a viper.  What we are being alerted to is the effect of the alcohol on our system as we become more and more inebriated with it.  We will find ourselves experiencing a type of poisoning of our system.  Just like a snake and a viper bite will affect our vision and our ability to speak and walk - so also does the imbibing of alcohol.  We will find ourselves strangely affected as this stuff hits our bloodstream and begins inhibiting our brain and physical functions.  I find it somewhat disingenuous that we hear over and over again that alcohol can actually enhance our health.  But what we are NOT told is how alcohol can poison our system and destroy our bodies.  The amount of alcoholic drink we can have to make us healthier (and this is not in every case) is rather small - a small glass of wine often being used as the example.  The problem is that in our party society we are not drinking for our health - we are drinking to party - to lower our inhibitions and help us do things we normally would not do.  But the problems come not just to our mental state - but there are damages that happen to our brain, our kidneys, and our liver when we poison ourselves with too much alcohol. 

As I've said earlier, I was a weekend drunk before I was saved.  That also means that I have had the unfortunate situation of not only being drunk - but also of having a hangover and of being very sick when I poisoned myself wth alcoholic drinks.  To describe what happens when you do this is difficult because it is hard for some to grasp what it might feel like to have multimple sledge hammers converging on the sides of your head while having a stomach ache and a feeling like you are going to throw up.  It is difficult to describe how someone's whisper can sound like someone shouting in your ears.  Yet these things are signs that you are poisoning yourself with the venom of alcohol abuse.  Oh, before I leave this aspect of our current proverb I would like to regale you with what it looks like when someone abuses alcohol for a lifetime.  They die of something called scirosis of the liver.

I was able to lead a man to Christ who had been a drunk his entire life.  He was in his late 40's but looked like he was around 70.  He came to Christ just as he was learning of his condition.  His alcohol abuse had effectively destroyed his liver, which was in the process of shutting down.  He told me to use his situation to warn others to stay away from alcohol and drunkenness.  His body began to turn yellow as it also swelled to about twice its normal size.  As his liver shut down he was blinded by the impurities that were in his blood.  They also began to kill all the other organs in his body.  It was not a pretty death that he died.  That was the lifetime effect of someone who literally drank themselves to death.

The Word of God is trying to warn us of the dangers of alcohol.  If we are wise we will approach alcoholic drinks in a similar way that we would approach drinking Draino or some other kind of known poison.  Just because alcohol will poison us slower than these things is no reason to treat it any less cautiously.  We live in a culture that glories in its alcohol abuse - and does not let us know the backside of this lifestyle.  I've always wanted to cut one commercial for a Super Bowl that would present alcohol truthfully.  It would involve people who are not pretty - drinking alone or even at a party.  We would watch as they drink themselves into a foolish stupor - but the commecial would continue to follow them as they began throwing up uncontrollably.  Then the commercial would end with them waking up the next morning as the sound track would distort with the sound of people talking to them - yet sounding like a bullhorn being used to deafen them.  The tag line on the commercial would be something like this, "People who tell you to drink promise a good time."  At this point the commercial would review the people throwing up uncontrollably and say, "Does this look like a good time?"  A quick shot of someone dying of liver disease in all its horror would come next with the final statement, "Yeah, good times."  That would at least begin to balance the scales just a little with wisdom when it comes to drinking alcoholic drinks and the truth.  Will it ever happen?  What do you think?

Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes?  Those who linger long over wine, Those who go to taste mixed wine.  Proverbs 23:29-30

We are about to read one of the most amazing sections of Proverbs that there is.  These next seven verses are one of the most poignent commentaries on alcohol and drinking that there is in Scripture.  It is also one of the most plain statements against getting drunk.  I am not one who states that the Biblical view is complete abstinence from alcohol - simply because Scripture itself does not state that.  The Bible teaches us to steer clear from getting drunk.  It also warns against lingering long over wine - and I would also argue that the Bible militates against the whole "party culture" that exists in our society today.  My own personal stance is complete abstinence from alcohol.  The reason for this is because I've led at least two men to Christ who were alcoholics.  If I were to drink - and they were to follow my example - there is good reason to be concerned that they would be ruined by my abuse of my freedom in Christ.  Therefore, rather than make my brothers stumble, I will renounce my freedom to have anything to do with alcohol.

This passage though is about abuse of alcohol.  It asks a series of questions that are all rhetorical in nature.  They are this way because they have to do with the consequences of alcohol in someone's life who is abusing it.  Who has woe?  The answer is the alcohol abuser.  Woe means to have a horrific distress.  Take a close look at the drunkard and you will find plenty of woe and sorrow in his life.  There are so many ways that this happens - through broken relationships - through wasted lives - through the regret and horror of the aftermath of a drunken driving accident or arrest.  There is so much sorrow from the immediate consequences - as well as the long term ones that come out of drinking and drunkenness.  But too often men want to make it look as if these are rare consequences rather than the norm of alcohol abuse.

The next set of two questions here deal with the issue of contentions and complaining.  Unfortunately, before I came to Christ, I was often in parties where the abuse of alcohol was frequent.  I can tell you from experience that the contentions and complaining are very much true.  Guys would break out into fights and would have major altercations when they were drunk.  I remember one friend who not only had a fight, but was beaten bloody and shot before the night was over.  He survived, but the gunshot wound is still in his body to this day as a monument to his stupidity and drunken lack of sense.  The complaining usually comes from those who have to deal with the drunk.  Their wives complain of their actions.  Their children complain of their actions.  Their employer complains of their alcohol abuse.  They all feel the effects of the lack of self-control - and in some cases the anger that comes with a drunk stumbling into the home.  It is a sad but true fact that many men return home to beat their wives and children in their drunken state.  Their complaining is testimony to a man who has lost all self-control and who is slowly ruining his life.

The next couplet here has to do with questions about wounds and redness of eyes. The wounds come from stumbling around drunk - running into things and injuring oneself.  They may come from fights and their aftermath.  The redness of eyes comes in the morning when the drunk gets up and faces the difficulty of recovering from the previous evening's activities.  Not only is there redness of eyes - but there is also a pounding headache - and at times a stomach that is sick from the alcohol of the previous night. 

These things are all said of those who "linger long over wine."  This speaks of someone who drinks - and stays at a place where they serve them.  These are the men who stay at bars well into the night.  They may start at happy hour and not finish his drinking until after midnight.  The drunk may have 5 to 10 drinks as he pours out the problems he has with the bar tender.  He lingers long over a beer or a hard drink - and has another when he is done.  The passage here also says that there are those who go to taste "mixed wine."  Mixed wine refers to ways that men would mix wine with other things to make it better - and often to make it more intoxicating.  It would in some ways refer to the way that men mix drinks in bars today. 

We are going to get a pretty good picture of the drunk over the next several days.  We are going to see his actions as well as the consequences of them.  We are going to hear warnings against the things that he does.  We will hear warnings about alcohol and the way that it can lure someone into its trap.  We will hear about how alcohol promises one thing, yet delivers something quite different.  We will also see that when we give ourselves over to this habit and this abuse, we will find that it is a trap that shuts over us and does much to bring great destruction in our lives.  The wise man knows that wine and strong drink are deadly and deceptive.  That is why he stays away from them.

So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices. Proverbs 1:31

We come to the close of this passage in Proverbs with two very sobering verses of warning.  These verses are not being used to issue innocuous threats, but to warn of very real consequences for rejecting the wisdom and the Word of God.  They were put here to help us see that a lifestyle that values its own wisdom and rejects God's is one that is filled with regret and destruction.

We are warned that if we choose to spurn God's Word - and this is in regard to the negative aspects of it - we will eat the fruit of our own ways.  Let me once again take just a moment to define what I mean by the negative messages of God's Word.  There are those who want nothing but positive, happy, you're OK - I'm OK messages from God's Word.  The problem with this view is that it completely ignores the fall of man and our inherent sinfulness and selfishness.  There is no way to gloss over these things - and unless they are confronted from time to time - we will sink into the mire that they create in us individually and corporately in our lives. 

What we are warned of is the danger of learning too late the fruit that will come from this way.  In Galatians chapter five we are told of fruit.  But before this fruit is introduced to us we are also introduced to the works or workings of the flesh. 

"Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. "

We see here that when we live in the flesh, which should be seen as embracing our natural state - rejecting God's Word and wisdom and instead choosing our own way, that the consequences of our choice are pretty disgusting.  These are the kind of things we see as the problems in our world.  They are also the natural consequences of rejecting the fear of God and living for ourselves instead.  What is described for us in verses 22-23 of Galatians chatper five is the fruit of the Spirit.  Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are the consequences of embracing the Holy Spirit of God in our lives.  By the way, the Spirit is the One who teaches us God's Word - and will urge us to embrace God's wisdom and way. 

What I hope you see here is that there is fruit either way we go.  When we embrace the Spirit of God, the Word He teaches us, and the wisdom that comes with it - we experience wonderful fruit.  But if we embrace a rejection of God's wisdom - which also means we are rejecting His Word and His Spirit - there will be fruit corresponding to these choices.  That fruit is not good.

The other warning given to us here is that we will also be "satiated" with our own "devices."   The word "devices" here is "moesah" which means counsel and intrigue.  It refers to godless advice and counsel that will result in a wicked type of intrigue - one where we are seeking to escape the bad effects of following our own bad counsel.  Reality though, is that the judgments of God are inescapable.  When we choose moral paths there are moral consequences.  These cannot be outrun or negated.  What we are warned of in Proverbs is that we will be "satiated" with these consequences.  The word here means to be filled to the full - to be sated.  To help you grasp what this means - it refers to the feeling you get when you've had way too much to eat.  It is that sick feeling that you've eaten way too much and now you just sit their miserable.  The godless man has the unfortunate future of one day being sated with the moral conseqeunces of his own moral intrigue.  Having decided to test God to see if rejecting Him has consequences - he learns the hard way that every consequence God says will happen - just like He said it would happen.

A wise man knows that his choices have consequences.  He knows that as he does things, says things, and lives a certain way - it is like he is planting a crop for his future.  If he plants properly (honoring God's wisdom) the harvest he will gather will be a pleasant one.  But if he chooses the reject the wisdom of God - he is only making sure that he will be satiated with the consequences of his foolish choices.