For her house sinks down to death And her tracks lead to the dead; None who go to her return again, Nor do they reach the paths of life. Proverbs 2:18-19
Where does sexual immorality get you in the end? We all realize that it promises pleasure in the short term - but where do we wind up when the pleasure subsides and a life course reaches its end? That is what today's proverb tells us. It informs us of this through the destination of the harlot - the "strange woman" - the adulteress.
First, we learn of her "house." This speaks of the place where someone dwells. The word was used to indicate the building in which a family or household lives. Here, though, it speaks metaphorically of where she will take you - as she encourages you to enter into adultery with her. Her house sinks down to death. There is no solid ground upon which to stand - or upon which to found a house with this woman. How could there be - she is trashing her marital vows - ignoring God's Word - and striking out into her own desires for sex and for unbiblical companionship. Her house will collapse - and sink like one built on sand. Christ spoke of this in Matthew 7:24-27. A person whose life is not built upon obedience to Christ's Word - is a life built upon sand. The adulteress may promise passion and pleasure for a night - but when the storm of the adultery is known - the house will collapse because it was built on the sand foundation of sexual desires.
Her house sinks like sand - down to death. Her tracks or steps also lead to the dead. Her house here is sinking toward being dead. The term death here refers to more than just physical death. When this term is used figuratively it expresses the idea of ruin and destruction. It is most often contrasted with the opposite ideas of life, prosperity, and happiness. Can you imagine walking into a buildling - a home - where you are guaranteed that any desires for life, prosperity, and happiness are going to be dashed upon the rocks of your own strong sexual urges. What the father is trying to get the son to see here is that embracing God's Word will instruct him and help deliver him from such things - and from such women.
He is also telling his son that to follow her steps toward the bedroom - is to follow in a path that leads to the spirits of the dead. I am not a fan of horror movies - but I can imagine a scene where seduction is taking place - and a man chooses to follow an adulteress into the bedroom. But what I see as a result of the Scriptures is not a hot and heavy sex scene - but a transformation of those steps from following a sultry seductress to following an evil spirit. Each step renders the former beauty that was leading me to the bed of adultery into a hideous, horrific creature that would make any horror film antagonist look like little bo peep in comparison. That is the picture that is being painted for us. But there is more in the next verse.
As this fool follows the adulteress into her bedroom - the door behind them begins to shut. Movie producers would have us to believe the shutting of that door closes the two of them in a room of ecstacy and a night of sexual pleasure that the two of them will never forget. That is not the picture that the Word of God wants us to see though.
As the door closes - it is not with a gentle click of the doorknob hitting the plate. What we hear is a slamming sound - and the sound we hear reverberates throughout all of eternity. We read in the proverb that none who go to her return again, nor to they reach the paths of life. What we need to hear is not a gentle door closing - but a snapping of a trap which ends with the crushing sound of our spiritual life being snuffed out. If we go this way - we are closing ourselves into a prison cell - into a torture chamber. We are locking ourselves into a sin the likes of which we may never escape. This is not a pleasure palace. It is a poisoned pit that will captivate us forever. The poison is released when the flesh has secured our devotion to sexual immorality. We become addicted to the high of sexual release - especially the kind of release that involves secret, unlawful, hidden, wicked actions. That kind of high has enslaved men and women since the entrance of sin into this world.
I realize in reading this some will accuse me of resorting to extremes to prove a point. But consider the lengths the movie and television industry goes to in order to supposedly entertain us. They are capturing us with pictures - with scenes that they want to etch into our minds. The vast majority of the time these pictures and scenes are promoting the very things that the Scriptures warn against. Yet we do not accuse them of something elicit. God understood the power of pictures long before the idea of cinema ever entered the mind of man. That is why His Word is filled with some of the most expressive language ever written. That is why He uses word picture after word picture to warn us of the pitfalls and dangers of sin. Rather than discourage a child from seeing the ones God gives us - maybe as fathers we should paint them in the most vivid colors imaginable for our sons and daughters. I know that if we do we will find ourselves in the company of some very wise and godly men who knew how to use them for the glory of God and the protection of their children - rather than for a gold statue handed out at an awards show. Remember dads, the only awards show that matters is the one at the end of the age - where the ONLY presenter will be God Himself.
Where does sexual immorality get you in the end? We all realize that it promises pleasure in the short term - but where do we wind up when the pleasure subsides and a life course reaches its end? That is what today's proverb tells us. It informs us of this through the destination of the harlot - the "strange woman" - the adulteress.
First, we learn of her "house." This speaks of the place where someone dwells. The word was used to indicate the building in which a family or household lives. Here, though, it speaks metaphorically of where she will take you - as she encourages you to enter into adultery with her. Her house sinks down to death. There is no solid ground upon which to stand - or upon which to found a house with this woman. How could there be - she is trashing her marital vows - ignoring God's Word - and striking out into her own desires for sex and for unbiblical companionship. Her house will collapse - and sink like one built on sand. Christ spoke of this in Matthew 7:24-27. A person whose life is not built upon obedience to Christ's Word - is a life built upon sand. The adulteress may promise passion and pleasure for a night - but when the storm of the adultery is known - the house will collapse because it was built on the sand foundation of sexual desires.
Her house sinks like sand - down to death. Her tracks or steps also lead to the dead. Her house here is sinking toward being dead. The term death here refers to more than just physical death. When this term is used figuratively it expresses the idea of ruin and destruction. It is most often contrasted with the opposite ideas of life, prosperity, and happiness. Can you imagine walking into a buildling - a home - where you are guaranteed that any desires for life, prosperity, and happiness are going to be dashed upon the rocks of your own strong sexual urges. What the father is trying to get the son to see here is that embracing God's Word will instruct him and help deliver him from such things - and from such women.
He is also telling his son that to follow her steps toward the bedroom - is to follow in a path that leads to the spirits of the dead. I am not a fan of horror movies - but I can imagine a scene where seduction is taking place - and a man chooses to follow an adulteress into the bedroom. But what I see as a result of the Scriptures is not a hot and heavy sex scene - but a transformation of those steps from following a sultry seductress to following an evil spirit. Each step renders the former beauty that was leading me to the bed of adultery into a hideous, horrific creature that would make any horror film antagonist look like little bo peep in comparison. That is the picture that is being painted for us. But there is more in the next verse.
As this fool follows the adulteress into her bedroom - the door behind them begins to shut. Movie producers would have us to believe the shutting of that door closes the two of them in a room of ecstacy and a night of sexual pleasure that the two of them will never forget. That is not the picture that the Word of God wants us to see though.
As the door closes - it is not with a gentle click of the doorknob hitting the plate. What we hear is a slamming sound - and the sound we hear reverberates throughout all of eternity. We read in the proverb that none who go to her return again, nor to they reach the paths of life. What we need to hear is not a gentle door closing - but a snapping of a trap which ends with the crushing sound of our spiritual life being snuffed out. If we go this way - we are closing ourselves into a prison cell - into a torture chamber. We are locking ourselves into a sin the likes of which we may never escape. This is not a pleasure palace. It is a poisoned pit that will captivate us forever. The poison is released when the flesh has secured our devotion to sexual immorality. We become addicted to the high of sexual release - especially the kind of release that involves secret, unlawful, hidden, wicked actions. That kind of high has enslaved men and women since the entrance of sin into this world.
I realize in reading this some will accuse me of resorting to extremes to prove a point. But consider the lengths the movie and television industry goes to in order to supposedly entertain us. They are capturing us with pictures - with scenes that they want to etch into our minds. The vast majority of the time these pictures and scenes are promoting the very things that the Scriptures warn against. Yet we do not accuse them of something elicit. God understood the power of pictures long before the idea of cinema ever entered the mind of man. That is why His Word is filled with some of the most expressive language ever written. That is why He uses word picture after word picture to warn us of the pitfalls and dangers of sin. Rather than discourage a child from seeing the ones God gives us - maybe as fathers we should paint them in the most vivid colors imaginable for our sons and daughters. I know that if we do we will find ourselves in the company of some very wise and godly men who knew how to use them for the glory of God and the protection of their children - rather than for a gold statue handed out at an awards show. Remember dads, the only awards show that matters is the one at the end of the age - where the ONLY presenter will be God Himself.
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