Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl-Proverbs 23:26-28 A Father’s Advice II

Thursday, April 27, 2023

Proverbs 23:26–28

[26] My son, give me your heart,

and let your eyes observe my ways.

[27] For a prostitute is a deep pit;

an adulteress is a narrow well.

[28] She lies in wait like a robber

and increases the traitors among mankind.

A Father’s Advice II

v.26-28 This three-verse proverb calls for a son to give his heart to his father and also to find the father's ways pleasing. The Wise father has had his way of life formed by the Word of God, and he imparts that wisdom to his son, entreating him to follow the same Word of truth. The Word of God, of course, includes the ten commandments. Here, the father is teaching about the sixth commandment. All women other than a man's wife are a "deep pit," and the foolish man who considers cheating risks falling in and will find himself unable to extract himself. Likewise, the cheating married woman is a narrow well in which the fool will become lodged should he forsake his wife and go to her. Both risk losing their faith and salvation if they are unrepentant and continue in sin. Contrast this "narrow well" with a good wife, who is described elsewhere as a "cistern," "well," and "fountain" who provides her husband abundant flowing water (Proverbs 5:15-18; see also Song of Songs 4:12, 15). The prostitute and adulteress are also described as a robber waiting to ambush the fool. He will suffer shame, disgrace, and loss of status in a Godly society and in the church. Most seriously, he risks losing his faith and salvation. His good works do not "earn" him salvation, but our sins and evil actions erode our faith and can cumulatively cause us to fall from grace if one is unrepentant. The women of ill repute in this proverb are also depicted as increasing the number of treacherous men in society. A cheater acts treacherously by sinning against God and his family. He will take extreme measures to hide his sin because one who cannot be trusted in his familial relationships is perceived as untrustworthy and unfaithful in other ways. This is not a proverb saying it is only the woman's fault at all. It takes two to tango.