Introduction.
In Proverbs 6:20-7:27 we find a passage entitled “Do not commit adultery.” It is explained in many places what happens to those who commit adultery, and it is not exactly a pleasant reading. But it is possible to turn to God, ask for forgiveness, and change your lifestyle. The woman in John 8:1-11 is a good example of this.
Committing adultery has two different meanings. One can 1) act like the woman in John 8 and have extramarital affairs with another man / another men, or one can 2) be unfaithful to God.
The seventh commandment in Exodus 20:14 states: Thou shalt not commit adultery. In other words, it is enshrined in God’s eternal law that we shall not commit adultery, and those who did so broke God’s commandments. Breaking the law, or God’s Ten Commandments, was a serious crime in ancient Israel, and it is no less serious to break God’s Ten Commandments in our day. Anyone who committed adultery, that is, had sexual relations outside of marriage, and we know from John 8 that this woman who was caught in adultery was to be stoned to death.
What is worth noting is that the Hebrew word H5003 na’aph (pronounced naw-af’) which is translated <to> commit adultery, adulteress in the sense of a woman who breaks the marriage can also be translated with apostasy which means decay. Typical reasons for apostasy are when the person’s faith turns into unbelief or non-belief, i.e. a rejection of God and religion, or that it leads to a conversion. We should keep this in mind when we continue with this topic and look at the main characters in the story.
The expression fornication and similar expressions (in one form or another) is used in 110 verses in the Bible, 67 times in the Old Testament and 43 times in the New Testament. In most cases it is implicit in the text that it is about committing fornication with foreign gods. The demon goats, Moloch, spirit mediums and spiritualists are mentioned. In a small minority of the 110 verses, there is fornication in the sense that most people would use the word, extramarital sexual relations.
It is not so strange that God compares the worship of other gods to fornication in the ordinary sense, because He compares His people, or the church, to a woman. When God created humans, it was so that humans and God would live in a close relationship with each other. But when humans began to turn away from God, start a rebellion against God, and worship other gods, they became unfaithful to God. This is apostasy that led to conversion. In other words, they committed fornication with other gods.
This is what the wise King Solomon is saying in the part of Proverbs we are going to look at now. As always, there are great disagreements about the texts of the Bible, so here too. Now many will point out that Solomon writes my son in the first verse we are going to look at and thus lays the groundwork for this to be about the relationship between Solomon and his son Rehoboam and dismisses the idea that this applies to us in the end times. However, there are many things that indicate that this is more directed towards our time than towards Solomon’s son Rehoboam and ancient Israel.
In other words, we have a typological story in this passage as well. It literally applied to Rehoboam who then becomes the type of God’s remnant in the end times, as the antitype.
I believe that this sequence is interesting in relation to our time, and I will divide it into three parts:
1) The warning; Do not commit adultery: 6:20 – 6:35.
2) A prayer and an exhortation to a “restless son”: 7:1-5.
3) Do not follow the harlot: 7:6-27.
Parts 1 and 2 are good advice from God to His children, and are called, as mentioned, Do not commit adultery and A prayer and an exhortation to a “restless son”. Part 3 describes for us the harlot’s ways of luring young restless men. This part is called Do not follow the harlot.
We will see that we are dealing with two groups, those who follow God’s counsel (their father’s counsel) and those who do not. This sequence is a warning to all not to follow the harlot. We should read this passage in light of the cosmic conflict, and the struggle between good and evil. There is also another aspect to this story, and that is the use of the words woman and man (young man). We must also remember what was mentioned just above that there is an apostasy, but the apostasy does not take the whole church with it. Although the church and God’s people are usually called woman, man is also used to describe a part of the church in this sequence. Gradually we will see clearly who this woman is and who this man is, and this distinction is made to make a clear distinction between the two forms of church we find here.
I must also add that this concerns both individuals and entire church communities. We must keep that in mind as we go through this section.
All Bible texts are from the King James Version 1611 / 1769, unless otherwise stated.
The warning: Do not commit adultery; 6,20-35.
Chapter 6:
Verse 20: My son, keep thy father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: Verse 21: Bind them continually upon thine heart [and] tie them about thy neck. Verse 22: When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and [when] thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.
The call here is that we should always think about the commandments of thy father and the law of thy mother. However, we must understand this in a figurative sense. It was almost unthinkable that the children would go against the advice that the parents gave in Solomon’s time. If they did, it would bring dishonor to the family, and it would bring dishonor and punishment to the one who opposed their parents. Dishonor and punishment will also be the lot of those who break God’s commandments and law in the end times, which is why it is important for God to warn against this sin that we are now going to discuss.
The expression bind them continually upon thine heart means that the individual must have the commandments and the law as a constant reminder in his heart so that the commandments and the law must always speak warning words in the individual’s heart. The expression tie them about thy neck implies that the commandments and the law should be like a jewel that we adorn ourselves with to show our neighbour that we are children of the living God. If we do so, God’s commandments and God’s law will guide us through life, and not least they will protect us from all evil.
Our task as God’s remnant in the end times is to convince other people to keep God’s commandments and law. We must never deviate from God’s commandments, laws and regulations, and if we follow the advice in verses 20 and 21, God’s word will protect us and help us through every situation in life.
We will see that Solomon warns against a evil, strange woman in verse 24, (see also chapter 5 verse 3). To avoid giving in to her temptations, we must be on guard day and night, and then we must have God’s commandments and law in our hearts.
Verse 23: For the commandment [is] a lamp; and the law [is] light; and reproofs of instruction [are] the way of life:
There are many who view the commandments as an arbitrary prohibition against many things that appeal to lustful pleasures. The commandments tell us what we should and what we should not do. This is a crutch around the foot of many people, and therefore they claim that the commandments give us restrictions on what we can do, and many claim that Jesus nailed the commandments to the cross when He was crucified. Those who view the commandments in this way have a completely distorted view of God’s commandments.
Why are these expressions used that the commandment is a lamp and the law is a light? This verse refers back to Psalm 119:105 where the psalmist says: Thy word [is] a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. This verse refers to the fact that a lamp was used when walking outside after darkness had fallen. This was done, among other things, to scare away snakes that might be where you were walking. King David says in Psalm 19:8 that: The law of the LORD [is] perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD [is] sure, making wise the simple.
The commandments are not arbitrary or a crutch around the foot, nor have they been abolished. They are like a lamp that enlightens the mind and shows the way to happiness, peace, and eternal life. If we adhere to God’s word, God will give us light so that we can follow the right path.
When Solomon says that the commandment is a lamp, and the law is a light, we can interpret it to mean that we need God’s word to help us since we live in a world shrouded in Satan’s darkness. God’s Word in the form of God’s commandments and law is the only thing that can help us against the old serpent, the devil, or Satan, and the powers and authorities he uses to harass God’s faithful remnant. These powers and authorities also lie in wait in the darkness to strike when we walk by without the protection that God’s commandments and law give us in the form of spiritual light.
Verse 24: To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. Verse 25: Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids.
Verse 24 refers directly back to Proverbs 5:3 where Solomon says: For the lips of a strange woman drop [as] a honeycomb, and her mouth [is] smoother than oil. A strange woman here is the same as an unfaithful or adulterous woman. The Hebrew word translated strange <woman> is za·rah, and is translated strange, adulterous, unknown, another, enemies, estranged, foreign, illegitimate, stranger, unusual.
Solomon tells us in verses 20-23 that if we hold God’s Word in high esteem it will protect us from the evil woman, and the flattering and persuasive words he uses. The expression strange woman must be seen in the light that the woman represents the entire church of God, both the part that has fallen and the part that has not fallen from God’s pure teaching. Strange woman then means that she represents all the fallen churches, and in particular the Catholic church.
If we look at the Catholic Church, and how it appears, there is a lot of pomp and splendour in the church itself and in connection with the liturgical part of the Mass. How does Solomon’s warning harmonize with this? She has a flattering tongue, which are the false teachings that are easy to follow, the church can really take our breath away if we enter one of the large Catholic churches that is filled to the brim with beautiful art, decorated with gold and other precious things and a sacred background music that seems seductive. All of these influences can together cause those who are not well grounded in God’s Word to fall away from the true faith. These are the ones that Solomon refers to as young men without understanding, which is the same as being without the Holy Spirit.
If we go to Revelation 17:4 we see how the harlot (the strange woman) is described. It says that she is arrayed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, (New International Version 1984). This shows the beauty that the strange woman has that we must not desire in any way. That we should not be caught by her flashing eyes means that she flatters and entices us in every possible way. We see in our time that more and more priests, pastors and lay people from reformed churches are converting to Catholicism, because they are so captivated by the sacredness of the Catholic service. It is the pomp and splendour that lures them to the strange woman together with a preaching that tickles their ears. But with the help of God’s word, God’s remnant in the end times will not be seduced by the superficial shine, pomp and splendour of false churches.
Verse 26: for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread, but a married woman hunts down a precious life, (English Standard Version).
This means that fallen churches will lead us to fall. What is frightening in this verse is the expression amarried woman hunts down a precious life.
What is really in the expression a married woman hunts down a precious life? This prostitute does not have God the Creator as her husband. It simply means that she has another god instead of the Creator, and then there can only be one and that is Satan who is her husband. When this woman who is another man’s wife is hunting for what God calls a precious life, must be the battle the fallen church fights against all who do not submit to her dictates.
Verse 27: Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? Verse 28: Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?
These two verses tell the same thing. First, they tell us that we must bear the consequences of our actions. Because we know that fire placed on the clothes we are wearing will set the clothes on fire, and if we walk on a hot coal we will be burned underfoot. If we are still so thoughtless that we do such things, we must, as we said, bear the consequences of our actions.
Secondly, both verses refer to Deuteronomy 11:18 where Moses says to the people: Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. God thus encourages the children of Israel through Moses to bind the commandments as a sign on your hand and as a frontlet between your eyes. But, this was not only true for Israel in ancient times, but it is also at least as valid for us in the end times. What God wants to convey to us through these verses is that if we deviate from God’s commandments, laws and regulations and go into company with fallen church denominations, we will adopt their teachings.
Furthermore, both of these verses point to the following verses: Exodus 20:14; Proverbs 2:18; 5:4; 5:8; 1 Corinthians 6:18, all of which refer to the consequences of committing adultery, whether against one’s spouse or against God.
Verse 29: So he that goeth into his neighbour’s wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.
To go in to one’s neighbour’s wife means to commit adultery. I think we must interpret this in a figurative sense. Adultery is adultery in both the literal and figurative sense, and here in a figurative sense it means to be unfaithful to God, and if we enter into an ecumenical cooperation with the fallen churches, even if it is ‘just‘ to observe, we can be caught in the net of the evil and strange woman. No one who is unfaithful to God remains without guilt. It is quite visible in our churches that we are caught in the net of the evil and strange woman.
Our preaching has changed dramatically after the SDA became a central observer in the ecumenical cooperation. The truth for our time, the end-time message, the three angels’ messages are no longer preached from the pulpits of our churches. There are honourable exceptions where this message is preached, but the rule is that it is not preached. Regarding end-time preaching, Ellen G. White says the following in Testimony for the Church, volume 9: In a special sense Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world as watchmen and light bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning for a perishing world. On them is shining wonderful light from the word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import—the proclamation of the first, second, and third angels’ messages. There is no other work of so great importance. They are to allow nothing else to absorb their attention, (19.1). But the sad truth is that the SDA central believes that it is more important to participate in an ecumenical cooperation than to do the will of God.
Verse 30: [Men] do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry. Verse 31: But [if] he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.
The thief must replace what he has stolen, it says, so there is a judgment waiting. Judgment also awaits the one who commits adultery. It does not help if it is done with the best of intentions, such as the thief who steals to feed himself. The same applies to go in to his neighbour’s wife. Regardless of the motive for entering into ecumenical cooperation, the one who does this will be guilty.
In verse 30 we find a translation problem again. Many of the latest translations, if not all, say that the thief is not despised if he steals to feed himself. In such a translation it is implicit that it is okay to steal as long as one is not found, (as it says in verse 31).
Around this translation, Pope Francis has previously written an encyclical called Fratelli Tutti, where he treats what the papacy calls social justice, but which is of the dubious kind of justice. This means that it is okay to confiscate the goods that many have accumulated over a long time, perhaps over generations, and distribute this to those who do not have it.
In many countries it is now possible for anyone to enter a house where the owners are away for a few days, for example. All the intruders have to do is stay there for two days. After this, not even the police can throw them out of the house or apartment they have occupied. This is the modern Robin Hood version; you take what you need from the rich without the rich being able to prevent it. This is what Pope Franz calls social justice. Understand it whoever can. God calls such things stealing, and this violates the eighth commandment: Thou shalt not steal. We find this especially in Africa and South America, and we should not ignore the fact that this will apply in several countries around the world in the future. We have seen riots in the United States a few years ago where demonstrators in several cities entered supermarkets and shops and looted them without the police, who were patrolling the streets outside, intervening.
Of course, we should share with each other, Jesus also says that, as here in Luke 3:11 where He says that whoever has two tunics should share with him who has none. And whoever has food should do the same. But He gives neither individuals nor governments the right to enter any place to steal what they need.
Verse 32: [But] whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he [that] doeth it destroyeth his own soul. Verse 33: A wound and dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away.
The relationship between a married couple should be holy. So should our relationship with God also be. We should be cleansed and sanctified before our Creator. This means that we cannot have a relationship with the fallen churches. If we give in to temptations and pressures that come to us through flattering words that tickles our ears, we have entered into a relationship with another woman and are by definition unfaithful to God. By entering into a partnership with another woman/church, we will destroy our soul, which can be said to be the same as losing salvation and eternal life.
Verse 34: For jealousy [is] the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance. Verse 35: He will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.
The Old Testament is full of stories of how God has judged the wicked in ancient times. It would be foolish for us to think that God will not judge the wicked again. God is patient with us fallen people, and His highest desire is that all people should choose Him with all their heart and be saved. But no one who goes in to a strange woman will achieve salvation. This is clear from what verse 34 says.
On the day of judgment, God, who is here referred to as a husband, will judge all who have been unfaithful to Him. We cannot bring atonement gifts, because we cannot buy our way into heaven, and try and explain away our actions with such things, only true repentance and prayers for forgiveness can save those who have been unfaithful.