A Proverb a Day (5:3-6)

For the lips of an adulteress drip honey and smoother than oil is her speech; but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death, her steps take hold of Sheol.  She does not ponder the path of life; her ways are unstable, she does not know {it} (NASB).

The lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil.  But the result is as bitter as poison, sharp as a double-edged sword.  Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave. For she does not care about the path to life. She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn't even realize where it leads (NLT).

The sage demands the son's attention (5:1-2) because life and death are in the street.  A temptress, bent on illicit pleasure, engages in word play to accomplish her ends.  A dialogue begins in seeming innocence, a compliment is paid, an ego stroked, a heart door opened, and so the give and take of words breaks through mental, moral, and emotional barriers until all is lost.  The son finds himself on the other side of a conversation in a place he never dreamed. 

The only remedy suggested here:  consider the end of the matter...poison, sword, death, and a grave.  A little dalliance, a momentary pleasure, a fleeting joy brings ruin.  All is lost:  family, reputation, ministry, and walk with God.  Count the cost before you begin the conversation.  Follow Joseph's lead and Paul's admonition to Timothy--flee.  I hear Gandalf shout to the fellowship before his fall into the depths of Moria in the grip of the Balrog, "Fly, you fools!"

Finally, here is a startling reality:  the temptress with whom you would be one, is already dead.  She is an empty shell stumbling down the path to death.  She doesn't even know it.  So why bed a corpse?

Comments

[melanie]

not too long ago, i listened to a message in which the speaker linked the verses you state above with proverbs 27:7 "A full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet."

the pastor pointed out that if a person is getting his proper dose of "honey" from the appropriate person (namely his spouse), then he will find an excess of it elsewhere loathsome.

i found that rather noteworthy. a good commentary on the importance of maintaining a healthy marriage.

[jon]

Melanie, I betting none of the talkative guys on this blog are going to touch this one. I went through a number of commentaries to see if any one else made the connection between this text and 27:7. None did, but that only means none did. Kidner refers to the disposition in 27:7a as bilious--peevish and ill-natured. It may be someone who is so full they are loathesome in their outlook. In that case, it would not be the pleasant fullness of one who is rejoicing with the wife of his youth and completely satisfied with her (a better verse for the principle you gave). I am betting the guy looked up all the occurences of "honey" in Proverbs and made the connection--just a bit of a stretch. My .02.