Proverbs 23:27-28 For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit. She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.
Having urged his son to give his heart wholly to wisdom (v. 26), Solomon immediately explains why. The heart cannot be devoted both to wisdom and to sexual immorality. One path leads to life; the other leads to destruction. Throughout Proverbs, the “strange woman” represents not only sexual temptation but every form of seduction that draws a person away from God’s truth. She is the opposite of Lady Wisdom in Proverbs 8-9. Wisdom calls people into life, while the immoral woman [mostly a symbol of false religions] lures them into ruin.
The warning is not directed against women in general, but against the immoral woman who deliberately entices others into sin. Elsewhere in Scripture, the same warnings are given to women concerning immoral men. The issue is not gender but immorality and temptation.
‘For a whore is a deep ditch.’ A deep ditch is a hidden danger from which escape is difficult. In ancient times, a traveller who fell into a deep pit could be seriously injured or trapped. Scripture uses this picture to describe the destructive nature of sexual immorality.
It is called a deep ditch because it appears harmless at first, often begins with small compromises, traps those who enter, is difficult to escape, and leaves lasting consequences. Sexual sin has destroyed marriages, families, reputations, finances, friendships, and fellowship with God. The deeper a person falls into sin, the harder it often becomes to return without painful consequences.
James describes the same progression: “Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death” (James 1:14-15).
To be continued…
Living the Word 