Proverbs 7:27 (ESV)
Her house is the way to Sheol,
going down to the chambers of death.
In chapter seven of Proverbs Solomon is telling us a story of a naive young man who is lead into the snare of a beautiful and seductive women. In her allurement she spends much time describing her home and, specifically, sleeping accommodations. The young man is, apparently, taken in by the smells of her bedroom, the softness of her sheets and the safety of the described environment. What she doesn't tell him, however, is what we read in the proverb above. Her house may smell nice but the oder of death is in the ventilation. The mattress may be soft and comforting but so to is a coffin. The smell of death is under the bed. Her home may be inviting but it is simply a doorway to the chambers of the dead. In Proverbs 9:1-4 we read the description of Lady Wisdom’s house:
Proverbs 9:1-4 (ESV)
Wisdom has built her house;
she has hewn her seven pillars.
She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.
She has sent out her young women to call
from the highest places in the town,
“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
To him who lacks sense she says,
She too lays out a spread for the naive and the simple. The difference is that her house leads to blessings and eventually, heaven. They both paint the same type of home (Wisdom and Folly) but one goes down and the other up. If we allow our senses to direct us we could follow our nose and touch right to hell. If we walk by faith we can find Wisdom waiting to reward us with her riches and relationship with God. The life of wisdom bears great fruit. The life following folly leads only to the prison of death ... no matter what the path feels like or looks like.
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