Essential Warnings: Walking Through Proverbs 6

I have been slowly making my way through the Book of Proverbs this year. We’ve walked through Proverbs 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 together. Today we’ll pick up where we left off at Proverbs 6. As a reminder, I’m not doing a deep verse-by-verse study. Rather, this is a look at what stood out to me, and as always, I’d love to hear what you think about this proverb.

Practical Warnings From Proverbs 6

This chapter of Proverbs is often labeled as “practical warnings” or “warnings against folly.” The wisdom found in Proverbs 6 centers around debt, work, sin, and seduction. Practical indeed. We all end up facing these issues eventually.

1. Debt

Verses 1-5 deal with a very specific type of debt. The debt in question is that which we take on for another. Sometimes, we see a friend struggling financially and promise to take over the payments they are obligated to make because we want to be a blessing. Proverbs tells us this is not wise. Verse 2 says to do such a thing is to be “snared in the words of your mouth.” It’s a trap! Don’t do it.

What if you are receiving this wise biblical counsel after you have already taken on another’s debt? The Bible paints a clear picture of a desperate situation.

“save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler.” (emphasis mine)

Proverbs 6:5

Get out of that situation with the urgency of a gazelle escaping a hunter’s sights. Can you imagine how serious that scenario is? This financial entanglement doesn’t end well for you. It might hurt you financially, harm your reputation, or even end your relationship with the person in debt.

2. Work

We might not like to hear it, but hard work is biblical. After Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, mankind was cursed. God told Adam that he (and all men) would work.

“By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Genesis 3:19

Multiple proverbs, aside from the one we’re examining today, also refer to work.

“The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor.”

Proverbs 12:24

“In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.”

Proverbs 14:23

“Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys.”

Proverbs 18:9

Are you cathcing the a theme? The messaging is obvious, even to a casual reader. We must work.

Look To The Ant

Proverbs 6, though, has one of the most well-known pictures of work in the Bible. Sunday School teachers have lessons on it for small children, and adults, even unbelieving people, refer to it. I’m talking about the ant.

“Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?”

Proverbs 6:6-9

Have you ever seen an ant farm? I’ve had a couple in my house for homeschooling purposes, and those little guys are honestly amazing. And this comes from a woman who is afraid of all the creepy crawlies. Our ants were always working to some common goal. I’ve never been humbled by an insect before, but their work ethic puts mine to shame.

The Bible explains some of the characteristics of the ant that we ought to have, as well. The ant works without someone looking over its shoulder and telling it to do so, and it considers the future, preparing for leaner times.

Even the secular world understands this. The lesson of the hardworking ant is demonstrated in Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper.” The grasshopper spends the summer relaxing and fooling around. Meanwhile, the ant works to store away provisions for the winter. The ant has plenty of food and security throughout the winter, but the grasshopper has nothing stored away and learns the difficult lesson that there is a time to play and a time to work. Mastering the difference between the two is an essential part of an obedient and functional life.

3. Sin

The Wicked Man

Verses 12-15 issue a warning about the wicked man. We can identify him by his crooked (i.e., corrupt) speech, dishonest character, and his desire to do evil. However, the warning for this man is about his future. What happens to a man like that, anyway? Proverbs 6:15 says “calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.” Of course, we should aim to be unlike this wicked man, but it’s just as important to avoid close ties with such a person. His influence and counsel can only lead you away from the Lord.

7 Things God Hates

No. We’re not here to discuss the 7 deadly sins. Technically, they’re not in the Bible. The seven sins on that list are sins we can find in God’s Word, but they are not gathered together in that list. Here, though, we do find seven things that are an abomination to God.

– A haughty (i.e., proud) look

– A lying tongue

– Hands that shed innocent blood

– A heart that devises wicked plans

– Feet that are swift in running to evil

– A false witness who speaks lies

– One who sows discord among brethren

It’s easy to peruse that list and think it applies to someone else, but take a closer look. Are you proud? Do you lie? Do you ever speak in such a way that you are more likely to cause a rift between brothers and sisters in Christ rather than draw them closer together? If so, acknowledge God hates it and repent.

4. Seduction

Adultery, sexually immoral behavior, fornication… The Bible is filled with warnings about sinful sexual practices. Proverbs is a big contributor to those teachings. So, here we go again.

Our Lamp

In verses 20-24, the reader is reminded to follow her parents’ commands and teachings from Scripture. It’s worth noting that there appears to be a reference to Psalm 119 in verse 23.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

Psalm 119:105

“For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,”

Proverbs 6:23

These instructions from our parents are meant to help guide us throughout our lives, but Proverbs 6 explains that the wisdom from God’s Word can protect, specifically, against the adulteress.

The Damage

Engaging in adultery isn’t free. There is a cost. Every. Time.

“Can a man carry fire next to his chest and his clothes not be burned? Or can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife; none who touches her will go unpunished.”

Proverbs 6:27-29

No one can know exactly what damage adultery will cause. Ultimately, we all answer for the lives we have led. However, there are consequences in the here and now, as well. Adultery ends marriages, harms the children, humiliates one’s partner, and harms our relationship with the Lord because an adulterous relationship is in direct disobedience to God. We have all seen this unfold in someone’s life. If you haven’t, give it time. Sadly, it’s a common tale.

Proverbs 6:30-35 describes some of the fallout of giving in to the seduction of an adulterous woman. An adulterer destroys himself. Committing sexual sin hurts others, but it also hurts the one committing that sin. It’s harmful to one’s spiritual life, emotional well-being, and it’s a sin against one’s own body. An adulterer brings ruin upon his or her own life. The broken relationships and financial ruin that often follow are self-inflicted wounds that result from sinful behaviors.

In addition, this section of Proverbs 6 warns that adultery brings dishonor and disgrace upon oneself. Not to mention, if we commit adultery, we can’t make a sufficient compensation to repair what we have done. Nothing can ever go back to the way it once was.

Final Thought

The chapters in Proverbs are not always a concise unified message, and Proverbs 6 is a plain example of that. Each warning is essential to a successful life and spiritual health. The foolish behaviors this proverb details can annihilate the lives we’re building and destroy our testimonies. Moreover, our walk with Lord is negatively impacted if we make these sinful choices.

The question we should all ask ourselves is: Do I see myself in this Proverb, and if I do, what am I going to do about it?

Image courtesy of Vlad Tchompalov via Unsplash.