Proverbs (Part 080) - Pro 7:20-22

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20. Pro 7:20 - "He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed." A. He hath taken a bag of money with him, i. The fact that he took a bag of money with him would indicated the following: a. He is wealthy, and therefore so is his wife. b. He is most likely going to be gone for a while, else he would have only taken a pocket full of coins. ii. These things would be additional reasons for the young man to give in to the strange woman's advances. iii. Notice she didn't say he had taken his wallet, his credit card, or his smartphone with him, but rather a bag of money. a. This is because in those days people used real money, such as gold and silver (Gen 23:16; 2Ki 23:35). b. If a man were to take a large amount of money with him for a long trip, it would require a bag, not a pocket or a wallet (Gen 42:35; Isa 46:6). c. This is further evidence that she and her husband were wealthy, and therefore she is not a cheap whore. B. and will come home at the day appointed. i. Appointed ppl. - 1. Fixed by agreement; settled beforehand. ii. Her husband had set a date ahead of time for his return. iii. Though she didn't reveal what the date was, the implication was that he would not be home for a while so there was no chance of getting caught. iv. This assurance would have eased any apprehension the young man might have had. 21. Pro 7:21 - "With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him." A. With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, i. The strange woman employed fair speech to convince the young man. a. Fair adj. - 1. Beautiful to the eye; of pleasing form or appearance; good-looking. 4. Of language, diction: Elegant. Hence fair speaker. Obs. 5. a. Of external manifestations, words, promises: Attractive or pleasing at the first sight or hearing; specious, plausible, flattering. b. Elegant adj. - 1. Tastefully ornate in attire; sometimes in unfavourable sense: Dainty, foppish. 4. a. Of composition, literary style, etc.; also of words or phrases: Characterized by grace and refinement; ‘pleasing by minuter beauties’ (J.). b. Of a speaker or author: Characterized by refinement and polish of style. c. Good words and fair speeches are used to deceive the simple (Rom 16:18; Pro 7:7). ii. Her fair speech was executed masterfully. a. She began by appealing to his spirituality and morality by pretending to be religious (Pro 7:14). b. Then she appeals to his pride by telling him that she has been diligently seeking him and has found him (Pro 7:15). c. Next she appeals to his sensuality by telling him of her ornately adorned and perfumed bed (Pro 7:16-17). d. Next she appeals to his lust by outright asking him to make love with her (Pro 7:18). e. Finally, she allays his fears by assuring him that her husband is not home and will not be back to a long time (Pro 7:19-20). iii. The result of her fair speech was to cause him to yield. a. Yield v. - III. To surrender, give way, submit. 14. a. To hand over, give up, relinquish possession of, surrender, resign. 17. a. To give way to persuasion, entreaty, or the like; to cease to oppose or object; to submit, comply, consent. b. with inf. or clause, or with to and n.: To submit, consent, agree (to do something, that something should be done, or to something proposed). b. The fact that he was made to yield indicates that he was hesitant and was exerting some resistance. c. She was able to overcome any hesitation he had with her fair speech. B. with the flattering of her lips she forced him. i. Flatter v. - 1. a. intr. Of an animal, bird, etc.: To show delight or fondness (by wagging the tail, making a caressing sound, etc.). 2. To try to please or win the favour of (a person) by obsequious speech or conduct; to court, fawn upon. 3. To praise or compliment unduly or insincerely. ii. The most powerful and oft used tool in the arsenal of the strange woman is flattery (Pro 2:16; Pro 5:3; Pro 6:24; Pro 7:5). iii. She was spreading a net for his feet by fawning upon him with insincere praise (Pro 29:5). iv. By use of enticing words, she forced him into her filthy bed. a. Force v. - 1. trans. To use violence to; to violate, ravish (a woman). 3. a. To constrain by force (whether physical or moral); to compel; to overcome the resistance of. to force (one's) hand: to compel one to act prematurely or to adopt a policy he dislikes. b. The fact that she forced him indicates that he did put up some resistance. c. Though women are the weaker vessel (1Pe 3:7), they have great power over men through their looks and words to overcome their resistance and compel them to do what they want. 22. Pro 7:22 - "He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;" A. He goeth after her straightway, i. Go v. - 50. go after - To go in pursuit of; to visit as a wooer or a disciple. ii. Straightway adv. - 1. By a direct course, straight from or to a place. Obs. (last usage in 1587) 2. Immediately; without interval or delay; at once. Now only literary. iii. Once the strange woman had broken down the young man's inhibitions by way of her fair speech and flattery (Pro 7:21) he immediately went in pursuit after her. a. He was led away by his lust (2Ti 3:6; Jam 1:14; Pro 5:20). b. Ravished v. - 1. Carried away by force; violated; ravaged. iv. If the young man would have instead been going after his God straightway and delaying not to keep His commandments (Mat 4:20; Psa 119:60), he would not have been led away by the strange woman. B. as an ox goeth to the slaughter, i. Because oxen are brute beasts they have no understanding (Psa 32:9). a. They don't realize that the farmer has devised evil against them as he leads them to the slaughter (Jer 11:19). b. At least oxen have an excuse for their simplicity. ii. The man that goes after a strange woman has no such excuse. a. He lacks understanding that he should possess (Pro 6:32). b. He thought he was being honored by the strange woman through her flattery, but, being without understanding, he was like the beasts that perish (Psa 49:20). c. Growing up as a Jew in Jerusalem, he was no doubt instructed out of the law to not commit adultery (Exo 20:14). d. He obviously did not receive that instruction and therefore manifested himself to be just as stupid as the ox (Pro 12:1). C. or as a fool to the correction of the stocks; i. Stock n. - 8. a. pl. An obsolete instrument of punishment, consisting of two planks set edgewise one over the other (usually framed between posts), the upper plank being capable of sliding up and down. The person to be punished was placed in a sitting posture with his ankles confined between the two planks, the edges of which were furnished with holes to receive them. Sometimes there were added similar contrivances for securing the wrists. ii. Only a fool would voluntarily go straightway to the correction of the stocks if someone tried to talk him into it. iii. The fool that goes to the stocks has pain and suffering awaiting him. iv. So does the man who is led away by a strange woman to her house.