“To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;”
A second major protective function of wisdom appears: 'It will save you also from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with her seductive words.' 'Save you' (yasa) repeats the language of deliverance from chapter 1. The 'adulteress' (ishah zara, a strange/foreign woman) is a recurring figure in Proverbs 1-9 representing the seduction of illicit desire. Her 'seductive words' (amrah hitluqah, smooth/flattering words) exercise a particular power. This verse indicates that one crucial protection wisdom provides is against sexual seduction and the relational destruction it brings. The woman represents not merely sexual temptation but the broader seduction of desire untethered from covenant commitment. Her words are specifically described as seductive, indicating that the danger lies in persuasive speech that appeals to appetite. Wisdom enables the young man to recognize and resist this seduction.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
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