Loss of resources: 'Lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich another man's house.' 'Strangers' and another man's house' indicate that the fruits of the young man's labor will be consumed not by his own family but by others. The economic consequence of adultery is real: resources and strength are wasted on the affair rather than building one's own household. In the ancient world, a man's wealth was understood as something to be preserved for his own family and household. To squander it on an adulteress is betrayal of familial duty. The verse appeals to the young man's interest in economic security and building a household.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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