March 23, 2026 -- Proverbs 7:6-9 -- Spotting the seeds of temptation to sin
/People loved by the Father, in the Spirit’s power: Sh’ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!
For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
and I have seen among the simple
I have perceived among the youths
a young man lacking sense,
passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.
Proverbs 7:6-9 ESV
The book of Proverbs continually warns the young, the old, the wise and the simple against the wiles of sexual sin. It makes sense. Solomon wrote the Proverbs. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines. There is a stark change in the life of Solomon; at the start of his reign is it reported “Solomon loved the LORD” (I Kings 3:3), but later in his reign “King Solomon loves many foreign women” (I Kings 11:1). If the man so blessed by the LORD that he had an understanding mind to govern the people of God (I Kings 3:9) could have his heart turn to sin by the women he loved, how much more, ordinary folks such as you and I must guard ourselves against any temptation toward sexual sin?!
Notice the descent into sin. First the simple man passes by the street of the forbidden woman. He knows she’s there; her house is obvious. Next, he is making excuses to take the road to her house, unnecessarily passing by it in order to carry on his day’s labour. You know the seed of sin is growing within him. Sin is like that. Unless one plucks up and immediately tosses away the seed of sin, it will take root and start growing a nefarious plan within you.
He is sinking even lower as the bright daylight begins to give way to evening. At twilight he is still hesitating, the growing temptation could be resisted, but it is allowed to grow. At night he hasn’t made a commitment to sin, but it is closer. In the darkness, the adulteress meets him. She’s watched the slow, burning, growing, progression toward sin and when it was obvious the time was ripe, she went out to seal the deal.
What a graphic description of sin. It is a brief temptation, not immediately denounced. It is a thought that lingers. It is an idea that is contemplated, justified, and finally boldly pursued. The believer is called to purity. The believer is called to obedience to Jesus Christ.
First, because Jesus has supplied the reconciling grace for the believer, a believer in life-long thankfulness to Jesus, chooses to live for Him.
Second, life in Christ involves cultivating purity in the thoughts, the intentions, and the plans of the heart.
Third, a deep commitment to Jesus will motivate believers to pluck out the insidious seedlings of sins that would take deep root in the place where desires form to influence your thoughts. The Holy Spirit Who lives in the believer will shine the light of Scripture to the places of forming desires where you are straying from whole-hearted obedience to Jesus. You have every opportunity to squash the inclination to sin before it becomes huge, deep-rooted, and hard to dig out completely.
Father in heaven, keep me from the evil, which is always crouching at my door, ready to ambush me. By Your Spirit, let the light of Your Word show me both the vileness of the lurking seeds of temptation and the ruination that such sin would unleash so that in the strength of the Spirit I will pick each one up and toss it away. Then with hand, soul, and heart let me continually, morning, noon, and night, willingly, serve You. Amen.
https://youtu.be/0nnkkra4FwY?si=XT6mnbqBg64WZ20S Psalm 150 (Praise the Lord")
