Big Picture

Read Proverbs 5

[The evil man] will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his great foolishness.

Proverbs 5:23

The primary thrust of Proverbs 5 is that a man should be faithful to his wife. But the last three verses, including verse 23, give the chapter a broader context. They speak of evil deeds ensnaring a person, the “ropes that catch and hold him” (v. 22). Verse 23 uses words we might use to describe a person’s relentless addiction to drugs. We think of drug addicts as having a total lack of self-control, and of their incredible foolishness in choosing to waste their lives. In the depths of their addiction, drug addicts also like to think that they can get their fixes secretly, out of view of those who love them.

Our evil ways are like that, too. We are all addicted to sin from birth, because our mother and father were sin addicts. We were born addicted to sin, and we choose with incredible folly to continue our addiction with our evil ways. And despite our attempts to deny or hide them, our evil ways are in full view of the Lord. He knows our sin. He also knows that our addiction is beyond self-correction. That is why he gave us Jesus—to save us from our incredible foolishness and to restore us to faithfulness to him.

A WORD FOR TODAY

Getting what you want can be the worst outcome.

Today, Lord, I confess my addiction to sin and accept your extended hand to lift me from my evil ways.