The Book of Proverbs everywhere teaches that actions have consequences. Good actions have good consequences, bad actions bad ones. One of the book’s specific lessons is that cultivating a faithful marriage leads to blessing. By contrast, pursuing adulterous liaisons leads to judgment.
In Proverbs 6:25-35, the Proverbist outlines the judgment that falls on the man who seeks adulterous liaisons. They are both person and interpersonal. Verses 25-29 outline the personal judgment that comes to the adulterous man:
Do not lust in your heart after her beauty
or let her captivate you with her eyes,
for the prostitute reduces you to a loaf of bread,
and the adulteress preys upon your very life.
Can a man scoop fire into his lap
without his clothes being burned?
Can a man walk on hot coals
without his feet being scorched?
So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife;
no one who touches her will go unpunished.
In our day and age, pornography is readily available. Many men get caught in its trap. They fixate on some beautiful young woman on their computer screen and ignore their own wives, to the detriment of their marriages. Or worse, they become so desirous of what they see on screen that they seek out adulterous liaisons with women whom they believe will fulfill their fantasies. The first step in protecting your marriage, not to mention avoiding the negative consequences of adultery, is to monitor what you see.
Proverbs is very practical about the consequences of adultery. It costs money to view pornography or engage in an affair. “The prostitute reduces you to a loaf of bread.” But no man can be equally attentive to two women. That is, I think, what is meant by the words, “the adulteress preys upon your very life.” She wants the attention that you should be giving only to you wife.
Verses 30-35 outline the interpersonal consequences of adultery. It ruins two marriages, and it exposes the unfaithful man to revenge:
Men do not despise a thief if he steals
to satisfy his hunger when he is starving.
Yet if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold,
though it costs him all the wealth of his house.
But a man who commits adultery lacks judgment;
whoever does so destroys himself.
Blows and disgrace are his lot,
and his shame will never be wiped away;
for jealousy arouses a husband’s fury,
and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
He will not accept any compensation;
he will refuse the bribe, however great it is.
These verses draw an interesting contrast between theft and adultery. People will excuse a hungry thief, as long as he makes restitution when he is able. But a cuckolded husband is not similarly forgiving. And anyway, what payment could possibly cover the costs of broken trust? Instead, there are only “blows and disgrace” for the adulterer, “fury” and “revenge.”
Knowing the personal and interpersonal costs of adultery, the wise man chooses to love his own wife, shield his eyes from temptation, and avoid adultery at all costs.
GeorgePWood.com 