Prov 7:22 [ESV] All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast
As a young man I had a great group of friends, and we loved hanging out together. We went for walks, set up rope swings, stayed up late, ate too many hot chips, and loved being in some sort of adventure.
Two or three of my close friends decided to set up a band. I was hooked – and decided I wanted to be the drummer. So at the age of around 17 I walked into a music shop, with my landlord as guarantor (bless his heart) and bought a five-piece set of Tama Drums for around four hundred British pounds. I think I was earning around one pound fifty pence an hour then – before tax.
The best I could ever really say was that I was more of an enthusiastic drummer than a skilled musician. Eventually I conceded and the drums were sold at an astonishing loss.
Years later I played drums in church – so nothing of the practice was wasted. But I was paying for those drums for a long time after they had left my possession. Impulse purchases do come with a health warning. They are not always 100% wrong – occasionally they are good and I have another story for another day…..but mostly, they don’t work out all that well.
KNOWLEDGE Spur of the moment decisions are something to be aware of. A reflexive response, often unconsidered, and the cost not fully understood, or even if it is, the emotions overrule the logic. When we think about Emotional Intelligence the following thought comes to mind – “Anyone can become angry – that is easy. But to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not easy” [the Nichomachean Ethics]
Does your intelligence control your emotions, or your emotions rule your intelligence – there is a massive difference.
UNDERSTANDING – Let’s pick one word from this verse to look closer at and see if that can help us gain a deeper insight into how God would love us to live?
The Hebrew word that is translated into “All at once he” is pronounced as “pu’om” meaning suddenly, unexpectedly, all at once, and – in an instant.
The LXX reads as “And he followed after her, being easily led on, and as an ox unto slaughter is led, and as a dog to bonds, and as a stag shot with a bow,”
The word for “followed after” is επηκολούθησεν [epekolouthesen] – which makes no appearance in the New Testament.
There is no doubt that the young person positioned themself in a very vulnerable situation willingly, and then made a hasty and emotional decision that would have a cost they could never repay.
WISDOM – I am going to choose my friends well, and I am going to invite them to help me change my blindspots into weaknesses that can be worked on.
STRENGTHS THOUGHT: Adaptability as a Gallup Strength loves to go with the flow. It’s critical to position yourself around healthy peopl and healthy activities each day. You love living in the moment and the sense of discovery about the future.
Allan’s Unauthorised Version – Suddenly, in an instant he chooses a pattern of conduct, like a bull brought forwards to be slaughtered, or a fool caught by the ankle
All at once – suddenly, in an instant
he follows her – he chooses a pattern of conduct,
as an ox – like a bull
goes to the slaughter – brought for slaughtering
or as a stag – or as a fool
is caught fast – trapped by their ankle
PRAYER: Father, thank you for today. Help me to flee temptation with all I have – to make a covenant with myself and with you.
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