Prov 7:27 [ESV] Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chamber of death.
I was thirteen and was with my social worker. He had been playing rugby, and had invited me along to watch him play. It was a nice spring day, so I stood on the sidelines and watched the game. I was in a children’s home and had in some ways now a whole new life, much of which I did not quite yet understand, although at that age, I probably thought I did.
After the game he took me to the clubhouse with the players of both teams having soup, sandwiches and a few beers. At this point I had only really had a few small tastes of beer. He handed me a pint glass of lager – it was the biggest glass of anything I had ever been handed. I drank it and he gave me a second one. I drank it. It was my first experience of being “tipsy”, and led to years of alcoholism.
I am not blaming my social worker – he was a good man really helped me a lot over the years, bailing me out of trouble time after time. I think he thought he was treating me like an adult, but I don’t think he really understood how messed up and fragile I was on the inside. He came from a beautiful family, and was raising beautiful family, so just being around broken children, and even studying the science or art of social work, did not give him the experiential knowledge of what it was like to be broken, and how the simple act of providing my first ever experience of “tipsy” would impact me. Of course, even at that age, I had the ability to make a choice, and I did.
KNOWLEDGE There are people and events in life that are specifically designed to take us out. They are dressed up as if they are the answer, as if they are what we need – and what will make us happy. You can think of a few, I’m sure. They are incremental, you only have to listen to their whisper, to turn towards them, to take on step, to try it once, and that can be enough to take us where our feet never really wanted to go.
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 word for “down” in Hebrew is pronounced as “yarad”, and has the meaning of to come down; go down; descend; to bring down; to be brought or taken down.
The LXX has Her house is the ways of Hades, they lead down [κατάγουσαι – katagousai] into the storerooms of death.”
In the new Testament the word that is used is καταγώ – katago, and has the meaning of bring or brought down in nine occurances.
WISDOM – Chapter 7:1 has the guidance we need “My son, keep my words and treasure up my commandments with you.”
STRENGTHS THOUGHT: Intellectual as a Gallup Strength has a beautiful aspect of health debate, internal and external. In the debate often new concepts and ideas are brought into the light. It’s possible for you to become lost in unhelpful thoughts and/or distracted. Stay around great people.
Allan’s Unauthorised Version – Her house is the path, and the way of life that leads to the realm of death, descending, being brought down to the chambers of the belly of dying and death.
Her house – her house
is the way – is the path, and the way of life
to Sheol – to the realm of death,
going down – descending, being brought down,
to the chambers – to the chambers of the belly
of death – of dying and death
PRAYER: Father, thank you for today. Help me to be aware of any and all decisions that take me onto the wrong paths, leading away from you and your ways.
To chat to me as a professional coach/mentor – allan@theallankey.com
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