Day 7: Keep God’s commands (7:1)

“My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee”

As already noted, and will see more of in later chapters, Proverbs is packed full of wisdom relating to many different aspects of life. Slightly frustrating for one trying to cover as many of these, which seem just as if not more pertinent than Solomon’s obsession with immoral women, in 31 days’ worth of meditations, for yet again Solomon devotes the majority of this chapter to a theme he has already done, so it seems, to proverbial death – that of the lustful, predatory woman intent on seducing “my son” using crafty flattery. Ours is not to argue why the Bible emphasises certain things more than others. Such scenarios are clearly important as he lays out how the woman entraps and the gullibility of the man along with his fate, which is “the way to hell” (1:27), when he succumbs. We might also infer that sexual sin in all sorts guises has a similar outcome. It is why, as pointed out earlier, we need our own intimate relationship with wisdom and understanding and: “to say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman” (7:4) to prevent this, for by doing so we find the way of life as opposed to that of death. While we title our thought for today as “keeping God’s commands”, as far as Solomon was concerned, they are my (i.e. his commands) and his words, reminding us of the need to take heed of wise counsel, primarily a parental responsibility, but also from those who are wise.

Keeping these commands are important, which we must treasure greatly: “keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye” (7:2). We are told: “Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart” (7:3), reminding us how the Children of Israel were expected to treat the Law God gave Moses: “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes” Deuteronomy 6:8. While, as New Testament people, we are under grace, not law, doing the right thing as God sets it out is of paramount importance. Taking heed to what is God’s blueprint for living our lives should be that of the apple of thine eye and these “commands” should be bound to our fingers and written on our hearts. We ought to concur with the Psalmist: “With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments” Psalm 119:10.

Prayer: We thank you for your commands Lord, which are for our own good, to obey. We are sorry when we break them. May we greatly desire wisdom and understanding and treasure your commands so we keep on the straight path.