Proverbs 23:27

For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.
– Proverbs 23:27

The fatherly saying here is reminiscent of the fatherly sayings in the first nine chapters, particularly warnings against the strange woman. The word whore is indelicate today, but it commonly refers to a harlot, or a prostitute. The word for strange woman means a foreign woman but is often put for a forbidden woman, such as a married woman. In this case, she is an adulteress. The deep ditch and narrow pit both indicate a trap with no escape (Proverbs 9:18; 22:14).

Wisdom is not taught just to keep a person from adultery and fornication, though it does that. By addressing the inner lusts, such as greed, gluttony, drunkenness, fornication, etc., the nature of walking the way of wisdom is revealed. Wisdom kept in the heart keeps one in the right way. It affects us transformatively within (Proverbs 20:9; 28:9; 16:6; 28:13). We infer this required inner transformation from the fact wisdom is alien to us, so we must acquire it through correction and instruction (Proverbs 22:15; 19:3). We also know that knowledge must begin with the fear of the Lord, which is put synonymously for knowing God (Proverbs 2:5; 9:10), which can only be had from revelation (Proverbs 2:6). When Proverbs treats of sins like fornication or drunkenness, it’s not just the breaking of a rule that’s warned against but the fundamental root sin of forsaking the God of righteousness (Proverbs 30:7-9).

Listen to the Proverbs sermon series