There is no virtue in being a spiritual simpleton who is void of understanding. There are no new temptations (1 Corinthians 10:13); therefore, there is no excuse for not knowing the folly which fuels a life-shattering sin like fornication. In Proverbs 7:6-9 Solomon describes the foolish first steps taken by a spiritual simpleton on the way to death and Sheol; he writes, “For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice and saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, a young man devoid of understanding, passing along the street near her corner; and he took the path to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night.” Note the folly found in this description:
- The folly of failing to avoid certain places at certain times. Solomon describes a young man after dark taking a stroll in the vicinity of a known streetwalking woman. So, exactly who would he expect to run into in that location at that time?
- The folly of underestimating the danger of sin. The word picture employed in the Hebrew is one of a young man sauntering along, moving leisurely through this location. There is absolutely no recognition of the extraordinary spiritual danger he was in. Unlike Joseph who turned and ran (Genesis 39:12), this foolish simpleton moseyed around in this woman’s neighborhood until she found him.
- The folly of underestimating the allure of sin. Everything about this woman’s appearance, behavior, demeanor, and speech was designed to entice and flatter him into the folly of fornication (see vv. 11-21). Sin’s passing pleasures are alluring; only a fool thinks otherwise.
Like the multitude of his predecessors, this foolish man thought he could take fire to his bosom and his clothes not be burned (Proverbs 6:27).
He was wrong. Dead wrong.
