4. Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:
5. That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.
In these two verses we have the contrast of two kinds of women. The first is a close relative like ones own sister. This woman, because she is of ones own kind and kindred, appeals to our kindness and natural affection. We protect her person and her honor. We value her presence and promote her wellbeing. It is interesting that wisdom is not here compared to ones wife. Why is that? Most likely it is because the person being exhorted and cautioned is not married, but single. He can’t relate to the affections associated with marriage in his own experience, but he does have relatives that he cherishes.
The second woman is just the opposite. He doesn’t really know her. She is a stranger to him but for some reason she has taken an interest in him. She speaks to him. She flatters him. She makes him feel important and increases his sense of self worth, if for no other reason that she notices him. What would his sister or other close relative say if she observed what was happening? She would become indignant and alarmed and warn him against the designs of such a woman. She sees what is going on and the danger to which he seems to be oblivious. How would he respond to his sister/kinswoman’s counsel? This proverb means nothing to the person who does not value and honor his sister. To such, to compare his sister with wisdom would cause him to say, “Huh?” This proverb assumes a natural affection and bond within the family. But there is something else going on here. While it is necessary it is not sufficient to hate and avoid evil, because our fallen nature is prone to feel an attraction even to those things that we hate.
“For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.” (Romans 7:15-20)If we don’t recognize this battle within us, and our own vulnerabilities, then we are self-deceived. What is necessary is for us to also desire and value that which is good, hence the comparison with ones own sister. This is where a robust Family Legacy that is committed to the Kingdom of God comes in. Your family looks out for your wellbeing and watches your back and you know it and value it and you do the same for them.
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