[ 1 minutes to read ]

Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:
– Proverbs 7:4

[I]n chapter 5 Solomon set the blessings of faithful marriage over against the consequences of adultery. Here he refers to familial love and natural affections. The point enforced is to not only hear and keep wisdom but to love wisdom as one does his near kin. The young man has a special relation to his sister or other close female relation. He treats her with a certain tenderness and attentiveness to help and to protect. The young man must develop just such a love for wisdom to keep from errant paths. Charles Bridges captured the thought in his classic commentary on Proverbs:

Man must have his object of delight. If wisdom is not loved, lust will be indulged. The Bible therefore—not merely read, but the cherished object of familiar intercourse—proves a sacred exorcist to expel the power of evil.

The point is that we do not need or want a heart that is cleaned, swept, garnished, and empty (Matthew 12:43-45). We must fill our hearts and minds with good things (Philippians 4:8).

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