Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 5:6
Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are movable, [that] thou canst not know [them].
6. Lest thou shouldest ponder ] The rendering of A.V. or of R.V. marg. ( Lest thou find the level path, or, Lest thou weigh carefully the path) is to be preferred to R.V. text which connects the words with the preceding verse and makes them refer to the strange woman: so that she findeth not the level path of life. Having described in Pro 5:5 the end to which her ways lead, the wise Teacher in this verse unveils the artful versatility with which she allures her victims from the plain path of life, and keeps them from the reflection which might lead them to return to it.
thou canst not know them] So R.V. marg., but R.V. text, making the strange woman still the subject, she knoweth it not, Comp. Psa 35:8, where the same Heb. expression is rendered “at unawares.” See for the sentiment ch. Pro 7:22-23.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Or (with the Septuagint and Vulgate), Lest she should ponder (or She ponders not) the way of life, her paths move to and fro (unsteady as an earthquake); she knows not. The words describe with a terrible vividness the state of heart and soul which prostitution brings upon its victims; the reckless blindness that will not think, tottering on the abyss, yet loud in its defiant mirth, ignoring the dreadful future.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Pro 5:6
Her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.
The movable ways of the tempter
The wiseman lets us know how foolish it is for men to flatter themselves with the hope that they shall by and by be truly disposed and enabled to repent of their sin. The temptress can form her mode of behaviour into a hundred shapes to entangle the heart of the lover. She spreads a thousand snares, and if you escape one of them, you will find yourself held fast by another. She knows well how to suit her words and behaviour to your present humour, to lull conscience asleep, and to spread before your eyes such a mist as shall prevent you from being able to descry the paths of life. If you ever think of the danger of your course, and feel the necessity of changing it, she will urge you to spend a little time longer in the pleasures of sin. If her solicitations prevail, if you linger within the precincts of guilt, your resolutions are weakened, and your passions gain new strength. What is the awful result? The devil obtains more influence; conscience, forcibly repressed, ceases to reclaim with so loud a voice; God gives you up to the lusts of your own heart, and leaves you to choose your own delusions. Attend, then, to the wisest of men, who instructs you to keep free of these dangerous temptations. (G. Lawson, D. D.)
Movableness
The text refers to a sinful character who endeavours to keep her companion in vice by her movable ways. Few can say with Paul, None of these things move me. We are liable to be acted upon by influences within and without us. It is a grave weakness to be easily movable to bad and faulty ways. Movableness is the prevalent fault of probably every one of us. How easily we are moved to speak in haste. How difficult to keep our eye from being moved to look on evil. We are urged to fix our affections on things above, but who can do this in his own strength? Are we not movable in our friendships? Perhaps movable Christians love only themselves; and if this be so, it needs but a short time and a slight ruffle against their feathers to move them. Some are easily movable from their work for God and for humanity. Some, perhaps all of us, at times, are movable in our faith. Do not allow yourself to be moved from trusting in the love of Jesus, and never be ashamed of being His faithful disciple. Some are moved from the comfort of prayer. (William Birch.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 6. Lest thou shouldest ponder] To prevent thee from reflecting on thy present conduct, and its consequences, her ways are moveable – she continually varies her allurements.
Thou canst not know them.] It is impossible to conceive all her tricks and wiles: to learn these in all their varieties, is a part of the science first taught in that infernal trade.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, to prevent thy serious consideration of the way and manner of rescuing thyself from this deadly course of life.
Movable; various and changeable. She transforms herself into several shapes, to accommodate herself to the humours of her lovers, and hath a thousand arts and deceits to ensnare them, and hold them fast.
Thou canst not know them; thou canst not discover all her subtle practices, and much less deliver thyself from them.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
6. her ways . . . knowSomeprefer, “that she may not ponder the path of life,” c. butperhaps a better sense is, “her ways are varied, so as toprevent your knowledge of her true character, and so of truehappiness.”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life,…. Consider and meditate which is the way to get out of her hands and ways, and escape death, and obtain eternal life; lest those she has drawn into her wicked course of life should be religiously inclined, and think of quitting such a course, and inquire after the way of life and salvation; and be weighing in their minds which is most eligible, to continue with her whose feet lead to death, or to take the path of life: to prevent all this, if possible,
her ways are movable: she appears in different shapes; changes her dress and habitation; makes use of a thousand arts to ensnare men, to entangle their affections, and retain them in her nets; she first puts them upon one thing, and then on another; she leads them into various mazes and labyrinths of sin, till they have lost all sense of religion, and sight of the path of life;
[that] thou canst not know [them]; her ways, arts, and devices. Or, “thou canst not know” k; that is, the way of life, or how to get out of her ways into that. Or, “thou knowest not”; where she goes, whither she leads thee, and what will be the end and issue of such a course of life. The Targum understands it, and so some other interpreters, of the harlot herself, paraphrasing the whole thus;
“in the way of life she walks not; her ways are unstable, and she knows not”
the way of life, nor where her ways will end; or, “cares not” l what becomes of her. And so, in like manner, the former part of the verse is understood and interpreted, “lest she ponder the path of life” m; or as others, “she does not ponder the path of life” n; The ways of the antichristian harlot are with all deceivableness of unrighteousness; and her chief care is to keep persons in ignorance, and from pondering the path of life or true religion, and to retain them in her idolatry, 2Th 2:9.
k “non scires”, Cocceius; “non cognosces”, Baynus. l “Haud curat”, Schultens. m “iter vitae ne forte libraverit”, Schultens. n “Viam vitae non appendit, vel ponderat”, Gejerus; so Luther; “iter vitae non expandit”, Noldius, p. 249. No. 2008.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(6) Lest thou shouldest ponder . . .The meaning of the English version appears to be, To prevent thy choosing the path of life, she leads thee by devious paths that thou knowest not where thou art. It may also be rendered, Far from smoothing for herself the path of life, her steps wander without her observing it. By these words is described the reckless career of a vicious woman, who at last dares not think whither her steps are leading her, but as it were with eyes shut, totters on till she falls to rise no more.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
6. Her ways are movable She continually varies her allurements.
Thou canst not Or dost not.
Know them It is impossible to conceive all the tricks and arts of her infernal trade. Beware of them. The verse is obscure, owing to the fact that in the Hebrew verb the form of the third person singular feminine and the second person singular masculine are the same, and it is difficult in this case to determine whether to translate she or thou. Zockler renders, “The path of life she never treadeth; her steps stray, she knows not whither.” Stuart, “That she may not ponder the path of life, her ways are become unsteady while she regards it not.” To the same purpose others. Conant, “That thou mayest not ponder, etc., her paths waver ere thou knowest.” “She weigheth not the way of life; her paths are movable; thou canst not know them.” Geneva Bible. “For she goes not upon the paths of life; but her ways are slippery, and not easily known.” Sept. The words describe with a terrible vividness the state of heart and soul which prostitution brings upon its victim; the reckless blindness that will not think, tottering to the abyss, yet loud in defiant mirth, ignoring the dreadful future. Our English version, however, is supported by some good authorities.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Pro 5:6. Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life Houbigant renders this, She is far from following the way of life: her steps wander whither she herself knoweth not: which is very like the Chaldee. The design of the wise man seems to be, to point out the inconstancy, irregularity, and wickedness, of the strange woman’s life. Her ways are inconstant; she is not attached to her husband, or to any one man, but abandons herself to the first comer; has neither knowledge, wisdom, nor discernment; she has no other rule than her passion, no other end than her pleasure. She is profligate, and wholly lost, says Schultens; affected neither by the fear of God, nor the care of her own salvation. See ch. Pro 2:18-19.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Pro 5:6 Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, [that] thou canst not know [them].
Ver. 6. Lest thou shouldest ponder, ] q.d., Lest thou shouldest persuade thyself that thou mayest embrace the bosom of a stranger, and yet lay hold upon the paths of life by repenting thee of thy folly – this was Solomon’s error sometimes Ecc 1:17 ; Ecc 2:3 – thou art utterly deceived herein, for her ways are moveable, so that thou observest not whither she tendeth; she wanders here and there (and thou with her), yet not so wide as to miss hell; lo, that is the centre whereunto she is rolling, that is the rendezvous for all her associates in sin.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Lest thou shouldest ponder. Render: So that she findeth not the level path of life; her ways are unstable and she knoweth it not.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
ponder: Pro 4:26, Psa 119:59
the path: Pro 11:19, Psa 16:11
her: Pro 6:12, Pro 6:13, Pro 7:10-21, 2Th 2:9, 2Th 2:10
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
LIFES LEVEL PATH
The level path of life He maketh level all his paths.
Pro 5:6; Pro 5:21 (R.V.).
I. It is a remarkable expressionthe level path of life; and there is great comfort in knowing that God is ever before us, levelling our pathway, taking insurmountable obstacles out of the way, so that our feet do not stumble.
II. It may be that you are facing a great mountain range of difficulty.Before you obstacles, apparently insuperable, rear themselves like a giant wall to heaven. When you cross the Jordan there is also a Jericho, which appears to bar all further advance, and your heart fails. But you are bidden to believe that there is a level path right through those mighty barriers; a pass, as it is called. The walking there is easy and pleasant if only you will let yourself be led to it. God has made it, but you must find it. How we dread the thought of those steep cliffs! It seems as though we could never climb them; but if we would only look at the Lord instead of at the hills, if we would look above the hills to Jehovah, we should be able to rest in sure faith that He would show us the level path of life.
III. Your path is not level, but full of boulders, which have rolled down upon and choked it.But may this not be partly due to your mistakes or sins, to your wilfulness and self-dependence? There are sorrows and trials in all lives, but these need not obstruct our progress. The text surely refers to those difficulties which threaten us with their arrest, putting barriers in our way. These would be levelled if we gave the direction of our lives more absolutely into Gods hands. When Peter reached the iron gate he found it open; when the women reached the sepulchre door they found the stone gone.
Illustration
The stability of a country depends wholly upon its home-life. So long as the homes are pure and God-fearing, it is impossible that its freedom or influence should be permanently obscured. Our strength is not in our arms, or ships, but in the purity of our manners, the elevation of the domestic ideal. Hence this book, which is the vade-mecum of a strong, sweet life, is so emphatic in denouncing impurity. Oh, that young men would lay this chapter to heart!
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
5:6 Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are {d} moveable, [that] thou canst not know [them].
(d) She has always new means to allure to wickedness.