Proverbs 5:13

Sexual sinners with consciences will cry out, “Why did I not listen to my teachers? Why did I not obey their warnings? Now it is too late! My life is ruined!” These are the painful cries of a fool – who rejected advice about sexual sins. His grief is great, but it is too late.

It does not matter now. He has destroyed his life with whores. He is sick with regret. He wishes he could go back. Why did he hate instruction and despise reproof? Why did he not obey the warnings of his teachers? Note the exclamation point emphasizing his grief.

This chapter is dedicated to warning young men about sexual sins. Solomon warned his son about the sweet-talking strange woman – a whore (Pr 5:1-7). This proverb concludes a long sentence, in which he warned his children to stay far away from her, lest they end up destroying their lives and grieving hopelessly for ignoring his instruction (Pr 5:8-13).

To whom much is given shall much be required (Luke 12:47-48). If pastors, parents, teachers, and friends warned you against sexual sins, then your guilt and punishment will be more severe for sinning against greater knowledge. Consider the grief and guilt that Samson and David felt for their fornication (Judges 16:20-21; Ps 51:8). Is it true, reader, that you have been taught and warned about sexual sins? Then flee for your life!

Sex is a great gift from God, but He limited it to marriage with one spouse (Pr 5:15-19), severely condemning any other intimacy (Pr 5:20-23). Young men burn with sexual desire from God-given testosterone, but they must rule their bodies and limit sexual thoughts or activity to a wife only (Pr 5:19; I Cor 6:13-20; I Thes 4:3-8; Heb 13:4).

The world is obsessed with sex, mostly sinful sex outside of marriage, and even unnatural sex with the same gender. Morality has died. Younger and younger children seek it. Advertisers exploit it. Entertainers promote it. Legislators excuse it. Parents allow it. Pharmacists protect it. Women wear less in public; many are whores – killing inhibitions to accept casual sex. The temptations for men (and women) have never been greater.

But God has spoken. Ignoring Him will ruin your life. He limited sex to one man and one woman in a loving marriage. Intimacy with any other person is not allowed. He taught it at creation (Gen 2:18-25). The patriarchs understood it (Gen 39:7-12). The Law of Moses forbad it (Lev 18:1-30). And the gospel condemns it (Eph 5:3-7; Heb 13:4; Rev 21:8).

Your choices today will affect the rest of your life. You have been warned. If you look at pornography, which is so enticing, available, and “innocent,” you will ruin your life (Pr 5:19-23; 6:25; II Sam 11:2-4; Ps 101:3; Matt 5:28; Rom 6:16). And women must remember that their romance novels are the exact counterpart to nude pictures for men. Both of these hellish inventions excite the lusts for sexual sin and/or destroy contentment.

If you are even slightly tempted with an ungodly relationship, do anything to get away from it. Jesus would tell you to pluck out your right eye or cut off your right hand to avoid it (Matt 5:29-30). Some sins you can fight, but this sin you must flee (II Tim 2:22). If you have a pang of conscience, it is God’s pure mercy to you. Repent, and run, now!

You cannot go back once you sin sexually (Pr 6:32-33; Deut 22:13-21). What restitution will you offer? It will utterly be contemned (Pr 6:34-35; Song 8:6-7). The trap has sprung, and you are caught. Only by great grace and in rare events does God recover sexual sinners (Pr 2:18-19; 5:4-5,11,22-23; 7:26-27; 9:18; 23:27; Eccl 7:26). Do not boast of repenting tomorrow; God may leave you rotting in your sins without ability to repent.

But reader, you cannot limit this proverb to sexual sins. If you have been taught truth or wisdom on any subject, you must esteem that teaching and hate every false way (Ps 119:128). The just God will hold you accountable for sinning presumptuously against the mercy of instruction and warning (Pr 29:1; Num 15:30-31; Luke 12:47-48; Jas 4:17).

A terrible day is coming soon, of which the fear, grief, and horror cannot be described, for you shall give an account of your life to God (Eccl 12:14; Rom 14:10-11; II Cor 5:10-11; Rev 20:11-15). It will be far too late to pay attention to parents or pastors. The books will be opened, your presumptuous sins exposed, and the eternal sentence given.

In that day, you will wish the pastor had preached longer, your parents had been stricter, your pastor had preached harder, and your parents had punished more severely. You will wish you could go back and attend church differently. You will wish you had listened. The change in your perspective will be unbelievably great in only one second of time.

There is only one way to avoid the horrific predicament of this proverb and that day: obey today what you have been taught. If you daily obey God’s rules and parental and pastoral warnings about sin, you will never experience the hopeless grief of this proverb. But if you arrogantly or rebelliously go ahead in your lusts, you will suffer most terribly.