What is the meaning of Proverbs 2:17? Who - Proverbs 2:16 identifies “the adulterous woman” whose smooth words lure the unsuspecting; verse 17 picks up with “who abandons the partner of her youth.” - Similar portraits show up in Proverbs 5:3-6 and 7:5-27, where the immoral woman symbolizes both literal adultery and a broader pattern of unfaithfulness. - Whether describing an actual person or illustrating Israel’s spiritual infidelity (Hosea 1:2; Jeremiah 3:6), the text warns readers to recognize and avoid covenant-breaking influences. Abandons - The verb stresses a conscious decision to walk away. Malachi 2:16 says, “For I hate divorce,” highlighting how God views abandonment. - Jesus reinforces the permanence of marriage in Matthew 19:6: “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” - Abandonment here is first a relational act, but it also pictures turning aside from God’s wisdom path laid out in Proverbs 2:1-15. The partner of her youth - Marriage in ancient Israel typically began early; “partner of her youth” recalls the fresh devotion of first love (Songs 1:2-4). - Proverbs 5:18 urges, “Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth.” - When youthful vows are discarded, the security and joy designed for marriage fracture, undermining family, community, and personal integrity. And forgets - Forgetting is more than mental lapse; it is willful neglect. Deuteronomy 8:11 warns, “Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God by failing to keep His commandments.” - Psalm 106:21 laments Israel’s pattern: “They forgot God their Savior.” - In this context, forgetting signals a heart that chooses desire over fidelity, self over God. The covenant of her God - Marriage is not merely a social contract; it is “the covenant of her God.” Malachi 2:14 explains, “The LORD is witness between you and the wife of your youth... she is your companion and your wife by covenant.” - Genesis 2:24 frames marriage as God-ordained, and Ephesians 5:31-32 shows it picturing Christ’s bond with the church. - Breaking the marriage covenant therefore dishonors the divine covenant-maker, inviting the consequences listed in Proverbs 2:18-19. summary Proverbs 2:17 depicts a person who deliberately deserts lifelong vows—both to spouse and to God. She (or he) abandons the early partner, forgets the sacred covenant, and models a path that Proverbs urges us to shun. Fidelity to marriage reflects fidelity to God; rejecting one endangers the other. |
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