Exegesis of Proverbs

To walk the broad, spacious road that leads to destruction. But here, one must attend to what Solomon says concerning vice: that it does not lead a man initially onto the broad road, nor does it force him to walk through the passages of its house, or approach a corner, or speak in the evening darkness; rather, if he sees someone giving himself over to pleasures, there immediately 'an appearance having met him, it is a fornication, which causes the hearts of the young to wander' (Prov 7:5).

an state is what is called the soul's condition, through which, being unfolded, sin is accomplished through the body. 92 it wanders for a certain time outside, a time in the squares, sitting by every corner, aving taken hold, it loved him. Those wandering in the squares taking up thoughts of adultery, fornication, and theft; 8 but those wandering outside of these move according to nature, seeking the bed of men and taking up fantasies of other forbidden things.

f of the thoughts some are pure and others are unclean—and if of lines the straight ones are called straight, but the bent ones are not straight, a corner being a bent straight line—then an unclean thought is a mental corner. Therefore, vice sitting by every corner signifies its deceiving the soul through all the unclean thoughts. And a demonic passion is an impression moved toward shameful work, calling out the soul.

, 15 'Because of this I went out to meet you; longing for your face, I have found you' (Prov 7:15); 7, 16 'I have spread my bed with curtains; I have made my couch with cushions of Egypt' (Prov 7:16); 7, 17 'I have torn my veil with saffron; my house with cinnamon' (Prov 7:17). Vice seeks to disgrace the face of our soul through the curtains, the bed, the cushions, the saffron, and the cinnamon, which are various evil passions as they occur according to the inventors of evils.

, 19 'For my man is not at home; he has gone on a long journey' (Prov 7:19); 7, 20 'having taken a bag of silver in his hand; after many days he will return to his house' (Prov 7:20). If it says 'after many days he will return to his house,' Paul, having intensely scrutinized the economy, writes of the last enemy.

The overcoming of death. Regarding the one who followed it, having been seduced: there are three kinds of erithion, namely the kepphos, the white one, and the one called the asterias. Of these, the kepphos mates difficultly and pours out; for it both cries out and pours blood, as they say, letting it flow from the eyes, and it gives birth poorly and painfully. These things, indeed, we have set down from Aristotle's histories concerning animals.

But it seems that the Scripture has fashioned its wording from the history of the kepphos bird to mean the woman being persuaded by a prostitute, being seduced and becoming like a bird through lawlessness. [For example, being moved.] For having wounded many, it has cast down them, and they are countless, whom it has murdered; Titroskes mocks us with thoughts, but it murders with sins.

For it is upon the high edges; and in the midst of the soft ones, courage stands between recklessness and cowardice. For it lies in wait by the gates of the powerful; and in the entrances it is praised. Wisdom is said to be praised sometimes in exits and sometimes in entrances, that is, beside those coming out from evil and entering into virtue; for he names the one coming out and the one entering as exit and entrance. Often we have noted this habit of his, that from the states he names those who possess the states, that is, the best ones or the worst ones.

Perceive, you who are without malice, the craftiness; but you who are uneducated, put a heart within you. Here, Cardia has spoken of virtue as that which accompanies the heart.

Take instruction and not silver, and knowledge instead of tested gold... For wisdom is better than precious stones. There, Wisdom took as a genus the instruction and the knowledge; for having placed instruction and knowledge before, she leads into it; 'for wisdom is better than precious stones' (Proverbs 8:11), as instruction and knowledge are contained within wisdom, which is first the gift of the Holy Spirit, if indeed 'a word of wisdom is given through the Spirit' (1 Corinthians 2:13). And this same thing is also called the spirit of adoption (Romans 8:15).

The fear of the Lord hates injustice, and insolence and pride, and the ways of the wicked (Proverbs 8:13). Note that he speaks of injustice and insolence and pride regarding the unrighteous, the insolent, and the proud, from the worst ways.