A very important conversation about male sexuality is the issue of seduction. The destructive power of seduction can lead a good man down a wrong path and cause him to lose his sexual integrity.
It is interesting to me that the wisest man in the world, King Solomon, gave priority to the discussion of seduction in the Book of Proverbs. The first four chapters of Proverbs exalt wisdom and encourage everyone to seek wisdom above all. Then in chapter five, adultery is addressed, complete with graphic detail of how an adulterous woman can cost a man everything. By its placement, we can conclude that adultery is the number one threat to having wisdom. Without wisdom we cannot hope to become sexually successful.
God’s Ten Commandments support this conclusion. The first four commandments teach us that our relationship with God is primary. The fifth and sixth commandments teach us how to treat our parents and not to kill other people. The seventh commandment forbids committing adultery, and the last commandment reinforces that prohibition, asking us not to lust after or covet another man’s wife. (See Exodus 20)
So, I am in good company in giving priority to a discussion of seduction. This is especially for our western culture, which teaches little boys that girls are made of only their physical attributes. The effects of this false picture of women are compounded by our modern culture, which portrays men on prime-time television as dumb, and needing women to continually straighten them out.
Most information we receive about women declares them to be essentially good. That is true of most women. Many are selfless in parenting, patient, kind and loyal in marriage. I personally have a great wife who is an incredibly good woman. Though most women are good, there are some who do not have good intentions towards men.
The reality is that women are people, and all people have the potential for good and evil. The scriptures record both the good and evil of people throughout the Old and New Testament. Such good character traits are also illustrated in the story of Ruth by her loyalty to Naomi. And who can forget the queen of all that is good, Esther! The Old Testament also preserves the record as well of some women who were not good, like Delilah, who sacrificed a man who loved her for money. King Ahab’s wife, Jezebel is another terrible example of a woman ruled by evil intentions for selfish gain.
Delilah was a woman who used her personal charm to lure the strongest physical man to his spiritual and physical destruction, and she stands out as one of the lowest, meanest women of the Bible—the female Judas of the Old Testament. It’s important to be able to recognize these two different types of women by the characteristics they exhibit through their behavior.