My son, keep my words,
And treasure my commands within you.
2 Keep my commands and live,
And my law as the apple of your eye.
3 Bind them on your fingers;
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Say to wisdom, "You are my sister,"
And call understanding your nearest kin,
5 That they may keep you from the immoral woman,
From the seductress who flatters with her words.
Pasted from <http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%207&version=NKJV>
Who is the "Apple of your Eye?" The expression that Solomon uses in this passage speaks of the favor one has for something or someone. It is virtually the same expression we use today. Sometimes you hear of grandparents or elderly relatives describing a younger person or a child in this way. When they say, "he or she is the apple of my eye" they are not trying to play favorites, but are letting you know that the person they are describing is very dear and special to them. Do you have or know anyone like this? The person who is the Apple of my Eye is the one who impresses me with their character - particularly their devotion to Christ and their work ethic. People who work hard impress me and get that kind of attention from me.
Solomon says that he values the commands of the Lord are treasures, and the law is the apple of his eye. They are to be kept as close to us as binding them on our fingers so that we may always see them, or writing them on the tablet of our hearts. In fact, we are to regard the wisdom and understanding we receive from God like we would our closest relatives- like people that we love, and show them the most attention possible.
When we regard God's Word this way, it will keep us from what he calls the "immoral woman and the seductress." These characters may be considered literally- but like Solomon is also referring to the worldly ways that seduce us a believers back into the world. Its been my observation that it does not take much for this to happen. Sometimes we get interested in some innocent but worldly thing that gets exciting. Once my children and I were into playing paintball and had some fun with that. Eventually we got out of it because it consumed a lot of our time and a lot of my money. But another reason we got out of it was another family in our church began enjoying the game a little too much. They played rounds with us quite often and we enjoyed it. However, they began playing paintball to the point that they started going "professional". Eventually, the whole family stopped coming to church as they devoted every weekend to paintball tournaments; going on the road and spending a lot of money. Five years later they are hallow, spiritually empty, and broke. It hurt to see them turn from Christ who had once been the apple of their eye to the worldly pursuits of playing a meaningless game. What hurt the worst was knowing that it was our family that got them so enthusiastic about the game.
Sometimes the apple of our eyes needs a bit of "spit and polish" to keep it bright and interesting so that the attractions of the world will not supplant them. Keep focused upon the Apple of your Eye, Jesus Christ as the center of your life and your world.
Prayer: Lord God please help me to keep Christ the Apple of my Eye today. I must admit that the allurements of the world look very enticing and interesting. But they have very little to offer in terms of real value. Keep me from the seductress of worldliness who seeks to drag me down to following after her. In Jesus name, Amen.
Have a blessed day!
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