Proverbs 6:5

There is a time to be frantic! To wildly use every ounce of energy to escape! To violently do anything to get out of danger! Think about drowning and the desire it creates to get to the surface. Some risks have great danger. Many do not allow for any delay. You must act, and you must act now. You must aggressively do what you can to protect yourself.

Financial deals can be painful and must be ended as soon as you realize your error. If you are foolishly committed to unnecessary risk, get out of the deal, immediately. You must escape the trap that has caught you before it fully closes. Be frantic to get out of it before trouble comes. Thus King Solomon warned his son against cosigning loans (Pr 6:1-5).

A roe is a small species of deer, inhabiting parts of Europe and Asia. It is light of foot and darts quickly and runs fast when frightened by a hunter. It is able to frantically dash away before a hunter can shoot an arrow at it. Even hunters with firearms have to work hard to take one of these deer. They can even escape many stealthy and quick cats of prey.

Birds do not like to be taken in a fowler’s net. They will thrash wildly, using every ounce of energy and strength they have, to extricate themselves from the net. Their frantic movements, caused by intense, instinctive fear, are almost painful to watch, as a bird can appear to practically turn itself inside out in its efforts to regain its freedom.

Reader, are you listening? Does the Preacher have your attention? Solomon warned his son about foolish financial commitments, especially cosigning loans. Being a king’s son brought financial temptations, as friends would ask him to guarantee loans and other obligations. Since he was rich, he might easily agree to such things to be their dealmaker.

If the foolish commitment had already been made, as Solomon described to his son, he must at least try to get out of it before the funds are drawn down by the friend (Pr 6:1-5). If his mouth had gotten him in trouble by hastily promising a surety bond, he must not let pride keep him from reversing course, and he must not let sleep keep him from the task.

Wisdom includes wise financial management. It warns against cosigning; it warns against debt; it warns that riches are temporary; it warns against contingent liabilities (Pr 22:26-27; 22:7; 27:24; 22:3). It requires savings and giving (Pr 6:6-8; 11:24-26). Wise men keep their financial lives as simple as possible to minimize risk and fulfill duties. If you are in any binding or risky financial situation, be like a roe or a bird. Get out of it! Now!

The financial laws of some nations have rights of rescission for those that have completed a financial contract to cancel the deal within a certain number of days. The proverb certainly applies – your time is limited, so be frantically insistent to get out of the deal. If you smell even a whiff of a Ponzi scheme, get out. If you have committed to a mortgage impulsively, rescind it. If an investor or trader, cut your losses, and let your profits run.

The lesson of this proverb also applies to other parts of life. Emotional or physical desire for someone you cannot marry leads to fornication. Some sins you may fight, but this sin is only beat by flight (Pr 4:15; 5:8; II Tim 2:22). Get frantic. Joseph made like a roe or a bird, when Potiphar’s wife approached him (Ge 39:12). How much greater could Samson have been had he been like a frantic roe or bird? He lingered, and Delilah conquered.

What if you are engaged to be married, but you doubt the person truly fears God and will be what you need? The rule is simple – any problem you can see before marriage will be ten times worse after (Pr 30:23). Get out, now! The humility of ending an engagement is nothing compared to the agony of fifty years with an odious spouse. Get out of the engagement before the marriage trap closes and grasps you forever in its rusty iron claws.

Are you frantic to obey God? David made haste to keep His commands (Ps 119:60). Abraham rose early to obey a hard request (Gen 22:1-3). The kingdom of heaven is entered by violent force – frantic zeal to conform your life to Jesus Christ (Matt 11:12). You must strive to press through a strait gate (Lu 13:24; 16:16). You must work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12). What good thing should you do today?