Proverbs 30:17-19 (ESV)
17 The eye that mocks a father
and scorns to obey a mother
will be picked out by the ravens of the valley
and eaten by the vultures.
18 Three things are too wonderful for me;
four I do not understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a serpent on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a virgin.
The ungodly child despises her parents’ wise advice. Because she discards the counsel of her mother and her father, her choices lead to a tragic end. Four of God’s created beings live wisely within the parameters allotted them, and the author, Agur, is astonished as he considers their ways. He admires the large bird, effortlessly soaring through the sky; the snake, moving along a rock, yet without legs; the ship, skillfully floating on the powerful sea; and the beauty of the physical union within marriage. The man and the virgin, listed last, draw attention to God’s magnificent design for human sexuality. God created sex, and we should not be ashamed of it, yet like any other powerful force, it must be kept within the parameters for which it was intended. When sex leaves the safety of marriage, the results can be disastrous. Elevate God’s glorious plan for sexual behavior by rejecting whatever falls outside of his design.