"He will not accept any ransom, nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts"
With this proverb Solomon finishes the 360-degree picture of adultery. He has been showing all the various actions and consequences of adultery so that potential adulterers will know that this is what happens when you do this. He is also saying: Let me force you to think about aspects of this sin that you won't think about until it is too late. What about the injured spouses? What are they going to be feeling and will their rage ever die down? The answer is, no, it will not die down and nothing you can do will restore the trust and relationship that you destroy if you commit adultery.
In the previous verses Solomon says that there is a fix for stealing (paying double the value of what you stole); but when it comes to adultery, there is no going back and making this crime whole. Solomon says there is no seven-fold amount over the price of the adultery that will cause the pain, anger, hatred, and vengeance that they feel for you to be over. They, and only they, decide to move on and reconnect with their spouse. There is no amount of goods that will tip the scale in the direction of the person saying, "I am so glad that you did this with my wife/husband."
In most cases the couples know one another. You are deeply wounding someone who you know and may be friends with.
The actual sentence in the Hebrew reads: He will not allow any bribe to lift up his face. In other words, there is no amount of money that will make it all go away. There is no way to say: I am so sorry, please forgive me. When it is over – and it will be over – there will be no appeasing the wounded spouse.
Solomon has been, for two chapters, building the case that adultery is a temptation that you just cannot fall into. It will twist and distort your life in a myriad of ways.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz