Proverbs 5
Modern English Version
Warning Against Adultery
5 My son, attend to my wisdom,
and bow your ear to my understanding,
2 that you may regard discretion,
and that your lips may keep knowledge.
3 For the lips of an immoral woman drip as a honeycomb,
and her mouth is smoother than oil.
4 But her end is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death,
her steps take hold of Sheol.
6 She does not ponder the path of life;
her ways are unstable, and she does not know it.
7 Hear me now therefore, O children,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.
8 Remove your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,
9 lest you give your honor to others,
and your years to the cruel;
10 lest strangers be filled with your wealth,
and your labors go to the house of a stranger;
11 and you mourn at the last,
when your flesh and your body are consumed,
12 and say, “How I have hated instruction,
and my heart despised reproof!
13 And I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,
nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me!
14 I was almost in utter ruin
in the midst of the congregation and assembly.”
15 Drink waters out of your own cistern,
and running waters out of your own well.
16 Should your fountains be dispersed abroad,
streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be only your own,
and not for strangers with you.
18 Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice with the wife of your youth.
19 Let her be as the loving deer and pleasant doe;
let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
and always be enraptured with her love.
20 Why should you, my son, be intoxicated by an immoral woman,
and embrace the bosom of a seductress?
21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord,
and He ponders all his goings.
22 His own iniquities entrap the wicked himself,
and he is snared in the cords of his sins.
23 He will die for lack of instruction,
and in the greatness of his folly he will go astray.
Proverbs 5
English Standard Version
Warning Against Adultery
5 (A)My son, be attentive to my wisdom;
(B)incline your ear to my understanding,
2 that you may keep (C)discretion,
and your lips may (D)guard knowledge.
3 For the lips of (E)a forbidden[a] woman drip honey,
and her speech[b] is (F)smoother than oil,
4 but in the end she is (G)bitter as (H)wormwood,
(I)sharp as (J)a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet (K)go down to death;
her steps follow the path to[c] Sheol;
6 she (L)does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.
7 And (M)now, O sons, listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.
8 Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,
9 lest you give your honor to others
and your years to the merciless,
10 lest strangers take their fill of your strength,
and your (N)labors go to the house of a foreigner,
11 and at the end of your life you (O)groan,
when your flesh and body are consumed,
12 and you say, (P)“How I hated discipline,
and my heart (Q)despised reproof!
13 I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my instructors.
14 (R)I am at the brink of utter ruin
in the assembled congregation.”
15 Drink (S)water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.
16 Should your (T)springs be scattered abroad,
streams of water (U)in the streets?
17 (V)Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
18 Let your (W)fountain be blessed,
and (X)rejoice in (Y)the wife of your youth,
19 a lovely (Z)deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts (AA)fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicated[d] always in her love.
20 Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with (AB)a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of (AC)an adulteress?[e]
21 For (AD)a man's ways are (AE)before the eyes of the Lord,
and he (AF)ponders[f] all his paths.
22 The (AG)iniquities of the wicked (AH)ensnare him,
and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
23 (AI)He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is (AJ)led astray.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 5:3 Hebrew strange; also verse 20
- Proverbs 5:3 Hebrew palate
- Proverbs 5:5 Hebrew lay hold of
- Proverbs 5:19 Hebrew be led astray; also verse 20
- Proverbs 5:20 Hebrew a foreign woman
- Proverbs 5:21 Or makes level
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
