Proverbs 5
Legacy Standard Bible
Warning Against Adultery
5 My son, (A)pay attention to my wisdom,
(B)Incline your ear to my discernment;
2 That you may (C)keep discretion
And that your (D)lips may guard knowledge.
3 For the lips of a (E)strange woman (F)drip honey
And (G)smoother than oil is her [a]speech;
4 But her end is (H)bitter as wormwood,
(I)Sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet (J)go down to death,
Her steps take hold of Sheol,
6 Lest she watch the (K)path of life;
Her tracks are (L)unstable, she (M)does not know it.
7 (N)So now, my sons, listen to me
And (O)do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
8 (P)Keep your way far from her
And do not go near the (Q)door of her house,
9 Lest you give your splendor to others
And your years to the cruel one;
10 Lest strangers be satisfied by your strength
And by your painful labor, those in the house of a foreigner;
11 And you groan at your [b]end,
When your flesh and your body are consumed;
12 And you say, “How I have (R)hated discipline!
And my heart (S)spurned reproof!
13 I have not listened to the voice of my (T)instructors,
And I have not inclined my ear to my teachers!
14 I was almost in utter ruin
In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern
And [c]fresh water from your own well.
16 Should your (U)springs be dispersed abroad,
Streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be for you alone,
And not for strangers with you.
18 Let your (V)fountain be blessed,
And (W)be glad in the (X)wife of your youth.
19 As a loving (Y)hind and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be [d]intoxicated always with her love.
20 So why should you, my son, be intoxicated with a (Z)strange woman
And embrace the bosom of a (AA)foreign woman?
21 For the (AB)ways of a man are before the eyes of Yahweh,
And He (AC)watches all his tracks.
22 His (AD)own iniquities will capture him who is the wicked one,
And with the cords of his sin he will be held fast.
23 He will (AE)die for lack of discipline,
And in the abundance of his [e]folly he will [f]stumble in intoxication.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 5:3 Lit palate
- Proverbs 5:11 Or latter
- Proverbs 5:15 Lit flowing
- Proverbs 5:19 Or exhilarated
- Proverbs 5:23 A lack of wisdom due to negligence or carelessness; the activity of an ignorant fool
- Proverbs 5:23 Or go astray
Proverbs 5
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 5
Warning Against Adultery[a]
1 My son, to my wisdom be attentive,
to understanding incline your ear,
2 That you may act discreetly,
and your lips guard what you know.
3 Indeed, the lips of the stranger drip honey,[b]
and her mouth is smoother than oil;(A)
4 But in the end she is as bitter as wormwood,
as sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death,
her steps reach Sheol;(B)
6 Her paths ramble, you know not where,
lest you see before you the road to life.
7 So now, children, listen to me,
do not stray from the words of my mouth.
8 Keep your way far from her,(C)
do not go near the door of her house,
9 Lest you give your honor[c] to others,(D)
and your years to a merciless one;
10 Lest outsiders take their fill of your wealth,
and your hard-won earnings go to another’s house;
11 And you groan in the end,
when your flesh and your body are consumed;
12 And you say, “Oh, why did I hate instruction,
and my heart spurn reproof!
13 Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers,
incline my ear to my instructors!
14 I am all but ruined,
in the midst of the public assembly!”
15 Drink water[d] from your own cistern,
running water from your own well.
16 Should your water sources be dispersed abroad,
streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be yours alone,
not shared with outsiders;
18 Let your fountain be blessed and have joy of the wife of your youth,
19 your lovely hind, your graceful doe.[e]
Of whose love you will ever have your fill,
and by her ardor always be intoxicated.
20 Why then, my son, should you be intoxicated with a stranger,
and embrace another woman?
21 Indeed, the ways of each person are plain to the Lord’s sight;
all their paths he surveys;(E)
22 By their own iniquities the wicked will be caught,
in the meshes of their own sin they will be held fast;
23 They will die from lack of discipline,
lost because of their great folly.
Footnotes
- 5:1–23 This is the first of three poems on the forbidden woman, the “stranger” outside the social boundaries (cf. 2:16–19); the other two are 6:20–35 and chap. 7. Understanding and discretion are necessary to avoid adultery, which leads astray and begets bitterness, bloodshed, and death (vv. 1–6). It destroys honor, wastes the years of life, despoils hard-earned wealth, and brings remorse in the end (vv. 7–14). Conjugal fidelity and love bring happiness and security (vv. 15–20). Cf. 6:20–7:27. The structure of the poem consists of a two-line introduction; part one consists of three stanzas of four lines each warning of the forbidden woman’s effect on her lovers (vv. 3–14); part two consists of a stanza of twelve lines exhorting the disciple to marital fidelity (vv. 15–20); and a final stanza of six lines on the perils of the woman (vv. 21–23).
- 5:3 A metaphorical level is established in the opening description of the forbidden woman: her lips drip honey and her feet lead to death. By her lies, she leads people away from the wisdom that gives life.
- 5:9 Honor: the words “life” and “wealth” have also been read in this place. A merciless one: the offended husband; cf. 6:34–35.
- 5:15–16 Water: water may have an erotic meaning as in Sg 4:15, “[You are] a garden fountain, a well of living water.” Eating and drinking can be metaphors expressing the mutuality of love. The wife is the opposite of the adulterous woman; she is not an outsider, not unfeeling, not a destroyer of her husband’s self and goods. The best defense against adultery is appreciating and loving one’s spouse. The best defense against folly is to appreciate and love wisdom.
- 5:19 Lovely hind…graceful doe: ancient Near Eastern symbols of feminine beauty and charm; cf. Sg 2:7, 9, 17.
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