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For the lips of a loose woman[a] drip honey,
    and her speech is smoother than oil,(A)
but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
    sharp as a two-edged sword.(B)
Her feet go down to death;
    her steps follow the path to Sheol.
She does not keep straight to the path of life;
    her ways wander, and she does not know it.

And now, my child,[b] listen to me,
    and do not depart from the words of my mouth.(C)
Keep your way far from her,
    and do not go near the door of her house,(D)
lest you give your honor to others
    and your years to the merciless,
10 and strangers take their fill of your wealth,
    and your labors go to the house of an alien,
11 and at the end of your life you groan,
    when your flesh and body are consumed,
12 and you say, “Oh, how I hated discipline,
    and my heart despised reproof!(E)
13 I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
    or incline my ear to my instructors.
14 Now I am at the point of utter ruin
    in the public assembly.”

15 Drink water from your own cistern,
    flowing water from your own well.
16 Should your springs be scattered abroad,
    streams of water in the streets?(F)
17 Let them be for yourself alone
    and not for sharing with strangers.
18 Let your fountain be blessed,
    and rejoice in the wife of your youth,(G)
19     a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
May her breasts satisfy you at all times;
    may you be intoxicated always by her love.(H)
20 Why should you be intoxicated, my son, by another woman
    and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?[c](I)
21 For human ways are under the eyes of the Lord,
    and he examines all their paths.(J)
22 The iniquities of the wicked ensnare them,
    and they are caught in the coils of their sin.(K)
23 They die for lack of discipline,
    and because of their great folly they are lost.(L)

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Footnotes

  1. 5.3 Heb strange woman
  2. 5.7 Gk Vg: Heb children
  3. 5.20 Heb alien woman

For the lips of the strange woman will drip honey,
    and smoother than oil is her mouth.[a]
But her end is bitter as the wormwood,
    sharp as a two-edged sword.
Her feet go down to death;
    her steps take hold of Sheol.[b]
She does not observe[c] the path of life;
    her ways wander, and she does not know it.

Do Not Commit Adultery Against Wisdom

Now, O children, listen to me;
    do not depart from the sayings of my mouth.
Keep your paths far from her,
    and do not go near to the door of her house,
lest you give your honor to the others,
    and your years to the merciless,
10 lest strangers take their fill of your strength,
    and your labors go to the house of a foreigner,
11 and you groan at your end,
    when your flesh and body are consumed,
12 and say “How I hated discipline,
    and I despised reproof!”
13 and “I did not listen to the voice of my teachers,
    and I did not incline my ear to my instructors!
14 I was almost at utter[d] ruin[e]
    in the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern
    and flowing waters from inside your own well.
16 Shall your springs be scattered outward?
    In the streets, shall there be streams of water?
17 May they be yours alone,
    and not for strangers who are with you.
18 May your fountain be blessed,
    and rejoice in the wife[f] of your youth.
19 She is a deer of love and a doe of grace;
    may her breasts satisfy you always;[g]
    by her love may you be intoxicated continually.
20 Why should you be intoxicated, my child, by a strange woman,
    and embrace the bosom of a foreigner?
21 For before the eyes of Yahweh are human ways,[h]
    and all his paths he examines.
22 His iniquities shall ensnare him, the evildoer,
    and in the vanity of his sin he shall be caught.
23 He shall die for lack of[i] discipline,
    and in the greatness of his folly he shall be lost.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 5:3 Or “palate”
  2. Proverbs 5:5 A term for the place where the dead reside, i.e., the Underworld
  3. Proverbs 5:6 Or “examine, weigh”
  4. Proverbs 5:14 Or “all, every, whole”
  5. Proverbs 5:14 Or “evil”
  6. Proverbs 5:18 Or “woman”
  7. Proverbs 5:19 Literally “at all time”
  8. Proverbs 5:21 Literally “the ways of man/humankind”
  9. Proverbs 5:23 Literally “with there is no”

20 My child, keep your father’s commandment,
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(A)
21 Bind them upon your heart always;
    tie them around your neck.(B)
22 When you walk, they[a] will lead you;
    when you lie down, they[b] will watch over you;
    and when you awake, they[c] will talk with you.(C)
23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
    and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,(D)
24 to preserve you from the wife of another,[d]
    from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.[e](E)
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
    and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes,(F)
26 for a prostitute’s fee is only a loaf of bread,[f]
    but the wife of another stalks a man’s precious life.(G)
27 Can fire be carried in the bosom
    without burning one’s clothes?
28 Or can one walk on hot coals
    without scorching the feet?
29 So is he who sleeps with his neighbor’s wife;
    no one who touches her will go unpunished.(H)
30 Thieves are not despised who steal only
    to satisfy their appetite when they are hungry.
31 Yet if they are caught, they will pay sevenfold;
    they will forfeit all the goods of their house.(I)
32 But he who commits adultery has no sense;
    he who does it destroys himself.(J)
33 He will get wounds and dishonor,
    and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury,
    and he will show no restraint when he takes revenge.(K)
35 He will accept no compensation
    and will refuse a bribe no matter how great.

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Footnotes

  1. 6.22 Heb it
  2. 6.22 Heb it
  3. 6.22 Heb it
  4. 6.24 Gk: MT the evil woman
  5. 6.24 Heb alien woman
  6. 6.26 Cn Compare Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb for because of a harlot to a piece of bread

Commandment and Instruction as Guardians

20 My child, keep the commandment of your father,
    and do not disregard the instruction of your mother.
21 Bind them on your heart continually;
    tie them upon your neck.
22 When you walk,[a] she[b] will lead you,
    When you lie down,[c] she will watch over you,
    and when you awake, she will converse with you.
23 For like a lamp is a commandment, and instruction is light,
    and the way of life[d] is the reproof of discipline,
24 in order to preserve you from an evil woman,[e]
    from the smoothness of the tongue of an adulteress.[f]
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart;
    may she not capture you with her eyelashes.
26 For the price of a woman, a prostitute,[g] is the price of a loaf of bread,
    but the woman belonging to a man[h] hunts precious life.

Warning Against Relations with a Married Woman

27 Can a man carry fire in his lap,
    and his clothes not burn?
28 If a man walks upon the hot coals,
    will his feet not be burned?
29 Thus, he who goes to the wife of his neighbor,
    any who touches her shall not go unpunished.
30 People do not despise a thief when he steals
    to fill himself[i] when he is hungry.
31 But if he is found, he will pay sevenfold,
    every possession of his house he shall give.
32 He who commits adultery with a woman lacks sense,[j]
    he destroys himself[k] who does it.
33 A wound and dishonor he will find,
    and his disgrace will not be wiped out.
34 For jealousy is the fury of a husband,
    and he will not show restraint on the day of revenge.
35 He will not accept any compensation,[l]
    and he will not be willing, though the bribe is large.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 6:22 Literally “In your walking”
  2. Proverbs 6:22 That is, “commandment” and “instruction”
  3. Proverbs 6:22 Literally “In your lying down”
  4. Proverbs 6:23 Hebrew “lives”
  5. Proverbs 6:24 Or “wife”
  6. Proverbs 6:24 Literally “a foreign woman”
  7. Proverbs 6:26 Or “whore”
  8. Proverbs 6:26 Literally “the woman of a man”
  9. Proverbs 6:30 Or “soul,” or “inner self”
  10. Proverbs 6:32 Literally “heart”
  11. Proverbs 6:32 Or “his soul,” or “his life”
  12. Proverbs 6:35 Literally “the face of any compensation”

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
    and call insight your intimate friend,
that they may keep you from the loose woman,[a]
    from the adulteress[b] with her smooth words.(A)

For at the window of my house
    I looked out through my lattice,
and I saw among the simple ones,
    I observed among the youths,
    a young man without sense,(B)
passing along the street near her corner,
    taking the road to her house(C)
in the twilight, in the evening,
    at the time of night and darkness.(D)

10 Then a woman comes toward him
    decked out like a prostitute, with hidden intent.
11 She is loud and wayward;
    her feet do not stay at home;(E)
12 now in the street, now in the squares,
    and at every corner she lies in wait.(F)
13 She seizes him and kisses him,
    and with impudent face she says to him:
14 “I had to offer sacrifices,
    and today I have paid my vows;(G)
15 so now I have come out to meet you,
    to seek you eagerly, and I have found you!
16 I have decked my couch with coverings,
    colored spreads of Egyptian linen;(H)
17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
    aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let us take our fill of love until morning;
    let us delight ourselves with love.
19 For my husband is not at home;
    he has gone on a long journey.
20 He took a bag of money with him;
    he will not come home until full moon.”

21 With much seductive speech she persuades him;
    with her smooth talk she compels him.(I)
22 Right away he follows her
    and goes like an ox to the slaughter
or bounds like a stag toward the trap[c]
23     until an arrow pierces its entrails.
He is like a bird rushing into a snare,
    not knowing that it will cost him his life.(J)

24 And now, my children, listen to me,
    and be attentive to the words of my mouth.(K)
25 Do not let your hearts turn aside to her ways;
    do not stray into her paths.(L)
26 For many are those she has laid low,
    and numerous are her victims.(M)
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,
    going down to the chambers of death.(N)

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Footnotes

  1. 7.5 Heb strange woman
  2. 7.5 Heb alien woman
  3. 7.22 Cn Compare Gk: Meaning of Heb uncertain

Say to wisdom,[a] “you are my sister,”
    and you shall call insight,[b]intimate friend.”[c]
In order to guard yourself from an adulteress,[d]
    from the foreigner who makes her words smooth.[e]
For at the window of my house,
    through my lattice, I looked down.
And I saw among the simple,
    I observed among the youth,
    a young man lacking sense,[f]
passing on the street at[g] her corner,
    and he takes the road to her house,
at twilight, at the day’s evening,
    in the midst of night and the darkness.
10 Then behold! A woman comes to meet him
    with the garment of a prostitute[h] and a secret heart.[i]
11 She is loud and stubborn;
    her feet do not stay at her house.
12 Now in the street, now in the square,
    at[j] every corner she lies in wait.
13 She took hold of [k] him and kissed him.
    Her face was impudent, and she said to him,
14 “Sacrifices of peace offerings are upon me;
    today[l] I completed my vows.
15 So[m] I have come out to meet you,
    to seek your face, and I have found you.
16 With coverings I have adorned my couch,
    spreads of the linen of Egypt;
17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
    aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let us take our fill of love making,
    until the morning let us delight in love.
19 For there is no man[n] in his home;
    he has gone on a long journey.[o]
20 The bag of money he took in his hand,
    for on the day of the full moon he will come home.”
21 She persuades him with the greatness of her teachings;
    with her smooth lips she compels him.
22 He goes after her suddenly;
    like an ox to the slaughter he goes,
    and like a stag to the instruction of a fool,
23 until an arrow pierces his entrails,[p]
    like a bird rushing into a snare,
    but he does not know that it will cost him his life.[q]

Reiteration of the Warning Against a Strange Woman

24 And now, my children, listen to me,
    and be attentive to the sayings of my mouth.
25 May your heart not turn aside to her ways;
    do not stray into her path.
26 For many slain she has laid low,
    and countless[r] are all of her killings.
27 The ways of Sheol[s] are her house,
    descending to chambers of death.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 7:4 Hebrew “the wisdom”
  2. Proverbs 7:4 Hebrew “the insight”
  3. Proverbs 7:4 Literally “one who is known.” To “know” is often a euphemism for intercourse. Therefore “intimate friend” may also be read “lover.”
  4. Proverbs 7:5 Literally “a strange woman”
  5. Proverbs 7:5 Literally “causes to be smooth her words”
  6. Proverbs 7:7 Literally “heart”
  7. Proverbs 7:8 Literally “at the place of”
  8. Proverbs 7:10 Or “whore”
  9. Proverbs 7:10 Literally “secret of heart”
  10. Proverbs 7:12 Literally “at the place of”
  11. Proverbs 7:13 Or “strengthened”
  12. Proverbs 7:14 Literally “the day”
  13. Proverbs 7:15 Hebrew “thus”
  14. Proverbs 7:19 Or “husband”
  15. Proverbs 7:19 Literally “a journey from far”
  16. Proverbs 7:23 Literally “heaviness,” often referring to the liver
  17. Proverbs 7:23 Literally “it is against his life”
  18. Proverbs 7:26 Or “strong men”
  19. Proverbs 7:27 A term for the place where the dead reside, i.e., the Underworld

14 The mouth of a loose woman[a] is a deep pit;
    he with whom the Lord is angry falls into it.

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Footnotes

  1. 22.14 Heb strange woman

14 A deep pit is the mouth of an adulteress,[a]
    he with whom Yahweh is angry will fall there.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 22:14 Literally “a strange woman”

26 My child, give me your heart,
    and let your eyes observe[a] my ways.(A)
27 For a prostitute is a deep pit;
    an adulteress[b] is a narrow well.(B)
28 She lies in wait like a robber
    and increases the number of the faithless.(C)

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Footnotes

  1. 23.26 Or delight in
  2. 23.27 Heb alien woman

26 My child, may you give your heart[a] to me,
    and may your eyes delight in my ways.
27 For a deep pit is a prostitute,[b]
    and a narrow well is an adulteress.[c]
28 She is also like a robber lying in wait,
    and the faithless among mankind she increases.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 23:26 Or “mind”
  2. Proverbs 23:27 Or “whore”
  3. Proverbs 23:27 Literally “a foreign woman”

20 This is the way of an adulteress:
    she eats and wipes her mouth
    and says, “I have done no wrong.”(A)

21 Under three things the earth trembles;
    under four it cannot bear up:
22 a slave when he becomes king
    and a fool when glutted with food,(B)
23 a contemptible woman when she gets a husband
    and a maid when she supplants her mistress.

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20 This is the way of a woman committing adultery:
    she eats and wipes her mouth,
    and says “I have not done wrong.”
21 Under three things the earth[a] trembles,
    and under four, it is not able to bear up:
22 under a slave when he becomes king,
    and a fool when he is satisfied with food;
23 under an unloved woman when she gets married,
    and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 30:21 Or “land”

Do not give your strength to women,
    your ways to those who destroy kings.(A)

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Do not give your strength to the women,
    and your ways to destroy kings.

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