Proverbs 5:3-23
World English Bible
3 For the lips of an adulteress drip honey.
Her mouth is smoother than oil,
4 but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood,
and as sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death.
Her steps lead straight to Sheol.[a]
6 She gives no thought to the way of life.
Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.
7 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me.
Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.
8 Remove your way far from her.
Don’t come near the door of her house,
9 lest you give your honor to others,
and your years to the cruel one;
10 lest strangers feast on your wealth,
and your labors enrich another man’s house.
11 You will groan at your latter end,
when your flesh and your body are consumed,
12 and say, “How I have hated instruction,
and my heart despised reproof.
13 I haven’t obeyed the voice of my teachers,
nor turned my ear to those who instructed me!
14 I have come to the brink of utter ruin,
among the gathered assembly.”
15 Drink water out of your own cistern,
running water out of your own well.
16 Should your springs overflow in the streets,
streams of water in the public squares?
17 Let them be for yourself alone,
not for strangers with you.
18 Let your spring be blessed.
Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19 A loving doe and a graceful deer—
let her breasts satisfy you at all times.
Be captivated always with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress?
Why embrace the bosom of another?
21 For the ways of man are before Yahweh’s eyes.
He examines all his paths.
22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him.
The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
23 He will die for lack of instruction.
In the greatness of his folly, he will go astray.
Footnotes
- 5:5 Sheol is the place of the dead.
Proverbs 5:3-23
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
3 For the lips of a loose woman[a] drip honey,
and her speech is smoother than oil,(A)
4 but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.(B)
5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path to Sheol.
6 She does not keep straight to the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.
7 And now, my child,[b] listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.(C)
8 Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,(D)
9 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)
Proverbs 6:20-35
World English Bible
20 My son, keep your father’s commandment,
and don’t forsake your mother’s teaching.
21 Bind them continually on your heart.
Tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk, it will lead you.
When you sleep, it will watch over you.
When you awake, it will talk with you.
23 For the commandment is a lamp,
and the law is light.
Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,
24 to keep you from the immoral woman,
from the flattery of the wayward wife’s tongue.
25 Don’t lust after her beauty in your heart,
neither let her captivate you with her eyelids.
26 For a prostitute reduces you to a piece of bread.
The adulteress hunts for your precious life.
27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap,
and his clothes not be burned?
28 Or can one walk on hot coals,
and his feet not be scorched?
29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife.
Whoever touches her will not be unpunished.
30 Men don’t despise a thief
if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry;
31 but if he is found, he shall restore seven times.
He shall give all the wealth of his house.
32 He who commits adultery with a woman is void of understanding.
He who does it destroys his own soul.
33 He will get wounds and dishonor.
His reproach will not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy arouses the fury of the husband.
He won’t spare in the day of vengeance.
35 He won’t regard any ransom,
neither will he rest content, though you give many gifts.
Proverbs 6:20-35
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
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.
Proverbs 7:4-27
World English Bible
4 Tell wisdom, “You are my sister.”
Call understanding your relative,
5 that they may keep you from the strange woman,
from the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For at the window of my house,
I looked out through my lattice.
7 I saw among the simple ones.
I discerned among the youths a young man void of understanding,
8 passing through the street near her corner,
he went the way to her house,
9 in the twilight, in the evening of the day,
in the middle of the night and in the darkness.
10 Behold, there a woman met him with the attire of a prostitute,
and with crafty intent.
11 She is loud and defiant.
Her feet don’t stay in her house.
12 Now she is in the streets, now in the squares,
and lurking at every corner.
13 So she caught him, and kissed him.
With an impudent face she said to him:
14 “Sacrifices of peace offerings are with me.
Today I have paid my vows.
15 Therefore I came out to meet you,
to diligently seek your face,
and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with carpets of tapestry,
with striped cloths of the yarn of Egypt.
17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s take our fill of loving until the morning.
Let’s solace ourselves with loving.
19 For my husband isn’t at home.
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a bag of money with him.
He will come home at the full moon.”
21 With persuasive words, she led him astray.
With the flattering of her lips, she seduced him.
22 He followed her immediately,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
as a fool stepping into a noose.
23 Until an arrow strikes through his liver,
as a bird hurries to the snare,
and doesn’t know that it will cost his life.
24 Now therefore, sons, listen to me.
Pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Don’t let your heart turn to her ways.
Don’t go astray in her paths,
26 for she has thrown down many wounded.
Yes, all her slain are a mighty army.
27 Her house is the way to Sheol,[a]
going down to the rooms of death.
Footnotes
- 7:27 Sheol is the place of the dead.
Proverbs 7:4-27
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call insight your intimate friend,
5 that they may keep you from the loose woman,[a]
from the adulteress[b] with her smooth words.(A)
6 For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,
7 and I saw among the simple ones,
I observed among the youths,
a young man without sense,(B)
8 passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house(C)
9 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)
Proverbs 22:14
World English Bible
14 The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit.
He who is under Yahweh’s wrath will fall into it.
Proverbs 22:14
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
14 The mouth of a loose woman[a] is a deep pit;
he with whom the Lord is angry falls into it.
Footnotes
- 22.14 Heb strange woman
Proverbs 23:26-28
World English Bible
26 My son, give me your heart;
and let your eyes keep in my ways.
27 For a prostitute is a deep pit;
and a wayward wife is a narrow well.
28 Yes, she lies in wait like a robber,
and increases the unfaithful among men.
Proverbs 23:26-28
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Proverbs 30:20-23
World English Bible
20 “So is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth,
and says, ‘I have done nothing wrong.’
21 “For three things the earth trembles,
and under four, it can’t bear up:
22 For a servant when he is king,
a fool when he is filled with food,
23 for an unloved woman when she is married,
and a servant who is heir to her mistress.
Proverbs 30:20-23
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
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.
Proverbs 31:3
World English Bible
3 Don’t give your strength to women,
nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
Proverbs 31:3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
3 Do not give your strength to women,
your ways to those who destroy kings.(A)
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