Proverbs 5
5
Avoid Immoral Women
1My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
listen carefully to my wise counsel.
2Then you will show discernment,
and your lips will express what you’ve learned.
3For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,
and her mouth is smoother than oil.
4But in the end she is as bitter as poison,
as dangerous as a double-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.#5:5 Hebrew to Sheol.
6For she cares nothing about the path to life.
She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t realize it.
7So now, my sons, listen to me.
Never stray from what I am about to say:
8Stay away from her!
Don’t go near the door of her house!
9If you do, you will lose your honor
and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved.
10Strangers will consume your wealth,
and someone else will enjoy the fruit of your labor.
11In the end you will groan in anguish
when disease consumes your body.
12You will say, “How I hated discipline!
If only I had not ignored all the warnings!
13Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers?
Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?
14I have come to the brink of utter ruin,
and now I must face public disgrace.”
15Drink water from your own well—
share your love only with your wife.#5:15 Hebrew Drink water from your own cistern, / flowing water from your own well.
16Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,
having sex with just anyone?#5:16 Hebrew Why spill your springs in the streets, / your streams in the city squares?
17You should reserve it for yourselves.
Never share it with strangers.
18Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you.
Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19She is a loving deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts satisfy you always.
May you always be captivated by her love.
20Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman,
or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?
21For the Lord sees clearly what a man does,
examining every path he takes.
22An evil man is held captive by his own sins;
they are ropes that catch and hold him.
23He will die for lack of self-control;
he will be lost because of his great foolishness.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
For more information about the NLT:
Proverbs 5
5
1My son, pay attention to my wisdom.
Turn your ear to my understanding,
2that you may maintain discretion,
that your lips may preserve knowledge.
3For the lips of an adulteress drip honey.
Her mouth is smoother than oil,
4but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood,
and as sharp as a two-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death.
Her steps lead straight to Sheol.#5:5 Sheol is the place of the dead.
6She gives no thought to the way of life.
Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.
7Now therefore, my sons, listen to me.
Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.
8Remove your way far from her.
Don’t come near the door of her house,
9lest you give your honor to others,
and your years to the cruel one;
10lest strangers feast on your wealth,
and your labors enrich another man’s house.
11You will groan at your latter end,
when your flesh and your body are consumed,
12and say, “How I have hated instruction,
and my heart despised reproof.
13I haven’t obeyed the voice of my teachers,
nor turned my ear to those who instructed me!
14I have come to the brink of utter ruin,
among the gathered assembly.”
15Drink water out of your own cistern,
running water out of your own well.
16Should your springs overflow in the streets,
streams of water in the public squares?
17Let them be for yourself alone,
not for strangers with you.
18Let your spring be blessed.
Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19A loving doe and a graceful deer—
let her breasts satisfy you at all times.
Be captivated always with her love.
20For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress?
Why embrace the bosom of another?
21For the ways of man are before Yahweh’s eyes.
He examines all his paths.
22The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him.
The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
23He will die for lack of instruction.
In the greatness of his folly, he will go astray.
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