Proverbs 7:4-21

Proverbs 7:4-21 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and call insight your intimate friend, to keep you from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words. For at the window of my house I have looked out through my lattice, and I have seen among the simple, I have perceived among the youths, a young man lacking sense, passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness. And behold, the woman meets him, dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart. She is loud and wayward; her feet do not stay at home; now in the street, now in the market, and at every corner she lies in wait. She seizes him and kisses him, and with bold face she says to him, “I had to offer sacrifices, and today I have paid my vows; so now I have come out to meet you, to seek you eagerly, and I have found you. I have spread my couch with coverings, colored linens from Egyptian linen; I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love till morning; let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; he took a bag of money with him; at full moon he will come home.” With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him.

Proverbs 7:1-23 The Message (MSG)

Dear friend, do what I tell you; treasure my careful instructions. Do what I say and you’ll live well. My teaching is as precious as your eyesight—guard it! Write it out on the back of your hands; etch it on the chambers of your heart. Talk to Wisdom as to a sister. Treat Insight as your companion. They’ll be with you to fend off the Temptress— that smooth-talking, honey-tongued Seductress. As I stood at the window of my house looking out through the shutters, Watching the mindless crowd stroll by, I spotted a young man without any sense Arriving at the corner of the street where she lived, then turning up the path to her house. It was dusk, the evening coming on, the darkness thickening into night. Just then, a woman met him— she’d been lying in wait for him, dressed to seduce him. Brazen and brash she was, restless and roaming, never at home, Walking the streets, loitering in the mall, hanging out at every corner in town. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, boldly took his arm and said, “I’ve got all the makings for a feast— today I made my offerings, my vows are all paid, So now I’ve come to find you, hoping to catch sight of your face—and here you are! I’ve spread fresh, clean sheets on my bed, colorful imported linens. My bed is aromatic with spices and exotic fragrances. Come, let’s make love all night, spend the night in ecstatic lovemaking! My husband’s not home; he’s away on business, and he won’t be back for a month.” Soon she has him eating out of her hand, bewitched by her honeyed speech. Before you know it, he’s trotting behind her, like a calf led to the butcher shop, Like a stag lured into ambush and then shot with an arrow, Like a bird flying into a net not knowing that its flying life is over.

Proverbs 7:4-21 King James Version (KJV)

Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; And call understanding thy kinswoman: That they may keep thee from the strange woman, From the stranger which flattereth with her words. For at the window of my house I looked through my casement, And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, A young man void of understanding, Passing through the street near her corner; And he went the way to her house, In the twilight, in the evening, In the black and dark night: And, behold, there met him a woman With the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart. (She is loud and stubborn; Her feet abide not in her house: Now is she without, now in the streets, And lieth in wait at every corner.) So she caught him, and kissed him, And with an impudent face said unto him, I have peace offerings with me; This day have I payed my vows. Therefore came I forth to meet thee, Diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, With carved works, with fine linen of Egypt. I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: Let us solace ourselves with loves. For the goodman is not at home, He is gone a long journey: He hath taken a bag of money with him, And will come home at the day appointed. With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, With the flattering of her lips she forced him.

Proverbs 7:4-21 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” And call understanding your intimate friend; That they may keep you from an adulteress, From the foreigner who flatters with her words. For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice, And I saw among the naive, And discerned among the youths A young man lacking sense, Passing through the street near her corner; And he takes the way to her house, In the twilight, in the evening, In the middle of the night and in the darkness. And behold, a woman comes to meet him, Dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart. She is boisterous and rebellious, Her feet do not remain at home; She is now in the streets, now in the squares, And lurks by every corner. So she seizes him and kisses him And with a brazen face she says to him: “I was due to offer peace offerings; Today I have paid my vows. Therefore I have come out to meet you, To seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you. I have spread my couch with coverings, With colored linens of Egypt. I have sprinkled my bed With myrrh, aloes and cinnamon. Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us delight ourselves with caresses. For my husband is not at home, He has gone on a long journey; He has taken a bag of money with him, At the full moon he will come home.” With her many persuasions she entices him; With her flattering lips she seduces him.

Proverbs 7:4-21 New Century Version (NCV)

Treat wisdom as a sister, and make understanding your closest friend. Wisdom and understanding will keep you away from adultery, away from the unfaithful wife and her pleasing words. Once while I was at the window of my house I looked out through the shutters and saw some foolish, young men. I noticed one of them had no wisdom. He was walking down the street near the corner on the road leading to her house. It was the twilight of the evening; the darkness of the night was just beginning. Then the woman approached him, dressed like a prostitute and planning to trick him. She was loud and stubborn and never stayed at home. She was always out in the streets or in the city squares, waiting around on the corners of the streets. She grabbed him and kissed him. Without shame she said to him, “I made my fellowship offering and took some of the meat home. Today I have kept my special promises. So I have come out to meet you; I have been looking for you and have found you. I have covered my bed with colored sheets from Egypt. I have made my bed smell sweet with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let’s make love until morning. Let’s enjoy each other’s love. My husband is not home; he has gone on a long trip. He took a lot of money with him and won’t be home for weeks.” By her clever words she made him give in; by her pleasing words she led him into doing wrong.

Proverbs 7:4-21 American Standard Version (ASV)

Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; And call understanding thy kinswoman: That they may keep thee from the strange woman, From the foreigner that flattereth with her words. For at the window of my house I looked forth through my lattice; And I beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, A young man void of understanding, Passing through the street near her corner; And he went the way to her house, In the twilight, in the evening of the day, In the middle of the night and in the darkness. And, behold, there met him a woman With the attire of a harlot, and wily of heart. (She is clamorous and wilful; Her feet abide not in her house: Now she is in the streets, now in the broad places, And lieth in wait at every corner.) So she caught him, and kissed him, And with an impudent face she said unto him: Sacrifices of peace-offerings are with me; This day have I paid my vows. Therefore came I forth to meet thee, Diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. I have spread my couch with carpets of tapestry, With striped cloths of the yarn of Egypt. I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning; Let us solace ourselves with loves. For the man is not at home; He is gone a long journey: He hath taken a bag of money with him; He will come home at the full moon. With her much fair speech she causeth him to yield; With the flattering of her lips she forceth him along.

Proverbs 7:4-21 New International Version (NIV)

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and to insight, “You are my relative.” They will keep you from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words. At the window of my house I looked down through the lattice. I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who had no sense. He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in. Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent. (She is unruly and defiant, her feet never stay at home; now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.) She took hold of him and kissed him and with a brazen face she said: “Today I fulfilled my vows, and I have food from my fellowship offering at home. So I came out to meet you; I looked for you and have found you! I have covered my bed with colored linens from Egypt. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon. Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning; let’s enjoy ourselves with love! My husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey. He took his purse filled with money and will not be home till full moon.” With persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk.

Proverbs 7:4-21 New King James Version (NKJV)

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” And call understanding your nearest kin, That they may keep you from the immoral woman, From the seductress who flatters with her words. For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice, And saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, A young man devoid of understanding, Passing along the street near her corner; And he took the path to her house In the twilight, in the evening, In the black and dark night. And there a woman met him, With the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart. She was loud and rebellious, Her feet would not stay at home. At times she was outside, at times in the open square, Lurking at every corner. So she caught him and kissed him; With an impudent face she said to him: “I have peace offerings with me; Today I have paid my vows. So I came out to meet you, Diligently to seek your face, And I have found you. I have spread my bed with tapestry, Colored coverings of Egyptian linen. I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; Let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; He has gone on a long journey; He has taken a bag of money with him, And will come home on the appointed day.” With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, With her flattering lips she seduced him.

Proverbs 7:4-21 Amplified Bible (AMP)

Say to [skillful and godly] wisdom, “You are my sister,” And regard understanding and intelligent insight as your intimate friends; That they may keep you from the immoral woman, From the foreigner [who does not observe God’s laws and] who flatters with her [smooth] words. ¶For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice. And among the naive [the inexperienced and gullible], I saw among the youths A young man lacking [good] sense, Passing through the street near her corner; And he took the path to her house In the twilight, in the evening; In the black and dark night. And there a woman met him, Dressed as a prostitute and sly and cunning of heart. She was boisterous and rebellious; She would not stay at home. At times she was in the streets, at times in the market places, Lurking and setting her ambush at every corner. So she caught him and kissed him And with a brazen and impudent face she said to him: “I have peace offerings with me; Today I have paid my vows. “So I came out to meet you [that you might share with me the feast of my offering], Diligently I sought your face and I have found you. “I have spread my couch with coverings and cushions of tapestry, With colored fine linen of Egypt. “I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. “Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us console and delight ourselves with love. “For my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey; He has taken a bag of money with him, And he will come home on the appointed day.” With her many persuasions she caused him to yield; With her flattering lips she seduced him.

Proverbs 7:4-21 New Living Translation (NLT)

Love wisdom like a sister; make insight a beloved member of your family. Let them protect you from an affair with an immoral woman, from listening to the flattery of a promiscuous woman. While I was at the window of my house, looking through the curtain, I saw some naive young men, and one in particular who lacked common sense. He was crossing the street near the house of an immoral woman, strolling down the path by her house. It was at twilight, in the evening, as deep darkness fell. The woman approached him, seductively dressed and sly of heart. She was the brash, rebellious type, never content to stay at home. She is often in the streets and markets, soliciting at every corner. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, and with a brazen look she said, “I’ve just made my peace offerings and fulfilled my vows. You’re the one I was looking for! I came out to find you, and here you are! My bed is spread with beautiful blankets, with colored sheets of Egyptian linen. I’ve perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning. Let’s enjoy each other’s caresses, for my husband is not home. He’s away on a long trip. He has taken a wallet full of money with him and won’t return until later this month.” So she seduced him with her pretty speech and enticed him with her flattery.

Proverbs 7:4-22 The Passion Translation (TPT)

Say to wisdom, “I love you,” and to understanding, “You’re my sweetheart.” “May the two of you protect me, and may we never be apart!” For they will keep you from the adulteress, with her smooth words meant to seduce your heart. Looking out the window of my house one day I noticed among the mindless crowd a simple, naïve young man who was about to go astray. There he was, walking down the street. Then he turned the corner, going on his way hurrying to the house of the harlot— the woman he had planned to meet. There he was in the twilight as darkness fell, convinced no one was watching as he entered the black shadows of hell. That’s when their rendezvous began. A woman of the night appeared, dressed to kill the strength of any man. She was decked out as a harlot, pursuing her amorous plan. Her voice was seductive, rebellious, and boisterous as she wandered far from what’s right. Her type can be found soliciting on street corners on just about any night. She wrapped her arms around the senseless young man and held him tight— she enticed him with kisses that seemed so right. Then, with insolence, she whispered in his ear, “Come with me. It’ll be all right. I’ve got everything we need for a feast. I’ll cook you a wonderful dinner. So here I am—I’m all yours! You’re the very one I’ve looked for, the one I knew I wanted from the moment I saw you. That’s why I’ve come out here tonight, so I could meet a man just like you. I’ve spread my canopy bed with coverings, lovely multicolored Egyptian linens ready for you to lie down on. I’ve sprinkled the sheets with intoxicating perfume made from myrrh, aloes, and sweet cinnamon. Come, let’s get comfortable and take pleasure in each other and make love all night! There’s no one home, for my husband’s away on business. He left home loaded with money to spend, so don’t worry. He won’t be back until another month ends.” He was swayed by her sophistication, enticed by her longing embrace. She led him down the wayward path right into sin and disgrace. Quickly he went astray, with no clue where he was truly headed, taken like a dumb ox alongside the butcher. She was like a venomous snake coiled to strike, so she set her fangs into him!