Proverbs 5
1 My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding:
My son, pay attention to my wisdom; incline your ears to my understanding,
2 that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.
so you may learn about discretion and your lips may protect knowledge.
3 For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,
For the lips of an adulteress drip with honey and 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.
but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, cutting like a sharp sword.
Her feet go down to death; her steps go all the way to Sheol. (Sheol h7585)
6 She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn't know it.
She gives no thought to the path of life. Her footsteps wander; she does not know where she is going.
7 Now therefore, son, listen to me. Do not depart from the words of my mouth.
Now, my sons, listen to me; do not turn away from listening to the words of my mouth.
8 Remove your way far from her. Do not come near the door of her house,
Keep your path far away from her and do not come near the door of her house.
9 lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the merciless;
In that way you will not give away your honor to others or years of your life to a cruel person;
10 lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man's house.
strangers will not feast on your wealth; what you have worked for will not go into the house of strangers.
11 You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,
At the end of your life you will groan when your flesh and your body waste away.
12 and say, "How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;
You will say, “How I hated instruction and my heart despised correction!
13 neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor turned my ear to those who instructed me.
I would not obey my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors.
14 I have come to the brink of utter ruin, in the midst of the gathered assembly."
I was almost completely ruined in the midst of the assembly, among the gathering of the people.”
15 Drink water out of your own cistern, running water out of your own well.
Drink water from your own cistern and drink running water from your own well.
16 Should your springs overflow in the streets, streams of water in the public squares?
Should your springs overflow everywhere and your streams of water flow in the public squares?
17 Let them be for yourself alone, not for strangers with you.
Let them be for yourself alone and not for strangers with you.
18 Let your spring be blessed. Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
May your fountain be blessed and may you 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.
for she is a loving deer and a graceful doe. Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; may you be continually intoxicated by her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another?
For why should you, my son, be captivated by an adulteress; why should you embrace the breasts of an immoral woman?
21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD. He examines all his paths.
Yahweh sees everything a person does and watches all the paths he takes.
22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
A wicked person will be seized by his own iniquities; the cords of his sin will hold him tight.
23 He will die for lack of instruction. In the greatness of his folly, he will go astray.
He will die because he lacks instruction; he is led astray by his great foolishness.
