English Standard Version

New Living Translation

Warning Against Adultery

My son, be attentive to my wisdom;
incline your ear to my understanding,

1

Avoid Immoral Women

My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
listen carefully to my wise counsel.

2

that you may keep discretion,
and your lips may guard knowledge.

2

Then you will show discernment,
and your lips will express what you’ve learned.

3

For the lips of a forbiddena woman drip honey,
and her speechb is smoother than oil,

3

For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,
and her mouth is smoother than oil.

4

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.

4

But in the end she is as bitter as poison,
as dangerous as a double-edged sword.

5

Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path toc Sheol;

5

Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.a

6

she does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.

6

For she cares nothing about the path to life.
She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t realize it.

7

And now, O sons, listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

7

So now, my sons, listen to me.
Never stray from what I am about to say:

8

Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,

8

Stay away from her!
Don’t go near the door of her house!

9

lest you give your honor to others
and your years to the merciless,

9

If you do, you will lose your honor
and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved.

10

lest strangers take their fill of your strength,
and your labors go to the house of a foreigner,

10

Strangers will consume your wealth,
and someone else will enjoy the fruit of your labor.

11

and at the end of your life you groan,
when your flesh and body are consumed,

11

In the end you will groan in anguish
when disease consumes your body.

12

and you say, “How I hated discipline,
and my heart despised reproof!

12

You will say, “How I hated discipline!
If only I had not ignored all the warnings!

13

I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my instructors.

13

Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers?
Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?

14

I am at the brink of utter ruin
in the assembled congregation.”

14

I have come to the brink of utter ruin,
and now I must face public disgrace.”

15

Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.

15

Drink water from your own well —
share your love only with your wife.b

16

Should your springs be scattered abroad,
streams of water in the streets?

16

Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,
having sex with just anyone?c

17

Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.

17

You should reserve it for yourselves.
Never share it with strangers.

18

Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

18

Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you.
Rejoice in the wife of your youth.

19

a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicatedd always in her love.

19

She is a loving deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts satisfy you always.
May you always be captivated by her love.

20

Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?e

20

Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman,
or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?

21

For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the Lord,
and he pondersf all his paths.

21

For the LORD sees clearly what a man does,
examining every path he takes.

22

The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.

22

An evil man is held captive by his own sins;
they are ropes that catch and hold him.

23

He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is led astray.

23

He will die for lack of self-control;
he will be lost because of his great foolishness.

Parallel

English Standard Version

New Living Translation

Proverbs 5

Proverbs 5