Proverbs 5
1 My son! to my wisdom give attention, To mine understanding incline thine ear,
My son, attend to my wisdom. And bow thine ear to my understanding;
2 To observe thoughtfulness, And knowledge do thy lips keep.
That thou mayest keep discretion, And that thy lips may preserve knowledge!
3 For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And smoother than oil [is] her mouth,
Truly, the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And her mouth is smoother than oil;
4 And her latter end [is] bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a sword [with] mouths.
But her end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword.
Her feet go down to death; Her steps lay hold of the under-world. (Sheol h7585)
6 The path of life — lest thou ponder, Moved have her paths — thou knowest not.
That she may not ponder the way of life, Her paths waver when she heedeth it not.
7 And now, ye sons, hearken to me, And turn not from sayings of my mouth.
Hear me now, therefore, O children! And turn not away from the words of my mouth!
8 Keep far from off her thy way, And come not near unto the opening of her house,
Remove thy way far from her. And come not nigh the door of her house:
9 Lest thou give to others thy honour, And thy years to the fierce,
Lest thou give thy bloom to others, And thy years to a cruel one;
10 Lest strangers be filled [with] thy power, And thy labours in the house of a stranger,
Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, And thine earnings be in the house of an alien;
11 And thou hast howled in thy latter end, In the consumption of thy flesh and thy food,
And lest thou mourn in thy latter end. When thy flesh and thy body are consumed,
12 And hast said, 'How have I hated instruction, And reproof hath my heart despised,
And say, “How have I hated instruction! And how hath my heart despised reproof!
13 And I have not hearkened to the voice of my directors, And to my teachers have not inclined mine ear.
I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined mine ear to my instructors;
14 As a little thing I have been all evil, In the midst of an assembly and a company.
I have well-nigh fallen into utter misery; In the midst of the congregation and the assembly.”
15 Drink waters out of thine own cistern, Even flowing ones out of thine own well.
Drink water out of thine own cistern. And running water out of thine own well:
16 Let thy fountains be scattered abroad, In broad places rivulets of waters.
So shall thy fountains overflow in the streets, In the wide streets, as streams of water;
17 Let them be to thee for thyself, And not to strangers with thee.
They shall belong to thee alone, And not to strangers with thee;
18 Let thy fountain be blessed, And rejoice because of the wife of thy youth,
And thy fountain shall be blessed, Yea, thou shalt have joy in the wife of thy youth.
19 A hind of loves, and a roe of grace! Let her loves satisfy thee at all times, In her love magnify thyself continually.
A lovely hind, a graceful doe, Her breasts shall satisfy thee at all times, And thou shalt be always ravished with her love.
20 And why dost thou magnify thyself, My son, with a stranger? And embrace the bosom of a strange woman?
Why, then, my son, wilt thou be ravished with a wanton, And embrace the bosom of a stranger?
21 For over-against the eyes of Jehovah are the ways of each, And all his paths He is pondering.
For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, And he weigheth well all his paths.
22 His own iniquities do capture the wicked, And with the ropes of his sin he is holden.
His own iniquities shall ensnare the wicked; Yea, he shall be held fast by the cords of his own sins.
23 He dieth without instruction, And in the abundance of his folly magnifieth himself!
He shall die for want of instruction; Yea, through the greatness of his folly he shall stagger.
