Proverbs 5

compiled and written by Gary Kukis

Proverbs 5:1–23

The Wrong Woman/The Right Woman



These studies are designed for believers in Jesus Christ only. If you have exercised faith in Christ, then you are in the right place. If you have not, then you need to heed the words of our Lord, Who said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son, so that every [one] believing [or, trusting] in Him shall not perish, but shall be have eternal life! For God did not send His Son into the world so that He should judge the world, but so that the world shall be saved through Him. The one believing [or, trusting] in Him is not judged, but the one not believing has already been judged, because he has not believed in the Name of the only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son of God.” (John 3:16–18). “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life! No one comes to the Father except through [or, by means of] Me!” (John 14:6).



Every study of the Word of God ought to be preceded by a naming of your sins to God. This restores you to fellowship with God (1John 1:8–10). If there are people around, you would name these sins silently. If there is no one around, then it does not matter if you name them silently or whether you speak aloud.



Document Navigation

Preface

Quotations

Outline of Chapter

Charts, Graphics, Short Doctrines

Doctrines Alluded to

Chapters Alluded to

Dictionary of Terms

Introduction

First Verse

Addendum

A Complete Translation

Chapter Word Clouds



These exegetical studies are not designed for you to read each and every word. For instance, the Hebrew exegesis is put into greyish tables, so that if you want to skip over them, that is fine. If you question a translation, you can always refer back to the appropriate Hebrew tables to sort it all out.

 

The intent is to make this particular study the most complete and most accurate examination of Proverbs 5 which is available in writing. The idea is to make every phrase, verse and passage understandable; and to make correct application of all that is studied.

 

Besides teaching you the doctrinal principles related to this chapter, this commentary is also to help bring this narrative to life, so that you can understand the various characters, their motivations, and the choices that they make. Ideally, you will be able to visualize the peoples and armies as they move across the landscape of the Land of Promise.

 

Although much of this chapter is based upon narrative from the book of Kings, I will make every attempt possible to provide enough historical information so that you will have a sufficient background to understand what is going on.

Preface: King David teaches his son Solomon about women—the women to avoid and the woman to adhere to.

 

Jamieson's short summary of this chapter: Here is a warning against the seductive arts of wicked women, enforced by considering the blessings and advantages of chastity, and the miserable end of the wicked.

 

Enter the Bible also provides even a shorter description: Don't engage in illicit sexual behavior; do enjoy sex within marriage.


This should be the most extensive examination of Proverbs 5 available, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text.


Quotations:

 

J. Vernon McGee: Read this chapter carefully and you will find that the young man is counseled to live a pure life for the sake of his home. This is the kind of sex education that God gives. I like this education from God better than some of the things that I am hearing today, even in Christian services. God is saying that a pure life should be led for the sake of the home later on. A lot of the problems in the homes today don't begin there. They began way back in the premarital sex life of the individual.

 

From Precept Austin: The human spirit longs for freedom. But for many people, its pursuit actually leads to greater bondage. Bible teacher Henrietta Mears once told her students, “A bird is free in the air. Place a bird in the water and he has lost his liberty. A fish is free in the water, but leave him on the sand and he perishes. . . . The Christian is free when he does the will of God and is obedient to God’s command. This is as natural a realm for God’s child as the water is for the fish, or the air for the bird.” 

 

Timothy and Kathy Keller: The state of sexual morality in America is not good. The number of unmarried couples living together has increased at least tenfold since 1960. Casual sex, “hook-ups,” and “friends with benefits” are more popular than ever. Against this background, the call of Proverbs 5 to faithfulness in marriage is more timely than ever.

 

Charles Simeon’s Horae Homiletical: Advice—

1. Endeavour to view every thing in the light of eternity—

2. Endeavour so to spend each day, as you will wish you had spent it, when you shall be standing at the judgment-seat of Christ.

 

Kukis: David speaks of passion, enjoyment and blessedness of marriage; which is in stark contrast to the way that critics of the Bible say that women are treated in Scripture.

 

Wiersbe: God created sex not only for reproduction but also for enjoyment, and he didn't put the 'marriage wall' around sex to rob us of pleasure but to increase pleasure and protect it.

 

Ross: if the young man is not captivated...by his wife but becomes captivated with a stranger in sinful acts, then his own iniquities will captivate him; and he will be led to ruin.

 

Waltke: Although sexual immorality today may not lead to slavery, it still leads to alimony, child support, broken homes, hurt, jealousy, lonely people, and venereal disease.

 

Larson: There is no 'free love'-only free exploitation.

 

Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Wisdom is not afraid of plain speaking; she sees that shame is the first result of the Fall, and behind the modest veil of shame the devil works bravely. There is a frankness and a fullness in the delineations of this chapter and of chapter seven which modern taste would condemn; but the motive cannot be mistaken. Holiness describes the ways of sin in detail to create a horror and a hatred of them; she describes exactly what is within the tempting doors, —all the glamour, all the softness, all the luxury, all the unhallowed raptures, —and shows distinctly how these chambers are on the incline of death, in order that curiosity, the mother of prurience, may be stifled, and the unwary may be content to remove his way far from the temptress, and to come not nigh the door of her house.

 

President Woodrow Wilson: I would rather fail in a cause that someday will triumph than triumph in a cause that someday will fail.

 

Sir Winston Churchill: I like to learn, but I do not like to be taught.


Outline of Chapter 5:

 

Preface

Introduction

 

         vv.     1–2           Introduction: Be Attentive to Wisdom

         vv.     3–11         The Ruin Caused Fraternization with the Forbidden Woman

         vv.    12–14         Regret from Not Listening to and Obeying Solid Doctrinal Teaching

         vv.    15–21         Instead, Be Intoxicated by Your Own Right Woman

         vv.    22–23         The Logical End of the Wicked Man

 

Addendum


Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

 

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Proverbs 5 Graphic

         Introduction         Islam and Multiple Wives

         Introduction         Robert Dean on Sexual Immorality

         Introduction         The Principals of Proverbs 5

         Introduction         The Prequel of Proverbs 5

         Introduction         Temptations to sexual immorality (A Synopsis of Proverbs 5) from Bridgeway

         Introduction         Whedon’s Summary of Proverbs 5 

         Introduction         Clarke’s Outline of Proverbs 5

         Introduction         Matthew Henry’s Outline of Proverbs 5

         Introduction         Jim Rickard’s Division of Proverbs 5

         Introduction         Peter Pett’s Division of Proverbs 4:20–5:23

         Introduction         Proverbs 5 as a Chiasmos

         Introduction         Precept Austin on Proverbs 5-7

 

         v.       1              Proverbs 5:1–14 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

         v.       2              Mezimmôth (מְזִמּוֹת) used in a positive way

         v.       2              Proverbs 5:1–2 (graphic)

         v.       3              Commentators on This Strange Woman

         v.       4              Jim Rickard on Wormwood

         v.       4              The Doctrine of Flattery

         v.       4              Proverbs 5:3–4 (a graphic)

         v.       4              Lusts of the Soul

         v.       5              Jim Rickard on Death

         v.       5              Proverbs 5:3–5 (a graphic)

         v.       5              The Abbreviated Doctrine of Sheol

         v.       6              Summary of Proverbs 5:1–6, by Stuart Wolf

         v.       7              Joe Guglielmo on Children Being Raised without Fathers

         v.       8              Jim Rickard on Cleanliness Before God

         v.       9              Interpreting “A Person without Mercy” (or, the Cruel One)

         v.      10              Jim Rickard’s Four Consequences of Proverbs 5:9–10

         v.      11              The Pulpit Commentary on, Mourning at the Last

         v.      11              Joe Guglielmo on the High Cost of Sexual Sins

         v.      11              Robert Dean on the Consequences of Interaction with the Immoral Woman

         v.      11              Summary of the Consequences of Cavorting with the Immoral Woman

         v.      11              Definition of the Cosmic System

         v.      11              The Consequences of Spiritual Immorality

         v.      14              The Cost of Immorality or Adultery

         v.      14              Ray Pritchard on What We Give Away

         v.      14              Paul Apple on, The Terrible Consequences of Infidelity

         v.      14              David Warns Solomon of Future Regrets

         v.      14              Summary of Proverbs 5:7–14, by Stuart Wolf

         v.      15              Proverbs 5:15–20 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

         v.      15              Chuck Smith on How God Made Us

         v.      16              The Pulpit Commentary on the 4 Interpretations of Proverbs 5:16

         v.      18              Proverbs 5:18 (a graphic)

         v.      18              David’s Faithfulness to Bathsheba Throughout Their Marriage

         v.      19              Proverbs 5:19 (the first graphic)

         v.      19              Sexual Love in Marriage

         v.      19              Proverbs 5:19 (a graphic)

         v.      19              Matthew Henry and Marriage (Proverbs 5:15–19)

         v.      19              Marriage as the Third Divine Institution

         v.      19              Proverbs 5:19 (another graphic)

         v.      19              Timothy Peck on, the Bible’s Healthy View of Sex

         v.      20              Proverbs 5:20 (a graphic)

         v.      20              Paul Apple Sums Up Prov. 5:15-20

         v.      20              Proverbs 5:21–23 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

         v.      21              The Pulpit Commentary on, How We Should Respond to the Omniscience of God

         v.      21              Proverbs 5:21 (a graphic)

         v.      22              Charles Simeon’s Horae Homiletical on the Force of a Sinful Habit

         v.      22              The Pulpit Commentary on, The Cords of Sin

         v.      22              20 Reasons Not to Sin

         v.      22              Ray Pritchard on Pornography

         v.      23              Doctrine of The Sin Unto Death

         v.      23              Paul Apple: There Is No Escaping God’s Accountability

         v.      23              Jim Rickard’s The Law of Volition Responsibility

         v.      23              The Pulpit Commentary on, The End of an Evil Course

         v.      23              Ray Pritchard: First Steps in a New Direction

         v.      23              Summary of Proverbs 5:15–23, by Stuart Wolf

 

         Addendum          Two Women—a Metaphorical Approach to Proverbs 5

         Addendum          Precept Austin On, Scriptural Strategies in Our War Against Lust

         Addendum          Why Proverbs 5 is in the Word of God

         Addendum          What We Learn from Proverbs 5

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Proverbs 5

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Proverbs 5

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Proverbs 5


Chapter Outline

 

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

Beginning of Document

Doctrines Covered and Alluded to

Chapters of the Bible Alluded to

Definition of Terms

Introduction

Addendum

www.kukis.org

 

Exegetical Studies in Proverbs


Doctrines Covered or Alluded To

 

 

Divine Institutions

 

 

Omniscience of God

 

Sheol


Chapters of the Bible Alluded To or Appropriately Exegeted with this Chapter

 

 

1Kings 1–2

 


Many who read and study this chapter are 1st or 2nd generation students of R. B. Thieme, Jr., so that much of this vocabulary is second nature. One of Bob’s contributions to theology is a fresh vocabulary along with a number of concepts which are theologically new or reworked, yet still orthodox. Therefore, if you are unfamiliar with his work, the definitions below will help you to fully understand all that is being said. In addition to this, I will use a number of other more traditional technical theological terms which will be used and therefore defined as well.

Definition of Terms

Chiasmos

A chiasmos (also spelled chiasmus) is the way that some portions of the Bible are organized. It takes its name from the Greek letter chi (χ). The first section matches with the last, the second with the second-to-the-last, etc. It is called a chiasmos, because the inverted parallelism looks like a chi (actually, half a chi) when one looks at it from its organizational standpoint. When there is a center element, that is what is often emphasized and what is the most important part of the passage. (Chiasmos example) (Thomas B. Clarke) (Brad McCoy)

Cosmic System

The term "cosmic system" refers to Satan's plan and process for controlling the world, and his attempt, using his organization of fallen angels, to counteract the plan of God in all respects. Doctrine of the Cosmic System.

Hendiadys

An hendiadys is the expression of an idea by the use of usually two independent words connected by and (as nice and warm) instead of the usual combination of independent word and its modifier (as nicely warm).

Rebound (Restoration to fellowship with God)

In the New Testament, this is naming your sins to God, so that you are both restored to temporal fellowship with God and are then filled with the Spirit of God. In the Old Testament, naming your sins to God would result in a restoration of fellowship and, in some cases, the empowerment of the Holy Spirit once again (the Holy Spirit was not given to all Old Testament believers). The Doctrine of Rebound (HTML) (PDF).

The Revealed God (or, the Revealed Lord)

We all come to a time of God-consciousness where we understand the concept and possibility of the existence of God. At that point, we face 2 great questions: (1) do we want to know this God and (2) are will willing to believe in God as He has revealed Himself or do we make a god in our own image and worship that?

Right man/right woman (RM/RW)

The concept that God has provided for almost all people out there the perfect partner (of the opposite gender, of course). This relationship is the basis for much of our enjoyment of life, for believers and unbelievers alike. (Doctrine of RM/RW) (Doctrine of Marriage)

Some of these definitions are taken from

http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/

http://rickhughesministries.org/content/Biblical-Terms.pdf

http://www.gbible.org/index.php?proc=d4d

http://www.wordoftruthministries.org/terms-and-definitions/

http://www.theopedia.com/

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


——————————

proverbs05.gif

An Introduction to Proverbs 5


I ntroduction: Proverbs 5 has an introduction and a post-mortem. In between, King David, the father, teaches Solomon, his son, about women, about the wrong woman and about the right woman. David warns what a disaster it can be to hook up with the wrong woman; and how wonderful it can be to enjoy a good relationship with the right woman.


Proverbs 5 Graphic from Blessings by Renee; accessed September 2, 2015.


At the beginning of this dissertation on women, David tells his son to listen to him and to remember what he is teaching (very similar to what we have already studied in Prov. 1–4); and at the very end, David warns Solomon how the wrong choices in life lead a man far astray.

 

Ironside: Additional instruction is given in Proverbs 5 concerning the strange woman warned against in Chapter 2. It is a solemn subject if this dangerously seductive woman pictures false religion with its snares and allurements. Even in its simple, primary meaning, this admonition is of great importance. If any are entrapped, it is not for lack of warning, but for willful neglect of instruction.


David talks about one of his favorite subjects in this chapter of Proverbs: women—in particular, the right woman for any man (and, in this case, it is the right woman for Solomon, his very young son). David teaches his son, Solomon, about the correct approach to love, marriage and sex. We have allowed our schools to teach sex ed to our children,


Briefly, King David is saying, “Listen to me carefully—this is the wrong woman and you need to avoid her. You need to foster the right relationship with the wife of your youth, and if you make the wrong choices, you will be trapped by your sins and you will die the sin unto death.” This is one of the most sobering chapters of the book of Proverbs.


What is fascinating is, David had 10 wives and 10 mistresses; Solomon had 1000 wives and mistresses; and yet David is teaching his son about the importance of one wife, of one relationship, of one life together. This is the boundary given by God for personal and sexual love. The reason that this is fascinating is, most people like to justify themselves. Most people like to point to things that they have done and say, “You may think that I got it wrong, but what I was doing was a-okay.” But David does not do this. Solomon, in recording this information, does not do this. Both men, David by his teaching and Solomon by his recording of this information, testify to God’s plan for men and women, which is not the plan which they followed. At no time in any of their writings does either man try to justify their own mistakes. Solomon never writes, a man with one wife is blessed and a man with two is double-blessed. David never says, you know, in this line, we men of Judah have the sexual vigor of 20 men, so we need to have many women at our beck and call. Despite what these men did, they always teach about love between one man and one woman.


I want you to notice just how different this is from the religion of Islam:

Islam and Multiple Wives

First of all, it should be pointed out that various Islamic scholars will differ on this point. I have read that Islamic men have the sexual vigor of 20 regular men (yes, I understand that is silly and self-serving). And it ought to be pointed out that, many Islamic men look forward to having 72 virgins in heaven, which would indicate a lot of excessive thought among Muslim men about sex.


Scholars stated that marriage takes the five different rules of Shari`ah, i.e. obligatory (fard or wajib), recommended (mandub or mustahabb), permissible (mubah), disliked (makruh), prohibited (haram);

      It is obligatory for the one who fears committing fornication while financially capable to afford it.

      It is recommended for the one who can maintain his chastity without marriage.

      It is permissible for the one who does not need it desperately.

      It is disliked for the one who thinks he might not treat his wife fairly, and;

      It is prohibited for the one who does not need it, cannot afford it, or believes he can not be just toward his potential wife.1


Sahih Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 5, Number 268:

Narrated by Qatada

Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet used to have sexual intercourse with all his wives one after the other during the day and night and they were eleven in number." I asked Anas, "Had the Prophet the strength for it?" Anas replied, "We used to say that the Prophet was given the strength of thirty (men)." And Sa'id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven).2


This same site then cites Quranic evidence for multiple wives: “And if you fear that you may not be just to the orphans, then you may marry whom you please of the women: two, and three, and four. But if you fear you will not be fair, then only one, or what your right hand possesses. This is best that you do not face financial hardship.” 4:3.2


From Islam Watch.org:


The sensual pleasures that Muslims expect to experience in Paradise have been described in graphic detail by Egyptian scholar and Islamic theologian, Imam Al-Suyuti (died 1505). He wrote:

 

“Each time we sleep with a houri we find her virgin. Besides, the penis of the Elected never softens. The erection is eternal; the sensation that you feel each time you make love is utterly delicious and out of this world and were you to experience it in this world you would faint. Each chosen one [ie Muslim] will marry seventy [sic] houris, besides the women he married on earth, and all will have appetizing vaginas.”3

My point here is, not that Christianity is better than Islam. It clearly is. There is but One Savior, Jesus Christ. Mohammed did not die for our sins. However, the point is, there is some discussion and some allowance for multiple wives in Islam. Mohammed himself had more than one wife, so he has to justify this as well. In the Bible, where we might expect to find some slack given to having multiple wives, in the teaching of David to his son, we find no such slack. We find no encouragement to marry multiple women. The encouragement is to remain with the wife of your youth and to enjoy her for all of your days.

1 From https://www.reddit.com/ accessed August 21, 2015.

2 From http://www.quran-islam.org/ accessed August 21, 2015.

3 From Isalm-watch.org; accessed August 21, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Compare this to David and Solomon, both of whom had multiple wives, but both of whom spoke of the importance of a one man-one woman marriage. They do not attempt to justify themselves.


There is something that we need to learn from this: truth is truth, no matter what you have done in life. Every pastor has sinned. Every commentator sins. Still, when you are teaching a passage which deals with your favorite sin, your greatest weakness, your hidden sin—you still teach it. You teach it objectively and honestly—even if you have committed this sin. That is what David and Solomon are doing. David taught this to Solomon (he taught him from experience); and Solomon recorded this information, even though some of his contemporaries may have pointed to him and said, “You are a hypocrite, Solomon.”


There is no call among Christians to justify David or Solomon’s many wives. We do not look up to them as exemplary in the realm of marriage; nor does the Bible attempt to justify their marriages to multiple wives. We are simply told the facts; and David and Solomon themselves always lay out the case for a single man marrying a single woman.


On the other hand, we find this sort of craven self-justification most recently among Christians who count themselves as homosexual. They have websites touting both their faith in Jesus and their homosexuality (some of these sites primarily push homosexuality). Many claim to have discovered important information, hidden deep in the Greek and Hebrew, that these passage which condemn homosexuality really don’t condemn homosexuality, but other behaviors similar to homosexuality. How fortuitous for the Christian homosexuals to discover all of these hidden truths, and just in time for the gay movement! Some from this thinking have told me that the people of Sodom were destroyed for the awful sin of inhospitality (a very grave sin in the ancient world, they said). Really, I have been told that.

 

Joe Guglielmo: [T]he wicked live to do evil, they feed upon it and unless they are doing wickedness, they are not happy. The wicked sin because that is what they feed upon. They are sinners and the only thing that can satisfy their hunger is sin! How sad a state to be in, that your life is bent on doing evil. May we be wise and walk in the ways of the Lord! 


This is from Dean’s study of Proverbs 5.

Robert Dean on Sexual Immorality

As we have seen in the previous chapters there are ten basic lessons here from the father to the son in the first nine chapters. Starting in chapter ten we see individual proverbs, just a collection of wise sayings that the father is teaching to the son. In the first nine chapters there is an integrated, consistent pattern that takes place. We have gone through the first seven, and in the eighth lesson we see the emphasis on the emptiness of free sex, the emptiness of a sexually promiscuous lifestyle, and in the end a challenge to the wisdom of marriage and the importance of intimacy within marriage and keeping that within the marriage vows. In the ninth lesson, which begins halfway through the sixth chapter, there is another discourse on the problems of sexual promiscuity and the dangers of the adulterous woman. Then the tenth lesson again returns to the focus on the adulteress's seductive tactics.


So we see that this is an important emphasis in Scripture. This is one of the greatest areas of failure, especially in a culture that has been seduced by moral relativism where the divorce rate is going down only because the marriage rate is going down because people just choose to live together for whatever period of time until the go on to somebody else, and where sexual promiscuity has become the norm for children even as young as nine or ten years of age. We have a horrible problem in our culture of children having babies. Another horrible problem and epidemic that is destructive in our culture is pornography.


Once people begin to succumb to sexual temptations, once they open that door and begin to justify and to moralize their sexual infidelity, it leads to a degradation of moral values across board among young people who have no idea of the horrible danger they are putting their souls in through sexual infidelity.


Any kind of sin impacts the very core of the health of our soul—not just sexual immorality, but that is one of the most pervasive areas, especially in a licentious culture. It is one of the most destructive. All are destructive, but this one of the worst in some ways because of the weakness that we all have in the area of sexual temptation. So it is no surprise that a concerned father would address his son in this particular area and give a lot of attention to it.

From DeanBible.org; accessed August 27, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

Joe Guglielmo: [David is telling Solomon,] “Son, you are going to be tempted. There is a world of sexual temptation that will try to take you captive. It will look good, it will be like honey but the reality is, it will be poison to you!” And we can see that sexual temptation has permeated our society! 


We need to know who the people are who populate this chapter.

The Principals of Proverbs 5

Characters

Biographical Material

David

King David, of the book of Samuel, was the 2nd king of Israel. He spent at least 7 years teaching his son Solomon, preparing him to become king. This is the missing 7 years from the end of the history of Israel under King David.

Solomon

Solomon is the son of David by Bathsheba and he became Israel’s 3rd king, and the last king of the monarchy (Israel split into two nations after Solomon). Although he is clearly laid out as the author of Proverbs, he learned many of these principles from his father David. Most of what we read in these early chapters are Solomon’s notes that he kept of the teaching he received from his father, King David.

My son

David’s earliest warnings to Solomon; and these would by the typical warnings that every father should give to his son.

O sons

David was apparently teaching Solomon and other young men. Whether these are miscellaneous students or Solomon’s younger brothers, we do not know.

The forbidden or strange woman

This is the woman that Solomon is warned to avoid. This is the woman who can flatter a man, but, in the end, she leaves a bitter taste in one’s mouth.

The wife of your youth

David appears to make the assumption that Solomon will marry a woman in his young age whom he desires; and that he needs to focus his love and passion on this woman.

Regarding the women above, it is unclear if David has someone in mind (in his own life or in Solomon’s life), or if David is simply teaching principles to Solomon.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


There is an elegant trick to dealing with potentially addictive behaviors (here, that behavior is sexual involvement with the wrong woman): do not do it in the first place! This prevents you from continuing in a set of addictive behaviors.

 

Warren Wiersbe makes the point that: The book of Proverbs emphasizes the importance of looking ahead to see where your actions will lead you (see Pr 5:11; 14:12, 13, 14; 16:25; 19:20; 20:21; 23:17, 18, 32; 24:14, 20; 25:8 - see these verses below). The wise person checks on the destination before buying a ticket (Pr 4:26), but modern society thinks that people can violate God's laws and escape the consequences. They're sure that whatever has happened to others will never happen to them. Sad to say, their ignorance and insolence can never neutralize the tragic aftermath that comes when people break the laws of God. "Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!" (Deut 32:29, cp Nu 32:33).


The book of Proverbs is taught by King David, who has made a great many mistakes, to his son Solomon, before he begins to make any of these mistakes. “Let me tell you the things to avoid, so that your life will be easier,” David tells Solomon.


This is easy to understand regarding the use of drugs. If you never try marijuana (or any other drug), you will never become addicted to any of them. Drugs will never control your life. Some parents have gone to the trouble of taking their children to meet drug addicts, meth or crack addicts; or they show their children before and after pictures—before their addiction and a few years into their addiction (an addict can age 10 or 20 years after a year or two of addiction to the wrong drugs).


David is teaching Solomon the same thing, but about sexual relations with the wrong persons. This chapter (along with several others) explains where such relations will lead you.


It is important to understand what has gone before. This prequel comes from Prov. 1.

The Prequel of Proverbs 5

King David had a number of wives (around 10) by whom he had quite a number of sons, many of whom were worthless and who engaged in crime and revolution (Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah). It is clear that he spent little time raising any of these boys, all of whom are identified not as sons of David but as sons of their mother (when they are so identified—1Kings 2:13). However, Solomon is not called the son of Bathsheba, but he is identified as the son of David (Prov. 1:1 2Chron. 1:1 1Chron. 22:5, 17).


With Solomon, David appeared to take a new tact (which is borne out in the book of Proverbs) of personally teaching his son Solomon wisdom, which is doctrine of the Word of God and the laws of divine establishment.


From the end of the book of Samuel to the first chapter of 1Kings 1, about 7 years pass—and there does not appear to be any recording of the history of this time period. However, what appears to be taking place during this time is David teaching, and therefore, preparing his son Solomon (and possibly his brothers as well) to become king. This teaching would prepare Solomon both for life and to become king.


David decided to make his very young son king (1Kings 1); and this is a wise choice because Solomon, despite his youth, is very interested in wisdom—with the idea that this would be the foundation of his reign.


And then we have Solomon’s request of God. We will allow the text to speak for itself:


1Kings 3:3–5 Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places. And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, "Ask what I shall give you."


1Kings 3:6–9 And Solomon said, "You have shown great and steadfast love to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward You. And You have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. And now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give Your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern Your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this Your great people?"


1Kings 3:10–14 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days." (ESV; capitalized)


Solomon will have both divine wisdom and human wisdom (which is revealed in the book of Ecclesiastes).

Solomon will get off course for much of his life as king—and primarily for marrying a variety of women—who turn his heart away from the Revealed God.

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I will let Bridgeway Bible Commentary give the overall summary.

Temptations to sexual immorality (A Synopsis of Proverbs 5) from Bridgeway

Strong warning is given to beware of the prostitute and the temptations she offers. (The frequency of this warning in Proverbs indicates that prostitution must have been a widespread social evil at the time.) The pleasure that the prostitute brings is short-lived, but the bitterness that follows is lasting. It leads eventually to death (5:1-6).

A man must flee the temptations offered by such immoral company, otherwise he may finish a physical and moral ruin. Moreover, he could find that he loses his possessions to those who have mercilessly deceived him (7-10). In addition to being disgraced by his own conduct, he will be overcome by despair as he thinks back on his stupidity in refusing to heed advice (11-14).

The married man should be faithful to his wife and seek his sexual pleasures in her alone. He should seek no pleasures from the immoral women who move around the streets and market places trying to seduce people (15-20). Married or single, a man must bear in mind that God sees everything. He must remember also that if he lacks self-discipline he will fall to temptation and eventually bring suffering upon himself (21-23).

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bbc/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 28, 2015.

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Whedon also provides an excellent summary of this chapter.

Whedon’s Summary of Proverbs 5

In this chapter the royal sage renews his exhortations to acquire wisdom, (Proverbs 5:1-2;) and, as there is nothing which is more pernicious in general, and more detrimental to the acquisition of wisdom in particular, than the unlawful indulgence of sexual desires, he earnestly dissuades his pupil therefrom by showing the character of a dissolute woman, and the ruinous consequences of attachment to such. These miserable effects are a loss of honour, time, health, and wealth, and at last a bitter and unavailing repentance, (Proverbs 5:3-14.) Therefore, for the avoidance of this evil, the teacher commends, like the apostle, (1 Corinthians 9:9 and 1 Timothy 4:3,) the chaste and moderate enjoyments of married life, and even a passionate love for one’s own wife, whom he describes, allegorically, as a domestic fountain, (Proverbs 5:15-19.) He closes the whole by repenting the warning against the “strange woman,” and exhibiting the fearful consequences of unlawful gratification, (Proverbs 5:20-23.)

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/whe/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 30, 2015.

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After I was half way finished, I separated off vv. 12–14 into a separate section, even though they clearly proceed from the previous verses. The following outlines did not do this.


The only difference between my outline and Clarke’s is the chapter headings.

Clarke’s Outline of Proverbs 5

I.       Farther exhortations to acquire wisdom, Prov. 5:1–2.

II.      The character of a loose woman, and the ruinous consequences of attachment to such, Prov. 5:3–14.

III.     Exhortations to chastity and moderation, Prov. 5:15–21.

IV.     The miserable end of the wicked, Prov. 5:22–23.

From Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; from e-Sword, Prov. 5 chapter comments.

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Matthew Henry is very similar to that above.

Matthew Henry’s Outline of Proverbs 5

I.      An exhortation to get acquaintance with and submit to the laws of wisdom in general (Prov. 5:2).

II.     A particular caution against the sin of whoredom (Prov. 5:3–14).

III.    Remedies prescribed against that sin.

         1.     Conjugal love (Prov. 5:15–20).

         2.     A regard to God's omniscience (Prov. 5:21).

         3.     A dread of the miserable end of wicked people (Prov. 5:22, Prov. 5:23). And all little enough to arm young people against those fleshly lusts which war against the soul.

From Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; from e-Sword, Prov. 5 chapter comments.

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This chapter of Proverbs is very different from the previous four. Although there are many words from previous chapters found here, this chapter, partially because of its subject matter, introduces us to a whole host of words not found in Proverbs before.


Richard’s breakdown I believe is unique. He apparently has determined that, wherever we read my son or my sons, that indicates a new section.

Jim Rickard’s Division of Proverbs 5

Although this chapter has one overall theme, it has two sections leading off with “my son(s).” Therefore, in this chapter we have our 11th and 12th lessons to the son(s):

The 11th Lesson is found in verses 1-6 and

The 12th Lesson in verses 7-23.

By way of summary, thus far the father’s programmatic lectures have admonished the son with motivating reasons to receive the parental teaching, (i.e. take in, store and apply Bible Doctrine in the right lobe, heart, of your soul), chapter 2:1-11; to safeguard the son against wicked men in vs. 12-15; and to avoid the adulterous woman, vs. 16-19. His lectures in chapters 3-4 elaborated on those three reasoned admonitions, and his lectures in chapters 5-6 will elaborate further on the warnings against wicked men and women to safeguard the generations from pursuing easy sex and money.

It is further broken down to include the following topics:

 

1.      The typical introductory address and call for attentiveness in learning God’s Word, 5:1-2,

2.      The motivating reasons for heeding Bible Doctrine in verses 3-6,

3.      The consequences of adultery in verses 7-14,

4.      The exhortation for faithfulness in marriage, verses 15-20.

5.      The ever-present warning of Prov 1-9 that to choose folly is to choose death, verses 21-23.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 23, 2015.

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Peter Pett sees the fifth discourse as beginning in Prov. 4:20.

Peter Pett’s Division of Proverbs 4:20–5:23

1)      A general appeal to hear his words and sayings, and instructions with regard to his heart, mouth, eyes and feet (Proverbs 4:20-27).

2)      A warning against the enticements of the strange woman whose ways lead to death including a description of the consequences that will result (Proverbs 5:1-14).

3)      An appeal rather to be faithful to a true wife (Proverbs 5:15-23).


As there is an epilogue it could be argued that there are four subsections, but such epilogues, where they are not a part of the third subsection (as revealed by the chiasmus), are always minimal. Presumably the writer did not see them as disturbing the pattern.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 29, 2015.

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Enter the Bible also provides an outline: The writers of Proverbs pull no punches about the consequences of loose sexual behavior: what may begin with words that are all sweetness and honey is likely to end in death (vv. 1-5)! Or, in another run at the same topic, the teacher says that irresponsible sexual behavior will result in disease and disgrace (vv. 8-14). In contrast is a portrayal of the joys, delights, and intoxications of a faithful marriage (vv. 15-19).

 

J. Vernon McGee breaks this chapter down into two parts:

God's Sex Education (5:1-14)

The Holiness Of Marriage (5:15-23).


Surprisingly enough, I did not come across anyone who divided Prov. 5 in whole or in part into a chiasmos, even though the division is quite natural and logical.

Proverbs 5 as a Chiasmos

A       vv.     1–2  Introduction: Be Attentive to Wisdom

         B       vv.     3–14         The Ruin Caused Fraternization with the Forbidden Woman

                  C      vv.    12–14         Regret from Not Listening to and Obeying Solid Doctrinal Teaching

         B       vv.    15–21         Instead, Be Intoxicated by Your Own Right Woman

A       vv.    22–23         The Logical End of the Wicked Man Who Has Neglected Wisdom

Notice how this proceeds. First the students are being taught to be attendant to wisdom, and part of that wisdom includes avoiding the wrong kind of women. This leads to a bad end, and regret is expressed for disobeying good doctrinal teaching. The teacher tells his students to be intoxicated and enticed by their right women. At the very end, we have the logical end of a man who has rejected this wisdom.

What is important and stands out is the warning of David for Solomon (and his other students) to not end their lives with regrets of ignoring accurate teaching.

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3 chapters deal with sexual immorality; and the key is, knowledge and obeying God’s Word.

Precept Austin on Proverbs 5-7

Proverbs 5-7 deals with the subject of sexual impurity and how to avoid this powerful and deceptive sin and in his presentation Solomon repeatedly is seeking (and commanding) our attention as men because he knows full well the power of sexual sin (see below). Note Solomon's repetition of his call to hear what he is saying and to obey it without exception...


Proverbs 5:1 My son, give attention to my wisdom, Incline your ear to my understanding;


Proverbs 5:7 Now then, my sons, listen to me, And do not depart from the words of my mouth.


Proverbs 6:20 My son, observe the commandment of your father, And do not forsake the teaching of your mother; Bind them continually on your heart; Tie them around your neck.


Proverbs 7:1–4

My son, keep my words, And treasure my commandments within you.

Keep my commandments and live, And my teaching as the apple of your eye.

Bind them on your fingers; Write them on the tablet of your heart.

Say to wisdom, "You are my sister," And call understanding your intimate friend;...


Proverbs 7:24 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, And pay attention to the words of my mouth.

Although it is Solomon who preserves these proverbs, he himself did not live by them. 1Kings 11

From http://www.preceptaustin.org/proverbs_51-14_commentary.htm accessed September 1, 2015.

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Throughout the book of Proverbs, there are two women who are often spoken of: the personification of wisdom (Prov. 8 is a good example of this); and the strange, foreign or immoral woman, who entices a man off the path of God’s plan. Prov. 5 is mostly about the latter woman. Even though this latter woman is a literal illustration of how a man can be moved out of God’s will, she is also illustrative of lusts and false doctrine which also move us away from God’s will. This strange woman pulls double duty here, if you will: (1) she represents a real type of woman, that, when mixed up with, can lead a man astray; and (2) she is also illustrative of strange, foreign and immoral doctrines which lead us away from the truth. This is why accurate doctrine is also portrayed as a woman—the right woman for the soul of the believer in the Revealed God.


Just so there is no misunderstanding, the man moved off of God’s path is himself responsible for this. You will never win any points from God by saying, “The woman, whom You gave me, gave me the [tempting] fruit.”


Quite frankly, people in the past have done excellent work on this verse. I have probably over-quoted in this particular chapter (there will be over 200 footnotes). But this is important information—particularly for a young man.


——————————


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Introduction: Be Attentive to Wisdom


Peter Pett organizes the first half of this chapter in this way:

Proverbs 5:1–14 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

A       My son, attend to my wisdom, incline your ear to my understanding, that you may preserve discretion, and that your lips may guard knowledge (Proverbs 5:1-2).

         B       For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword (Proverbs 5:3-4).

                  C      Her feet go down to death, her steps take hold on Sheol, so that she does not find the level path of life, her ways are unstable, and she does not know it (Proverbs 5:5-6).

                            D      Now therefore, sons, listen to me, and do not depart from the words of my mouth, remove your way far from her, and do not come near the door of her house (Proverbs 5:7-8).

                  C      Lest you give your honour (or ‘splendour’) to others, and your years (or ‘loftiness, dignity’) to the cruel, lest strangers be filled with your strength, and your labours be in the house of an alien (Proverbs 5:9-10).

         B       And you mourn at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed, and say, “How have I hated instruction, and my heart has despised reproof” (Proverbs 5:11-12).

A       Nor have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! I was well-nigh in all evil (in serious trouble), in the midst of the assembly and congregation” (Proverbs 5:13-14).

Note that in A he calls on his son to incline his ear to understanding, with its consequences, and in the parallel his son is pictured as having not inclined his ear to those who instructed him, with its consequences. In B the strange woman is in the end bitter as wormwood and sharp as a two-edged sword, whilst in the parallel his latter end is to be consumed. In C her ways are unstable and lead to death and the grave, whilst in the parallel her ways lead him into slavery and degradation. Centrally in D (which could be divided into two), he is to listen to Solomon’s words, and not depart from them, whilst in the parallel he is not to heed the strange woman but is to remove himself far from her, not coming near to the door of her house.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 29, 2015.

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Kukis slavishly literal:

 

Kukis moderately literal:

My son, to my wisdom attend to;

to my understanding spread out your ear;

to keep purposes

and knowledge your [two] lips will keep.

Proverbs

5:1–2

Attend to my wisdom, my son, [and] listen [lit., spread out your ear] to my insight; [with the intent] to guard [divine] purposes and your lips will guard knowledge.

Kukis paraphrased:

Attend to my wisdom, my son and listen to my doctrinal teaching; guard the purposes of God and guard Biblical knowledge.


Here is how others have translated this verse:

 

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

 

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

 

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

 

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

 

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

 

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

 

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

 

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

 

These Bibles often fall into more than one category; I placed them where I believed them to have the best fit.


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        My son, to my wisdom attend to;

to my understanding spread out your ear;

to keep purposes

and knowledge your [two] lips will keep.

Latin Vulgate                          My son, attend to my wisdom, and incline your ear to my prudence,

That you may keep thoughts, and your lips may preserve instruction. Mind not the deceit of a woman. You will note that a portion of this is not a part of the MT, but is properly placed with v. 3.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   My son, give ear to my wisdom and incline your ear to my sayings

So that you heed counsel and your lips will keep knowledge.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    MY son, attend to my wisdom and incline your ear to my understanding,

That you may heed counsel and that your lips may keep knowledge.

Septuagint (Greek)                My son, attend to my wisdom, and incline your ear to my words;

that you may keep good understanding, and the discretion of my lips gives you a charge. Give no heed to a worthless woman,... Both the Latin and the Greek have a portion of v. 3 included with v. 2 (which has an affect on some of the translations which are given below).

 

Significant differences:           The Greek has words rather than understanding, prudence. The 3rd phrase is problematic. The verb is keep rather than heed (Syriac). Notice that the Latin and Greek also add an additional phrase onto v. 2, which is not helpful, and which should be the beginning of v. 3.


Limited Vocabulary Bibles:

 

Bible in Basic English             My son, give attention to my wisdom; let your ear be turned to my teaching:

So that you may be ruled by a wise purpose, and your lips may keep knowledge.

Easy English                          My son, listen to my wisdom!

Hear my knowledge!

Then you will know how to behave.

You will know what to say.

Easy-to-Read Version            My son, listen to my wise teaching. Pay attention to my words of understanding. Then you will remember to live wisely and watch what you say.

Good News Bible (TEV)         My child, pay attention and listen to my wisdom and insight.

Then you will know how to behave properly, and your words will show that you have knowledge.

The Message                         Dear friend, pay close attention to this, my wisdom; listen very closely to the way I see it.

Then you'll acquire a taste for good sense; what I tell you will keep you out of trouble.

Names of God Bible               Avoid Adultery

My son,

pay attention to my wisdom.

Open your ears to my understanding

so that you may act with foresight

and speak with insight.

NIRV                                      A Warning Against Committing Adultery

My son, pay attention to my wisdom.

Listen carefully to my wise sayings.

Then you will continue to have good sense.

Your lips will keep on speaking words of knowledge.

New Simplified Bible              My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Listen to my understanding.

That way you will maintain discretion and your lips will keep knowledge.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Avoid the mysterious woman

My son, pay attention to my wisdom.

Bend your ear to what I know,

so you might remain discreet,

and your lips might guard knowledge.

Contemporary English V.       My son, if you listen closely to my wisdom and good sense, you will have sound judgment, and you will always know the right thing to say.

The Living Bible                     Listen to me, my son! I know what I am saying; listen! Watch yourself, lest you be indiscreet and betray some vital information.

New Berkeley Version           My son, listen to my wisdom [The only time in the book that “my” is added to “wisdom.”];

incline your ear to my discernment;

that you may protect discretion;

that your lips may guard knowledge.

New Century Version             Warning About Adultery

My son, pay attention to my wisdom;

listen to my words of understanding.

Be careful to use good sense,

and watch what you say.

New Life Bible                        My son, listen to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding. So you may know what is good thinking, and your lips may keep much learning.

New Living Translation           Avoid Immoral Women

My son, pay attention to my wisdom;

listen carefully to my wise counsel.

Then you will show discernment,

and your lips will express what you’ve learned.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          O son, pay attention to my wisdom, and lend your ears to my words, so you can understand clearly, then I'll tell you the things that my lips have perceived. Certain Bible translation appear to affix half of v. 3 to v. 2. This must be based upon the LXX.

Beck’s American Translation Love, Impure and Pure

My son, pay attention to My wisdom

listen to the understanding I give you,

that you may conduct yourself wisely and talk intelligently.

International Standard V        Warning against Sexual Immorality

My son, pay attention to my wisdom,

and listen closely to my insight,

you may carefully practice [Lit. guard] discretion

and your lips preserve knowledge.

New Advent (Knox)Bible        My son, here is good advice for thy heeding; listen to wise counsel, if thou wouldst be circumspect, if thou wouldst have ever on thy lips the maxims of prudence. The Knox Bible has a portion of v. 3 added to v. 2 (I did not include it here).

Translation for Translators                                 A warning about adultery

My son, listen carefully to some more wise things that I will tell you.

Listen well to what I am going to teach you.

If you do that, you will be able to choose wisely what to do,

and you will know the right things to say [MTY]. .


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      My son, listen to my wisdom, and affix your ear to my understanding.

Keep planning, and guard knowledge with your lips.

Conservapedia                       My son, pay attention to my wisdom and listen with your ear to my understanding:

So that you highly regard discretion and so your lips keep knowledge.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                A Warning Against Vice

“My son! to my wisdom attend, And bend down your ear to my thoughts; Keep to reflection and knowledge, Which they will provide for your lips.

HCSB                                     My son, pay attention to my wisdom; listen closely to my understanding so that you may maintain discretion and your lips safeguard knowledge.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my intelligence; that thou may keep council and that thy lips may conserve knowledge.

Lexham English Bible            My child, be attentive to my wisdom, and to my understanding incline your ear;

[in order] to keep prudence, and knowledge will guard your lips.

NIV – UK                                Warning against adultery

My son, pay attention to my wisdom,

turn your ear to my words of insight,

that you may maintain discretion

and your lips may preserve knowledge.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Beware of the adulteress

My son, pay heed to my wisdom and listen to my insights;

remember my counsel and let your lips not depart from this knowledge.

The Heritage Bible                 My son, prick up your ears to my wisdom, and spread out your ears to my understanding, That you may hedge about wise planning, and your lips may guard knowledge,...

New American Bible (2002)   My son, to my wisdom be attentive, to my knowledge incline your ear, That discretion may watch over you, and understanding may guard you. [1-20] Understanding and discretion guard a man against the wiles of an adulteress, which lead astray and beget bitterness, bloodshed and death (⇒ Proverb 5:1-6). They destroy honor, waste the years of life, despoil hard-earned wealth, consume the flesh, and bring remorse in the end (⇒ Proverb 5:7-14). Conjugal fidelity and love for one wife only bring happiness and security (⇒ Proverb 5:15-20). Cf ⇒ Proverb 6:20-⇒ 7:27.

New American Bible(2011)    Warning Against Adultery* [5:1–23] This is the first of three poems on the forbidden woman, the “stranger” outside the social boundaries (cf. 2:16–19); the other two are 6:20–35 and chap. 7. Understanding and discretion are necessary to avoid adultery, which leads astray and begets bitterness, bloodshed, and death (vv. 1–6). It destroys honor, wastes the years of life, despoils hard-earned wealth, and brings remorse in the end (vv. 7–14). Conjugal fidelity and love bring happiness and security (vv. 15–20). Cf. 6:20–7:27. The structure of the poem consists of a two-line introduction; part one consists of three stanzas of four lines each warning of the forbidden woman’s effect on her lovers (vv. 3–14); part two consists of a stanza of twelve lines exhorting the disciple to marital fidelity (vv. 15–20); and a final stanza of six lines on the perils of the woman (vv. 21–23).

My son, to my wisdom be attentive,

to understanding incline your ear,

That you may act discreetly,

and your lips guard what you know.

New Jerusalem Bible             My son, pay attention to my wisdom, listen carefully to what I know; so that you may preserve discretion and your lips may guard knowledge. This online version adds a portion of v. 3 to v. 2 (without any reason for it, than I can see)

New RSV                               My child, be attentive to my wisdom;

incline your ear to my understanding,

so that you may hold on to prudence,

and your lips may guard knowledge.

Revised English Bible            “My son, attend to my wisdom and listen with care to my counsel,

so that you may preserve discretion and your lips safeguard knowledge.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           My son, pay attention to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding; so that you will preserve discretion and your lips keep watch over knowledge.

exeGeses companion Bible   My son, hearken to my wisdom;

spread your ear to my discernment:

to regard intrigue

and your lips guard knowledge: ...

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               My son, listen to my wisdom;

Incline your ear to my insight,

That you may have foresight,

While your lips hold fast to knowledge.

Judaica Press Complete T.    My son, hearken to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding, to watch your thoughts, and your lips shall guard knowledge.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Beni (my son), attend unto my chochmah, and bow thine ozen to my tevunah (understanding);

That thou mayest regard mezimah (discretion), and that thy sfatayim (lips) may keep da’as (knowledge).


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                My son, be attentive to my Wisdom [godly Wisdom learned by actual and costly experience], and incline your ear to my understanding [of what is becoming and prudent for you],

That you may exercise proper discrimination and discretion and your lips may guard and keep knowledge and the wise answer [to temptation].

The Expanded Bible              My son, pay attention to my wisdom;

·listen [Lbend your ear] to my words of understanding.

·Be careful to use good sense [or So you might keep discrete]

and ·watch what you say [Lyour lips might protect knowledge].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Warning against Wantonness

My son, attend unto my wisdom, giving heed to its precepts, and bow thine ear, in the attitude of the most careful listening, to my understanding, both the possession of knowledge and the proper exercise of discrimination in applying it to the various situations of life being urged,

v. 2. that thou mayest regard discretion, the reflection and consideration needed for circumspect behavior, and that thy lips may keep knowledge, preserving its instructions word for word and repeating them often, lest they be forgotten. This is placed in contrast to the seductions of the wanton woman.

NET Bible®                             Admonition to Avoid Seduction to Evil [In this chapter the sage/father exhorts discretion (1, 2) then explains how to avoid seduction (3-6); this is followed by a second exhortation to prevention (7, 8) and an explanation that obedience will avoid ruin and regret (9-14); finally, he warns against sharing love with strangers (15-17) but to find it at home (18-23). For an analysis of the chapter, see J. E. Goldingay, “Proverbs V and IX,” RB 84 (1977): 80-93.]

My child [The text again has “my son.” In this passage perhaps “son” would be the most fitting because of the warning against going to the adulterous woman. However, since the image of the adulterous woman probably represents all kinds of folly (through personification), and since even in this particular folly the temptation works both ways, the general address to either young men or women should be retained. The text was certainly not intended to convey that only women could seduce men.], be attentive to my wisdom,

pay close attention [Heb “incline your ear” (so NAB, NRSV); NLT “listen carefully.”] to my understanding,

in order to safeguard [Heb “keep, protect, guard.”] discretion,

and that your lips may guard knowledge. When it comes to making an actual material change to the text, the NET Bible® is pretty good about indicating this. Since most of these corrections will be clear in the more literal translations below and within the Hebrew exegesis itself, I will not continue to list every NET Bible® footnote. Language footnotes will be placed in the Hebrew exegesis.

Syndein/Thieme                     {Chaper 5 - Category 2 Love Relationship to Illustrate Pseudo-love}

My son {Father to Son - David teaching Solomon}, concentrate on {qashab } 'my doctrine' {chokmah} {and ignore pseudo-love}, and extend your ear to my understanding {concentrate hard on this subject - means strict discipline in the assimilation of doctrine}.

{Beware of feminine divisiveness - and vice versa}

For the purpose that you may guard against feminine divisiveness . . . {because this is father to son - mother to daughter would have been vice versa} as for knowledge that your lips may guard it {idiom meaning 'if you know this, you can protect against it'}. {Note: The man is at his worst in a romantic situation and easily acts foolishly.}

The Voice                               My son, stay focused; listen to the wisdom I have gained;

give attention to what I have learned about life

So you may be able to make sensible judgments

and speak with knowledge.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    My son, do attend to my wisdom; To my comprehension, stretch out your ear,

In order to guard foresight, That your lips may preserve knowledge."

Darby Translation                  My son, attend unto my wisdom, incline thine ear to my understanding;

that thou mayest keep reflection [Or 'well-considered thoughts,' it is plural: for singular see ch. 1.4, 'discretion.'], and that thy lips may preserve knowledge.

English Standard V. – UK       Warning Against Adultery

My son, be attentive to my wisdom;

incline your ear to my understanding,

that you may keep discretion,

and your lips may guard knowledge.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           My son, give heed unto my wisdom, and bow your ear to my *prudence: that you may regard good counsel, and that your lips may keep nurture.

NASB                                     Pitfalls of Immorality

My son, give attention to my wisdom,

Incline your ear to my understanding;

That you may observe discretion

And your lips may reserve knowledge.

New European Version          The Dangers of Adultery

My son, pay attention to my wisdom, turn your ear to my understanding: that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

New King James Version       The Peril of Adultery

My son, pay attention to my wisdom;

Lend your ear to my understanding,

That you may preserve discretion,

And your lips may keep knowledge.

Stuart Wolf                             My son, to my wisdom give attention, to my understanding turn your ear.

In order to observe/watch discretion, and knowledge your lips will guard.

Third Millennium Bible            My son, attend unto my wisdom and bow thine ear to my understanding,

that thou mayest have regard for discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

Webster’s updated Bible       My son, attend to my wisdom, [and] bow your ear to my understanding:

That you may regard discretion, and [that] your lips may keep knowledge.

Young’s Updated LT             My son! To my wisdom give attention, To mine understanding incline your ear, To observe thoughtfulness, And knowledge do your lips keep.

 

The gist of this verse:          David warns his son, Solomon, to pay attention to what he is teaching, so that he may amass divine viewpoint in his soul.


Proverbs 5:1a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

bên (בֵּן) [pronounced bane]

son, descendant

masculine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #1121 BDB #119

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

châkemâh (חָכְמָה) [pronounced khawke-MAW]

wisdom [in all realms of life], doctrine in the soul; skill [in war]

feminine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #2451 BDB #315

qâshab (קָשַב) [pronounced kaw-SHAHBV]

incline, attend to, give attention to, be caused to attend to

2nd person masculine singular, Hiphil imperative; with the voluntative hê

Strong’s #7181 BDB #904


Translation: Attend to my wisdom, my son,... This chapter actually begins with my son, suggesting that this is still King David teaching his son Solomon. Much of the book of Proverbs is essentially Solomon’s notes that he took when his father was teaching him.


The verb is qâshab (קָשַב) [pronounced kaw-SHAHBV], which means, in the Hiphil imperative, incline, attend to, give attention to, be caused to attend to. Strong’s #7181 BDB #904. What Solomon is supposed to be giving attention to is châkemâh (חָכְמָה) [pronounced khawke-MAW], which is one of the common words in the Hebrew for wisdom, Bible doctrine, doctrine in the soul. Strong’s #2451 BDB #315.

 

Gill: [This is] Not the wisdom of the world or of the flesh, worldly wisdom and carnal policy; but spiritual and evangelical wisdom;...the treasures of wisdom and knowledge [that]...every child of God, and disciple of Christ, ought carefully and diligently attend to...even the knowledge of God and of Christ, and of the Gospel and its doctrines; and which will be a means of preserving men, as from false doctrine, error, and heresy, so from profaneness and immorality.

 

Precept Austin on this wisdom: Wisdom...(chokmah)...as used in this context describes the ability to see something from God’s viewpoint. Wisdom is “God’s character in the many practical affairs of life.” We can get information "on line" but wisdom is from "on high" (through His Word)! God's wisdom is not theoretical knowledge but is that which is worked out in a proper discernment between good and evil or right and wrong. Fools may acquire encyclopedic information, but they cannot attain wisdom because they fail to take God into account. Wisdom is not acquired by a mechanical formula but in the final analysis through a right relationship with God (Pr 9:10, Jas 3:15, 16, 17, 18). In the present context, God's wisdom helps guard the heart and mind of a man against the wiles of an adulteress.


David has the wisdom; David has the Bible doctrine in his soul. He is sharing this knowledge with the next generation, which is Solomon. He is telling his son, “Pay attention to this; listen to this.”


David, through learning Bible doctrine, has amassed a great deal of doctrine in his soul. He is passing along this teaching to his son, so that Solomon might reign in Israel with wisdom.


When dealing with human relationships, David is teaching his son, “How you feel is inconsequential. What do you know? What are your thoughts? How do they line up with the Word of God?”


Proverbs 5:1b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

tebûwnâh (תְּבוּנָה) [pronounced tʾvoo-NAWH]

intelligence, understanding, insight; the act of understanding; skill; the faculty of understanding; the object of knowledge; teacher (personification)

feminine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #8394 BDB #108

nâţâh (נָטָה) [pronounced naw-TAWH]

extend, stretch out, spread out, [cause to] reach out to; expand; incline [downwards]; turn, turn away [aside, to one side]; push away, repel, deflect; decline; seduce

2nd person masculine singular, Hiphil imperative

Strong’s #5186 BDB #639

ʾôzen (אֹזֶן) [pronounced OH-zen]

ear; metaphorically for hearing

feminine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular

Strong’s #241 BDB #23


Translation:...[and] listen [lit., spread out your ear] to my insight;... The verb and its object read, incline your hear, turn your ear; which is somewhat of a poetic way of saying, “Listen to this.”


What Solomon is to listen to is tebûwnâh (תְּבוּנָה) [pronounced tʾvoo-NAWH], which means intelligence, understanding, insight; the act of understanding; skill; the faculty of understanding; the object of knowledge; teacher (personification). Again, we have the 1st person singular suffix, which means that this is insight and understanding which David has, and he wants to share it with his son.

 

Precept Austin on this wisdom: Understanding...(tebunah from bin = to discern) refers to insight or knowledge which is superior to the mere gathering of data. Understanding is the capacity for discerning a right course of action when presented with various sources of input and various options...Understanding implies a mental grasp of the nature and significance of something, along with discernment and good judgment. In short, it is common sense and not the mere accumulation and possession of knowledge ("head knowledge"). Think of understanding as the ability to "put the pieces together" and make sense out of it all. This is the application of wisdom to one’s life and circumstances.


V. 1 reads: Attend to my wisdom, my son, [and] listen [lit., spread out your ear] to my insight;... As is found throughout much of this chapter, we have parallel thoughts laid down side-by-side, essentially teaching the same thing. David is teaching wisdom to his son Solomon, and he is encouraging him to listen and to pay attention.


David refers Solomon to my wisdom and to my insight, suggesting that David learned these things on his own—perhaps the hard way. If that is the case, David had to have a basis for this knowledge and understanding; he may have learned things the hard way, but he had spiritual information will allowed him to learn.


The spiritual life is not learned by simply living from day-to-day. We do not reach maturity in that way. Now and again, we have really hard heads and God has to reach us through our posterior; but even that requires some fundamental knowledge of the Word of God. Perhaps after some intense discipline, we remark to God, “Oh, so that’s what You mean.”


As believers, we should be forewarned that God is always right and, when we learn some things the hard way, that takes time, and it is painful. If you studied the final quarter of 2Samuel, you understand just how painful David’s life was due to his going after Bathsheba, a married woman.


When Nathan explained things to David, David did not suddenly say, “Oh, adultery is wrong? For the king? I had no idea!” He got out of fellowship and he stayed out of fellowship for a long period of time; and he just built sin upon sin upon sin. But, when Nathan spoke and God backed this up with discipline, David understood completely. He understood every wrong thing that he had done. He should have known better, but he simply went ahead and allowed his lust to override what he had learned.

 

Keil and Delitzsch: Wisdom and understanding increase with the age of those who earnestly seek after them. It is the father of the youth who here requests a willing ear to his wisdom of life, gained in the way of many years' experience and observation.


V. 1 reads: Attend to my wisdom, my son, [and] listen [lit., spread out your ear] to my insight; [with the intent] to guard [divine] purposes and your lips will guard knowledge. There are many similar verses found throughout Scripture: Prov. 2:1 4:1, 20 22:17 Matt. 3:9 Mark 4:23 Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29 3:6, 13, 22 James. 1:19.

 

Ironside: Throughout the book of Proverbs, the need for more than casual attention to the words of wisdom is enforced. To hear with no intention of obeying, is not what is contemplated; but rather to bow the ear in order to regard discretion and keep knowledge...When God stoops to make His will known, it should be considered a privilege to obey, not merely a duty.

 

Jim Richard: God’s Word combats the temptations of your Old Sin Nature and those from Satan’s Cosmic System. Therefore it protects you from the lustful desires of sexual immorality.


Proverbs 5:2a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

shâmar (שָמַר) [pronounced shaw-MAR]

to keep, to guard, to protect, to watch, to preserve

Qal infinitive construct

Strong's #8104 BDB #1036

mezimmôth (מְזִמּוֹת) [pronounced mezim-MOHTH]

schemes, plots, evil purposes; discretion; acting with wisdom and foresight

feminine plural noun

Strong’s #4209 BDB #273

The NET Bible: This “discretion” is the same word in 1:4; it is wise, prudential consideration, careful planning, or the ability to devise plans with a view to the best way to carry them out. If that ability is retained then temptations to digress will not interfere. Another source adds the meaning reflection.


Translation: ...[with the intent] to guard [divine] purposes... The feminine plural noun is often used to refer to something which is negative. However, here, the context is clear that this is a good thing. Therefore, we should assume that its use anywhere depends upon context.


Although many of the occurrences of this noun have a clearly negative connotation, there are at least 4 times when it is used in proverbs in a positive way. The ESV; capitalized is used below.

Mezimmôth (מְזִמּוֹת) used in a positive way

Scripture

Commentary

[The Proverbs of Solomon (are to)] ...to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth–... (Prov. 1:4)

Young people often lack a filter; sometimes they just say whatever is on their minds, and part of civilizing a young person is teaching them that speaking your mind whenever you feel like it is not always the best thing to do. Furthermore, young people are more easily led to do this which are wrong. Acting with discretion means, you think about the path before you and do not act on your emotions.

...discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you,... (Prov. 2:11)

This is from an older father to a younger son. King David had several sons who just acted in order to get what they wanted. Amnon lusted after his half-sister Tamar and finally raped her. Absalom was an outsider, yet he wanted his father David’s power. These young men acted without discretion; they acted without wisdom.

My son, do not lose sight of these-- keep sound wisdom and discretion, and they will be life for your soul and adornment for your neck. (Prov. 3:21–22)

It is wisdom and discretion which give life to the soul. Amnon and Absalom are dead now because they did not fill their thinking with wisdom and discretion. Bible doctrine is the soul is your life; it is your protection as well as your capacity for life. It is what makes you attractive to others as well.

My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my insight, that you may keep discretion, and your lips may guard knowledge. (Prov. 5:1–2)

Interestingly enough, the previous passages have this word in the feminine singular; and here, it is in the feminine plural. It is not clear what the difference is, as this word appears to mean essentially the same thing. If Solomon pays close attention to what David is teaching, he will be able to act with discretion.

Because of the way that this word is used, I have added the definition: acting with wisdom and foresight.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Proverbs 5:2b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

daʿath (דַּעַת) [pronounced DAH-ahth]

knowledge, knowing, perception, skill; intelligence, discernment, understanding, wisdom

feminine singular noun

Strong’s #1847 BDB #395

sephâtayim (שְׂפָתַיִם) [pronounced sefaw-tah-YIHM]

[two] lips; words; speech

feminine dual noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #8193 BDB #973

nâtsar (נָצַר) [pronounced naw-TSAR]

to keep, to guard, to watch over, to protect; to observe; to keep secret

3rd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect; pausal form

Strong’s #5341 BDB #665


proverbs051.gif

Translation: ...and your lips will guard knowledge. Interestingly here, Solomon is to guard knowledge with his lips. When he speaks, he is to observe knowledge and wisdom. People should, when they hear Solomon, think, this is a very wise young man. He will be known for his wisdom.


Proverbs 5:1–2 (graphic); from pinimg.com; accessed September 2, 2015.


A loose translation of these first two verses: Attend to my wisdom, my son and listen to my doctrinal teaching; guard the purposes of God and guard Biblical knowledge. David tells his son Solomon to listen carefully to the principles of doctrine that he is teaching him; and to guard this knowledge (that is, remember and preserve it).


In every generation, someone has to preserve the Word of God. Every generation must make this decision. Furthermore, for a period of perhaps 2000 years, someone had to make the decision to add to the Word of God. They may not have realized that they were writing the Word of God, but they were. But the Word had to be preserved and taught; and every generation had to make that decision.


So far, in the first two verses, David begins with a number of familiar words, all of which are found throughout Prov. 1–4.

 

Matthew Henry summarizes the first two verses: [This is] A solemn preface, to introduce the caution which follows...Solomon here addresses himself to his son, that is, to all young men, as unto his [own] children, [toward] whom he has an affection for and some influence upon. In God's name, he demands attention; for he writes by divine inspiration,...[even] though he begins not with, Thus says the Lord, [but rather, with]. “Attend, and bow your ear;” [Do] not only hear what is said, and read what is written, but apply your mind to it and consider it diligently...[These] lectures are not designed to fill our heads with notions, with matters of nice speculation, or doubtful disputation, but to guide us in the government of ourselves, that we may act prudently, so as becomes us and so as will be for our true interest.


——————————


Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


The Ruin Caused Fraternization with the Forbidden Woman


Suddenly, King David is going to seize the attention of Solomon. Where should a young man with great power and influence exercise the greatest care? With women. With attractive, desirable women. With this comes a whole new vocabulary.


Back in Prov. 2, 4 verses were devoted to warning the young man about the wrong woman: So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; for her house sinks down to death, and her paths to the departed; none who go to her come back, nor do they regain the paths of life. (Prov. 2:16–19; ESV). Now nearly half of Prov. 5 will deal with this topic specifically, the strange woman having been essentially defined back in Prov. 2.


David learned about sexual sins through Scripture; but then, when he broke God’s laws, he found out about sexual sins the hard way. David hopes to spare his son Solomon the great pain which would be the result of making the same mistakes that he made.


For honey drips lips of the strange woman

and smooth more than oil her palate.

And her end [is] bitter as wormwood;

sharp as a sword of mouths.

Proverbs

5:3–4

The lips of the strange woman drips honey; her mouth is smoother than oil; but her end [is] bitter like wormwood; [and her end] is sharp as a two-edged sword.

The lips of the strange woman seem to drip honey, and the inside of her mouth is smoother than oil; but the end she brings will be bitter like wormwood; and it will be as sharp as any two-edged sword.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        For honey drips lips of the strange woman

and smooth more than oil her palate.

And her end [is] bitter as wormwood;

sharp as a sword of mouths.

Latin Vulgate                          Mind not the deceit of a woman. For the lips of a harlot are like a honeycomb dropping, and her throat is smoother than oil. But her end is bitter as wormwood, and sharp as a two-edged sword.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Because the lips of an estranged woman are dripping honey and her words are softer than oil.

But their end is of bitter wormwood, for they are sharper than a double-edged sword...

Peshitta (Syriac)                    For the lips of a strange woman drop as a honeycomb, and her words are smoother than oil; But the end of her life is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

Septuagint (Greek)                Give no heed to a worthless woman, for honey drops from the lips of a harlot, who for a season pleases your palate; but afterwards you will find her more bitter than gall, and sharper than a two-edged sword.

 

Significant differences:           In both the Latin and the Greek, the first phrase actually is the end of v. 2 in those ancient manuscripts. The Aramaic/Syriac has words put in for palate. The Plain English Arabic has her life and the Syriac has their end; but the Hebrew has her end.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             For honey is dropping from the lips of the strange woman, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

But her end is bitter as wormwood, and sharp as a two-edged sword;...

Easy English                          A married woman may tempt you. Her lips are sweet like honey.

Her speech is attractive, as oil is smooth.

However, soon her lips will taste bitter.

Soon she will cut you, as with a sword.

Easy-to-Read Version            Another man’s wife might be very charming; the words from her lips so sweet and inviting. But in the end, she will bring only bitterness and pain. It will be like bitter poison and a sharp sword!

God’s Word                         The lips of an adulterous woman drip with honey.

Her kiss is smoother than oil,

but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood,

as sharp as a two-edged sword.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The lips of another man's wife may be as sweet as honey and her kisses as smooth as olive oil, but when it is all over, she leaves you nothing but bitterness and pain.

The Message                         The lips of a seductive woman are oh so sweet, her soft words are oh so smooth. But it won't be long before she's gravel in your mouth, a pain in your gut, a wound in your heart.

NIRV                                      A woman who commits adultery has lips that drip honey.

What she says is smoother than olive oil.

But in the end she is like bitter poison.

She cuts like a sword that has two edges.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           The lips of a mysterious woman drip honey,

and her tongue is smoother than oil,

but in the end she is bitter as gall,

sharp as a double-edged sword.

Contemporary English V.       The words of an immoral woman may be as sweet as honey and as smooth as olive oil. But all that you really get from being with her is bitter poison and pain.

The Living Bible                     For the lips of a prostitute [of a prostitute, or “of another man’s wife.”] are as sweet as honey, and smooth flattery is her stock-in-trade. But afterwards only a bitter conscience is left to you [But afterwards only a bitter conscience is left you, literally, “But in the end she is bitter as wormwood.”], sharp as a double-edged sword.

New Berkeley Version           For the lips of a loose [See Prov. 2:16.] woman drop honeyed words [Lit. “Drop honey.”]

and her palate [Her talk] is smoother than oil;

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

sharp as a devouring [Lit. “a sword of mouths.”] sword.

New Century Version             The words of another man’s wife may seem sweet as honey;

they may be as smooth as olive oil.

But in the end she will bring you sorrow,

causing you pain like a two-edged sword.

New Life Version                    For the lips of a strange woman are as sweet as honey. Her talk is as smooth as oil. But in the end she is as bitter tasting as wormwood, and as sharp as a sword that cuts both ways.

New Living Translation           For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,

and her mouth is smoother than oil.

But in the end she is as bitter as poison,

as dangerous as a double-edged sword.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Pay no attention to vile women! For the lips of a whore drip with honey, which fattens the throat for a while…but you'll find them more bitter than bile, and sharper than a double-edged sword.

Beck’s American Translation The lips of an adulteress woman drip witrh honey,

and her mouth is smoother than oil,

but in the end she’s bitter as a poisonous plant

and sharp as a double edged sword.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       2b First, give no credence to the wiles of woman; 3 honey-sweet words the temptress [Literally, ‘harlot’, but it would appear from what follows, especially verse 14, that the warning here given is one against adultery, not fornication. It is uncertain, both here and elsewhere in the book, how much the Hebrew term ‘strange woman’ is meant to convey the sense of foreign birth.] may use, all her talk be soothing as oil, 4 but oh, the dregs of that cup are bitter; a two-edged sword brings no sharper pang. The verse numbering above matches the text of the Latin and Greek.

Translation for Translators     What an immoral woman says to you may be as sweet as honey,

and sound smoother than olive oil feels on your skin,

but the result of being with her will be bitter like gall

and injure you as badly, like being cut with a sharp two-edged sword.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      For the lips of a commoner drop as a honeycomb, with a palate smoother than oil. But the future with her is bitter wormwood, sharp as a the mouth of a sword.

Conservapedia                       The lips of a strange woman are like a honeycomb, her mouth is smoother then oil: But the result is bitter like poison wormwood, as sharp as a double-edged sword.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Though a loose wanton's lips may drop honey, And her mouth may be smoother than oil, Her results are, more bitter than wormwood, More sharp than a double-edged sword !

NIV – UK                                For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey,

and her speech is smoother than oil;

but in the end she is bitter as gall,

sharp as a double-edged sword.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Know that the lips of the adulteress are sweet as honey and her words smoother than oil, but the outcome is bitter as herbs. It is as sharp as a double-edged sword.

The Heritage Bible                 Because, dripping honey oozes from the lips of an adulterous woman, and her taste is smoother than oil; And what follows is a bitter curse, sharp as a sword with mouths.

New American Bible (2011)   Indeed, the lips of the stranger drip honey, [A metaphorical level is established in the opening description of the forbidden woman: her lips drip honey and her feet lead to death. By her lies, she leads people away from the wisdom that gives life.]

and her mouth is smoother than oil [Prv 7:5.];

But in the end she is as bitter as wormwood,

as sharp as a two-edged sword.

New Jerusalem Bible             Take no notice of a loose-living woman,

for the lips of the adulteress drip with honey, her palate is more unctuous than oil,

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Like the Latin and Greek, a portion of v. 2 is included here (which properly belongs with vv. 3–4).

New RSV                               For the lips of a loose [Heb, strange] woman drip honey,

and her speech is smoother than oil;

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

sharp as a two-edged sword.

Revised English Bible            For though the lips of an adulteress drip honey and her tongue is smoother than oil,

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


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           For the lips of a woman who is a stranger drop honey, her mouth is smoother than oil; but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, sharp as a double-edged sword.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...for the lips of a stranger drip as a honeycomb

and her palate is smoother than ointment:

Pro 5:4 but her finality is bitter as wormwood

sharp as a sword of mouths: ...

Orthodox Jewish Bible           For the sfatayim (lips) of a zarah (strange woman) drip as a honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than shemen (olive oil);

But her end is marah (bitter) as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged cherev.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                For the lips of a loose woman drip honey as a honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil; But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged and devouring sword.

The Expanded Bible              The ·words of another man’s wife [lips of an immoral/Lstrange woman] may ·seem sweet as [Ldrip like] honey;

·they [Lher tongue/palette] may be as smooth as olive oil.

But in the end she ·will bring you sorrow [Lis bitter like wormwood],

·causing you pain [Lsharp] like a two-edged sword.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    For the lips of a strange woman, of a harlot, drop as an honeycomb, with seductive invitations, and her mouth is smoother than oil, in framing flattering and alluring speeches; but her end, her future, the reward which is sure to strike her, is bitter as wormwood, the universal emblem of poisonous bitterness, sharp as a two-edged sword, such is the final result of yielding to her seductions.

NET Bible®                             For the lips [“Lips” is a metonymy of cause, referring to her words. Dripping honey is an implied comparison between the product and her words, which are flattering and smooth (cf. Song 4:11). See M. Dahood, “Honey That Drips. Notes on Proverbs 5:2-3,” Bib 54 (1973): 65-66.] of the adulterous woman drip honey,

and her seductive words are smoother than olive oil,

but in the end [Heb “her end” (so KJV). D. Kidner notes that Proverbs does not allow us to forget that there is an afterward (Proverbs [TOTC], 65).] she is bitter as wormwood,

sharp as a two-edged sword.

Syndein/Thieme                     {Note: The man is at his worst in a romantic situation and easily acts foolishly.}

For distilled honey drips from the lips of a woman {in reversionism - who is a nymphomaniac} and smoother/'more flattering' than oil is the inside of her mouth {we call this French kissing and also means she has a line to stroke the ego of a genius or a dumb person so beware}.

But 'the latter end of her'/'entanglement with her' becomes bitter like wormwood . . . {end of her life is bitter - or entanglement with her is bitter} sharp as a two-edged sword. {Note: Wormwood was used to distill the hardest liqueur made of the day - absinthe - it is so strong that it can drive you insane.}.

The Voice                               You see, the lips of a seductive woman speak honey-sweet words;

they are smooth like oil and enticing.

But in the end, she is bitter,

turning the stomach and rotting the soul;

she cuts as deep as a double-edged sword.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    For the lips of a strange woman drop as the honeycomb, And the words of her palate are slicker than oil." Yet the aftereffect from her is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword."

Emphasized Bible                  For, with sweet droppings, drip the lips of her that is a stranger, and, smoother than oil, is her mouth; But, the latter end of her, is bitter as wormwood, sharp, as a two-edged sword!

English Standard V. – UK       For the lips of a forbidden [Hebrew strange; also verse 20] woman drip honey,

and her speech [Hebrew palate] is smoother than oil,

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

sharp as a two-edged sword.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           For the lips of a harlot are a dropping honeycomb, and her throat is softer than oil. But at the last she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two edged sword.

NASB                                     For the lips of an adulteress [Lit strange woman] drip honey

And smoother than oil is her speech [Lit palate];

But in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

Sharp as a two-edged sword.

New King James Version       For the lips of an immoral woman drip honey,

And her mouth is smoother than oil;

But in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

Sharp as a two-edged sword.

Stuart Wolf                             For the lips of the strange woman drip honey, and her palate is smoother than oil.

But after her it is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a sword mouths/edges.

A Voice in the Wilderness      For the lips of a strange woman drip honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil,

but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a cleaver;...

Webster’s Bible Translation  For the lips of a strange woman drop [as] a honey-comb, and her mouth [is] smoother than oil:

But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

Young's Literal Translation     For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

 

The gist of this verse:          David begins the dissertation of the forbidden (or, foreign) woman, and how she is to be avoided by Solomon.


Proverbs 5:3a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

kîy (כִּי) [pronounced kee]

for, that, because; when, at that time, which, what time

explanatory or temporal conjunction; preposition

Strong's #3588 BDB #471

nôpheth (נֹפֶת) [pronounced NOH-feth]

honey, dripping, flowing honey, dripping honey from the comb; a honeycomb; a dropping down

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #5317 BDB #661

Keil and Delitzsch: נפת denotes the honey flowing of itself from the combs (צוּפים), thus the purest and sweetest.

nâţaph (נָטַף) [pronounced naw-TAHF]

to drop, to fall in drops, to drip

3rd person feminine plural, Qal perfect

Strong’s #5197 BDB #642

Keil and Delitzsch its root-word is not נוּף, which means to shake, vibrate, and only mediately (when the object is a fluid) to scatter, sprinkle, but, as Schultens has observed, as verb נפת = Arab. nafat, to bubble, to spring up, nafath, to blow, to spit out, to pour out. Parchon places the word rightly under נפת (while Kimchi places it under נוּף after the form בּשת), and explained it by חלות דבש היצאים מי הכוורת קודם ריסוק (the words דבש היוצא should have been used): the honey which flows from the cells before they are broken (the so-called virgin honey).

sephâtayim (שְׂפָתַיִם) [pronounced sefaw-tah-YIHM]

[two] lips; words; speech

feminine dual construct

Strong’s #8193 BDB #973

BDB says this is a feminine plural; not certain if this is the dual or the plural.

zûwr (זוּר) [pronounced zoor]

a stranger, an alien; an enemy; of another family; a strange woman, an adulteress; strange children [bastards]; unlawful; another; new, unheard of; unauthorized person

feminine singular, Qal active participle

Strong's #2114 BDB #266

This word is found in occurs before in Prov. 2:16 5:20 7:5 22:14 23:33.


Translation: The lips of the strange woman drips honey;... Strange woman is the feminine singular, Qal active participle of zûwr (זוּר) [pronounced zoor], which can mean a stranger, an alien; an enemy; of another family; a strange woman, an adulteress; strange children [bastards]; unlawful; another; new, unheard of; unauthorized person. Strong's #2114 BDB #266. This is not simply a foreign woman—Ruth, for instance, even though she is a Moabite, does not fall into this category of women (Ruth, in fact, is in the line of David and, therefore, in the line of Jesus). In Prov. 5:3, this woman is a stranger to the God of Israel; she is an alien to the fear of God.

 

J. Vernon McGee: In the previous chapter the warning was against the evil man. In this chapter the warning is against the "strange woman," literally, the stranger woman, because the woman was a stranger, one who came from outside Israel. She was generally a Gentile, and she was a prostitute.


 If no one does a case-study on this woman, then I should do that in Prov. 9 or earlier.


This woman can be a temptress to Solomon as an unmarried man; and she can be an adulteress, tempting him as a married man. Most of the commentary comes from Robert Dean.

Commentators on This Strange Woman

Commentator

Commentary

Kukis

The idea of a strange woman here is not necessarily foreign (although that can be the case); but a woman who does not know the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Or, a woman who does not obey the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Adam Clarke

Clarke suggests, simply, that this is a woman who is not Solomon’s own woman. This could certainly be the case as well. A woman who is fine with adultery or sex outside of marriage would suggest, in context, that this is a woman without the fear of God.

Robert Dean

[T]he Hebrew...word [is] zar, which indicates a stranger. It is the word used in literal historical narrative top describe a foreigner. But it is used metaphorically in wisdom literature in poetry to describe the adulteress who is foreign to the man's life. She is not married to him, there is not a covenantal unification in marriage.

Dean (continued)

She is described as one who sets a trap. Proverbs 9:16 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] NASB "Whoever is naive, let him turn in here …" So the young man who is susceptible to adultery is viewed as one who is simple. This is someone who is open to any influence, any moral idea, and has no convictions of his own whatsoever and can be turned in any direction and influenced by anyone.

Dean (continued)

The adulteress is viewed and described as a sexual predator in Proverbs 22:14 NASB "The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit; He who is cursed of the LORD will fall into it." This is a picture of laying a trap for a wild animal. She is also described in 23:27 as a "deep pit" and a "narrow well," a place of danger where you could fall in and lose your life. In 23:28 she lies in wait for the victim and increases the unfaithful among men. She is pictured here as a predator who is seeking to destroy others with her sexual activity.

Dean (continued)

Then the enticement, the way the adulteress woman baits the trap, is described in several passages. Proverbs 7:14–16, 18 "I was due to offer peace offerings [some value]; Today I have paid my vows [I'm a good woman; I'm right with God]." She tries to camouflage herself as someone who is moral an upright. "Therefore I have come out to meet you, To seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you." She appeals to his vanity. She is looking specifically for this one when in fact any male would do who could pay here for her services. She then shows how she has made everything in her life attractive to the purpose of setting the trap. "I have spread my couch with coverings With colored linens of Egypt. Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us delight ourselves with caresses." Let's just be completely irresponsible and no pay attention to what is right or what is wrong. Let us just live for the moment and give in to all of our sexual desires. Proverbs 7:19–20 "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." There is no accountability: Let's just do whatever we want to do. Proverbs 7:21 "With her many persuasions she entices him; With her flattering lips she seduces him." (NASB) The point and the correction of this is to not even listen. For the male it is to leave, to completely avoid any and every circumstance where temptation could possibly be offered. This involves every area from pornography to actually putting one's self in an position where he could be tempted or seduced by a woman.

Dean (continued)

One aspect of the temptation: Forbidden fruit, something we are not supposed to have seems to have a greater attractiveness. Proverbs 9:17 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] NASB "Stolen water is sweet; And bread {eaten} in secret is pleasant." The problem is that it always results in eventual catastrophe.

Dean (continued)

Scripture is very clear on adultery, prohibiting any sexual activity outside of marriage. Proverbs 5:6 She does not ponder the path of life; Her ways are unstable, she does not know {it.} There is so much camouflage that is going on here, so much that she is not telling. All she really wants is money and to take your life. She is not concerned with you in terms of any kind of relationship, in terms of actually being attracted to you. There is much that you don't know; you are just walking into a trap.

Dean (continued)

Proverbs 5:7–8 Now then, {my} sons, listen to me And do not depart from the words of my mouth. Here he moves from "my son" to "my children." He has more than one son and so he is viewing these sons as they come along and each one grow to maturity. Keep your way far from her And do not go near the door of her house. Don't ever think of putting yourself in a position where something could happen. Proverbs 7:5 That they may keep you from an adulteress, From the foreigner [seductress] who flatters with her words. Proverbs 31:3 reinforces this by saying: Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings. Then this idea is reinforced in the New Testament in 1Corinthians 6:18 Flee immorality. Every {other} sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. (All NASB) There is something distinctive about the unintended consequences to our souls and to ourselves when we get involved in sexual immorality.

Keil and Delitzsch

זרה denotes the wife who belongs to another, or who does not belong to him to whom she gives herself or who goes after her (see Prov. 2:16–17 So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God). She appears here as the betrayer of youth.

The Pulpit Commentary

She is extranea, a stranger with respect to the youth whom she would beguile, either as being of foreign extraction, or as being the wife of another man, in which capacity she is so represented in Prov.7:19–20 (“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."—ESV). In this sense she would be an adulteress.

Briefly, this woman may be described as the wrong woman.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Peter Pett suggests that there must have been an epidemic of wild women, given all of the references to avoiding such women found in Proverbs (Proverbs 2:16-19 5:3-14 6:24-26 7:5-27 9:13-18). I believe that David found, instead, the women were more than willing to pursue him, to flatter him, and to ignore whatever current relationships that he had, because he was king. He knew that Solomon, in specific, would face the exact same temptations.

 

Pett: they had to find something to do with their idle time, and what more attractive than the enticements of alluring women? 


It is quite fascinating that much of the book of Proverbs is given over to the seductions of the wrong woman. This was both a problem for David and especially for his son Solomon. Men with power, looks, fame and/or money face such temptations. Women are attracted to confidence and authority; no matter how liberated a woman thinks that she is, she wants to look up to a man. And some women know how to use their looks and their seductive powers to reel in the man that she wants (I am not dismissing the man’s responsibility here). David and Solomon were both very attractive men, the most powerful men in Israel. David was a war hero, admired even when he was young; and Solomon was a man of multiple talents, but a man with great wisdom that was known far and wide. There was little or no stigma attached to a man of power marrying two or more women, and both David and Solomon did this. David, at the end of his life, confined himself to one woman—Bathsheba. Solomon was never able to settle upon one woman, the Song of Solomon revealing his unquelled lust. Solomon died, never knowing the true and fulfilling relationship that can be had with one woman. However, much of the book of Proverbs stands as a testimony to God’s plan for one man to hook up with one woman, and the great benefits to both in such a relationship—spiritual, intellectual, emotional and physical. There is no great friendship and companionship than that between the right man and his right woman. This is simply how God designed men and women.


The lips of the strange woman drips honey;... This woman dripping honey means that, she is saying nice things about you. Now, what could be better than to hear a beautiful woman sing your praises? How many men have heard this and thought, “Hey, I like me too. This is one very perceptive woman.” The honey, of course, are those things which are sweet to our ears. What is sweet to my ears? A woman telling me all the things I already know about myself. “You are so handsome, and intelligent, and insightful, and funny. I love every minute that I spend with you.” I hear that and I just have to agree with her. What a perceptive and insightful woman!

 

Robert Dean: The imagery here of dripping honey is something that is sweet, something attractive, something that tantalizes us, something that we desire; it promotes a temptation.


We men, when we hear that honey drip from a woman’s lips, we often tend to believe it.

 

Gill writes: her fair speeches, enticing words, and flattering fawning language, and amorous expressions, easily find their way and slide into the hearts of men, to prevail upon them to listen to her, and yield to her temptations.


We find such enticing words throughout Proverbs. So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God. (Prov. 2:16–17; ESV) For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life, to preserve you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes. (Prov. 6:23–25; ESV) With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast. (Prov. 7:21–22; ESV) We men are weak; and King David is telling his son to be strong, and to resist the temptation.

 

Ironside: Throughout this collection of Proverbs, the strange woman is looked on as an intruder from the outside. She is not seen as a daughter of Israel who has strayed from the path of virtue...The temptresses entered from the surrounding countries to seduce the young men of the separated nation. Therefore the strange woman was not strange in the sense of peculiar; she was a stranger who plied her tawdry arts to deceive those who should be holy to the Lord.


Proverbs 5:3b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

châlâq (חָלָק) [pronounced kaw-LAWK]

smooth; flattering; bland; slippery; deceitful

masculine singular adjective

Strong’s #2509 & #2510 BDB #325

min (מִן) [pronounced min]

from, off, out from, of, out of, away from, on account of, since, than, more than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

shemen (שֶמֶן) [pronounced SHEH-men]

fat, oil

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #8081 BDB #1032

chêke (חֵ) [pronounced khayke]

age, ornament, embellishments [of a horse]; palate or interior of one’s mouth; mouth

masculine singular noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #2441 BDB #335

The NET Bible: Heb “her palate.” The word חֵךְ (khekh, “palate; roof of the mouth; gums”) is a metonymy of cause (= organ of speech) for what is said (= her seductive speech). The present translation clarifies this metonymy with the phrase “her seductive words.” 


Translation: ...her mouth is smoother than oil;... Then David speaks about the interior of this woman’s mouth; that it is as smooth as oil. I think that we have gone beyond insightful observations to French kissing at this point. This appears to be a logical progression, in fact.


A woman who knows how to flatter and turn the head of a man; and a woman who is adept at French kissing—this also suggests that we are speaking of a very experienced woman here. Now, that can vary from culture to culture. In one culture, this might refer simply to a woman who is not a virgin. In the United States, this might refer to a woman who has been with 5 or more men.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: As honey is sweet and attractive to the taste, so in a higher degree are her words pleasant to the senses. Her mouth is smoother than oil; i.e. her words are most plausible and persuasive.


Proverbs 5:4a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾachărîyth (אַחֲרִית) [pronounced ahkh-ar-EETH]

after part, end; end, issue, event; latter time (prophetic for future time); posterity; last, hindermost

feminine singular adjective (or substantive) with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #319 BDB #31

mar (מַר) [pronounced mahr]

bitter, bitterness; sad, sorrowful; fierce, vehement, powerful, raging

adjective/ substantive; masculine singular construct

Strong’s #4751 BDB #600

The NET Bible: The verb “to be bitter” (מָרַר, marar) describes things that are harmful and destructive for life, such as the death of the members of the family of Naomi (Ruth 1:20) or finding water that was undrinkable (Exod 15:22-27). The word indicates that the sweet talking will turn out badly.

kaph or ke (כְּ) [pronounced ke]

like, as, just as; according to, after; about, approximately

preposition of comparison, resemblance or approximation

No Strong’s # BDB #453

laʿănâh (לַעֲנָה) [pronounced lah-gun-AW]

wormwood; bitterness; accursed

feminine singular noun

Strong’s #3939 BDB #542

The NET Bible: The Hebrew term translated “wormwood” refers to the aromatic plant that contrasts with the sweetness of honey. Some follow the LXX and translate it as “gall” (cf. NIV). The point is that there was sweetness when the tryst had alluring glamour, but afterward it had an ugly ring (W. G. Plaut, Proverbs, 74).


Translation: ...but her end [is] bitter like wormwood;... However, the end result of such a relationship is bitter; it is like wormwood. It is something that you have bitten into and you wish that you hadn’t.

 

Barnes: In Eastern medicine this herb, the absinthium of Greek and Latin botanists, was looked upon as poisonous rather than medicinal. Barnes then references Rev. 8:10–11 The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter. (ESV) So this is more than just bitterness; this is also a poison that destroys.

 

Jim Rickard: “Bitter” is the Adjective MAR, מַר, although it refers to a type of taste, it is used to denote the opposite of something. The opposite of the sweet honey lips of the adulterous is the bitter and rotten lips, of sin, evil and human good. She appears to be one thing, but in reality she is something else, the complete opposite. And in the end, you will discover her true nature.

 

Jim Rickard: Wormwood is a species of plant that is related to our Western sage bush. Its leaves and tops provide a bitter tasting oil used for flavoring certain liquors, (the APSINTHE of France is distilled from a species of this plant), and it is even used as a tea by Bedouins. The herb is also used medicinally to treat worms, hence its name “wormwood.”...Wormwood comes from an unused root supposed to mean “curse” or that which is regarded as poisonous, and therefore comes to mean “accursed.” It is always used in a figurative, metaphorical sense.

 

Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Let us depict...in all its hideous literalness the sinful life, and leave it to work its own impressions, and to act as a warning to those who are entering on the seductive but dangerous ways.


Pastor Rickard has done some studying on wormwood.

Jim Rickard on Wormwood

Not only does it describe the character of an adulteress as bitter (of wormwood) in our verse, but it is also used of:

1.      A rebellious or bitter root spirit in persons, Deut 29:18, that appropriately results in judgments of bitterness (of wormwood), i.e., the judgments of God, Jer 9:15; 23:15; Lam 3:15, 19.

2.      To describe the opposite of justice and righteousness which should be sweet experiences, Amos 5:7; 6:12, therefore it is an emblem of calamity and injustice.

3.      In the symbolical language of the Apocalypse, Rev 8:10-11, a star is represented as falling on the waters of the earth, causing the third part of the water to turn to wormwood. Rev 8:11, “The name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.”

4.      This reminds us of the tainted water of the Israelites as they began their journey in the wilderness for 40 years, Ex 15:22-25, yet our Lord had compassion on them. Ex 15:22-25, “Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter; therefore it was named Marah. So the people grumbled at Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” Then he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree; and he threw it into the waters, and the waters became sweet.”

5.      In James 3:5-12 we see the dangers of the tongue described as bitter. James 3:11, “Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?”

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 23, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


The imagery, up to this point, is honey and oil, things which taste good in the mouth—but then, there is that taste of bitter wormwood, negating the wonderful tastes which had gone before.


The idea is, the relationship begins in one place, with sweet honey and smooth oil; but the end is wormwood.

 

Keil and Delitzsch: Prov. 5:4 [is] the reverse of the sweet and smooth external is placed opposite to the attraction of the seducer, by whose influence the inconsiderate permits himself to be carried away: her end, i.e., the last that is experienced of her, the final consequence of intercourse with her (compare Prov. 23:32 In the end it bites like a serpent and stings like an adder.), is bitter as wormwood.

 

Matthew Henry: Consider how false the charms are. The adulteress flatters and speaks fair, her words are honey and oil, but she will deceive those that listen to her.


Believers have a confused notion of what they ought to be doing. Some people think that loving the brethren means you isolate various church members and tell them that you love them or say 5 nice things about them. The latter is very likely sin, depending upon your motivation.

The Doctrine of Flattery

1.      Flattery is generally an insincere opinion offered up with the intention of manipulating another person. It may represent something that you believe to be true or not. It is often an exaggeration of what is true. Flattery is defined as excessive or insincere praise.1

         1)      Our passage is all about this woman who has a particular objective (to get Absalom returned to Jerusalem; and to keep herself from being punished for coming to court with a false case). 2Sam. 14:17, 19–20

         2)      Flattery will be one of the cornerstones of Absalom’s rebellion against David. 2Sam. 15:2–6

         3)      Jude speaks of the ungodly in this way: These are grumblers, complainers, going [fig., living] according to their lusts, and their mouth speaks swollen [fig., pompous] [words], admiring faces [fig., flattering people] for the sake of [gaining] an advantage (Jude 16; Analytical-Literal Version). They compliment others with the intention of gaining an advantage over them.

         4)      Rom. 16:18 For such do not serve as a slave to our Lord Jesus Christ, _but_ their own belly [fig., bodily desires] [or, personal desires], and through smooth talk and flattery, they deceive the hearts of the innocent [or, unsuspecting] (ALV).

         5)      Therefore, the sin of flattery is very much tied to motivation.

2.      Flattery is not encouragement; and flattery is not the same as a sincere compliment.

         1)      It is okay to encourages your children, students, employees, co-workers, etc.; but it should be done as an honest appraisal, rather than flattering words used to affect their behavior for good.

         2)      Paul expressed sincere appreciation for several people in his life. 2Cor. 7:13 2Tim. 1:16

3.      Flattery in the Bible is a verbal sin:

         1)      Everyone speaks lies [or, emptiness] to his neighbor [or, associate]; they speak with a double heart [and] flattering lips. May Yehowah remove all flattering lips, [and] tongues which boast great things, [and cut off those] who have said, “We will prevail because of our speech [lit., tongue]; our lips [are] our own; who is our lord?” (Psalm 12:2–4).

         2)      King David says this of his enemies: Nothing in their mouths is truthful. Destruction comes from their hearts. Their throats are open graves. They flatter with their tongues (Psalm 5:9; .

4.      Flattery is often used to entrap another person (not literally, but to use flattery in order to manipulate that person). A man who flatters his neighbor spreads a net for his feet (Psalm 29:5). See also Psalm 55:21

5.      Flattery, like any other sin, should be named to God in order to restore onself to fellowship. 1John 1:9

6.      Paul never used flattering words in order to teach Bible doctrine or to influence his hearers. 1Thess. 2:5

7.      Some people actually flatter themselves. Psalm 36:2

8.      During periods of time that Israel was in rebellion against God, they desired that the prophets not tell them the truth, but tell them flattering things. 1Kings 22:13 Isa. 30:10

9.      Honesty is more important than flattery. Our entire school system is built around flattery, where we attempt to convince our students that they are the greatest kids in the world (the self-esteem movement). Prov. 28:23

10.    Men are often easily manipulated with flattery, something which most women seem to know. When they tells us good things about ourselves—things which we believe to be true—we cannot help but pay attention to a woman who is so perceptive. She seduces him with her persistent pleading; she lures with her flattering talk (Prov. 7:21). See also Prov. 5:3–4

11.    The cure for such men is discernment that comes from Bible doctrine in the soul. Prov. 2:16 7:5

12.    Like all other sins, flattery is to be avoided.

13.    We are to avoid others who flatter regularly. Prov. 20:19

Jim Rickard has a much better and more detailed Doctrine of Flattery.

1 From http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Flattery accessed July 7, 2012.

This same source had a few quotations about flattery, which you might find insightful and/or amusing:

As a wolf is like a dog, so is a flatterer like a friend -Thomas Fuller

Compliments are like perfume, to be inhaled, not swallowed -Charles Clark Munn

Flattered me like a dog -William Shakespeare

Flattery is like a cigarette; it is all right if you don't inhale -Adlai Stevenson

Flattery is like champagne, it soon gets into the head -William Brown

Flattery is like cologne water, to be smelt of, not swallowed -Josh Billings Paraphrased from Billings'

Flattery is like wine, which exhilarates a man for a moment, but usually ends up going to his head and making him act foolish -Helen Rowland

An overdose of praise is like ten lumps of sugar in coffee; only a very few people can swallow it -Emily Post

Praise, like gold and diamonds, owes its value only to its scarcity -Samuel Johnson

Some of these verses were suggested by:

http://www.bible-topics.com/Flattery.html accessed July 7, 2012.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Warnings about such a woman are found throughout Scripture (but mostly in Proverbs): Prov. 6:24–35 7:22–23 9:18 23:27–28 Eccles. 7:26. Quite obviously, these are passages which we will study in the near future.

 

Jim Richard then pulls it all together: The naïve does not know that this honey is really gall, and that these flattering words will turn deadly. Just as the spiritually immature believer cannot discern the truth from the lie of the false doctrine and false teacher, it sounds good, but in the end it will lead to a ruined spiritual life.


True sweetness of words is described in Psalm 119:103–104 How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through Your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. (ESV; capitalized)


Proverbs 5:4b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

chad (חַד) [pronounced khahd]

sharp

feminine singular adjective

Strong’s #2299 BDB #292

kaph or ke (כְּ) [pronounced ke]

like, as, just as; according to, after; about, approximately

preposition of comparison, resemblance or approximation

No Strong’s # BDB #453

chereb (חֶרֶב) [pronounced khe-REBV]

sword, knife, dagger; any sharp tool

feminine singular construct

Strong’s #2719 BDB #352

piyyôwth (פִּיּוֹת) [pronounced pee-YOHTH]

2 [or more] edges; mouths [of man, animal; as an organ of speech]; openings, orifices [of a river, well, etc.]

masculine plural noun

Strong’s #6310 BDB #804

The NET Bible: The Hebrew has “like a sword of [two] mouths,” meaning a double-edged sword that devours/cuts either way. There is no movement without damage. There may be a wordplay here with this description of the “sword with two mouths,” and the subject of the passage being the words of her mouth which also have two sides to them. The irony is cut by the idiom.


proverbs052.gif

Translation: ...[and her end] is sharp as a two-edged sword. I have continued with her end as being the subject, and her end is as sharp and as cutting as a two-edged sword. You think that everything is okay, and suddenly, you are being cut this way and that.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: Sharp as a two-edged sword; literally, “as a sword of edges”..., which may mean a sword of extreme sharpness. Her end is as sharp as the sharpest sword...The meaning is, the last of her is poignancy of remorse, anguish of heart, and death. In these she involves her victims.

 

Joe Guglielmo: Yes, [sexual sins] look so good, temptation may feel so right, but in the end it is a poison that will destroy you and like a sword it will cut you to pieces and fragment your life. If you don’t believe it, look at what divorce has done in this country - destroyed and fragmented lives. And if you travel down these paths, committing sexual sin, there is a good chance that your life will be cut short.


Proverbs 5:3–4 (a graphic); from pinimg.com; accessed September 2, 2015.


Vv. 3–4: The lips of the strange woman drips honey; her mouth is smoother than oil; but her end [is] bitter like wormwood; [and her end] is sharp as a two-edged sword. Peter Pett says something brilliant here, which I did not find another commentator suggest: [this] constant depiction of the strange woman may be in deliberate contrast to woman Wisdom, (this contrast is brought out in Proverbs 9:1-6 compared with Proverbs 9:13-18). The idea then being to stress that men should look to wisdom rather than to the enticement of strange women whose words lead astray. In the world, there are many such allurements. For Solomon and David, it would be women; women would continually throw themselves at these two men; they would use all their feminine charms to entrap them. But sexual lust is not the only sort of lust that man faces. There is money lust, power lust, approbation lust. All of these various lusts tempt man; they all have a mouth of honey; they all seem as if true happiness is found in what they are offering. They use various forms of flattery to entice mankind: you deserve this, you worked for it; you are better than him, you deserve more; you are much smarter than he is—you should be running things. There is the wisdom of God and there is the wisdom and temptation of the world. Even though David focuses on one of the most common temptations known to man (women); women are not the only temptations which can lead us astray in life.


NASB is used below, unless otherwise specified. The general principle is found in 1John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. Also in Col. 3:5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. (ESV) Rom. 8:6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. (ESV) See also Gal. 6:8 James 4:1–3 1Peter 2:11.

Lusts of the Soul

1.      Every person deals with his own lust pattern. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. (James 1:14–15; ESV)

2.      Lust occurs in the soul. And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mark 7:20–23; ESV)

3.      A list of lusts:

         1)      Monetary Lust (1 Timothy 6:10)

         2)      Sexual Lust (Matthew 5:28)

         3)      Power Lust (Isaiah 14:13-14)

         4)      Approbation Lust (Matthew 23:5)

         5)      Social Lust (Matthew 23:6-7)

         6)      Pleasure Lust (James 4:3)

         7)      Chemical Lust (drugs and alcohol) (Galatians 5:20; 1 Peter 4:3-4)

         8)      Inordinate Ambition (James 4:2)

         9)      Crusader Lust (2 Corinthians 11:20)

         10)    Lust for Revenge (Genesis 34:25-29)

         11)    Criminal Lust (Matthew 21:13)

         12)    Eating Binge Lust (Gluttony) (1 Samuel 2:12-16)

         13)    This list is from Bible News; which goes into more detail on some of these lusts.

4.      Sexual lust. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her capture you with her eyelids. For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life. Can a man take fire in his bosom And his clothes not be burned? read more. Or can a man walk on hot coals And his feet not be scorched? So is the one who goes in to his neighbor's wife; Whoever touches her will not go unpunished. (Prov. 6:25–29) “I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matt. 5:28) See also 1Cor. 6:18 2Thess. 4:3–5 2Peter 2:14-18

5.      Perverted sexual lusts. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. read more.Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. (Rom. 1:21–27) See also Lev. 18:22 1Tim. 1:10.

6.      Equality lust. The woman wanted to be as wise as God. When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. (Gen. 3:6) This might be filed under power lust as well.

7.      Pleasure lust. For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries. (1Peter 4:3) See also 1Tim. 3:3.

8.      Power lust.

9.      Approbation lust.

10.    Ambition lust. James 3:16. This does not mean that we reject all ambition in life and it does not mean that we are forbidden from getting ahead in life. This is more a matter of focus and inordinate desire which makes this a sin. It is legitimate and admirable to work hard in your profession and to be the best at whatever you do.

11.    Money lust. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. (1Tim. 6:9–10)

12.    Materialism lust. Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways. (Psalm 119:37; ESV)

13.    The key to lust is the discipline of the soul, brought on by the filling of the Holy Spirit and Bible doctrine in the soul. Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. (Col. 3:5) I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. (1Cor. 9:27) Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. (Gal. 5:24) How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! (Psalm 119:9–10; ESV) See also Eph. 4:22 1Thess. 4:4–5 2Tim. 2:22 Titus 2:12 1Peter 2:11.

14.    When we give in to the lusts of our souls, it is then that we immediately rebound—we name these sins to God. 1John 1:9

15.    John tells us: And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1John 2:17; ESV)

References from http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Lust and http://www.openbible.info/topics/lust; the list of lusts is from Bible News; all accessed August 29, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

Ray Pritchard: [The writer of Proverbs] explains to the young men of his day how women with bad motives will come and lead a man away. He says, “For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil.” It is true that most of us men struggle with the question of ego. Most of us for all our bravado on the outside basically are weak on the inside and need somebody to come alongside and scratch us on the head and pat us on the back and kiss us on the cheek and tell us how good we are and how good-looking we are and how wonderful, great, strong and powerful we are. That’s what this woman does. She comes along to this man who is craving affection and attention, and she says, “Oh, you’re so cute. You’re so strong. You’re so muscular. You are the best there is!” She’s got dripping lips. That’s a trap. And she uses her lips to entice you in. But read on to what it says. “In the end she’s bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.” Her lips promise honey, but her feet lead you straight to hell. Solomon warns men to be careful what they listen to, be careful of the women they look at, who they shower their attention on, because out there are women whose lips drip honey, but once they get you near, they stab you with a two-edged sword and lead you on the primrose path down to destruction.


We all give in to a variety of lusts; and my lusts are not your lusts; but the end result is unhappiness and self-induced misery.

 

Listen to the homosexual hedonist writer, Oscar Wilde: The gods have given me almost everything. But I let myself be lured into long spells of senseless and sensual ease. . . . Tired of being on the heights, I deliberately went to the depths in search for new sensation. . . . I grew careless of the lives of others. I took pleasure where it pleased me and passed on. I forgot that every little action of the common day makes or unmakes character, and that therefore what one has done in the secret chamber, one has some day to cry aloud from the house-tops. I ceased to be lord over myself. I was no longer the captain of my soul, and did not know it. I allowed pleasure to dominate me. I ended in horrible disgrace.


——————————


Her feet are going down [to] death;

[to] Sheol her steps hold.

A path of lives lest she make level;

has staggered her [wagon] ruts,

[but] she does not know [it].

Proverbs

5:5–6

Her feet descend [to] death, her steps acquire Sheol; so that she does not make level [her] path of life, [but] is [instead] staggering in the ruts of her actions—[yet] she does not know [it] [or, you do not know (it)].

The feet of this woman descend down to death, and her steps will take you to Sheol. However, although she does not know why, she cannot make her path of life level; she is always stuck in a series of ruts due to her own actions.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Her feet are going down [to] death;

[to] Sheol her steps hold.

A path of lives lest she make level;

has staggered her [wagon] ruts,

[but] she does not know [it].

Latin Vulgate                          Her feet go down into death, and her steps go in as far as hell. They walk not by the path of life, her steps are wandering, and unaccountable.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   And her legs marry to death; her walk causes men to recline in Sheol.

And she treads not in the way of life, for her paths lead them astray and they are unknown.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Her feet cause men to go down to death; her steps take her to Sheol. She does not tread upon the land of the living, her paths are devious, and are unknown.

Septuagint (Greek)                For the feet of folly lead those who deal with her down to the grave with death, and her steps are not established. For she goes not upon the paths of life; but her ways are slippery, and not easily known.

 

Significant differences:           Not certain why there are differences between the Plain English Aramaic and the Peshitta, but the Aramaic has marry rather than go down. The Aramaic appears to add some additional text. The Greek appears to add some additional text as well (however, grave = Sheol).

 

The third phrase is somewhat confusing, so there is a great deal of diversion at that phrase. Although the fourth phrase about ruts is easier to understand, the other ancient translations seem to stray from its meaning overall as well.

 

The final phrase reads either you do not know or she does not know. The Aramaic/Syriac appears to have they do not know. This appears to be the approach of the Latin and Greek as well.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Her feet go down to death, and her steps to the underworld;

She never keeps her mind on the road of life; her ways are uncertain, she has no knowledge.

Easy English                          She will cause your death.

She will lead you to your grave.

She does not think about the way of life.

She does not know that she has wandered from God’s ways.

Easy-to-Read Version            She is on a path leading to death. She will lead you straight to the grave!

Don’t follow her! She has lost the right way and doesn’t know it. Be careful! Follow the way that leads to life!

God’s Word                         Her feet descend to death.

Her steps lead straight to hell.

She doesn’t even think about the path of life.

Her steps wander, and she doesn’t realize it.

Good News Bible (TEV)         She will take you down to the world of the dead; the road she walks is the road to death.

She does not stay on the road to life; but wanders off, and does not realize what is happening.

The Message                         She's dancing down the primrose path to Death; she's headed straight for Hell and taking you with her.

She hasn't a clue about Real Life, about who she is or where she's going.

NIRV                                      Her feet go down to death.

Her steps lead straight to the grave.

She doesn’t give any thought to her way of life.

Her paths have no direction, but she doesn’t realize it.

New Simplified Bible              Her feet go down to death. Her steps take hold of the grave.

She does not ponder the path of life. Her unstable ways she does not know.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead to the grave [Heb Sheol].

She doesn’t stay on the way of life.

Her paths wander, but she doesn’t know it.

Contemporary English V.       If you follow her, she will lead you down to the world of the dead.

She has missed the path that leads to life and doesn't even know it..

The Living Bible                     She leads you down to death and hell. For she does not know the path to life. She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t even realize where it leads.

New Berkeley Version           Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold of hell.

The path of life she does not consider [See Prov. 4:26 for the same verb.];

her paths meander, but she knows it not.

New Century Version             She is on the way to death;

her steps are headed straight to the grave.

She gives little thought to life.

She doesn’t even know that her ways are wrong.

New Life Version                    Her feet go down to death. Her steps take hold of hell. She does not think about the path of life. Her ways go this way and that, and she does not know it.

New Living Translation           Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead straight to the grave [Hebrew to Sheol].

For she cares nothing about the path to life.

She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t realize it.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Foolish are the feet of those turning to her, because they lead to death and the grave… and her tracks aren't easily noticed. Her ways do not lead to life, and the tracks that she makes are slippery and dark.

Beck’s American Translation Her feet go down to death;

her steps go straight to hell.

She doesn’t take into account the path of life;

she doesn’t know where her paths wander.

International Standard V        Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead to Sheol [i.e. the realm of the dead].

You aren’t thinking about [Or She does not consider] where her life is headed;

her steps wander, but you do not realize [Or she does not realize] it.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Death’s road she follows, her feet set towards the grave; far from the highway that leads to life is the maze she treads.

Today’s NIV                          Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.

She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.

Translation for Translators     If you go where she goes [MTY], you will go down to where the dead people are.

Her steps will lead you straight to the grave.

She is not concerned about the roads that lead to a long life.

She walks down a crooked path,

and she does not realize that she is on the wrong road.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Her feet descend to death; her footprints support Sheol.

Ponder her fugitive path of life, otherwise you will not know the tracks.

Conservapedia                       Her feet go down to death, and her steps take hold in hell. If you ponder the path of life, it will move, and you cannot know it.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Her steps only lead down to Death, Her pathways conduct to the Grave. Lest you find out the pathway of life, Her paths are untraceably wound.

HCSB                                     Her feet go down to death; her steps head straight for Sheol.

She doesn't consider the path of life; she doesn't know that her ways are unstable.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  Her feet go down to death, her steps uphold Sheol, lest thou should ponder the path of life, her ways are unstable; thou shalt not know them.

Lexham English Bible            Her feet go down [to] death; her steps take hold [of] Sheol [A term for the place where the dead reside, i.e., the Underworld].

She does not observe [Or "examine, weigh"] the path of life; her ways wander, [and] she does not know [it].

NIV – UK                                Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead straight to the grave.

She gives no thought to the way of life;

her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Her feet go down to the grave and her steps lead to death.

She pays no attention to the path of life and strays without knowing it.

The Heritage Bible                 Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on the world of the dead, Lest you try to level out the well-trod path of life, her ways waver; you cannot know them. The idea is: Lest you think you can level out the well-trod path of life by including her in your life, be advised that her ways waver, constantly changing, so that you cannot know them. You never know what to expect. You cannot level or square the true path of life with her, because she is evil and you cannot make the righteous path equal with her wicked path. Her path leads to hell. You cannot make her path be the path of life. It is impossible.

New American Bible (2002)   Her feet go down to death, to the nether world her steps attain;

Lest you see before you the road to life, her paths will ramble, you know not where.

New American Bible (2011)   Her feet go down to death,

her steps reach Sheol [Prv 2:18; 7:27.];

Her paths ramble, you know not where,

lest you see before you the road to life.

New Jerusalem Bible             Her feet go down to death, Sheol the goal of her steps;

far from following the path of life, her course is uncertain and she does not know it.

Revised English Bible            Her feet tread the downward path towards death, the road she walks leads straight to Sheol.

She does not mark out the path to life; her course twists this way and that, but she is unconcerned.”


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           Her feet go down to death, her steps lead straight to Sh'ol; she doesn't walk the level path of life -her course wanders all over, but she doesn't know it.

exeGeses companion Bible   her feet descend to death;

her paces hold on to sheol:

lest you weigh the path of life

her routes drift so that you know them not.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Her feet go down to Death;

Her steps take hold of Sheol.

She does not chart a path of life;

Her course meanders for lack of knowledge.

Judaica Press Complete T.    Her feet descend to death; her steps come near the grave.

Lest you weigh the path of life, her paths have wandered off and you shall not know.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Her raglayim go down to mavet; her steps lead to Sheol.

Lest thou shouldest compare [hers] to the orach chayyim, her ma’agalot (paths) are crooked, that thou canst not know them.

The Scriptures 1998              Her feet go down to death, Her steps lay hold of the grave.

She does not consider the path of life; Her ways are unstable – you do not know it.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold of Sheol (Hades, the place of the dead).

She loses sight of and walks not in the path of life; her ways wind about aimlessly, and you cannot know them.

The Expanded Bible              ·She is on the way [LHer feet go down] to death;

her steps ·are headed straight [or grab on] to ·the grave [LSheol].

She gives little thought to the path of life.

·She doesn’t even know that her ways are wrong [LHer paths wander and she does not even realize it].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Her feet go down to death, where she leads all those who have yielded to her blandishments; her steps take hold on hell, the course of her life ends in everlasting destruction.

Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, or, "Far from treading the pathway of life," her ways are movable, her steps stray from that which is right and good, that thou canst not know them, rather, she knows not where and does not seem to care, the result being that all who attempt to follow her will be stricken with a dizziness which will prevent them from seeing and considering in a normal manner.

NET Bible®                             Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead straight to the grave [The terms death and grave could be hyperbolic of a ruined life, but probably refer primarily to the mortal consequences of a life of debauchery].

Lest she should make level the path leading to life,

her paths are unstable but she does not know it [The sadder part of the description is that this woman does not know how unstable her life is, or how uneven. However, Thomas suggests that it means, “she is not tranquil.” See D. W. Thomas, “A Note on לא תדע in Proverbs v 6,” JTS 37 (1936): 59.].

Syndein/Thieme                     Her seductive feet {in this day, the women only showed their feet} are going down unto death {referring to the sin unto death}. Her sexy mincing steps embrace/'conjugal relationship with' {Tamar} the grave/Sheol { sh@'owl}. {Note: The women's clothes of the day covered her from head down to the ankles so the feet were seductive objects. Walking was also the transportation of the day. She is collecting so many men that she is headed for the last stage of divine discipline. Little humor here. She is embracing so many men that the last one she embraces with those sexy feet is the grave!}

Perhaps you should consider her manner of LIVES . . . {plural - refers to her sex acts - maybe three or more a day} her manner of LIFE wavers back and forth {she is unfaithful and unstable} . . . You do not understand her! {Note: She is leading many men on and so is leading many 'lives' in the analogy. No man can understand an unfaithful, unstable woman.}.

The Voice                               She leads you down a path that can only end in death;

her steps lead eventually to the grave.

She does not travel the road to life and truth.

She follows a wandering path—

a rocky, pit-filled road that twists and turns—and she doesn’t even know it.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Her feet are descending to death; To the unseen her steps hold firm.

Lest you should ponder the path of life, Her routes rove about, yet you know not where."

Context Group Version          Her feet go down to death; Her steps take hold on the place of death { or grave, Heb. "Sheol" };

If she does not find the level path of life: Her ways are unstable, [ and ] she will not know.

English Standard V. – UK       Her feet go down to death;

her steps follow the path to [Hebrew lay hold of] Sheol;

she does not ponder the path of life;

her ways wander, and she does not know it.

Evidence Bible                       Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

Lest you should ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that you can not know them.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Her feet go down unto death, and her steps pierce through unto hell. She regards not the path of life, so unsteadfast are her ways, that you can not know them.

NASB                                     Her feet go down to death,

Her steps take hold of Sheol.

She does not ponder [Lit That she not watch] the path of life;

Her ways are unstable, she does not know it.

New European Version          Her feet go down to death, her steps lead straight to Sheol. She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

New King James Version       Her feet go down to death,

Her steps lay hold of hell [Or Sheol].

Lest you ponder her path of life—

Her ways are unstable;

You do not know them.

Stuart Wolf                             Her feet, descending to death, to Sheol her steps lay hold/grasp.

She does not ponder the path of lives; her tracks wander, she does not know it.

Webster’s Bible Translation  Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

Lest thou shouldst ponder the path of life, her ways are movable, [that] thou canst not know [them].

Young’s Updated LT             Her feet are going down to death, Sheol do her steps take hold of. The path of life—lest you ponder, Moved have her paths—you know not.

 

The gist of this verse:          The steps of the foreign woman lead to hell. She is unstable.


Proverbs 5:5a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

regâlîym (רְגָלִים) [pronounced reh-gaw-LEEM]

feet; metaphorically steps, beats [of the feet], times

feminine plural noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #7272 BDB #919

yârad (יָרַד) [pronounced yaw-RAHD]

those descending, ones going down, those coming down, descending ones

feminine plural, Qal participle

Strong’s #3381 BDB #432

mâveth (מָוֶת) [pronounced MAW-veth]

death, death [as opposed to life], death by violence, a state of death, a place of death

masculine singular noun; pausal form

Strong’s #4194 BDB #560


Translation: Her feet descend [to] death,... This strange woman is who is being spoken of, the woman of v. 3, who will find Solomon and flatter him. However, if he follows her, he needs to know that her feet descend down to death. This is a way of indicating that she is an unbeliever; or a believer in reversionism. David is telling Solomon of the natural end of this woman...and that he may follow her there.


For the unbeliever in Israel, they can be led to a Christ-less grave; and, for the believer, they can be led down to the sin unto death.

 

Clarke: She first, like a serpent, infuses her poison, by which the whole constitution of her paramour is infected, which soon or late brings on death.


Death is not always viewed in a negative sense. With Abraham or any other renown Old Testament saint, death is seen as the natural end of a blessed life. It is not to be feared or run from. However, when God cuts a life short with death, that is clearly another matter. Either that person has been put under the sin unto death or his life has been cut short—neither of which is seen as a blessing from God.


All people face death in one form or another throughout their lives.

Jim Rickard on Death

Death as a reminder:

1.      Death is a reminder that time is short compared to eternity, James 4:14. We have a short time here on earth to grow spiritually, to glorify God, and reach capacity for life, blessing and God’s perfect happiness. And we never know when it is going to occur.

2.      Death is a reminder of the futility of cosmic glory and wealth, fame and profit, Mark 8:36 37.

3.      Death is a reminder to be prepared for eternity, Heb 9:27.

4.      Death is a reminder of the certainty of judgment for the unbeliever, John 3:18, 36.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 23, 2015.

Chapter Outline

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Proverbs 5:5b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

Sheʾôl (שְאוֹל) [pronounced Sheol]

Hades, hell; underworld, grave; [properly] a hollowed out place; transliterated Sheol;

proper singular feminine noun

Strong’s #7585 BDB #982

Sheol is the underworld, for the unseen world of souls which have passed away and it is a reference to the underworld for both believers and unbelievers

The NET Bible: The term שְאוֹל (she’ol, “grave”) is paralleled to “death,” so it does not refer here to the realm of the unblessed.

tseʿâdîym (צְעָדִים) [pronounced tseh-ģawd-EEM]

steps, paces; figuratively for the course of life

masculine plural noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #6806 BDB #857

I am not completely sure of the plural spelling.

tâmake (תָּמַ) [pronounced taw-MAHK]

to take hold of, to grasp; to obtain, to acquire; to hold fast; to hold up, to support; to take hold of [one another], to hold together, to adhere

3rd person feminine singular, Qal perfect

Strong’s #8551 BDB #1069


proverbs053.gif

Translation: ...her steps acquire Sheol;... Her very steps take her to Sheol, the grave. She takes a hold of the grave by her actions; she acquires Sheol from her actions.

 

Jim Rickard: The noun SHEOL, שְאוֹל, (KJV – Hell), is transliterated directly into English. It means, “The world of the dead, Sheol, the grave, death, the depths, etc.” The word describes the underworld but usually in the sense of the grave and is most often translated as grave. SHEOL, also called HADES in the Greek, is a place located below the earth’s surface. All OT people would descend to Sheol when they died, Gen 37:35; Job 7:9; Ezek 31:15, 17; 32:27.


Proverbs 5:3–5 (a graphic); from courageous Christian Father.com; accessed September 2, 2015.


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Here are a few points on the Doctrine of Sheol.

The Abbreviated Doctrine of Sheol

1.      There are two compartments to Sheol; at Abraham’s side and in torments.1 This is where all the believers from the Old Testament and all unbelievers can be found.

2.      Hades is the Greek word for Sheol and it refers to this temporary holding cell. According to the story of Lazarus and the rich man, Lazarus was comforted in Hades and the rich man was in misery.

3.      Now, we are certain of the two compartments of Hades. It appears that there is a third compartment, the Abyss, where certain fallen angels are kept. This is also known as Tartarus.

4.      There is never any suggestion to the idea that the body and soul just burn up into nothingness or that any sort of soul sleep occurs (our soul, by the way, never sleeps). When Scripture is specific, we have phrases like where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:48) and Isa 66:24: "As they leave, they will see the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their maggots will never die, their fire will never go out, and they will be a horror to all mankind." Recall in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man spoke of being in agony (Luke 16:23–24, 28). See also Rev. 19:20. The devil, the beast and the false prophet are tormented each and every day forever and ever in the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:10).2 Furthermore, recall that we have Hades, which is a holding place for all of the departed souls until the great judgment, both believers and unbelievers. The story of Lazarus and the rich man indicates that the rich man was in great suffering; bear in mind that this suffering continues until the final judgment, when death and Hades are thrown into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:14).

5.      Believers since the beginning of the Church Age can be found face to face with Jesus Christ in an interim body.3 Although it is not completely clear to me where that is, from a physical standpoint; we will be bodily resurrected from there. It is not clear to me where we are at death, apart from being face to face with the Lord. And, to Paul, who was there, and came back to tell us about it, it was not clear to him whether he was even in his body or not.

6.      Jesus Christ associates the final judgment with Gehenna fire, or hell fire, if you will.

7.      The final judgment occurs at the end of the Millennium, after Satan is released for a short time.

8.      The final judgment is the Lake of Fire, and we do not know exactly how this differs from Hades in terms of a personal misery. However, Satan will be loosed from Hades for a time after the Millennium and then he will be thrown into the Lake of Fire, along with the beast and the false prophet and anyone else whose name is not found written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

The Complete Doctrine of Sheol (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

1  By the way, the word torments is only found in Matt. 4:24 Luke 16:23, 28. The Matthew passage s related to a person with a disease or affliction.

2  Although I have quoted all of these passages already, this is one sticking point for some apostate organizations; therefore, these passages bear repetition.

3  To be honest, I have not personally studied this interim body situation. I am basing this on the ministries of R.B. Thieme Jr. and III. Recall that in 2Cor. 12:2, Paul was caught up into the 3rd heaven, and was unsure whether he was in his body or not while there.

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V. 5: The feet of this woman descend down to death, and her steps will take you to Sheol. Her steps, her course of life, lead to death.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: She leads her victims to ruin. She hastens to death and the grove, and so do all those who listen to her. In all instances where the teacher speaks of the harlot at length he gives the same description of her...An intensifying of the language is observable in the second hemistich. The descending progress to death becomes the laying hold of the grave, the underworld, as if nothing could turn her steps aside. And it is not only death, as the cessation of life, but death as a punishment, that is implied, just as the grave has in it the idea of corruption.

 

Clarke: First, the death of the body; and then the damnation of the soul.


Proverbs 5:6a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

ʾôrach (אֹרַח) [pronounced OH-rahkh]

a [well-trodden] road; way, path; metonyms: traveler; traveling company, caravan; metaphorically: a course [way] of living [or action]; mode, manner, way; a path of life

masculine singular construct

Strong’s #734 BDB #73

chayyîym (חַיִּים) [pronounced khay-YEEM]

life, lives; a life of long duration, immortality; living, alive; sustenance; refreshment; prosperity, welfare, happiness

masculine plural adjective

Strong's #2416 BDB #311

The NET Bible: Heb “the path of life.” The noun חַיִּים (khayyim, “of life”) functions as a genitive of direction (“leading to”).

pen (פֶּן) [pronounced pen]

lest, peradventure, or else, in order to prevent, or, so that [plus a negative]

conjunction

Strong's #6435 BDB #814

The NET Bible: The particle פֶּן (pen) means “lest” (probably from “for the aversion of”). It occurs this once, unusually, preceding the principal clause (BDB 814 s.v.). It means that some action has been taken to avert or avoid what follows. She avoids the path of life, albeit ignorantly.

The Pulpit Commentary: Lest; pen; here "not," equivalent to al (lo). So the LXX, Vulgate, Targum, Syriac. The use of pen, in this sense is, however, unique (Gesenius). Delitzsch and Zockler, following Luther, Geier, Holden, etc., assign to it an emphatic negative force, as, "She is far removed from entering," or, "she never treadeth." Others take pen as a dependent prohibitive particle, equivalent to the Latin ne forte, "lest," as in the Authorized Version, and employed to connect the sentence which it introduces either with the preceding verse (as Schultens) or with the second hemistich, on which it is made dependent (Holden, Wordsworth, Aben Ezra, loc., Michaelis, etc.).

pâlaç (פָּלַס) [pronounced paw-LAHÇ]

to weigh [out], to balance; to make level, to make smooth

3rd person feminine singular, Piel imperfect

Strong’s #6424 BDB #814


Translation: ...so that she does not make level [her] path of life,... She is on this road to Sheol (to the grave); so that she never makes level her path of life (the way that she goes through life). It is always a mess; it is always disjointed and confused.

 

Matthew Henry: Proteus-like, she puts on many shapes, that she may keep in with those whom she has a design upon. And what does she aim at with all this art and management? Nothing but to keep them from pondering the path of life, for she knows that, if they once come to do that, she shall certainly lose them.

 

Keil and Delitzsch: Far from taking the course of the way of life (which has life as its goal and reward) – for פּלּס, to open, to open a road (Psalm 78:50), has here the meaning of the open road itself – much rather do her steps wilfully stagger (Jer. 14:10) hither and thither, they go without order and without aim, at one time hither, at another time thither, without her observing it; i.e., without her being concerned at this, that she thereby runs into the danger of falling headlong into the yawning abyss.

 

From Precept Austin: Ponder...(palac) means to weigh out, to make level, to calculate the weight of something. Here palac is used figuratively of "weighing out" the value of pursuing righteousness on the path of life. Such a lifestyle does not interest the adulteress. Her attitude is "Life is short. Grab all the gusto you can while you can!" In not walking in God's prescribed path of life (life to the full as God intended), she completely misses the real purpose of life, true pleasure forevermore and fullness of joy found only in His presence.

 

Jim Rickard: “Ponder” is the verb PALAS (פָּלַס),...meaning, “to prepare to weigh out, to make level, or to ponder.” It is the idea that the adulteress does not consider the conduct and mode of operation for her life and clearly does not see the path she is on and where she is headed. She does not weigh the outcome of her sins nor the impact her lifestyle is having on her life. In contrast, v. 21 states that a man’s life is under God’s scrutiny; He “examines all his paths.” 


Proverbs 5:6b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

nûwaʿ (נוּעַ) [pronounced NOO-ahģ]

to wave, to quiver, to vibrate, to swing, to stagger, to tremble, to be unstable; to totter, go tottering; to move to and fro; sometimes used of the blind

3rd person plural, Qal perfect

Strong's #5128 BDB #631

The NET Bible: The verb נוּעַ (nua’) means “to quiver; to wave; to waver; to tremble”; cf. KJV “her ways are moveable”; NAB “her paths will ramble”; NLT “She staggers down a crooked trail.” The ways of the adulterous woman are unstable (BDB 631 s.v.).

maʿegâllâth (מַעְגָּלָת) [pronounced mahģ-gawl-AWTH]

entrenchments, tracks, ruts [wherein a wheel revolves], wagon ramparts; ways; courses of action

masculine plural noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #4570 BDB #722


Translation: ...[but] is [instead] staggering in the ruts of her actions... There are wagon ruts that she finds herself in. This describes behavior which is repeated again and again until she digs herself a rut, and she remains in that rut.


Literally, it is these tracks or ruts which are staggering and are unstable. She repeats this behavior often, and finds herself in ruts that she had made for herself.


This is very descriptive of addictive behaviors: alcoholism, drug addiction, homosexuality, or skirt chasing. Just as a person finds himself caught up in whatever addictive behaviors he gives himself over to, so this woman is caught in a rut that she has made for herself.


Whether we are speaking of a woman without God or a woman who has a great deal of experience with men, she is unstable; she moves this way and that.

 

Of this section, Gill writes: she appears in different shapes; changes her dress and habitation; makes use of a thousand arts to ensnare men, to entangle their affections, and retain them in her nets; she first puts them upon one thing, and then on another; she leads them into various mazes and labyrinths of sin, till they have lost all sense of religion, and sight of the path of life.


Proverbs 5:6c

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

lôʾ (לֹא or לוֹא) [pronounced low]

not, no

negates the word or action that follows; the absolute negation

Strong’s #3808 BDB #518

yâdaʿ (יָדַע) [pronounced yaw-DAHĢ]

to know, to perceive, to acquire knowledge, to become acquainted with, to know by experience, to have a knowledge of something; to see; to learn; to recognize [admit, acknowledge, confess]

3rd person feminine singular/2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong’s #3045 BDB #393

Although Owens lists this as a 3rd person feminine singular verb; this is also the form of a 2nd person masculine singular verb. However, given the context, where nearly everything refers to this woman and what she does; that this continues as a 3rd person feminine singular verb makes the most sense.

Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary: This verse is rendered in two ways. The forms of the two verbs may be in the second person masculine, and so apply to the tempted youth, or in the third person feminine, and so be understood to refer to the harlot. Most modern commentators take the latter reading. Delitzsch translates: "She is far removed from entering the way of life: her steps wander without her observing it." Stuart: "That she may not ponder the path of life, her ways are become unsteady, while she regards it not." 


Translation: ...—[yet] she does not know [it] [or, you do not know (it)]. Interestingly enough, David warns his son, “And she does not even know what is going on. She has no idea what she is doing to herself and to others.”


What seems to be a possible translation is, and you do not know [what is going on]. David is warning Solomon that he is so blinded by his desire, that he does not really know what is going on.

 

With that in mind, Gill gives it this interpretation: Or, "you do not know"; where she goes, wherd she leads you, and what will be the end and issue of such a course of life.


However, the general context favors this as a reference to the woman herself.

 

The Pulpit Commentary suggests this translation of v. 6: she walks not in the path of life, her ways fluctuate, she knows not.

 

Jim Rickard: the message is, “pay attention so that you learn discretion, because the strange woman is deceitful; you may be tempted to consider her ways because you do not yet realize just how dangerous her paths are.” 

 

The Pulpit Commentary gives a more expansive view of this verse: Thus Gesenius renders, "She (the adulteress) prepares not (for herself) the way of life:" i.e. she does not walk in the way of life; cf. the LXX eisercetai , Vulgate ambulant (sc. gressus ejus), and other ancient versions, all of which understand the verb in this sense. The meaning of the phrase, pen t’phalles, is, therefore, "she walks not" in the way of life the way that has life for its object, and which in itself is full of life and safety. Far from doing this, the teacher goes on to say, her ways are movable; literally, go to and fro, or fluctuate; i.e. they wilfully stagger hither and there, like the steps of a drunkard, or like the uncertain steps of the blind, for the verb nua is so used in the former sense in Isa. 24:20 Isa. 29:9 Psalm 107:27; and in the latter in Lam. 4:14. Her steps are slippery (LXX, sfalerai ), or wander (Vulgate, vagi); they are without any definite aim; she is always straying in the vagrancy of sin (Wordsworth); cf. Prov. 7:12. That you cannot know them (lo theda); literally, she knows not...It seems...she knows not the way of life, i.e. she does not regard or perceive the way of life. The verb yada often has this meaning. The meaning may be obtained by supplying mah, equivalent to quicquam, "anything," as in Prov. 9:13, "She knows not anything," i.e. she knows nothing. The objection to this is that it travels unnecessarily out of the sentence to find the object which ought rather to be supplied from the context. The object may possibly be the staggering of her feet: she staggers here and there without her perceiving it (Delitzsch); or it may, lastly, be indefinite: she knows not whittler her steps conduct her.

 

Ironside: the moral state of Israel had become so low that even the daughters of the people of God had fallen into the degradation of the heathen (Proverbs 2:17). They had forsaken the guide of their youth, and forgotten the agreement they had made with God. So they were viewed as outsiders, having no place in the congregation of the Lord.


A more relaxed translation of vv. 5–6: The feet of this woman descend down to death, and her steps will take you to Sheol. However, although she does not know why, she cannot make her path of life level; she is always stuck in a series of ruts due to her own actions.


R. B. Thieme, Jr. gives an interesting translation of this verse: For distilled honey drips from the lips of a woman and smoother/'more flattering' than oil is the inside of her mouth. But 'the latter end of her'/'entanglement with her' becomes bitter like wormwood; sharp as a two-edged sword. Her seductive feet are going down unto death . Her sexy mincing steps embrace/'conjugal relationship with the grave/Sheol Perhaps you should consider her manner of LIVES her manner of LIFE wavers back and forth. You do not understand her!


This probably needs to be edited.

Summary of Proverbs 5:1–6, by Stuart Wolf

1.      The father’s lecture in chapter 2 admonished the son with motivations to hear/obey the parental teaching in order to protect him from the wicked man and woman; his lectures in chapters 3 – 4 elaborated those admonitions, and 5 – 6 will elaborate the warnings against evil men and the pursuit of easy sex and/or

2.      Moreover, the last two lectures of chapter 4 on avoiding the way of the wicked and, instead, maintaining unswerving devotion to the father’s way leads logically to the next three lectures to stay far from an

3.      As a parenthesis in the warnings to remain aloof from the profligate (completely given to dissipation and licentiousness) female, the father inserts warnings against three progressively inferior types who also threaten the son’s well-being. 6:1-19

4.      This “robust man-to-man warning” (McKane) against adultery, which presumes that the son is old enough to be tempted in this manner, begins with the typical introductory address and call for attentiveness (1-2) and motivating reasons (3-6).

5.      The main body contrasts the folly of adultery (vss 7-14) with the wisdom of lovemaking within marriage (15-20), and concludes with a sobering prediction about the fatal consequences of rejecting the divine viewpoint in this area of life (21-23).

6.      Reinforcing the idea that true freedom comes from restraint and self-denial, the concept is that true freedom, happiness, and fulfillment comes from “the play of eros within marriage [illustrating] freedom within form”. (Van Leeuwin)

7.      In addition to the main theme, remoteness from another’s unchaste wife (vs 8) and devotion and intimacy with one’s own wife (vs 15), the theme of accepting thefather’s teaching appears throughout the

         1)      explicit commands – vss 1, 7

         2)      the fool’s belated regret that he had rejected the teaching – vss 12-13

         3)      the summary that a sinner dies for a lack of instruction – vs 23

8.      The constant reminder to the son to accept and obey the instructions without question or compromise is necessary since the father is countering the potential “honeyed” speech of the loose woman, which will hold great promise of fulfillment and thus be very tempting to a young male with a normal libido.

9.      The standard introductory address my son, and the admonitions pay attention and turn your ear repeat the admonitions of the preceding lectures; however, instead of using “words” or “sayings”, he now mentions my wisdom and my understanding (“my good sense” – hn"WbT. TəBhUNaH).

10.    The use of the pronoun my with CHahKMaH is unique to this book, but parallels such as 2:6 make clear that the father is passing on divine viewpoint, not merely his own opinion or learned common sense.

11.    In vs 2 the aim or goal of the admonitions is stated, that you may keep/guard (rm;v' SHahMaR) and that they may guard/protect (rc;n' NahTSaR); with the lips as the subject, the meaning is to pay careful attention always to speak in conformity to the fathers teachings, not merely to maintain or preserve them.

12.    The term discretion (hM'zIm. MəZiMMaH) refers to the prudent and reserved manner in which one speaks or comports himself; the wise do not speak or react rashly, but consider the consequences. cp 12:18

13.    A common metonymy for the act of speaking, your lips stands opposite the lips of the adulteress, and provides a protection against them; again, the father recognizes thereality that the son will encounter this temptation, he now gives the solution.

14.    The parallel to discretion is knowledge (t[;D; Da’aTH), which means that one must internalize the commands, descriptions, and observations; divine viewpoint not readily available does little to protect a believer, a certain level of memorization is required if it is to be accessible and effective.

15.    The logical particle yKi again introduces an argument for paying close attention, so we may infer that without judicious discretion and speaking up for what is right, the son will not be able to withstand the strumpet offering her wares. cp Gen 39:7

16.    Speech and sexuality are intertwined, (cp the term “intercourse”), and the father warns the son not only to avoid physical interaction with this type of female, but not even to allow her ‘harmless flirting’ to begin.

17.    Additionally, the general point in a young man’s life when he faces this temptation is exactly the point of conflict when the teaching and authority of the father are tested by the desire for the speech and sexuality of the woman.

18.    We also note that while the exhortation to enjoy his wife (vs 18b) presumes his son’s anticipated wedding, the strumpet-wife is already married; again, pursuing enjoyment,entertainment, fulfillment, etc. outside the bounds of divine law leads only to misery.

19.    The term @j;n" NaTaPH drip refers to a steady drop-by-drop source (Ps 68:8), and combined with honey refers to the honey dripping off the comb – the sweetest and purest honey (sugar was still unknown).

20.    McKane explains the incomplete metaphor, “She speaks in accents which oozeseductive charm”, meaning she promises and offers the ‘best’ of delights with words practiced and planned for maximum effect.

21.    Next, her palate (%xe CHēK), another metonymy for her speech, is smoother than oil, a metaphor for deceitful flattery (cp 2:16); unless cosmetic ointments (Ruth 3:3) or oil of myrrh (Est 2:12) are indicated oil always refers to olive oil.

22.    Used in ceremonial purposes in religious observances (Lev 8:26), for the anointing of priests (Ex 29:2), and kings (1Sam 10:1), or the body after a bath (2Sam 12:20), for cooking (1Kin 17:12f) and lamps (Isa 42:3), and as a medicine both internally and externally (Isa 1:6); its presence symbolized gladness (Isa 61:3) and prosperity (Dt 33:24), and its absence indicated sorrow or humiliation (Joel 1:10).

23.    Everything about the way this female presents her lubricious (arousing or express- ive of sexual desire; lustful) speech “draws her victim irresistibly towards mystery, excitement, and delight” (McKane); since the father knows the ultimate end, he does not want the son to give way to the promised bliss at the expense of obedience.

24.    A certain double entendre may easily be inferred from the metonymy of lips and palate, since the father recognizes that the initial overtures to seduction may not immediately involve the final act of intercourse; a somewhat gradual ‘demonstration’ of the exhilaration to follow would logically precede the culmination of sexual conquest.

25.    The disjunctive waw but sharply contrasts the smooth beginning with the bitter final consequence of intercourse with the unchaste wife; whoever experiences this relationship winds up with the opposite of what she presented.

26.    The phrase in the end (tyrIx]a; ‘aCHəRiYTH) is literally “the after part”, referring to the future judgment of the affair; the results are certain and a direct result of the previous encounter and continuation of an obviously illegitimate relationship.

27.    The term bitter is a rather understated metaphor for the painful experiences listed in vss 7-14 and the final death predicted in vs 3.

28.    The pain she inflicts is like/as wormwood, a small heavily branched shrub, with hairy, gray leaves, which by itself is not poisonous, but is often linked with varo Ro’SH “gall”, referring to a bitter and poisonous plant. cp Amos 6:12

29.    The final death blow is likened to that of a lethal, double edged sword – merciless, completely successful, and absolutely final; the end result of this partnership is one from which there is no escape or compromise.

30.    The term dd;x' CHahDaD sharp always describes a sword, and is an incomplete metaphor for the sharp edge of her cruel personality “that manifests itself at payday” (Waltke); her “honey” becomes wormwood, and her “smoothness” turns sharp.

31.    A literal translation of like a two-edged sword is “a sword of mouths”, which, according to Isa 1:20, “devours” people; the symbolism is an attack which cannot be resisted or defended against, her smooth lips become a devouring mouth.

32.    The sword consisted of a handle with a hilt and blade, which could stab as well as strike the enemy (cp Jdg 3:16), and its edges were sharpened to the point it had to be carried in a sheath; the metaphor represents a merciless tool of destruction.

33.    In her way of life, she can only survive if all the ingredients of a genuine human relationship are excluded, with calculation and cold indifference; what she pretends to be is exactly the opposite of the reality.

34.    The focus now shifts from top to bottom, from the lethal consequences of involvement with her to her deadly person and lifestyle; her feet represent her entire character and course through life, each individual act contributing to the whole.

35.    The participial are going down (dr;y" YahRaDh) looks to a continuously descending journey, which would lead to the inevitable end accomplished without so much as a stray or momentary departure from the direction she is heading.

36.    Descending to death is a non-repeatable act, and here looks to the final destruction of the strumpet-wife; all who attach themselves to her have a similar fate, the father wants better for his son.

37.    Under the Mosaic Law, Israel was to execute adulterers (Lev 20:10), but contact with a prostitute or foreigner was not a capital offense (Lev 19:29; Dt 23:18); however, God inflicts His own death sentence (making death-by-stoning seem quite merciful).

38.    Next, her steps portray the “strides” she takes in her journey, the willful actions in which she engages as her life continues; make no mistake, this is not the ‘innocent’ participant in an adulterous affair, she knows exactly what she is doing.

39.    Lay hold of escalates “go down” to the final end of the descent, the secure grasp and refusal to let go of a desired end; at a certain level, she embraces that which she knows will lead to ultimate harm, this is the depth of her perversion.

40.    Not surprisingly, there has been great controversy over the meaning of lAaV. SHə’OL, with the KJV translating it most often as “grave” (31x), “hell” (30x) and “pit” (3x); most other translations translate it as the non-committal “Sheol” (although the NIV uses “grave” with the footnote “Sheol”).

41.    Additionally, the word does not appear outside the OT, except for one Jewish Elephantine papyri, where it means “grave”; its meaning is derived from one’s concept of the intermediate state of existence, between physical life and the resurrection.

42.    The future life is affirmed in many places in the OT (cp Dan 12:13), but few details are given; the term clearly refers in some way to the place of the dead, and refers either to the “grave” (Job 17:16) or the intermediate residence of the soul (Job 26:6).

43.    Although the OT crowd did not have the details of Sheol, in Lk 16:19f Christ Jesus gave a number of specifics, including:

         1)      it housed the souls of departed believers and unbelievers

         2)      believers were in constant bliss, while unbelievers were permanently tormented

         3)      the dead recognize each other (whether they met in life or not?)

         4)      there were two sections, with a permanent barrier between, for the express purpose of preventing “trespassing”

44.    Many interpreters balk at this description of Sheol, since the OT is almost silent in their regard, and going there is never spoken of in positive terms (cp Ps 6:5), but the fact is that the clear meaning of Jesus’ literal story gives the clearest understanding of this literal place – whether an individual passage refers to the grave, Paradise, or Hell.

45.    The established modus vivendi in which this type engages is contrasted to the way of lives, strongly implying it is “the way of death”; the fact she does not ponder (sl;P' PahLaS – “to weigh”), or even consider the potential danger she is bringing on herself, is another reason to avoid her – she may inadvertently let you ‘share the fun’.

46.    So when the son comes across the seemingly desirable and willing trollop, he is to immediately bring to mind all the manifold warnings to stay away; aside from brief (and fleeting) physical satisfaction, there is only misery in her association.

47.    Her tracks (lG"[.m; Ma’GahL – “ruts”), or the various aspects of her behavior, should be predictable and consistent as wagon ruts worn into a dirt road, but Solomon’s evaluation is that there is no right or wrong, and her morals meander aimlessly ([;Wn NUa’ Ps 107:27), meaning one cannot trust her in even the commission of evil!

48.    This morally bereft unchaste wife, having no home (in the fullest sense of the word) and no future hope, staggers about in her sin, and she does not know it; our term [d;y" YahDha’ again looks to intellectual recognition, that which is learned by experience.

49.    Of the multitudinous problems she must be suffering as a direct result of this lifestyle, the subject remains in ignorance; with no inner conscience to guide her, she can no longer distinguish between right and wrong, and so, without a moral compass to guide her to the right life, she strays to her death.

From www.hbcpinellas.org/proverbs/prov5.doc accessed August 26, 2015 (edited). Hebrew requires the font Bwhebb.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


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

Proverbs

5:7

Therefore, O [my] sons, listen to me and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Therefore, my sons, listen carefully to what I am teaching and do not depart from these words.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And now, O sons, listen to me and do not depart from words of my mouth.

Latin Vulgate                          Now, therefore, my son, hear me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Therefore children, hear me, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Hear me now therefore, O you children, and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Septuagint (Greek)                Now then my son, hear me, and make not my words of no effect.

 

Significant differences:           The final phrase in the Greek is different from the Hebrew.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Give ear to me then, my sons, and do not put away my words from you.

Easy English                          Now, my sons, listen to me!

Do not turn aside from my words!

Easy-to-Read Version            Now my sons, listen to me. Don’t forget the words I say.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Now listen to me, sons, and never forget what I am saying.

The Message                         So, my friend, listen closely;

don’t treat my words casually.

NIRV                                      My sons, listen to me.

Don’t turn away from what I say.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Now children, listen to me,

and don’t deviate from the words of my mouth.

Contemporary English V.       My son, listen to me and do everything I say.

The Living Bible                     Young men, listen to me, and never forget what I’m about to say:...

New Century Version             Now, my sons, listen to me,

and don’t ignore what I say.

New Living Translation           So now, my sons, listen to me.

Never stray from what I am about to say:...


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          O son, please listen to me! Do not ignore what I'm saying!

International Standard V        Now, children [Or sons], listen to me.

Don’t turn away from what I am saying [Lit. from the words of my mouth].

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Heed, then, my warning, and depart from it never;...

Translation for Translators     So now, my sons, listen to me.

Never turn aside from/always remember [LIT] what I am about to tell you.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Now hear me, sons! Do not turn from the sayings of my mouth.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                But listen, my children, to me, And turn not away from my words.

Lexham English Bible            Do Not Commit Adultery Against Wisdom

Now, O children, listen to me; do not depart from the sayings of my mouth.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

The Heritage Bible                 And now, Oh you children, attentively hear, and do not depart from the sayings of my mouth.

New American Bible (2011)   So now, children, listen to me,

do not stray from the words of my mouth.

New Jerusalem Bible             And now, son, listen to me, never deviate from what I say:...

New RSV                               And now, my child [Gk Vg: Heb children], listen to me,

and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Revised English Bible            Now, my sons, listen to me and do not ignore what I say:...


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           So now, children, listen to me; don't turn away from what I am saying:...

exeGeses companion Bible   Hear me now, O you sons,

and turn not aside from the sayings of my mouth:...

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               So now, sons, pay heed to me,

And do not swerve from the words of my mouth.

Judaica Press Complete T.    And now, children, hearken to me and do not turn away from the sayings of my mouth.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Hear me now therefore, O ye banim, and turn not from the words of my peh (mouth).


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Expanded Bible              Now, my sons, listen to me,

and don’t ·ignore what I say [Lturn aside from the speeches of my mouth].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Hear me now, therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth, this admonition being based upon the picture just drawn and introducing the following warning.

NET Bible®                             So now, children [Heb “sons.”], listen to me;

do not turn aside from the words I speak [Heb “the words of my mouth” (so KJV, NAB, NRSV).].

Syndein/Thieme                     Listen to me at this time {shama' - hear listen and obey}, my sons {David's sons here and all his students}, and do not deviate/pervert/depart from the words/'doctrinal communications' {dabar} of my mouth.

The Voice                               So, my children, listen to me.

Do not stray from my advice.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    So now, my sons, hearken to me, And do not withdraw from the sayings of my mouth."

Green’s Literal Translation    Then hear me now, O sons, and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

NASB                                     Now then, my sons, listen to me

And do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Stuart Wolf                             And now (i.e. given the previous information…), sons, listen to me, and do not turn aside/depart from the words of my mouth.

Webster’s Bible Translation  Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

Young’s Updated LT             And now, [all of] you sons, hearken to me, And do not turn from sayings of my mouth.

 

The gist of this verse:          Now David speaks to all of his sons present, asking them to listen to him.


Proverbs 5:7a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʿattâh (עַתָּה) [pronounced ģaht-TAWH]

now, at this time, already

adverb of time

Strong’s #6258 BDB #773

When followed by an imperative or an interrogative, we + the adverb ʿattâh mean and so, thus, things being so, therefore, now therefore, now then. Sometimes, the concept of time is lost when this combination is used to incite another.

bânîym (בָּנִים) [pronounced baw-NEEM]

sons, descendants; children; people; sometimes rendered men

masculine plural noun

Strong’s #1121 BDB #119

shâmaʿ (שָמַע) [pronounced shaw-MAHĢ]

listen [intently], hear, listen and obey, [or, and act upon, give heed to, take note of], hearken to, be attentive to, listen and be cognizant of

2nd person masculine plural, Qal imperative

Strong's #8085 BDB #1033

Owen has that this is a masculine singular; I think this is a typo.

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition with the 1st person singular suffix

No Strong’s # BDB #510


Translation: Therefore, O [my] sons, listen to me... David had 4 sons by Bathsheba, and, by my estimation, Solomon was quite young when he became king. David’s other sons (at least one other) was there to be taught by his father David.


It is quite interesting that much of the teaching in Scripture was to be done by listening and paying attention. That means that Bible doctrine was delivered orally. We find this approach far more than a person being told to read this or that doctrinal dissertation (although, having a library or access to a book of any sort, would have been more difficult in that era).


David has just told them about wild women, and he warns them, “Listen to me.” It is sons most likely to be led astray by wild women.


It is unclear whether David is now looking forward, or if he is looking backward to what he has just said. Both Ironside and Keil and Delitzsch place this verse with what follows.


It should be obvious that, even though David is addressing his sons here, what he is saying applies to women as well. They are not to allow themselves to be wooed by some cad—particularly one from outside her marriage.


Proverbs 5:7b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾal (אַל) [pronounced al]

no, not; nothing; none; neither, nor; do not, let not [with a verb]; let there not be [with an understood verb];

adverb of negation; conjunction of prohibiting, dehorting, deprecating, desire that something not be done

Strong’s #408 BDB #39

çûwr (סוּר) [pronounced soor]

to turn aside, to depart, to go away

3rd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong's #5493 (and #5494) BDB #693

min (מִן) [pronounced min]

from, off, out from, of, out of, away from, on account of, since, than, more than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

ʾămârîym (אֲמָרִים) [pronounced uh-maw-REEM]

words, commands, mandates; speech, that which proceeds from the mouth

masculine plural construct

Strong’s #561 (& #562) BDB #56

peh (פֶּה) [pronounced peh]

mouth [of man, animal; as an organ of speech]; opening, orifice [of a river, well, etc.]; edge; extremity, end

masculine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #6310 BDB #804


Translation: ...and do not depart from the words of my mouth. David is giving his sons a specific course of action and he is warning them not to depart from the words of his mouth.


David made a great mistake with his first set of wives and children—he let his children grow up like weeds, without training and with far too much indulgence. Raising his children in that way was like children being raised without fathers today. In Proverbs, David tries to turn that around and to raise his final 4 children by Bathsheba correctly.

Joe Guglielmo on Children Being Raised without Fathers

The streets of America are filled with children that have been fathered outside of marriage and many of these children are not wanted. Solomon is telling us to be responsible in our conduct and children should be born out of a marriage relationship and not outside one! A father needs to be in the home, part of the family with a mother. Listen to what is happening in America and you tell me if sexual promiscuity, if immoral sexual behavior has hurt us or helped us. This is from an article from 2011 and we are told,


One-third of American children are growing up . . . without their biological father, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In the past 50 years, the percentage of children who live with two married parents has dropped 22 points. During that same time, the number of babies born to unwed mothers jumped from 5 percent to 40 percent.


The growing trend of father absence could have grave implications for society, researchers say, because having dad around has been linked to important developments in a child’s physical, emotional and behavioral health. At the same time, though, research indicates it’s not enough just to have a male figure in the home.


http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700137767/Fatherless-America-A-third-of-children-now-live-without-dad.html?pg=all


May we learn to be satisfied with the wife that the Lord has given to us and to be fathers that are actively involved in the development of our children, it is that important!

 

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


——————————


I have put vv. 12–13 together in a separate section; however, they are very much connected to the vv. 8–11 (many translations continue the thought of v. 11 into v. 12). Vv. 8–14 express a very long, continuous thought; and there will be some translations where this complete train of thought is preserved as one very long sentence. Some of those translations will be preserved in full below.


Each family builds upon its own foundation. A family may develop a great business and have a great deal of wealth. However, a problematic relationship in that family can siphon off some or even all of a family’s fortune. And those who take control of this fortune in the future may be only tangentially related to the originators of that fortune.


With David and Solomon, this was the legacy of their royal line. Because Solomon did not follow David’s advice about women, the nation of Israel will become two kingdoms in the next generation. David preserved this nation for another generation by his careful training of Solomon. However, despite his great wisdom, Solomon did not train up the next generation (or they refused to take in his teaching of Bible doctrine).


David is telling Solomon, “You see this great palace and your royal position and all of this responsibility? If you get hooked up with the wrong woman (or the wrong women), you can be tossing all of this away.”

 

Jim Rickard: The literal perspective in this section is about retaining the family’s economic and social strength accumulated over generations...[the] spiritual perspective [is], if we give over to the temptations of Satan and his Cosmic System it could lead to our personal spiritual ruin and the spiritual bankruptcy of our successive generations.


Remove from upon her your way and do not draw near unto an opening of her house, lest you give to others your honor and your years to a merciless one; lest fill strangers your strength and your labors [are] in a house of a foreigner; and you have groaned at your end in a completion of your flesh and body.

Proverbs

5:8–11

Remove your way from her and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not give to others your majesty and [so that you do not give] your years to [a person] without mercy [or, the cruel one]; so that strangers are not filled with your strength [or, the product of your labors] and [so that all of] your work [does not end up] in the house of a foreigner, and you groan [with dissatisfaction] at your end, when is completed your flesh and bone [lit., flesh and body].

Remove your way from the unchaste woman and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not end up giving away your majesty and your years to those who are not grace oriented. Do not allow strangers to sap away your strength so that all of your production does not end up in the house of a foreigner, so that you groan with unhappiness when you are about to die.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Remove from upon her your way and do not draw near unto an opening of her house, lest you give to others your honor and your years to a merciless one; lest fill strangers your strength and your labors [are] in a house of a foreigner; and you have groaned at your end in a completion of your flesh and body.

Latin Vulgate                          Remove your way far from her, and come not near the doors of her house. Give not your honour to strangers, and your years to the cruel. Lest strangers be filled with your strength, and your labours be in another man’s house, And you mourn at the last, when you will have spent your flesh and your body,...

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Remove your way far from her and do not go near the door of her house

Lest you give others your power and your years to those who are merciless

And foreigners will be filled with your power and your labor enter into the house of strangers

And your soul moves you to regret in your old age when the flesh of your body is wasted

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Remove your way far from her, and do not come near the door of her house; Lest you give your strength to others, and your years to the cruel; Lest strangers be filled with your wealth, and your labors be in the house of strangers; And you have remorse in your old age, when the flesh of your body is consumed,...

Septuagint (Greek)                Remove your way far from her; draw not near to the doors of her house: lest you give away your life to others, and your substance to the merciless; lest strangers be filled with your strength, and your labors come into the houses of strangers; And you repent at last, when the flesh of your body is consumed, and you shall say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart avoided reproofs! I heard not the voice of him that instructed me, and taught me, neither did I incline my ear. Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

 

Significant differences:           Whereas the Hebrew has Lest you give your honor to others; the Syriac has strength or power; and the Greek has life. The Hebrew has giving one’s years to the merciless; and the Greek has substance.

 

The 5th phrase in the Hebrew has strength; but in one translation from the Syriac, we find the word wealth. The 6th and 7th phrases are similar throughout, but not quite the same.

 

Hebrew has abhor; the Latin has consents not; the Greek has avoided.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Go far away from her, do not come near the door of her house;

For fear that you may give your honour to others, and your wealth to strange men: And strange men may be full of your wealth, and the fruit of your work go to the house of others;

And you will be full of grief at the end of your life, when your flesh and your body are wasted;

And you will say, How was teaching hated by me, and my heart put no value on training;

I did not give attention to the voice of my teachers, my ear was not turned to those who were guiding me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

Easy English                          Choose a path that does not go near this woman’s house!

Keep away from her door!

Do not waste the strength of your youth!

Do not give your best years to someone who is cruel!

Do not let other people enjoy your wealth!

Do not work like a slave to make another man wealthy! [Break]

When you are old, then you will be sad.

When your body is weak, then you will speak.

Easy-to-Read Version            Stay away from the woman who does the sin of adultery. [5] Don’t even go near the door of her house. If you do, then other people will get the honor you should have had. And some stranger will get all the things you worked years to get. People you don’t know will take all your wealth. Other people will get the things you worked for. At the end of your life, you will be sad that you ruined your health and lost everything you had.

God’s Word                         Stay far away from her.

Do not even go near her door.

Either you will surrender your reputation to others

and the rest of your years to some cruel person,

or strangers will benefit from your strength

and you will have to work hard in a pagan’s house.

Then you will groan when your end comes,

when your body and flesh are consumed.

You will say,

“Oh, how I hated discipline!

How my heart despised correction! V. 12 is included for context.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Keep away from such a woman! Don't even go near her door! If you do, others will gain the respect that you once had, and you will die young at the hands of merciless people. Yes, strangers will take all your wealth, and what you have worked for will belong to someone else. You will lie groaning on your deathbed, your flesh and muscles being eaten away,...

The Message                         Keep your distance from such a woman; absolutely stay out of her neighborhood. You don't want to squander your wonderful life, to waste your precious life among the hardhearted.

Why should you allow strangers to take advantage of you? Why be exploited by those who care nothing for you?

You don't want to end your life full of regrets, nothing but sin and bones,

Saying, "Oh, why didn't I do what they told me? Why did I reject a disciplined life? Why didn't I listen to my mentors, or take my teachers seriously? Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

NIRV                                      Stay on a path far away from that evil woman.

Don’t even go near the door of her house.

If you do, you will lose your honor to other people.

You will give your self-respect to someone who is mean.

Strangers will use up all your wealth.

Your hard work will make someone else rich.

At the end of your life you will groan.

Your skin and your body will be worn out.

New Simplified Bible              Keep far away from her. Do not go near the door of her house.

You will give your honor (majesty) to others and your years to the cruel one.

Strangers will be filled with your financial strength. Strangers will benefit from your hard work.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Stay on a path that is far from her;

don’t approach the entrance to her house.

Otherwise, you will give your strength to others,

your years to a cruel person.

Otherwise, strangers will sap your strength,

and your hard work will end up in a foreigner’s house.

You will groan at the end

when your body and flesh are exhausted,

and you say, “How I hated instruction!

How my heart despised correction! V. 12 is included for context.

Contemporary English V.       Stay away from a bad woman! Don't even go near the door of her house. You will lose your self-respect and end up in debt to some cruel person for the rest of your life. Strangers will get your money and everything else you have worked for. When it's all over, your body will waste away, as you groan and shout, "I hated advice and correction! I paid no attention to my teachers, and now I am disgraced in front of everyone." Vv. 12–14 are included for context.

The Living Bible                     Run from her! Don’t go near her house, lest you fall to her temptation and lose your honor, and give the remainder of your life to the cruel and merciless [Perhaps the reference is to blackmail or to fear of vengeance from the wronged husband.]; lest strangers obtain your wealth, and you become a slave of foreigners. Lest afterwards you groan in anguish and in shame when syphilis [literally, “disease.”] consumes your body, and you say, “Oh, if only I had listened! If only I had not demanded my own way! Oh, why wouldn’t I take advice? Why was I so stupid? Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

New Berkeley Version           Keep your feet far from her;

do not go near the door of her house;

lest you give your honor to others,

and your hears to the merciless;

lest aliens take their fill of your wealth,

your labors go to a foreign house

and you moan when your end comes,

when your flesh and body are consumed,...

New Century Version             Stay away from such a woman.

Don’t even go near the door of her house,

or you will give your riches to others,

and the best years of your life will be given to someone cruel.

Strangers will enjoy your wealth,

and what you worked so hard for will go to someone else.

You will groan at the end of your life

when your health is gone.

New Life Version                    Keep far away from her. Do not go near the door of her house. If you do, you would give your strength to others, and your years to those without loving-kindness. Strangers would be filled with your strength, and the fruits of your work would go to a strange house. You would cry inside yourself when your end comes, when your flesh and body are wasted away.

New Living Translation           Stay away from her!

Don’t go near the door of her house!

If you do, you will lose your honor

and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved.

Strangers will consume your wealth,

and someone else will enjoy the fruit of your labor.

In the end you will groan in anguish

when disease consumes your body.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          From her, you should stay far away… don't go near to the door of her house, so you don't pass your life onto others, and share your vigor with those without mercy. Don't fill a stranger with your might… your strength shouldn't enter [a whore], for you'll be sorry when your flesh falls away.

Beck’s American Translation Keep far away from her,

and don’t go near the door of her house.

Or you will give your honor to others

and your dignity to some cruel person.

Aliens will benefit from your strength,

and you will have to work in a stranger’s home.

Then you will moan when your end comes,

when your body and flesh are consumed,...

International Standard V        Now, children [Or sons], listen to me.

Don’t turn away from what I am saying [Lit. from the words of my mouth].

Keep [Lit. Keep your path] far away from her,

and don’t go near the entrance to her house,

that you don’t give your honor to others,

and waste your best years [Lit. and your years to the cruel];

so that strangers don’t enrich themselves at your expense [Lit. don’t satisfy themselves with your strength],

and your work won’t end up the possession of foreigners [Lit. won’t go into a foreigner’s house].

You will cry out in anguish when your end comes,

when your flesh and body are consumed,

you will say, “How I hated instruction [Or discipline],

and my heart rejected correction! V. 12 is included for context.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Heed, then, my warning, and depart from it never; shun her company, do not go near her doors. Wouldst thou squander the pride of thy manhood upon heartless strangers like these?

If thus thou wilt spend all thy hopes, bestow all thy pains, upon an alien home that is no home of thine, a time will come at last when health and strength shall be wasted away.

Translation for Translators     Run away from immoral women!

Do not go near the doors of their houses!

If you enter the home of one of them, you will lose your self-respect/good reputation

and that woman's husband will not act mercifully toward you;

he will kill you and take everything that you have acquired during your life!

Foreigners will take your money,

and all the good things that you have worked for will end up in their hands/become their possessions .

And when you about to die,

you will groan with severe pain

because diseases that you have gotten from being immoral are destroying your body.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Distance your ways from toward her and never near into the opening of her house:

otherwise you will give your majesty to others, and your years to the cruel;

otherwise commoners will satisfy with your power, and your grief will be in the house of a foreigner.

In the future, you will growl as your flesh-and-blood and flesh finishes,

saying, "How I hated correction! My heart abused testing. V. 12 is included for context.

Conservapedia                       Make your way far from her ways and don't come close to her house, Don't give your honor to others, or your years to the cruel, Let not strangers be filled with your wealth or your labors be in the house of a stranger, And you mourn at the last, when your flesh and body are consumed.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                From her let your steps turn away, And approach not the door of her house. Lest you give to Seducers your wealth, And to those without mercy your years. Lest strangers be fed by your strength, And your wealth in a foreigners home, And you groan at results to yourself, With your body and manhood destroyed,...

HCSB                                     Keep your way far from her. Don't go near the door of her house. Otherwise, you will give up your vitality to others and your years to someone cruel; strangers will drain your resources, and your earnings will end up in a foreigner's house.

At the end of your life, you will lament when your physical body has been consumed, and you will say, "How I hated discipline, and how my heart despised correction. I didn't obey my teachers or listen closely to my mentors. Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  Remove thy way far from her, and do not come near the door of her house, lest thou give thine honour unto others and thy years unto the cruel, lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, and thy labours be in the house of a stranger, and thou mourn at the last when thy flesh and thy body are consumed and say, How have I hated chastening and my heart despised reproof and have not obeyed the voice of those who chastened me, nor inclined my ear to those that instructed me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

NIV – UK                                Keep to a path far from her,

do not go near the door of her house,

lest you lose your honour to others

and your dignity [Or years] to one who is cruel,

lest strangers feast on your wealth

and your toil enrich the house of another.

At the end of your life you will groan,

when your flesh and body are spent.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Stay away from her and never approach the door of her house,

lest you surrender your honor to strangers and your best years to cruel men,

lest others benefit from your goods, and your earnings go to an alien house.

You will complain in the end, when your body and flesh are already devoured and

you will say, ¡°Why did I reject instruction and turn my back on sound advice?

Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers and follow their counsel? Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

The Heritage Bible                 Widely distancing yourself, widely distance yourself from her way, and do not approach the entrance of her house, Lest you give your glorious authority to others, and your years to the cruel, Lest strangers be satiated with your power, and your labors be in the house of a stranger; And you groan at the end, when your flesh and your body are finished, And say, How I have hated corrective discipline, and my heart despised rebuke, And have not attentively heard the voice of those who caused it to flow to me; I have not spread out my ears to them who taught [lamad, goaded me with a rod of discipline.] me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

New American Bible (2011)   Keep your way far from her [Prov 7:25.],

do not go near the door of her house,

Lest you give your honor [the words “life” and “wealth” have also been read in this place.] to others,

and your years to a merciless one [the offended husband; cf. 6:34–35.];

Lest outsiders take their fill of your wealth,

and your hard-won earnings go to another’s house;

And you groan in the end,

when your flesh and your body are consumed;

And you say, “Oh, why did I hate instruction,

and my heart spurn reproof! V. 12 is included for context.

New Jerusalem Bible             And now, son, listen to me, never deviate from what I say:

set your course as far from her as possible, go nowhere near the door of her house,

or she will hand over your honour to others, the years of your life to a man without pity,

and strangers will batten on your property, and your produce go to the house of a stranger,

and, at your ending, your body and flesh having been consumed, you will groan

and exclaim, 'Alas, I hated discipline, my heart spurned all correction;

I would not attend to the voice of my masters, I would not listen to those who tried to teach me. Vv. 7, 12–13 are included for context.

Revised English Bible            Now, my sons, listen to me and do not ignore what I say:

keep well away from her and do not go near the door of her house,

or you will surrender your vigour to others, the pride of your manhood to the heartless.

Strangers will batten on your wealth, and your hard-won gains pass to the family of another.

When you shrink to skin and bone you will end by groaning

and saying, “Oh, why did I hate correction and set my heart against reproof?

Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers and pay heed to my instructors? Vv. 7, 12–13 are included for context.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           So now, children, listen to me; don't turn away from what I am saying: distance your way from her, stay far from the door of her house; so that you won't give your vigor to others and your years to someone who is cruel, so strangers won't be filled with your strength and what you worked for go to a foreign house. Then, when your flesh and bones have shrunk, at the end of your life, you would moan, "How I hated discipline! My whole being despised reproof, I ignored what my teachers said, I didn't listen to my instructors. Vv. 7, 12–13 are included for context.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...remove your way far from her

and come not near the portal of her house;

lest you give your honor to others

and your years to the cruel:

lest strangers satiate with your produce;

and your contorting be in the house of a stranger:

and you growl at the finality

when your flesh and your meat finish off,...

Judaica Press Complete T.    Distance your way from her and do not draw near to the entrance of her house, lest you give others your glory, and your years to a cruel one; lest strangers be sated with your strength and your labors be in the house of an alien. And you shall moan when your end comes, when your flesh and your body are consumed,...

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Remove thy derech far from her, and come not near the petach (doorway) of her bais; Lest thou give thine hod (strength) unto others, and thy shanim unto the cruel one; Lest zarim (strangers) be filled with thy koach; and thy toilings be in the bais nochri; And thou mourn at the acharit (last, latter end, future), when thy basar and thy body are consumed,...


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Let your way in life be far from her, and come not near the door of her house [avoid the very scenes of temptation],

Lest you give your honor to others and your years to those without mercy,

Lest strangers [and false teachings] take their fill of your strength and wealth and your labors go to the house of an alien [from God]—

And you groan and mourn when your end comes, when your flesh and body are consumed,...

The Expanded Bible              ·Stay away from such a woman [LKeep your path far from her].

Don’t even go near the ·door [entrance] of her house,

or you will give your ·riches [honor; or vitality; vigor] to others,

and the best years of your life will be given to someone cruel.

Strangers will ·enjoy your wealth [or sap your strength],

and what you worked so hard for will ·go to someone else [Lend up in the house of a foreigner].

You will groan at the end of your life

when your ·health is gone [Lbody and flesh are exhausted].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Remove thy way far from her, for safety, in the case of this temptation, does not lie in attempting to give battle, but in fleeing and keeping one's distance, and come not nigh the door of her house, thereby risking and inviting temptation, lest thou give thine honor unto others, for there is not only the exposure of the fornicator to be considered, but also the fact that the harlot and her favorites will succeed in taking the respect of men from their victim, and thy years unto the cruel, the wanton woman and the procurers employed by her, who calmly and cruelly ruin the health of those who are seduced by ~them and take their riches into the bargain; lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, enjoying their fill in consuming the, labor and strength of their victim, and thy labors, what a man has worked for with hard labor, be in the house of a stranger, the harlot being so designated because originally all that plied her trade were foreigners, and thou mourn at the last, groaning in distress when it is too late, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed, this being the punishment which will eventually strike the libertine, and say,... 2 words from v. 12 are include for context.

NET Bible®                             Keep yourself [Heb “your way.”] far from her,

and do not go near the door of her house,

lest you give your vigor to others

and your years to a cruel person,

lest strangers devour [Or “are sated, satisfied.”] your strength,

and your labor [“labor, painful toil.”] benefit [The term “benefit” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.] another man’s house.

And at the end of your life [Heb “at your end.”] you will groan [The verb means “to growl, groan.” It refers to a lion when it devours its prey, and to a sufferer in pain or remorse (e.g., Ezek 24:23).]

when your flesh and your body are wasted away.

Syndein/Thieme                     Be caused to keep your way of life far away {rachaq} from 'over above' her {means to remove your sex life from her vicinity}, and do not approach/'come near' the door of her house.

{Note: You know right away she is NOT your right woman so remove yourself from her.}

Lest you give your glory/'sexual activity' to the pseudo's {pseudo-lover - not your right woman}, and your years of sexual vigor to the vindictive. Lest promiscuous women become satiated with your vigor in sexual performance and your human body be shattered in a whorehouse {venereal diseases, scar tissue of the soul or both}.

And in distress, you groan at the end {die the sin unto death} . . . when your flesh/body {general health} and your phallus {male sex organ} are ruined {venereal disease and impotence are the two basic types}.

The Voice                               Stay away from her, far away from her path;

don’t even go near her door

Unless you are ready to hand over your reputation to someone else,

unless you want to spend the rest of your years at the mercy of some cruel person.

If you do, strangers will help themselves to your wealth,

and everything you have worked hard to acquire will end up in someone else’s hands.

Your life will end with groanings of remorse, of opportunities missed,

and your flesh and bones will be eaten up with sorrow, regret for worthless efforts.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Keep your way far from her; Do not go near to the portal of her house,

Lest you should give your splendor to others And your years to the cruel one,

Lest aliens should surfeit themselves on your vigor And on your grievous labors in the house of a foreigner,

And you have anguish in your latter days When your flesh and your brawn are exhausted,

And you say, How I have hated discipline, And my heart has spurned correction!"

I have not hearkened to the voice of those directing my instruction, And to those teaching me I have not stretched out my ear;" Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Keep your way far from her, and come not near the doors of her house. That you give not your honor unto another, and your years to the cruel. That other men be not filled with your goods, and your labors come not in a strange house. Yes that you mourn not at the last, (when you have spent your body and goods) and then say: Alas, why hated I nurture? why did my heart despise correction? Wherefore was not I obedient unto the voice of my teachers, and hearken not unto them that informed me? Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

NASB                                     Keep your way far from her

And do not go near the door of her house,

Or you will give your vigor to others

And your years to the cruel one;

And strangers will be filled with your strength

And your hard-earned goods will go to the house of an alien;

And you groan at your final [Or latter] end,

When your flesh and your body are consumed;...

New European Version          Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house, lest you give your honour to others, and your years to the cruel one; lest foreigners feast on your wealth, and your labours enrich another man’s house. You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed, and say, How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof; neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor turned my ear to those who instructed me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

New King James Version       Remove your way far from her,

And do not go near the door of her house,

Lest you give your honor to others,

And your years to the cruel one;

Lest aliens be filled with your wealth,

And your labors go to the house of a foreigner;

And you mourn at last,

When your flesh and your body are consumed,

And say:

“How I have hated instruction,

And my heart despised correction!

I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,

Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

Stuart Wolf                             Cause it to be distant from above her, your way, and do not approach the door of her house.

Lest you give to others your glory/vigor, and your years to a cruel man.

Lest they be nourished/satisfied, strangers, with your strength, and the fruits of your labors go to the house of an alien.

And you groan at your end, when they are finished/consumed, your flesh and your body.

Updated Bible Version 2.11   Remove your way far from her, And don't come near the door of her house;

Or else you will give your grandeur to others, And your years to the cruel;

Or else strangers will be filled with your strength, And your labors [be] in the house of an alien,

And you mourn at your latter end, When your flesh and your body are consumed,

And say, How I have hated instruction, And my heart despised reproof;

Neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! Vv. 12–13 are included for context.

Webster’s Bible Translation  Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

Lest thou give thy honor to others, and thy years to the cruel:

Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labors [be] in the house of a stranger;

And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,...

Young’s Updated LT             Keep far from off her your way, And come not near unto the opening of her house, Lest you give to others your honour, And your years to the fierce, Lest strangers be filled with your power, And your labours in the house of a stranger, And you have howled in your latter end, In the consumption of your flesh and your food,...

 

The gist of this passage:     A warning not to come anywhere near the strange/foreign woman, otherwise your labors will be lost to others.

Rickard In verse 8a

Proverbs 5:8a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

râchaq (רָחַק) [pronounced raw-KHAHK]

put far, remove, cause to remove; go far off, take far off; go away far

2nd person masculine singular, Hiphil imperative

Strong’s #7368 BDB #934

min (מִן) [pronounced mihn]

from, away from, out from, out of from, off, on account of, since, above, than, so that not, beyond, more than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

ʿal (עַל) [pronounced ģahl]

upon, beyond, on, against, above, over, by, beside

preposition of proximity with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #5920, #5921 BDB #752

Together, they mean from upon, from over, from by, from beside, from attachment to, from companionship with, from accompanying [in a protective manner], from adhesion to, from. Some translators rendered this away from.

dereke (דֶּרֶ) [pronounced DEH-reke]

way, distance, road, path; journey, course; direction, towards; manner, habit, way [of life]; of moral character

masculine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #1870 BDB #202


Translation: Remove your way from her... The way a person goes is the road or path that they choose for themselves. It is the direction that a person goes in.


David is teaching his son Solomon. Solomon’s way, alluded to here, is whatever direction that he takes; it is where he is going in life; what he does in life. David says, do not set up your direction in life around strange women.


In life, we all have various things upon which we focus. In marriage, the man should be focused on his wife; and in a family, the man should be focused upon his wife and children. There is more freedom for the single man, who might focus on his training, his skills, his schooling, and/or his work. However, there will always be temptations; there will always be the siren’s call (in this case, the call of the strange or foreign woman). David warns Solomon that such should not be the focus of his life.


Prov. 6:27–28 warn: Can a man carry fire next to his chest and his clothes not be burned? Or can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? (ESV) This is a warning about the same thing—about the foreign or strange woman.


Proverbs 5:8b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾal (אַל) [pronounced al]

no, not; nothing; none; neither, nor; do not, let not [with a verb]; let there not be [with an understood verb];

adverb of negation; conjunction of prohibiting, dehorting, deprecating, desire that something not be done

Strong’s #408 BDB #39

qârab (קָרַב) [pronounced kaw-RABV]

to come near, to approach, to draw near

2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong #7126 BDB #897

The NET Bible: There is a contrast made between “keep far away” (הַרְחֵק, harkheq) and “do not draw near” (וְאַל־תִּקְרַב, vÿ’al-tiqrav).

ʾel (אֶל) [pronounced ehl]

unto; into, among, in; toward, to; against; concerning, regarding; besides, together with; as to

directional preposition (respect or deference may be implied)

Strong's #413 BDB #39

pethach (פֶּתַח) [pronounced PEH-thahkh]

opening, doorway, entrance, gate [for a tent, house, or city]; metaphorically, gate [of hope, of the mouth]

masculine singular construct

Strong’s #6607 BDB #835

bayith (בַּיִת) [pronounced BAH-yith]

house, residence; household, habitation as well as inward

masculine singular noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong's #1004 BDB #108


Translation: ...and do not come near to the entrance of her home,... David is warning Solomon not to even tempt himself; not to even go near the woman’s home.

 

Jim Rickard: “The door of her house”, is PETHACH, פֶּתַח, that means, “opening, entrance or door”, plus BAYITH, בַּיִת, that means “house or household.” This is the point of entry...It connotes to come into the most near and intimate proximity of the object, and we are warned not to enter into that type of intimate relationship with her. Therefore, in this verse we are warned to not enter into a relationship or even go near the household / dwelling place of the adulterous deceiver. When speaking of false teachers of false doctrines we are to steer clear of them and do not go near them...So we have a contrast before us. We can either enter the house of the adulteress, Satan and His cosmic System or we can enter the house of the Lord which is not speaking about our salvation but our fellowship with Him. And this all has to do with “drawing near to God” rather than drawing near to Satan and His Cosmic System.


David knew, based upon his own history, that he had been susceptible to having many wives, and this was quite problematic to David. He spend perhaps a decade in difficult circumstances because of having too many wives and no time to properly raise his many children. Essentially, David allowed his wives to raise his children alone, with very little input from him, very much like women today who are married to Uncle Sam, who pays for their basic needs, so that no husband enters into the equation.


David was pulled in toward these woman for various reasons of attractiveness. This does not mean that these women did not have many good attributes apart from their beauty, but a man being pulled in many directions does not always have the ability to appreciate all that a woman is, if he has 10 or 20 women.


God made women to be very wonderful and complex creatures; and there is so often much more than what the man first sees. This often takes a lifetime to uncover and appreciate.


David warns Solomon that there are women to be avoided; so much so, that you go nowhere near them. David warns not to even to near the entrance of her home. Nothing can occur if you avoid such a woman in this way. Today, a similar command would be to avoid all contact with the woman.


Clint Eastwood put it this way: “A man’s gotta know his limitations.” As a roommate once told me, regarding relationships, he did not put himself into places where he is tempted. He knows where it can lead, so he simply avoided proximity to the temptation.


The New Testament parallel to this is 1Cor. 6:18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.


Rather than draw near to the home of the loose woman, we ought to draw near to God instead. In both the Old and New Testaments, this involves cleansing, which is accomplished by rebound (naming our sins to God) before we approach Him (in prayer, in church, in the directed study of a pastor-teacher).


Although this portion of Prov. 5 presents the negative approach, the positive approach is to draw near to God.

Jim Rickard on Cleanliness Before God

Qârab (קָרַב) [pronounced kaw-RABV] was used more often in the book of Leviticus than any other Old Testament book and gives us the idea of how to approach the LORD in worship and for fellowship in His presence, in view of his awesome holiness (Lev. 1-16). Only the priests God had chosen could approach the place He had chosen to allow his presence to be experienced, that is, at the Tabernacle (Ex. 29:1-4 Num. 18:22). They and the Levites were brought “near” before the LORD for ordination. Then, they were to continue to keep themselves ceremonially clean so that they could continue to come near the holy God and offer sacrifices (Lev 21:6 22:3).


And as you know, every Church Age believer is a Royal Priest before God (1Peter 2:9), and we too need to keep ourselves ceremonial clean in order to come “near” to God, have fellowship with Him, which is synonymous to being Filled with the Holy Spirit.


By way of typological comparison, “The principle of clean and unclean is a part of holiness. That means avoiding what is declared by God to be unclean, which means it is opposed to his holiness because it is associated with evil, acts of sin or death. When Nadab and Abihu approached the LORD to offer incense in worship in an unauthorized way, He struck them dead (Lev 16:1). To come near to and to enjoy the presence of the holy God requires holiness.” (Complete Biblical Library Hebrew-English Dictionary – Pe-Resh.)


As the Law taught Israel, they had both Positional cleanliness, (i.e., sanctification, holiness, righteousness) and Experiential cleanliness, (i.e., sanctification, holiness, righteousness.)


The same goes for the Church Age believer too, yet we do not need to commit sacrifices in faith, we only need to apply faith in God’s Word which includes 1 John 1:9, the confession of our sins, for ceremonial washing and cleansing.


Those who teach otherwise do not understand the right relationship with their Holy God. Remember, the priests of Israel had Positional Sanctification, just as we do in the Church Age, yet they still could be ceremonially unclean if they broke the law, which means committed sin. Compare 1 Cor 15:56b “The power of sin is the law.”


The Law told them what sin was. If they committed sin they would not lose their salvation, but would lose relationship / fellowship with God, and could not serve Him. To regain fellowship and service to God they needed to wash themselves ceremonially through sacrifices on the Brazen Altar and wash at the Brazen Laver, as well as confess their sins to God. For the Believer Priest of the Church Age, all we need to do is HOMOLEGO, “confess” our sins, because the sacrifice was made complete (TETELESTAI – It is finished) at the Cross of Jesus Christ, yet we still need to go to the Brazen Laver, in confession of our sins to be “cleansed”, experientially, for fellowship and service.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 24, 2015.

Chapter Outline

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Proverbs 5:9a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

pen (פֶּן) [pronounced pen]

lest, peradventure, or else, in order to prevent, or, so that [plus a negative]

conjunction

Strong's #6435 BDB #814

nâthan (נָתַן) [pronounced naw-THAHN]

to give, to grant, to place, to put, to set; to make

3rd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong's #5414 BDB #678

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

ʾachêr (אַחֵר) [pronounced ah-KHEHR]

another, following, next; other as well as foreign, alien, strange

masculine plural adjective/substantive

Strong’s #312 BDB #29

hôwd (הוֹד) [pronounced hohd]

majesty, honor, glory; related to one’s authority and/or royalty

masculine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #1935 BDB #217

The NET Bible: The term הוֹד (hod, “vigor; splendor; majesty”) in this context means the best time of one’s life (cf. NIV “your best strength”), the full manly vigor that will be wasted with licentiousness. Here it is paralleled by “years,” which refers to the best years of that vigor, the prime of life. Life would be ruined by living this way, or the revenge of the woman’s husband would cut it short.


Translation: ...so that you do not give to others your majesty... Solomon in particular would be David’s successor. It is reasonable to assume that David is teaching and training Solomon with that in mind.


I have assumed that Solomon began as a king at a very young age—perhaps as young as 10 or 15. David had to make this call early on, so he might have begun carefully teaching his son Solomon as early as age 5 or 6 (and perhaps earlier than that). Solomon is clearly a beneficiary of David’s excellent teaching, but he also went negative toward doctrine throughout much of his life—very much because of the women that he collected.


Solomon, being king, would have had honor, glory and majesty. It is logical that his majesty go to a woman who is an Israelite; or, at the very least, a woman who trusts in his God. This would be passed down, ideally speaking, to a son who is a man of honor.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: The word rendered "honour" (Hebrew, hod) is not so much reputation, as the English implies, as "the grace and freshness of youth." It is so used in Hosea 14:6 Daniel 10:8.


Solomon should have been able to think about David’s life—even though he did not see much of it—and been able to piece together the fact that, all of these wives wreaked havoc on David’s well-being. This is because David was unable to raise up his children (he had too many of them spread out to too many houses), so that there could be no consistency in his training and teaching, even if he made an attempt to do so.


In the end, with his wife Bathsheba, it is clear that David concentrated on her and on their 4 children. They were the beneficiaries of his outstanding teaching, and both the legal and the bloodline of the Great King would progress through two of David’s sons by Bathsheba (Solomon and Nathan).


Proverbs 5:9b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

shânîym (שָנִים) [pronounced shaw-NEEM]

years

feminine plural noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #8141 BDB #1040

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

ʾakezârîy (אַכְזָרִי) [pronounced ahk-zaw-REE]

cruel, merciless; harsh; fierce, savage; one who brings bad tidings

masculine singular adjective

Strong’s #394 BDB #470


Translation: ...and [so that you do not give] your years to [a person] without mercy [or, the cruel one];... A believer will spend the rest of his life with a woman, and David warns Solomon not to give the rest of his life to a woman who is a savage, who does not believe in Solomon’s God.


Your years actually stands for all that you have worked for during your life. Nearly every person accumulates some sort of wealth, some more than others, by the end of their lives. When we realize that we are not going to take it with us, we are faced with determining, where does it go. When you are married to a woman whom you love, and you have children by her, then this decision is easy. It is essentially made for you. That is where your wealth goes, because you promised the woman from the first to take care of her—and whatever you have accumulated goes to her, to take care of her. Or it goes to take care of your children; to give them a head start in life.


So far, this passage reads: Remove your way from her and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not give to others your majesty and [so that you do not give] your years to [a person] without mercy [or, the cruel one];...

Interpreting “A Person without Mercy” (or, the Cruel One)

1)      One interpretation is, this woman is called cruel or merciless here; indicating that this is a woman without grace. This is a woman who does not understand God’s grace. The problem with that is, the adjective is a masculine singular adjective.

2)      Therefore, a masculine singular adjective would probably refer to a son of theirs. It is quite logical that David was thinking of Absalom here, who was born of royal blood, but was a cruel and grasping young man. Several of David’s sons could have been in David’s mind, because he raised sons who lacked mercy and graciousness (because, in fact, David just did not really raise these children).

3)      Some understand this to be a collective referring to the entourage of the woman;

4)      The harlot herself (the masculine gender aside);

5)      The purchaser of the adulterer (I guess as a slave?).

Others which I have read:

6)      The husband of the woman.

7)      And perhaps this is a reference to Satan, who now has quite a say in one’s life as a result.

All of these are quite specific and they all have their problems, with the exception of #2. However, the most logical to me is, the resultant son of such a pairing. This would be the best fit to David’s personal experience. If all there is, is a sexual lust, which would wear off at some point, then there is little else which holds together Solomon and such a woman together. Then Solomon would be less likely to tend to this garden; and less likely to tend to any children who are a result of their intimacy.

If the cruel one is Satan, then this means that Solomon could potentially give himself over to the cosmic system; which is what David had done (David is speaking from experience).

I have read these examples in several places. Example The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:9. Jim Rickard suggests the interpretation that this is Satan.

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Proverbs 5:10a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

pen (פֶּן) [pronounced pen]

lest, peradventure, or else, in order to prevent, or, so that [plus a negative]

conjunction

Strong's #6435 BDB #814

sâbaʿ (שָׂבַע) [pronounced sawb-VAHĢ]

to satisfy, to satisfy [with food or drink], to fill, to satiate; to saturate [land with rain]

3rd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong’s #7646 BDB #959

zûwr (זוּר) [pronounced zoor]

a stranger, an alien; an enemy; of another family; a strange woman, an adulteress; strange children [bastards]; unlawful; another; new, unheard of; unauthorized person

masculine plural, Qal active participle

Strong's #2114 BDB #266

kôwach (כּוֹחַ) [pronounced KOE-ahkh]; and spelled kôach (כֹּחַ) [pronounced KOE-ahkh]

strength, power, ability; produce; substance, riches, wealth [of soil]; the product of one’s labors

masculine singular substantive with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #3581 BDB #470

The NET Bible: The word כֹּחַ (coakh, “strength”) refers to what laborious toil would produce (so a metonymy of cause). Everything that this person worked for could become the property for others to enjoy.

The Pulpit Commentary has a somewhat dense explanation: The margin reads, "your strength" for "your wealth," but the text properly renders the original koakh, which means "substance," "wealth," "riches the youth"s possessions in money and property (Delitzsch). The primary meaning of the word is "strength" or "might," as appears from the verb kakhakh , "to exert one’s self," from which it is derived, but the parallel atsabeyka, "your toils," rendered "your labours," determines its use in the secondary sense here. Compare the similar passage in Hos. 7:9, "Strangers have devoured his strength koakh, i.e. "his possessions", and he knows it not". (see also Job. 6:22) Koakh is the concrete product resulting from the abstract strength or ability when brought into action. Your labours (atsabeyka); i.e. your toils, the product of laborious toil, that which you have gotten by the labour of your hands, and earned with the sweat of your brow.


Translation: ...so that strangers are not filled with your strength [or, the product of your labors]... Solomon, as king, would be powerful, rich, and authoritative. David warns his son not to give away this strength or to allow aliens to be filled with his strength. This is not so much that David is against any mixture of races; it is that David is against any mixture of religion. He does not want Solomon to become corrupted with a false faith.


It is typical for a man, particularly in his youth, to work hard, to use the strength of his youth to build, to cultivate, to labor; and, there are rewards which come with this labor. This sort of thing is clearly relative (I live in an era where it is possible to collect a huge houseful of stuff as a result of one’s labor). However, Solomon would expend the effort, Solomon would exert the strength of his youth, and the end result would be that relative strangers would enjoy the fruits of his labors.


Again, the implication is, a relationship with the wrong woman (a strange or foreign woman) would not result in a close relationship—a relationship that works on the spiritual, personal, mental and emotional levels, if it was primarily a result of physical desire. It has happened millions of times in contemporary American life, that two people, all of a sudden, wonder, just who is this person I am married to? I don’t know them at all! David is warning Solomon about ending up with a house of strangers, and it is they who squander the produce of his labors.


David was right; he was looking down the corridors of times, warning Solomon about some very real problems that he might face. David was right about these problems, and one must admire Solomon’s objectivity, to include this information in the book of Proverbs, even though it describes exactly how he screwed up his own life.


Solomon took 1000 women, either to wife or as mistresses, and he gave away the strength of his youth to these women (and their resultant children), even though he appeared to lack a true relationship with any of them (the book, the Song of Solomon, is Solomon once again, chasing after a woman, in whom he places his hopes and dreams—despite being married to so many women already).


Prov. 31:3 warns: Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings.


Proverbs 5:10b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʿêtseb (עֵצֶב) [pronounced ĢEY-tsehbv]

[heavy and toilsome] labor; pain, hurt, toil; hardship; offense; grief of mind, anger

masculine plural noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #6089 BDB #780

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

bayith (בַּיִת) [pronounced BAH-yith]

house, residence; household, habitation as well as inward

masculine singular construct

Strong's #1004 BDB #108

nŏkerîy (נָכְרִי) [pronounced nawcke-REE or nohk-REE]

foreign, alien, stranger; strange; foreign woman, a harlot; of another family; metaphorically, unknown, unfamiliar; new, unheard of

masculine singular adjective

Strong’s #5237 BDB #648


Translation: ...and [so that all of] your work [does not end up] in the house of a foreigner,... Solomon would be dedicating his life to public service; and David is warning for him not to allow all of his work to go to a foreigner, meaning a person who is not subject to Solomon’s God.


It is interesting that David recognized that Solomon had that sort of predilection, even though, insofar as we know, Solomon was quite young during these formative years of doctrinal teaching.


We will repeat a similar theme from many teachers.

Jim Rickard’s Four Consequences of Proverbs 5:9–10

1.      Because you gave your glory, “vigor”, to “others” you will have a poor reputation with man, and no fellowship with God resulting in loss of rewards in the eternal state.

2.      You gave your “years” to “the cruel one”, i.e., Satan and his Cosmic System, rather than God, “A wasteful life,” Eph 5:18.

3.      Rather than producing Divine Good for the Lord, “your strength”, you will satisfy the lustful desires of the adulteress by giving her offspring, “strangers”.

4.      If you operate inside of Satan’s Cosmic System the fruits of your labor or offspring will go to the adulteress, “alien”, those not walking in the Plan of God including the false teacher.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 25, 2015.

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Proverbs 5:11a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

nâham (נָהַם) [pronounced naw-HAHM]

to growl [of a lion], to groan [of a sufferer]; roaring [of the sea]

2nd person masculine singular, Qal perfect

Strong’s #5098 BDB #625

The NET Bible: The form is the perfect tense with the vav consecutive; it is equal to a specific future within this context.

Rickard: In scripture NAHAM is used to express: 1. The deep guttural, piercing growl of a lion, especially as it grasps its prey (Prov. 28:15 Isa. 5:29-30). 2. The groan of persons forced into captivity in exile (Ezek. 24:23).

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

ʾachărîyth (אַחֲרִית) [pronounced ahkh-ar-EETH]

after part, end; end, issue, event; latter time (prophetic for future time); posterity; last, hindermost

feminine singular adjective (or substantive) with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #319 BDB #31


Translation: ...and you groan [with dissatisfaction] at your end,... At some point, at least at the very end of his life, Solomon will realize what he has done and he will groan with unhappiness and dissatisfaction. David nearly came to that very end himself.


Our lives move only in one direction; we start out young and we grow older. There will be a point at which, we realize that we have frittered out lives away. David is trying to teach Solomon so that this does not happen to him.

 

Keil and Delitzsch: the end consists to which the deluded youth is brought,...[causes him to exhale] the sorrowful sound of despair...[because] his flesh is consumed away, for sensuality and vexation have worked together to undermine his health.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: [This is] the loud wail of lamentation, the groaning indicative of intense mental suffering called forth by the remembrance of past folly, and which sees no remedy in the future.

 

Jim Rickard: [Therefore] NAHAM denotes a cry of anguish from extreme destitution and exhaustion that may lead to self-recrimination of spiritual bankruptcy that represents a situation when regret and remorse comes too late.


We have an historic example of this in Esau, who, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears. (Heb. 12:17) The remorse expressed by Judas is very similar in nature (Matt. 27:3). However, God is not moved by our emotional repentance, if it is not accompanied by rebound (naming one’s sins to Him) and by a change of mental attitude. Emotional outbursts or pleas mean little to God, even though we may feel such things quite profoundly. Surely, you have seen a child lose all control of his or her emotion at some point. You may have felt sad for the child (depending upon his age), but, for the most part, you just let the kid get over it. Why? Because the kid is focused entirely on himself and is not subject in the least to reason.


Solomon will feel regret near the end of his life and he will also turn things around. The writing of the book of Ecclesiastes is what suggests that Solomon, at some point, turned it all around. The emotional remorse that he felt is unimportant; the change in his thinking is of utmost importance.


This regret felt by the skirt-chaser at the end of his life is exactly the opposite of what Paul expressed in 2Tim. 4:6-8 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.


I may want to edit this in the future.

The Pulpit Commentary on, Mourning at the Last

What multitudes of men and women have there been who, on beds of pain, or in homes of poverty, or under strong spiritual apprehension, have "mourned at the last"! After tasting and "enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season," they have found that iniquity must meet its doom, and they have "mourned at the last." Sin makes fair promises, but breaks its word. It owns that there is a debt due for guilty pleasure, but it hints that it will not send in the bill for many years; perhaps never: but that account has to be settled, and they who persist in sinful indulgence will find, when it is too late, that they have to "mourn at the last." This is true of

I        SLOTHFULNESS. Very pleasant to be idling when others are busy, to be following the bent of our own fancy, dallying with the passing hours, amusing ourselves the whole day long, the whole year through; but there is retribution for wasted hours, for misspent youth, for negligent and idle manhood, to be endured further on; there is self-reproach, condemnation of the good and wise, an ill-regulated mind, straitened means if not poverty, mourning at the last.

II       INTEMPERANCE. Very tempting may be the jovial feast, very fascinating the sparkling cup, Very inviting the hilarity of the festive circle; but there is the end of it all to be taken into account, not only tomorrow"s pain or lassitude, but the forfeiture of esteem, the weakening of the soul"s capacity for pure enjoyment, the depravation of the taste, the encircling round the spirit of those cruel fetters which "at the last" hold it in cruel bondage.

III      LASCIVIOUSNESS. (See previous homily.)

IV      WORLDLINESS. There is a strong temptation presented to men to throw themselves into, so as to be absorbed by, the affairs of time and sense business, politics, literature, art, one or other of the various amusements which entertain and gratify. This inordinate, excessive, unqualified devotion to any earthly pursuit, while it is to be distinguished from abandonment to forbidden pleasure, is yet wrong and ruinous. It is wrong, for it leaves out of reckoning the supreme obligation that which we owe to him in whom we live and move and have our being, and who has redeemed us with his own blood. It is ruinous, for it leaves us

         (1)     without the heritage we were meant to have, and may have, in God, in Jesus Christ and his blessed service and salvation;

         (2)     unprepared for the other and larger life which is so near to us, and to which we approach by every step we take. However pleasant be the pursuits we engage in or the prizes we win, we shall wake one day from our dream with shame and fear; we shall "mourn at the last.

The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:11.

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Proverbs 5:11b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

kâlâh (כָּלָה) [pronounced kaw-LAWH]

to complete, to finish; to be past, to go by; to consume, to waste, to destroy; to be completed or finished, to be accomplished or fulfilled; to be consumed [wasted or spent]

Qal infinitive construct

Strong's #3615 BDB #477

The NET Bible: Heb “in the finishing of your flesh and your body.” The construction uses the Qal infinitive construct of כָּלָה (calah) in a temporal clause; the verb means “be complete, at an end, finished, spent.” 

bâsâr (בָּשָׂר) [pronounced baw-SAWR]

flesh; body; animal meat

masculine singular noun with a 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #1320 BDB #142

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

sheʾêr (שְאֵר) [pronounced sheair]

flesh, body; meat; food, as food; for physical power (figuratively); kin, near kin, near kinswoman; flesh relation, blood relation; self

masculine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #7607 BDB #984


Translation: ...when is completed your flesh and bone [lit., flesh and body]. His flesh and bone will come to an end; it will come to a point of completion. David does not want his son to have that happen, and realize that he has given all of his life over to a woman (or, in his case, women) who have rejected his God.

 

James Burton Cummings: [T]he physical destruction that is identified with this sin is epic in its proportions. In this writer's boyhood, the strongest youth in the community could tear a deck of cards in two, chin himself with either hand, and perform other amazing things; but he went to work in the oil fields, indulged his lust with prostitutes, contracted syphilis, and returned in a wheel-chair ("locomotor ataxia"), and to an untimely death. Almost invariably the fatal disease of aids is directly the result of indulging in this sin.

 

J. Vernon McGee: There was an infamous gangster in the penitentiary in Atlanta. One of the officers there told me that this man had contracted syphilis, which had not been cured and went on to cause paresis and eventually insanity. That man was a blubbering idiot before he died. The officer told me this: "This man was responsible for the ruin of many a girl. But it is interesting that he didn't get by with that sort of thing. Some girl along the route got even with him." God's Word here is warning against that kind of thing.

 

McGee continues: What a warning is given here to this young man. This gives a true picture of the end result of venereal disease. At last there is a mourning when the flesh and the body are consumed. Here in California venereal disease has reached epidemic proportions.

 

The 2011 data on chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis published in CDC’s annual report, indicates that, [the] CDC estimates that 19 million new STD infections occur every year in this country, nearly half among young people ages 15-24. Each of these infections is a potential threat to an individual’s immediate and long-term health and well-being. In addition to increasing a person’s risk for HIV infection, STDs can lead to severe reproductive health complications, such as infertility. STDs are also a serious drain on the U.S. health care system, costing the nation about $17 billion in health care costs every year.


Vv. 8–11 read: Remove your way from the unchaste woman and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not end up giving away your majesty and your years to those who are not grace oriented. Do not allow strangers to sap away your strength so that all of your production does not end up in the house of a foreigner, so that you groan with unhappiness when you are about to die. The actual, literal interpretation is, Solomon is not to fraternize with the wrong type of women; he is not to chase after women based upon desire alone. They will take away his strength, his majesty and his years.


Guglielmo found a lot of application for this chapter.

Joe Guglielmo on the High Cost of Sexual Sins

Verse 11 says, “And you mourn at last, When your flesh and your body are consumed.” Keep in mind that back then there was no cure for sexually transmitted diseases. And if you live this loose lifestyle and catch one of these, it was a slow, agonizing death. And in the end, all that you worked so hard for, so hard to obtain will be given to another. Today we once again are seeing a tremendous increase in sexually transmitted diseases, some for which there is no cure! And it is not just the young, we are seeing an increase in STD’s in older people, in their 60’s, 70’s and even 80’s!


Listen to this regarding AIDS. We are told,


The first cases of what would later become known as AIDS were reported in the United States in June of 1981. Since then, 1.7 million people in the U.S. are estimated to have been infected with HIV, including over 619,000 who have already died and approximately 1.2 million (1,178,350) adults and adolescents who were living with HIV infection at the end of 2008, the most recent year for which national prevalence estimates are available. The impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic spans the nation with HIV diagnoses having been reported in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. dependencies, possessions, and associated nations.


CDC estimates that more than one million people are living with HIV in the U.S. One in five (20%) of those people living with HIV is unaware of their infection.


Despite increases in the total number of people living with HIV in the U.S. in recent years, the annual number of new HIV infections has remained relatively stable. However, new infections continue at far too high a level, with approximately 50,000 Americans becoming infected with HIV each year. More than 17,000 people with AIDS in the U.S. died in 2009 and more than 619,000 people with AIDS in the U.S. have died since the epidemic began.


From http://aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/statistics/


There is a cost and that is what God is warning us about. It is a physical loss, it is a spiritual loss, there is nothing good that can come from sexual promiscuity, from sexual sin, only death and destruction of lives! How can people fall prey to this? We don’t have to guess, Solomon is going to tell us.

From http://www.ccmanitowoc.org/index.php/media1/messages/message/proverbs-4-5 accessed August 31, 2015 (slightly edited).

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The consequences are spelled out in three ways in these passages. There are social consequences, economic consequences, and there are personal spiritual consequences. The NASB is used throughout.

Robert Dean on the Consequences of Interaction with the Immoral Woman

1.      The father says: Proverbs 5:4 But in the end [after your moment of pleasure] she is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword. Immediately things go from great to horrible and you never know what the long-term consequences might be. They always lead to death: not physical death, not spiritual death, but to an emptiness of life—the lack of joy, the lack of fulfillment, the lack of any kind of significance in life. To yield to sexual temptation always leads to guilt, remorse, and numerous other factors.

2.      Proverbs 5:9–10 Or you will give your vigor to others And your years to the cruel one. You are spending your resources, the value of your life goes to someone else. And strangers will be filled with your strength And your hard-earned goods {will go} to the house of an alien. And so what happens is this loss of wealth is transferred to the adulterous woman.

3.      Proverbs 5:11–14 And you groan at your final end [regret, remorse and guilt], When your flesh and your body are consumed; And you say, 'How I have hated instruction! And my heart spurned reproof! I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to my instructors! I was almost in utter ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation." This is the expression of guilt and remorse by the person who has yielded to temptation. For once that occurs it is easier the next time, easier the next time, easier the next time. It leads to a pattern which leads to a destruction of life.

Other passages that emphasize the regret and remorse are Proverbs 6:32–33 The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense; He who would destroy himself does it. Wounds and disgrace he will find, And his reproach will not be blotted out. Proverbs 6:26 For on account of a harlot {one is reduced} to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life. He is wiped out financially, and another man's wife (literally) will prey upon his precious life. Proverbs 29:3 A man who loves wisdom makes his father glad, But he who keeps company with harlots wastes {his} wealth. So again and again the consequences that we see just economically and personally leads to business collapse and to national collapse. Proverbs 6:27–29 Can a man take fire in his bosom And his clothes not be burned? Or can a man walk on hot coals And his feet not be scorched? So is the one who goes in to his neighbor's wife; Whoever touches her will not go unpunished.

 From DeanBible.org; accessed August 27, 2015.

Chapter Outline

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Referring to the passage above:

Summary of the Consequences of Cavorting with the Immoral Woman

1.      One gives away his honor and majesty.

2.      One’s strength is sapped away.

3.      The stranger takes away valuable time in our lives.

4.      All that we work for might be spirited away.

5.      At the end of our lives, our souls are filled with unhappiness because of the mistakes we have made in life.

David clearly means this literally and he is speaking from experience.

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Jim Rickard: [S]exual immorality today...leads to alimony, child support, broken homes, hurt, jealousy, lonely people, various venereal diseases, etc. and therefore has many negative consequences that we can easily avoid.


There are national consequences for a nation steeped in immorality and embroiled in adultery. Robert Dean points out that this is one of the things which preceded the destruction of national entity Judah. Jeremiah 5:7–8 "Why should I pardon you? Your sons have forsaken Me And sworn by those who are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, They committed adultery And trooped to the harlot's house. They were well-fed lusty horses, Each one neighing after his neighbor's wife." Jeremiah 7:9–10 "Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say, 'We are delivered!'—that you may do all these abominations?" Jeremiah 23:10 "For the land is full of adulterers; For the land mourns because of the curse. The pastures of the wilderness have dried up. Their course also is evil And their might is not right." Notice: Even the impact of sexual immorality in the nature destroys natural resources. NASB used for the above passages.


The corrective is to remain faithful to your wife. Focus upon her and build that level of intimacy and love within the marriage so that there is no reason to look elsewhere.


Up to this point, we have used the term cosmic system on several occasions, and will continue to make reference to it. Therefore, we need to define it.

Definition of the Cosmic System

1.      The cosmic system is Satan’s strategy as the ruler of this world to influence believers. The cosmic system is the policy Satan invokes to rule the world.

2.      Satan’s cosmic system is composed of two separate dynaspheres.

         1)      Cosmic one: Cosmic one is Satan’s exploitation of believers through their own arrogance. This is his means of influencing the human race. Satan is the author of arrogance, for arrogance was his original sin.

         2)      Cosmic two: Cosmic two is Satan’s propaganda and indoctrination that educates and promotes antagonism toward anything related to God, especially the grace of God.

3.      Cosmic one represents Satan’s attitude at the time of his prehistoric fall. Cosmic two represents Satan’s attitude at the time of Adam’s fall in the Garden of Eden.

4.      Cosmic one emphasizes arrogance and abnormal preoccupation with self. Cosmic two emphasizes antagonism and intolerance toward the plan, purpose, and will of God, and toward all Christians executing the will of God.

5.      Cosmic one is Satan’s philosophy in the prehistoric angelic conflict. Cosmic two is Satan’s philosophy in human history as the ruler of this world.

6.      The target of cosmic one is a human being; the target of cosmic two is Bible doctrine. In cosmic one, an individual destroys himself. In cosmic two, the individual becomes antagonistic toward Bible doctrine.

7.      In order for Satan to rule, he must produce two factors.

         1)      Self induced arrogance that divorces an individual from the reality of God’s plan.

         2)      Antagonism toward Bible doctrine. Only through the perception, metabolization, and application of doctrine do believers have any hope of becoming tactically victorious, complementing our Lord’s strategic victory in the angelic conflict.

8.      Cosmic one emphasizes self in contrast to God. Cosmic two emphasizes the human viewpoint of psychological living in contrast to the divine viewpoint of spiritual living.

Cosmic One

Cosmic Two

1.      Emphasis is upon arrogance; preoccupation with self.

1.      Emphasis is upon animosity, hatred, antagonism toward God & His plan.

2.      Satan’s target: ego, self consciousness of soul.

2.      Satan’s target: truth or doctrine.

3.      Result of hit: preoccupation and obsession with self to and obsession with self to the exclusion of God and man.

3.      Result of hit: antagonism toward Christ as the living Word and doctrine as the written Word.

4.      Emphasizes self in contrast to God and objective reality.

4.      Stresses human viewpoint over Divine viewpoint.

5.      Represents Satan’s attitude at time of his prehistoric fall.

5.      Represents Satan’s attitude at time of man’s historical fall.

6.      Represents Satan’s philosophy in the prehistoric angelic conflict when he was obsessed with self in maximum arrogance.

6.      Represents Satan’s philosophy as ruler of world after fall of man. Now he’s obsessed with destroying the plan of God as the #1 enemy of the plan of God.

7.      Believer in cosmic one assumes the arrogance that existed before human history.

7.      Believer in cosmic two becomes inculcated with the attitude of Satan during human history.

8.      Believer is a slave to self.

8.      Believer is a slave to Satan.

From http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/?page_id=1115 accessed August 24, 2015 (edited). The credit for this doctrine would go to R. B. Thieme, Jr. (Bible Doctrine Resource still needs to credit the sources of their collection of doctrines) See doctrines of Cosmic One and Cosmic Two.

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There is a parallel interpretation: if we spend our lives inside of the cosmic system, we are robbed of our strength, our majesty and our years. This places us outside of the plan of God, and when we do not walk in His ways, we cannot receive (or even appreciate) His blessing. The parallel is, David is warning Solomon about spending time with the wrong woman; and we are spending time with the wrong god (when we are in the cosmic system). Solomon is committing a form of adultery; and we are committing spiritual adultery.

 

James Burton Cummings: The thrust of the whole passage is that unlawful and promiscuous sex destroys the participant socially, financially, morally, and even physically. Such activity is a sin against society, against the family, against one's own body, against the church and against God Himself.


Spiritual immorality is when you reject Jesus Christ and you reject Bible doctrine, and, instead, engage Satan’s thinking in the cosmic system.

The Consequences of Spiritual Immorality

1.      You give away your honor and majesty.

2.      Your strength and power in the spiritual life is sapped away.

3.      Life inside the cosmic system robs us of valuable time in our lives.

4.      All that we work for is wood, hay and stubble and will be burned at the final judgment.

5.      At the end of our lives, our souls are filled with unhappiness because of the mistakes we have made in life.

 

Chapter Outline

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Timothy Peck: According to v. 11 sexual sin cuts our lives short. We know that to be true more today than ever before, with the advent of AIDS and the constant emergence of new sexually transmitted diseases. The average life span for a homosexual man today is 42 years old. I have a cousin who’s in his 40s who’s dying of AIDS. He’s so weak now that he can’t even get out of bed without help.


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Chapter Outline

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Regret from Not Listening to and Obeying Solid Doctrinal Teaching


After the fact, I placed vv. 12–13 together and separate from what precedes. However, v. 11 is very closely affixed to v. 12 in most of the translations. Vv. 8–14 express a continuous line of thinking, which is retained in some translations and will be put together near the end as well.


And you have said, “How I have hated discipline and reproof abhors my heart. And I have not listened in a voice of my instructors and to my teachers I have not inclined my ear.

Proverbs

5:12–13

Therefore, you will say, “How I hated discipline [or, instruction] and my heart has abhorred reproof. I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] instructors; and I have not inclined my ear to [doctrinal] teachers.

Consequently, you will say, “How I hated discipline and how much my heart abhorred reproof. I did not listen to my Bible teachers; and I did not concentrate on doctrinal teaching.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Remove from upon her your way and do not draw near unto an opening of her house, lest you give to others your honor and your years to a merciless one; lest fill strangers your strength and your labors [are] in a house of a foreigner; and you have groaned at your end in a completion of your flesh and body. And you have said, “How I have hated discipline and reproof abhors my heart. And I have not listened in a voice of my instructors and to my teachers I have not inclined my ear.

Latin Vulgate                          And you mourn at the last, when you will have spent your flesh and your body, and say; Why have I hated instruction, and my heart consented not to reproof, And have not heard the voice of them that taught me, and have not inclined my ear to masters? V. 11 is included for context.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   And you will say, "Why have I hated instruction and my heart has despised reproof"

"And I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, and to my instructors have not turned my ear"?

Peshitta (Syriac)                    And you say, Why did I hate instruction, and my heart despise reproof, And why have I not obeyed the voice of my teacher, nor inclined my ear to them that instructed me?

Septuagint (Greek)                ...and you shall say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart avoided reproofs! I heard not the voice of him that instructed me, and taught me, neither did I incline my ear.

 

Significant differences:           Hebrew has abhor; the Latin has consents not; the Greek has avoided.

 

Instructors is in the plural in the Hebrew; apparently in the singular in the Syriac (?) and the Greek.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             And you will be full of grief at the end of your life, when your flesh and your body are wasted;

And you will say, How was teaching hated by me, and my heart put no value on training;

I did not give attention to the voice of my teachers, my ear was not turned to those who were guiding me! V. 11 is included for context.

Easy English                          When your body is weak, then you will speak.

‘I was very stupid.

I hated discipline. And I refused correction.

I did not obey my teachers.

I did not learn my lessons. V. 11 is included for context.

God’s Word                         Then you will groan when your end comes,

when your body and flesh are consumed.

You will say,

“Oh, how I hated discipline!

How my heart despised correction!

I didn’t listen to what my teachers said to me,

nor did I keep my ear open to my instructors. V. 11 is included for context.

Good News Bible (TEV)         You will lie groaning on your deathbed, your flesh and muscles being eaten away, and you will say, "Why would I never learn? Why would I never let anyone correct me? I wouldn't listen to my teachers. I paid no attention to them. V. 11 is included for context.

The Message                         You don't want to end your life full of regrets, nothing but sin and bones,

Saying, "Oh, why didn't I do what they told me? Why did I reject a disciplined life? Why didn't I listen to my mentors, or take my teachers seriously? V. 11 is included for context.

NIRV                                      You will say, “How I hated to take advice!

How my heart refused to be corrected!

I would not obey my teachers.

I wouldn’t listen to those who taught me.

New Simplified Bible              You say: »How I have hated instruction! My heart despised reproof.

»I did not obey the voice of my teachers. I did not listen to my instructors!


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           You will groan at the end

when your body and flesh are exhausted,

and you say, “How I hated instruction!

How my heart despised correction!

I didn’t listen to the voice of my instructor.

I didn’t obey my teacher. V. 11 is included for context.

Contemporary English V.       When it's all over, your body will waste away, as you groan and shout, "I hated advice and correction! I paid no attention to my teachers, and now I am disgraced in front of everyone." Vv. 11 and 14 are included for context.

The Living Bible                     Lest afterwards you groan in anguish and in shame when syphilis [literally, “disease.”] consumes your body, and you say, “Oh, if only I had listened! If only I had not demanded my own way! Oh, why wouldn’t I take advice? Why was I so stupid? V. 11 is included for context.

New Berkeley Version           ...and you exclaim, “Alas, I have hated discipline,

and my heart despised reproof;

I have not listened to the voice of my teachers,

nor inclined my ear to my instructors;...

New Century Version             Then you will say, “I hated being told what to do!

I would not listen to correction!

I would not listen to my teachers

or pay attention to my instructors.

New Life Version                    You would say, "How I have hated teaching! My heart hated strong words! I have not listened to the voice of my teachers. I have not turned my ear to those who would teach me.

New Living Translation           You will say, “How I hated discipline!

If only I had not ignored all the warnings!

Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers?

Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          You'll say, 'O how I hated to be told… how discipline [bothered] my heart! So I wouldn't accept their correction… my ears didn't hear the things I was taught.

Beck’s American Translation ...and you say, “How I hated discipline

and in my heart scorned correction.

I didn’t listen to what my teachers taught me

or hear what my instructors said.

International Standard V        You will cry out in anguish when your end comes,

when your flesh and body are consumed,

you will say, “How I hated instruction [Or discipline],

and my heart rejected correction!

I did not obey my teachers

and did not listen [Lit. incline my ear] to my instructors. V. 11 is included for context.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       ...a time will come at last when health and strength shall be wasted away. Then thou wilt complain bitterly, Alas, why did I spurn every precept, reject every warning, unheard, unheeded, every lesson I was taught? Vv. 10b–11 are included for context.

Translation for Translators     Then you will say, “I hated it when people tried to correct me.

I despised people when they reproved/rebuked me.

I did not heed what my teachers said!

I paid no attention to those who tried to teach me something about my behavior.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      In the future, you will growl as your flesh-and-blood and flesh finishes,

saying, "How I hated correction! My heart abused testing.

I never heard the voice of my directors, and never affixed my ear to my learning! V. 11 is included for context.

Conservapedia                       And say, I have hated instructions and my heart despised correction, I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers nor have I listened with my ear to those who instructed me!

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                ...And you groan at results to yourself, With your body and manhood destroyed, And exclaim, ‘ How I hated instruction, And rejected reproof from my heart ! Nor would learn from the voice of my teacher, Nor bend to instruction my ears! V. 11 is included for context.

HCSB                                     At the end of your life, you will lament when your physical body has been consumed, and you will say, "How I hated discipline, and how my heart despised correction. I didn't obey my teachers or listen closely to my mentors. V. 11 is included for context.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  ...and thou mourn at the last when thy flesh and thy body are consumed and say, How have I hated chastening and my heart despised reproof and have not obeyed the voice of those who chastened me, nor inclined my ear to those that instructed me! V. 11 is included for context.

NIV – UK                                You will say, ‘How I hated discipline!

How my heart spurned correction!

I would not obey my teachers

or turn my ear to my instructors.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  You will complain in the end, when your body and flesh are already devoured and

you will say, ¡°Why did I reject instruction and turn my back on sound advice?

Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers and follow their counsel? V. 11 is included for context.

The Heritage Bible                 ...And you groan at the end, when your flesh and your body are finished, And say, How I have hated corrective discipline, and my heart despised rebuke, And have not attentively heard the voice of those who caused it to flow to me; I have not spread out my ears to them who taught [lamad, goaded me with a rod of discipline.] me! V. 11 is included for context.

New American Bible (2011)   And you say, “Oh, why did I hate instruction,

and my heart spurn reproof!

Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers,

incline my ear to my instructors!

New Jerusalem Bible             And now, son, listen to me, never deviate from what I say:

set your course as far from her as possible, go nowhere near the door of her house,

or she will hand over your honour to others, the years of your life to a man without pity,

and strangers will batten on your property, and your produce go to the house of a stranger,

and, at your ending, your body and flesh having been consumed, you will groan

and exclaim, 'Alas, I hated discipline, my heart spurned all correction;

I would not attend to the voice of my masters, I would not listen to those who tried to teach me. V. 7–11 are included for context.

Revised English Bible            Now, my sons, listen to me and do not ignore what I say:

keep well away from her and do not go near the door of her house,

or you will surrender your vigour to others, the pride of your manhood to the heartless.

Strangers will batten on your wealth, and your hard-won gains pass to the family of another.

When you shrink to skin and bone you will end by groaning

and saying, “Oh, why did I hate correction and set my heart against reproof?

Why did I not listen to the voice of my teachers and pay heed to my instructors? V. 7–11 are included for context.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           So now, children, listen to me; don't turn away from what I am saying: distance your way from her, stay far from the door of her house; so that you won't give your vigor to others and your years to someone who is cruel, so strangers won't be filled with your strength and what you worked for go to a foreign house. Then, when your flesh and bones have shrunk, at the end of your life, you would moan, "How I hated discipline! My whole being despised reproof, I ignored what my teachers said, I didn't listen to my instructors. V. 7–11 are included for context.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...and say, How I hated discipline

and my heart scorned reproof:

and I neither obeyed the voice of my teachers

nor spread my ear to them who taught me:...

Judaica Press Complete T.    ...and you will say, "How is it that I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof; and I did not hearken to my instructors, and to my teachers I did not incline my ear?

Orthodox Jewish Bible           ...And say, How have I hated musar, and my lev spurned tokhakhat (reproof); And have not obeyed the voice of my morim (teachers), nor inclined mine ear to the ones who were my melamed!


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                ...And you say, How I hated instruction and discipline, and my heart despised reproof!

I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers nor submitted and consented to those who instructed me.

The Expanded Bible              Then you will say, “I hated ·being told what to do [instruction; discipline]!

·I would not listen to [LMy heart despised] correction!

I would not listen to my teachers

or ·pay attention [extend my heart] to my instructors.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    ...and say, How have I hated instruction, as here given, and my heart despised reproof, by which earnest men, true friends, tried to keep him from the path of lewdness; and have not obeyed the voice of my teachers nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me! Such is the vain lament of the ruined sinner over his neglect of warning and his sad fate in being brought to public disgrace.

NET Bible®                             And you will say, “How I hated discipline!

My heart spurned reproof!

For I did not obey my teachers

and I did not heed my instructors.

Syndein/Thieme                     And you say, "EYK {eyk - expression of grief in Hebrew} I have hated disciplinary warning . . . also my right lobe despised and ridiculed corrective discipline." "Furthermore I have not listened to or obeyed the voice of my instructors . . . nor concentrated on the message of those who taught me!"

The Voice                               Then you’ll say, “Why did I hate being taught?

Why did I turn my back on correction?

I disregarded all that my teachers said to me;

I turned my ear away from my instructors!


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    And you have anguish in your latter days When your flesh and your brawn are exhausted,

And you say, How I have hated discipline, And my heart has spurned correction!"

I have not hearkened to the voice of those directing my instruction, And to those teaching me I have not stretched out my ear;" V. 11 is included for context.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Yes that you mourn not at the last, (when you have spent your body and goods) and then say: Alas, why hated I nurture? why did my heart despise correction? Wherefore was not I obedient unto the voice of my teachers, and hearken not unto them that informed me? V. 11 is included for context.

NASB                                     And you groan at your final [Or latter] end,

When your flesh and your body are consumed;

And you say, “How I have hated instruction!

And my heart spurned reproof!

“I have not listened to the voice of my teachers,

Nor inclined my ear to my instructors! V. 11 is included for context.

New European Version          You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed, and say, How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof; neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor turned my ear to those who instructed me! V. 11 is included for context.

New King James Version       And you mourn at last,

When your flesh and your body are consumed,

And say:

“How I have hated instruction,

And my heart despised correction!

I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,

Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! V. 11 is included for context.

Stuart Wolf                             And you will say, ‘How did I hate discipline/instruction, and reproof my heart despised?

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

Updated Bible Version 2.11   And you mourn at your latter end, When your flesh and your body are consumed,

And say, How I have hated instruction, And my heart despised reproof;

Neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! V. 11 is included for context.

Webster’s Bible Translation  And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;

And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to them that instructed me! V. 11 is included for context.

Young’s Updated LT             And have said, “How have I hated instruction, And reproof has my heart despised, And I have not hearkened to the voice of my directors, And to my teachers have not inclined my ear.

 

The gist of this passage:     In the end, your dying breath will be, “I ignored the teaching of doctrinal teachers.”


Proverbs 5:12a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾâmar (אָמַר) [pronounced aw-MAHR]

to say, to speak, to utter; to say [to oneself], to think; to command; to promise; to explain; to intend; to decide; to answer

2nd person masculine singular, Qal perfect

Strong’s #559 BDB #55

ʾêyk (אֵי) [pronounced ayche]; ʾêykâh (אֵיכָה) [pronounced ā-KAW]

how; in what manner; where

interrogative adverb; also used as an exclamation

Strong’s #349 BDB #32

BDB’s complete set of meanings: 1) how? (interrogative adverb); 2) how! (in lamentation) (interjection); 3) expression of satisfaction (interjection). There are 3 alternate spellings for this word.

sânêʾ (שָׂנֵא) [pronounced saw-NAY]

to hate, loath; to be hateful, to be filled with animosity

1st person singular, Qal perfect

Strong’s #8130 BDB #971

mûwçâr (מוּסָר) [pronounced moo-SAWR]

discipline [of the moral nature], chastening, correction; admonition; instruction, doctrine

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #4148 BDB #416

Jim Rickard: MUSAR, מוּסָר, [means]... “discipline, reproof and instruction.” Here it is “instruction” in the school of wisdom, characterized by reverence or fear of the Lord.


Translation: Therefore, you will say, “How I hated discipline [or, instruction]... If Solomon gives in and gives himself over to foreign women, he will, at the end of his life, say, “How I hated discipline, how I hated correction!” When we go astray of God’s plan, God often provides discipline in order to guide us in the right way. A person can either response to God’s discipline or try to ignore it.


Men have regrets at the end of their lives, and this is a result of not staying with the plan of God (or, not believing in Jesus Christ in the first place). Some believers reside for long periods of time in the cosmic system. Nothing seems to be right for many years—even decades—of their lives. And, at the end, they look at their lives and they are disappointed and they express dismay for the lousy choices that they made throughout life which took them to the place where they are.


Proverbs 5:12b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

tôkachath (תּוֹכַחַת) [pronounced toh-KAH-khath]

the act of arguing or disagreeing; arguing down, contradicting, speaking in opposition; a reproof, a rebuke with a correction; a punishment for correction; chastening

feminine singular noun

Strong’s #8433 BDB #407

nâʾats (נָאַץ) [pronounced naw-AHTZ]

to abhor, to despise, to spurn, to reject with contempt and derision; to reject deride [with the purpose of instruction or admonishing]

3rd person masculine singular, Qal perfect

Strong’s #5006 BDB #610

lêb (לֵב) [pronounced laybv]

heart, inner man, mind, will, thinking; midst

masculine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong's #3820 BDB #524


Translation: ...and my heart has abhorred reproof. Solomon in the future, if he has ignored David’s teaching, will recognize that his heart—his thinking—has rejected reproof. He has abhorred God’s chastening.

 

Jim Rickard: In the Book of Proverbs, reproof is a good thing, and the person who ignores it will personally live to regret it, lead others astray, be classed among the stupid and eventually die, Prov 10:17; 12:1; 15:10. Personified as a woman, “Wisdom” chides those who have rejected her rebukes, Prov 1:23, 25, 30.


This theme of hating reproof and teaching is found throughout the Bible (and the flip side, which is the importance of Bible doctrine); but often in Proverbs: Prov. 1:7, 22, 25, 29 1:30 6:23 12:1 13:18 15:5 50:17 Psalm 73:22 Zech. 7:11–14 Heb. 13:7.

 

Peter Pett: ‘How I have hated -- and despised.’ Most teenagers can identify to this feeling in respect of their parent’s restraints. At the best they endure them at the worst they hate them. The hatred of them suggests deep-rooted rebellion. In this case his heart was so set on enjoyment that he could not bear to have it refused to him. He had a rebellious and sinful heart and so he despised his parent’s advice and hated their guidance.


Rickard suggests that what Solomon is hearing, he may not have mixed with faith, and that is certainly possible. However, it is also possible that Solomon heard this, believed it, but then was led astray by his lusts at a later time. There is great power in negative volition and great power in the lust pattern of the soul.


Proverbs 5:13a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

The NET Bible: The vav that introduces this clause functions in an explanatory sense.

lôʾ (לֹא or לוֹא) [pronounced low]

not, no

negates the word or action that follows; the absolute negation

Strong’s #3808 BDB #518

shâmaʿ (שָמַע) [pronounced shaw-MAHĢ]

to listen [intently], to hear, to listen and obey, [or, and act upon, give heed to, take note of], to hearken to, to be attentive to, to listen and be cognizant of

1st person singular, Qal perfect

Strong's #8085 BDB #1033

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

qôwl (קוֹל) [pronounced kohl]

sound, voice, noise; loud noise, thundering

masculine singular construct

Strong’s #6963 BDB #876

yârâʿ (יָרָא) [pronounced yaw-RAW]

archers, shooters, those shooting arrows, one casting down arrows; teachers, instructors

masculine plural, Hiphil participle with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #3384 BDB #432

Although Owen lists this as a masculine plural noun, which probably corresponds to Strong’s #4175 & 4176 BDB #435. However, most other sources listed this as the Hiphil participle above (often participles are used as nouns).

The NET Bible: The Hebrew term מוֹרַי (moray) is the nominal form based on the Hiphil plural participle with a suffix, from the root יָרָה (yarah). The verb is “to teach,” the common noun is “instruction, law [torah],” and this participle form is teacher (“my teachers”).


Translation: I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] instructors;... Here, there is a plural, suggesting that Solomon had more than King David teaching him. There were apparently many men who taught Bible doctrine to Solomon.


David was apparently instructed by Nathan and Gad—two of the prophets of his era. However, we do not have any clear recorded incident of anyone teaching David, apart from the time that Nathan rebuked David. When it comes to Solomon’s education, only his learning under David is found (and that by implication in the book of Proverbs). However, this indicates that Solomon has been taught by a number of teachers.


The idea is, Solomon comes to the end of his life, and he is groaning because of the bad decisions which he has made, and all of his wealth and honor is going to others, and he says, “I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] teachers.” Obviously he did; obviously he took notes and this were kept for us even until today—but, just as obviously, Solomon did go wrong. He did what his father David warned him not to do.


So, when it says that, “I have not listened;” the word often means to listen and take heed, to listen and obey.


Proverbs 5:13b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

lâmad (לָמַד) [pronounced law-MAHD]

teachers; trainers

masculine plural, Piel participle; with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #3925 BDB #540

The NET Bible: The form is the Piel plural participle of לָמַד (lamad) used substantivally.

lôʾ (לֹא or לוֹא) [pronounced low]

not, no

negates the word or action that follows; the absolute negation

Strong’s #3808 BDB #518

nâţâh (נָטָה) [pronounced naw-TAWH]

to extend, to stretch out, to spread out, to [cause to] reach out to; to expand; to incline downwards; to turn, to turn away [aside, to one side]; to push away, to repel, to deflect; to decline; to seduce

1st person singular, Hiphil imperfect

Strong’s #5186 BDB #639

ʾôzen (אֹזֶן) [pronounced OH-zen]

ear; metaphorically for hearing

feminine singular noun with the 1st person singular

Strong’s #241 BDB #23

The NET Bible: The idioms are vivid: This expression is “incline the ear”; earlier in the first line is “listen to the voice,” meaning “obey.” Such detailed description emphasizes the importance of the material.


Translation: ...and I have not inclined my ear to [doctrinal] teachers. I don’t know the difference between the two words for teachers; so this appears to simply be a parallel thought.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: The ruined profligate admits he was not without teachers and advisers, but that he gave no heed to their warnings and reproofs.

 

Joe Guglielmo: [W]hat you put in your mind stays in there. If you put garbage in, you may not remember it for years and then all of a sudden, there is that garbage coming up again because it has always been there. Don’t play with fire because you will get burned! I like what Paul tells us to do in Philippians 4:8-9 Finally, my brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy — meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. Fill your mind with the things of God; don’t put anything in there that will hurt you! 

 

From a Timothy Peck sermon: According to vv. 12 and 13, we’ll also have regrets. We’ll come to our senses afterwards, and say, "I should’ve listened." Yet these are regrets we won’t be able to erase. Listen to the words of a man named Richard who’s story was printed in Men’s Health a few years ago: "Cheating was the worst mistake I ever made in my life. I don’t know that we wouldn’t have gotten a divorce, but I felt really bad that I cheated on my wife. I didn’t want a divorce. I didn’t even really want to be with that woman; it just that she was telling me what I wanted to hear…It all felt fine until right after it happened. Then I just felt terrible." 


Personally, I have led anything but a perfect life. However, I discovered doctrine shortly after I was saved around age 21, and I have listened daily to doctrine for 53 years now. Of the people I know, I am one of the happiest, healthiest, and with the least amount of regret. I am quite happy with my life today; and understand that God has greatly blessed me.


What we do know about Solomon is, he began well. He may have been a very young king, but he co-reigned with David (it is not clear what the time frame was, but at least a month or more). David gave him specific suggestions, allowing Solomon some leeway as to the application of David’s advice (see 1Kings 1–2), and Solomon took David’s advice. Early on in Solomon’s reign, he became known as a great and wise king. My point being, Solomon listened to his father David, he learned from him, and he made a lot of good choices as a result. However, at some point, Solomon began to go astray. More and more women threw themselves at him (with subtlety, no doubt), and Solomon became more and more consumed with the fair sex.


Vv. 8–13 read: Remove your way from the unchaste woman and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not end up giving away your majesty and your years to those who are not grace oriented. Do not allow strangers to sap away your strength so that all of your production does not end up in the house of a foreigner, so that you groan with unhappiness when you are about to die. Consequently, you will say, “How I hated discipline and how much my heart abhorred reproof. I did not listen to my Bible teachers; and I did not concentrate on doctrinal teaching.” David is warning Solomon about giving in to lust, and disregarding all of the good teaching which has been available to him.

 

Joe Guglielmo: Make no mistake about it, Satan has come to kill, steal, and destroy people’s lives, and one of the ways that he does this is through sexual sin. Solomon is saying to stay clear of this, don’t even play with it, for once it has a hold of you, it will consume your life. And think about what sexual sin does in our life, the cruelty of a broken life, a broken heart, a broken home, and a broken body - all the needless results of promiscuity. Don’t let Satan steal your life away! 

 

Ray Pritchard, speaking as a Bible teacher: Here is the problem in verse 12. “You will say, ‘How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned correction! I would not obey my teachers or listen to my instructors.’ “ Brothers, the reason we get in trouble in this area is because we will not listen. I have to speak loudly about this, because I have to shout over ABC, NBC, CBS, Ted Turner, CNN, TNT, Lifetime, MTV, VH-1 and all the rest, and they are shouting a lot louder than I am. They are begging you to come on in. Come on in and have some fun. Come on in, nobody will know. God says don’t do it, don’t do it, don’t do it.


——————————


In his teaching, David concludes the quotation of Solomon that he might say at the end of a life of chasing after the wrong women. All of this is potential. David is not saying, “This is where you are going to end up;” but he is saying, “If you do not listen to my teaching, this is where you will end up.”


As a few [= almost], I was in all evil in a midst of the congregation and assembly.”

Proverbs

5:14

I was in almost complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation even the assembly.”

As a result of negative volition, I find myself nearly in complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation and in the midst of the assembly.”


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        As a few [= almost], I was in all evil in a midst of the congregation and assembly.”

Latin Vulgate                          I have almost been in all evil, in the midst of the church and of the congregation.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   "I have been in almost every evil in the assembly and in the congregation."

Peshitta (Syriac)                    I was in almost all kinds of evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

Septuagint (Greek)                I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

 

Significant differences:           None.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Easy English                          Suddenly I suffered great shame.

My wrong actions have ruined me in public.’

Easy-to-Read Version            So now I have suffered through almost every kind of trouble people can have—and everyone knows it!”

God’s Word                         I almost reached total ruin

in the assembly and in the congregation.”

Good News Bible (TEV)         And suddenly I found myself publicly disgraced."

The Message                         My life is ruined!

I haven’t one blessed thing to show for my life!”

NIRV                                      I was soon in deep trouble.

It happened right in front of the whole assembly of God’s people.”

New Simplified Bible              »I was very near total ruin in the midst of the congregation.«


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           I’m on the brink of utter ruin

in the assembled community.”

Contemporary English V.       ...and now I am disgraced in front of everyone."

The Living Bible                     For now I must face public disgrace.”

New Century Version             I came close to being completely ruined

in front of a whole group of people.”

New Life Version                    Now I have a bad name in the meeting place of the people."

New Living Translation           I have come to the brink of utter ruin,

and now I must face public disgrace.”


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Then little by little, I fell into bad, among the congregation [of God].'

Beck’s American Translation I had almost reached total ruin

in the assembly and the community.”

International Standard V        Now I am at the point of utter disaster

in [Lit. in the midst of] the assembly and in the congregation.”

New Advent (Knox) Bible       No marvel, had I paid the last penalty, with the assembled people for my judges! Lev. 20.10; cf. Jn. 8.5.

Today’s NIV                          And I was soon in serious trouble in the assembly of God's people." Pr 1:24-27 6:33 31:3

Translation for Translators     Now I am almost ruined,

and I will be disgraced in public gatherings.”


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      I had a little of all the evil amidst the assembly congregation."

Conservapedia                       I was almost in all evil in the presence of the congregation and the assembly.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                I have almost been always in sin l inthe midst of the crowd and the court.’

 

ubilee Bible 2000                   I have been in almost every kind of evil, in the midst of society and of the congregation.

Lexham English Bible             I was almost at utter ruin in the midst of the assembly and congregation."

NIV – UK                                And I was soon in serious trouble

in the assembly of God’s people.’


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  For I have come to the depths of disgrace in the midst of the whole community.¡+

New American Bible (2002)   I have all but come to utter ruin, condemned by the public assembly!"

New American Bible (2011)   I am all but ruined,

in the midst of the public assembly!”

New Jerusalem Bible             Now I have come to nearly every kind of misery, in the assembly and in the community.'

New RSV                               Now I am at the point of utter ruin

in the public assembly.’

Revised English Bible            I was almost brought to ruin in the public assembly.”


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           I took part in almost every kind of evil, and the whole community knew it."

exeGeses companion Bible   I was almost in all evil

midst the congregation and witness.

Hebrew Names Version         I have come to the brink of utter ruin, in the midst of the gathered assembly."

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Soon I was in dire trouble

Amidst the assembled congregation.”

Orthodox Jewish Bible           I was at the brink of all rah (evil, ruin) in the midst of the kahal (congregation) and edah (assembly).

The Scriptures 1998              “In a little while I was in all evil, In the midst of an assembly and a congregation.”


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                [The extent and boldness of] my sin involved almost all evil [in the estimation] of the congregation and the community.

The Expanded Bible              I ·came [or am] close to being completely ruined

in front of ·a whole group of people [Lthe assembled congregation].”

The Geneva Bible                  I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly. Although I was faithfully instructed in the truth, yet I almost fell to utter shame and destruction nonetheless, by good bringing up in the assembly of the godly.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly, literally, "Almost I had been in the extremity of evil in the midst of assembly and congregation," that is, he had just barely escaped the height of ruin, open condemnation in the midst of the congregation, which might have resulted in severe punishment for him. Such is the way of sin, to hold alluring temptations before the eyes of the unwary and then to plunge him into the greatest misery, the victim's repentance often coming too late.

NET Bible®                             I almost came to complete ruin [Heb “I was in all evil” (cf. KJV, ASV).]

in the midst of the whole congregation!” [The text uses the two words “congregation and assembly” to form a hendiadys, meaning the entire assembly.]

Syndein/Thieme                     "Shortly I was in every kind of evil {not sin, EVIL} both in the worship assembly and in the function of the nation."

The Voice                               Now I am on the edge of complete and utter ruin

in the midst of the community.”

People are easily seduced, especially men. Everyone is vulnerable to sexual sin at some point or another, and history is strewn with the wreckage that results when the path of adultery is followed: bitterness, death, instability, loss, ruin. Time and again, these are the consequences of violating God’s instruction.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Soon I came to be in entire peril In the midst of the assembly and the congregation.

Darby Translation                  I was well nigh in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

Emphasized Bible                  Soon was I in all evil, in the midst of convocation and assembly.

English Standard V. – UK       I am at the brink of utter ruin

in the assembled congregation.”

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           I a [had?] come almost into all my misfortune, in the midst of the multitude and congregation.

NASB                                     “I was almost in utter ruin

In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

New European Version          I have come to the brink of utter ruin, in the midst of the gathered assembly.

New King James Version       I was on the verge of total ruin,

In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

Stuart Wolf                             When diminished I became, in all evil/distress, in the midst of the assembly and congregation.

Third Millennium Bible            I was almost in total evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly."

Updated Bible Version 2.11   I was well-near in all evil In the midst of the assembly and congregation.

Webster’s Bible Translation  I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

Young's Literal Translation     As a little thing I have been all evil, In the midst of an assembly and a company.

 

The gist of this verse:          David had come almost to the point of total ruin in front of the congregation. He speaks as if he is completing Solomon’s thought in the future, if Solomon strays from God’s path.


Proverbs 5:14a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

kaph or ke (כְּ) [pronounced ke]

like, as, according to; about, approximately

preposition of comparison or approximation

No Strong’s # BDB #453

meʿaţ (מְעַט) [pronounced me-ĢAHT]

a little, fewness, few

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #4592 BDB #589

Together, the kaph preposition and meʿaţ mean nearly, almost, within a little, shortly, quickly, suddenly; easily; scarcely, very little, very few.

The NET Bible: The expression כִּמְעַט (kim’at) is “like a little.” It means “almost,” and is used of unrealized action (BDB 590 s.v. 2). Cf. NCV “I came close to”; NLT “I have come to the brink of.” 

Kimʿat. Occurs eighteen times (Genesis 26:10 2Samuel 19:36 1Chronicles 16:19 2Chronicles 12:7 Ezra 9:8 Job 32:22 Psalms 2:12 73:2 81:14 94:17 105:12 19:87 Prov. 5:14 10:20 Song of Solomon 3:4 Isaiah 1:9 26:20 Ezekiel 16:47). It is rendered "almost" only in Psalms 73:2, Psalms 119:87, and here, where it may as well be rendered "soon" or "quickly" as in Job 32:22. Psalms 81:14; Psalms 94:17 (margin) It denotes in a little time, as in Psalms 2:12; Psalms 105:12 (= soon numbered). 2 Chronicles 12:7 (= a little while). Song of Solomon 3:4 (= a little while; i.e. scarcely). Isaiah 26:20.

hâyâh (הָיָה) [pronounced haw-YAW]

to be, is, was, are; to become, to come into being; to come to pass

1st person masculine singular, Qal perfect

Strong's #1961 BDB #224

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

kôl (כֹּל) [pronounced kohl]

every, each, all of, all; any of, any

masculine singular construct not followed by a definite article

Strong’s #3605 BDB #481

raʿ (רַע) [pronounced rahģ]

evil, bad, wicked; evil in appearance, deformed; misery, distress, injury; that which is displeasing [disagreeable, unhappy, unfortunate, sad]

masculine singular adjective/noun; pausal form

Strong’s #7451 BDB #948


Translation: I was in almost complete ruin,... We are continuing with a long quotation by Solomon, off in the future, looking back over his life and the mistakes which he has made. He laments that he is in complete ruin. So that there is no confusion, this is David saying Solomon would say, if he rejects the teaching of his father. However, in these words, David reveals the heartfelt grief he himself has suffered for doing that which was wrong.


David’s sins suddenly caught up with him. Not only did he pursue a soldier’s wife, but then he had this loyal and faithful soldier killed, simply because David was unable to manipulate him. Then the prophet Nathan spoke to David, after which, the crap hit the fan—and being in almost complete ruin describes well about 10 years of David’s life.

 

Clarke: This vice, like a whirlpool, sweeps all others into its vortex.

 

Gill: [Whether suffering from] the evil of sin [or]...the evil of punishment...there is scarce any calamity, distress, or misery, that a man can be in, but his profaneness and lewdness had brought him into...when he was in the house of God, attending public worship, his eyes were full of adultery, and his heart of impure lusts; and neither place, service, nor people of God, where he was, commanded any awe and reverence in him, nor in the least restrained his unclean thoughts and wanton desires;...he was made a public example of, and all the people were witnesses of it; which served to spread his infamy, and make his punishment the more intolerable.

 

DeHoff: This vice leads one into all others. Every sin has a group of cousins who always come to visit.


Proverbs 5:14b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

tâveke (תָּוֶ) [pronounced taw-VEKE]

midst, among, middle

masculine singular construct

Strong's #8432 BDB #1063

With the bêyth preposition, tâveke can mean in the middle of, in the midst of; into, among. In the Hebrew, this is spelled בְּתוֹ. With the 1st person plural suffix, it means in our midst. With the 2nd person masculine plural suffix, it can mean in your midst, among you. With the 3rd person masculine plural suffix, it can mean in their midst, among them.

qâhâl (קָהָל) [pronounced kaw-HAWL]

an organized assembly, a called convocation; this is not just a crowd, but people who were assembled for a reason

masculine singular noun

Strong's #6951 BDB #874

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʿêdâh (עֵדָה) [pronounced ģā-DAWH]

company, congregation, assembly, meeting; a company of people assembled together by appointment, a group of people acting together

feminine singular noun

Strong's #5712 BDB #417


Translation: ...in the midst of the congregation even the assembly.” His failure would be known among all the people of Israel.

 

The NET Bible: The text uses the two words “congregation and assembly” to form a hendiadys, meaning the entire assembly.


Or, as the CJB puts it: I took part in almost every kind of evil, and the whole community knew it." David appears to be doing two things here: he is projecting himself into the thoughts of his sons (particular Solomon) in the future, if he strays and chases after strange women all of his life. At the same time, David appears to be giving a personal testimony about his own life when he sinned with Bathsheba. This took up much of the end of his kingship.


This is the problem with being king. You don’t get to coast; you don’t get to hide your wickedness. At some point, every body knows. This was the case for David, and he speaks these words from personal experience. About a quarter of 2Samuel is devoted to David’s sins and their tremendous results.


That in itself is quite fascinating. David here is speaking to his son Solomon, born to Bathsheba. However, David’s interaction with Bathsheba was, at the first, a great sin—one of the greatest sins in the life of David. While his soldiers were out at war, he observed this woman bathing from his rooftop and then called for her. She was married to one of his great soldiers, Uriah the Hittite. David had sex with Bathsheba and, a month later, found out that she was pregnant. First David tried to be clever, bringing Uriah back to give a field report, and then attempting to get Uriah to spend a night at home with his wife before returning. Uriah would not do that. It violated his honor. So, David, recognizing that this was a great man of honor, sent a personal note back to his general to have Uriah fight in the heat of the battle where he would surely be killed. He knew that Uriah was too honorable of a man to open up this note and read it.


So, after Uriah was killed in battle, David took Bathsheba as his wife—his final wife. There is no indication that David strayed from her after this point. However, many chapters of 2Samuel are devoted to the great paint and suffering that David endured for these sinful and evil actions.


On top of this, everyone knew, and both David and Solomon faced revolutions from sons from his previous marriages. The whole congregation knew! This is why it was possible for an unproven son to gain traction as an opposing leader in Israel—the people were aghast at the actions that David took. David faced a rebellion of the people because of his actions; because these actions were known to the entire congregation.


What David says here is fairly complex in the Hebrew, and let me suggest that he is revealing his past life, but then, at the same time, attempting to hide, to a limited degree what he has done. If Solomon is a very young man (like I have suggested, 10 or12), then he might remember these words; but he might not fully appreciate all that David is saying here or how much David is speaking from personal experience.


Maybe in your mind, you are thinking, well, David may have sinned, but he ended up with Bathsheba and she is the mother in the line of Christ. Despite that being true, this does not mean that David is excused for his sin; nor does it mean that God cannot take David from point A to point B without sin. Having an eventual good outcome is not a reason to justify the sins which got you to that outcome. Remember, God works all things together for good to those who love Him. Therefore, unless we go out the sin unto death, we should imagine even the very mess which we make of our lives, God is able to fix it in the end. Now, getting to the end may involve a great deal of pain and suffering because you have done a lot of boneheaded things; but God is able to take your life, mix in some Bible doctrine, and make the end good and reasonable.


Vv. 12–14 is the complete quotation: Therefore, you will say, “How I hated discipline [or, instruction] and my heart has abhorred reproof. I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] instructors; and I have not inclined my ear to [doctrinal] teachers. I was in almost complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation even the assembly.” David is warning Solomon that he may look back at his life of prolificacy, and says these things, after uttering a great and mighty groan at the end because his body and flesh are destroyed. David is teaching Solomon that he will come to the end of his life expressing great regrets in how he wasted his time in life away.

 

Joe Guglielmo: Notice the progression here. First of all he heard God’s Word but he despised it, he rejected it. He did not want to listen to correction. And when the teachers of God’s Word spoke, he closed his ears to them. He did not want to hear what they were saying. And he even went to Temple and he looked like all was well, but he was on the verge of total ruin, his life was on the verge of destruction! That is pretty accurate of what happens in a person’s life who rejects the truth and does his own thing.


Now, how many pastors or ministries do you know of which have been destroyed by scandal? I am not going to name any names because I do not want to take from their ministries. However, over the years, there have been many men taken down by an addiction to pornography or have been tempted by women with whom they came in contact.


One of the great men of my era is Billy Graham, who, it is my understanding, made certain that he was never in a room alone with a woman who was not his wife. His dedication to the spread of the gospel and to the avoidance of scandal was admiral and showed incredible commitment to the faith.


I recall a friend of mine trying to come up with a reason to dismiss Billy Graham, and all that he could come up with is, “He has big dogs that he keeps as guard dogs. They sleep in his bedroom.” That was it! That was Graham’s great sin, in this person’s eyes. Negative volition will grab at anything.


Mostly put together by Mark Copeland.

The Cost of Immorality or Adultery

A.      It costs your wealth...

         1.      One’s honor will be given to others, and one’s wealth would end up in the house of a foreigner. Prov. 5:9–10

         2.      Modern application: Alimony and child support can eat away at your finances

B.      It costs your physical health...

         1.      Your flesh and body will be consumed. Prov 5:11

         2.      Modern application: Bacterial STDs (e.g., Chlamydia, syphilis, gonorrhea) are often brought on by immorality. Viral STDs (e.g., genital herpes, Hepatitis B, AIDS) are incurable. Sexually transmitted diseases can eat away at your body

C.     It costs your mental health...

         1.      You will be filled with self-recrimination: “How I hated instruction, and my heart despised correction! I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me!” Prov. 5:12-13

         2.      Modern application: There are negative affects of divorce: you, your spouse and your children are all affected, mentally, emotionally and behaviorally. Furthermore, your conscience can eat away at your peace of mind

D.     It costs your reputation...

         1.      As suggested by these words: “I was on the verge of total ruin, in the midst of the assembly and congregation.” - Prov. 5:14

         2.      People do not take lightly the sin of adultery - cf. Pro 6:27-35

         3.      Can a person be trusted who would lie to their spouse? Your unfaithfulness can eat away at your reputation

From http://executableoutlines.com/pdf/pr2_so.pdf accessed August 31, 2015 and heavily edited.

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Same material; similar list.

Paul Apple on, The Terrible Consequences of Infidelity

1.      (Prov. 5:9) Sacrificing Vitality and the Fullness of Life

“Lest you give your vigor to others, And your years to the cruel one.”

2.      (Prov. 5:10) Financial Hardship

“Lest strangers be filled with your strength, And your hard-earned goods go to the house of an alien.”

3.      (Prov. 5:11) Physical Dissipation

“And you groan at your latter end, When your flesh and your body are consumed.”

4.      (Prov. 5:12-13) Emotional Regret

“And you say, ‘How I have hated instruction! And my heart spurned reproof! And I have not listened to the voice of my teachers. Nor inclined my ear to my instructors!’”

5.      (Prov. 5:14) Complete Disaster and Embarrassment

“I was almost in utter ruin in the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

King David knew all of these problems firsthand, as he had suffered from them.

From http://bibleoutlines.com/library/pdf/proverbs.pdf (Chapter 5); accessed August 31, 2015 (edited).

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Various teachers summarize this in various ways. Pritchard is fairly straightforward.

Ray Pritchard on What We Give Away

A.      Your strength.

Proverbs 5:9 says, “Lest you give your best strength to others and your years to one who is cruel.” If you follow a woman like that, your strength is going to be dissipated, you will end up weak in the end, old and grey and worn out.

B.      Your wealth.

Proverbs 5:10 says, “Lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich another man’s house.” Men, if you decide to commit adultery, somebody is going to get rich—it’s going to be your wife’s lawyer. If you decide to break God’s law, you will be sorry in 1000 ways, and one of them is that you will be dragged into court and it will cost you thousands of dollars. You will watch all that money you saved disappear before your eyes.

C.     Your health.

Proverbs 5:11 says, “At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent.” In the sex education classes at school they teach our kids three letters—STD, sexually transmitted disease. Way before the federal government discovered that, the Bible told us 3000 years ago that men who commit adultery are open to the risk of venereal disease, syphilis, hepatitis, a hundred other diseases, and worst of all, HIV developing into AIDS. We are seeing all of it in our society around us. Open the Tribune or the Sun Times and you see people dying of AIDS and these other sicknesses. Solomon warned us about it. He said if you go down that path and follow that road, this will be how you end up.

D.     Your reputation.

Proverbs 5:14 says, “I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.” Men, I hope you enjoy it, because we are going to find out about it. You will try to keep it quiet, you will do those telephone calls late at night, fax back and forth, write little notes in secret, but be sure that your sin will find you out. I hope you enjoy your ten or fifteen minutes of happiness because that is all that you are going to get.


Sometimes we talk about breaking the Ten Commandments. Brothers, nobody has ever broken the Ten Commandments. You are broken on the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are like the huge boulders at the base of the cliff. If you decide to jump off the cliff and you hit the boulders, you will not break the boulder, the boulder will break you. When you dare to disobey what God has said, you will pay the price.

From http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/purity-staying-clean-in-a-dirty-world/ accessed September 2, 2015.

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William MacDonald: The price of going to bed with her is enormous—guilty conscience, remorse, scandal, venereal disease, wrecked marriage, broken home, mental disturbance, and a host of other ills.


Now lets put vv. 8–14 together: Remove your way from her and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not give to others your majesty and [so that you do not give] your years to [a person] without mercy [or, the cruel one]; so that strangers are not filled with your strength [or, the product of your labors] and [so that all of] your work [does not end up] in the house of a foreigner, and you groan [with dissatisfaction] at your end, when is completed your flesh and bone [lit., flesh and body]. Therefore, you will say, “How I hated discipline [or, instruction] and my heart has abhorred reproof. I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] instructors; and I have not inclined my ear to [doctrinal] teachers. I was in almost complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation even the assembly.”

David Warns Solomon of Future Regrets

1.      His majesty would be given over to others.

2.      Strangers would enjoy all that this life has produced.

3.      He will groan with unhappiness at the end of his life.

4.      He will regret rejecting God’s reproof.

5.      He will regret not listening and obeying his Bible teachers.

6.      He will end up in disgrace and in ruin, in full view of all Israel.

Inspired from Jim Rickard http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 25, 2015.

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Joe Guglielmo: And even today many have rejected what God has said regarding sex and they have opened themselves up to all kinds of sexually transmitted diseases, and then it is too late! They have destroyed relationships, and then it is too late! They have lost jobs, and then it is too late! Don't be a fool, heed God’s Word. Let’s not have our epitaph read like King Saul’s who said towards the end of his life, “. . . Indeed I have played the fool and erred exceedingly.” 1Samuel 26:21. We don’t have to play the fool, we do not have to error exceedingly, we can walk in the wisdom of God and be blessed.


This probably needs to be edited.

Summary of Proverbs 5:7–14, by Stuart Wolf

1)      A temporal waw doubled with a temporal adverb, now then (hT'[;w> wə’aTaH) shifts the argument to the logical conclusion of the preceding information; given the realities discussed previously, the only real option is to cling to the Divine viewpoint he expresses.

2)      The address sons is doubly appropriate in a discussion about retaining the family’s economic and social strength; if any of the following generations falls into the trap of association with the predatory adulterous, the family line could easily cease.

3)      Again the call for obedient listening is given, reminding us that repetition is required if the message is to be instilled in one’s soul; one must pay attention to the commands to pay attention if they are to profit from the teaching.

4)      The figurative term rWs SUR appears again, as the son is warned against the temptation to turn aside/depart from the straight and narrow; as we will see, there are positive commands regarding physical satisfaction that are to be obeyed, as well as resisting the lure of easy sex.

5)      The inferred contrast to the “unbounded harlot” (Waltke) looks at her wandering, meandering, and deviant behaviors, and instead calls the son to focus solely on what he is learning as the only acceptable path through life.

6)      We also repeat that, although Solomon calls these instructions the words of my mouth, this is not information that was unique to his world-view; adjusted believers throughout history have confirmed the biblical attitude towards sex, Solomon is passing on an established tradition and emphasizing that he agrees with it. cp Jdg 14:3

7)      There is also a possible contrast to the honeyed speech of the strumpet with the words “of my mouth”, although the phrase has been and will be seen in other contexts (4:5, 6:2, 7:24, etc); the primary emphasis is that the father knows more than the son, and the son should concentrate on replacing his ideas if they are in contrast to the father’s.

8)      The Hiphil of qx;r' RahCHaQ has the idea of causing great distance to exist between two things, meaning that the son is to keep…far from the unchaste wife, not even to get near enough to her that temptation might present itself.

9)      Also, your way clearly contrasts the son’s lifestyle with that of the unchaste wife, again presuming a certain level of application/obedience in the son; exhortations and rebukes are not for the wayward alone. cp 1Th 4:1

10)    The compound preposition (with a 3rd sing suffix) h'yl,['me Mē’ahLiYHah, literally “from above her”, has the idea of “from attachment to” (cp Jer 2:5; Eze 11:15), or companionship with another individual (Job 19:13).

11)    In other words, the father reiterates that separation is entirely necessary, has logical and easily recognized benefits, and is the order of the day – especially regarding someone so obviously opposed to God’s Plan.

12)    The father recognizes, and wants the son to understand that, that the son’s biological urges will surface, but they must be resisted; Paul exhorted very similarly in Rom 13:14, the adjusted believer must be realistic and avoid those situations which might even possibly allow for failure under the lust grid.

13)    The command is now repeated in negative terms, with br;q' QahRaBh go near used to prohibit coming “into the most near and intimate proximity of the object” (TWOT); not only is the son to stay far from her, he is not even to move in her direction.

14)    To the door of (i.e. the point of entry) shows that, from the very beginning, he is to avoid her house, which is the place of danger and inevitable loss; many a believer has come to ruin by involving themselves in that which was only ‘slightly’ sinful.

15)    Vss 9 and 10 are linked by the negative particle !P, PeN, introducing the negative consequences of disobedience to the key command of vs 8; the idea is to avoid a particular result by not engaging in activity that will bring it on – “so that not”.

16)    The repetition of the particle suggests that the four categories are co-referential, and refer to the same group and individuals; different aspects of the same enemy should be recognized, there is nothing in their nature that desires your benefit.

17)    Those outside the community of the wise, others, will happily take one’s best, their splendor/majesty/glory/vigor (dAh HODh), the exhortation is to avoid giving them the opportunity to do so.

18)    The term looks to that which makes life worth living, and usually has the added idea of increasing one’s stately dignity; it functions as a metonymy for the “product of the best years of life” (Gemser). cp 29:3

19)    Unlike the innocent in 1:10-19, whom the criminally violent plotted to plunder, the voluptuary (a person whose chief interests are luxury and the gratification of sensual appetites) victimizes himself by handing his strength over to them.

20)    This is emphasized by the use of !t;n" NahTHaN you give, placing the blame solely on the son; while there is no way the immoral woman can be said to be innocent, the responsibility to let divine viewpoint protect oneself is ours alone.

21)    Exactly who these “others” are is not specified, but the plural – singular adjectives of both verses make it clear that they are not within the community of the righteous; since 6:24, 29, 34 indicate that the strumpet is married, it could be a reference to immediate family members of the unfaithful wife.

22)    The giving of one’s years represents the shortened life span of the son, either an early death (Ecc 7:17) or a loss of the quality of life that enables one to enjoy their latter end. cp vs 11

23)    The next substantive adjective describing this woman’s associates is the cruel (yrIz"k.a; ‘aKZahRiY), a term denoting an insensitive and merciless person who knowingly, willfully, and unrelentingly inflicts pain on others.

24)    It is parallel to an “enemy” in Jer 30:14, and associated with “burning anger” in Isa 13:9; the father paints an honest picture of those who will benefit at the son’s expense, lest at the time of temptation he might forget the true nature of his adversary.

25)    Although the adjective is indeclinable, the parallel “alien” in vs 10 is masculine, and thus rules out the unchaste wife, illness or death (Pace); this is the individual behind the scenes, who assists the adulteress and receives payment in return.

26)    The parallel negative purpose clause introduced by lest is subordinate to vs 8 rather than vs 9, and gives another consideration of the result of ignoring the father’s instruction; there is absolutely no benefit in association with these types of people.

27)    Vs 9 speaks of the loss of splendor, that which marks one as more dignified and successful than those in their periphery, and vs 10 speaks of the loss of the strength and ability by which that glory is achieved.

28)    Obviously, the sacrifice of comfort and strength, if called for, should be reserved for the members of one’s family and the community of the righteous; how much sense does it make to give one’s all for those opposed to God’s Plan?

29)    The term [b;f' SHahBha’ be filled has the nuance of eating enough to be satisfied, sated, or comfortably full; some of our wealth may go to the desires of the wicked, but why should we give them all they could want (and more)?

30)    The noun x;AK KOaCH expresses the power to endure in a static sense (Job 6:12), but more commonly it expresses potency and capacity to produce; it looks to physical strength successfully applied toward the production of that which one desires.

31)    In other words, while “splendor” and “dignity” in vs 9 refer to the external manifestations of wealth, strength and labor refer to the inner capacity to produce wealth; not only will the son’s finances, etc. be depleted, there will be no ability to rebuild them.

32)    The term strenuous labors (bc,[, ‘eTSeBh) designates the pain and hurt associated with work, the act of causing oneself discomfort in order to achieve one’s goal; the same word is used in Gen 3:14 of labor pains.

33)    It stands as metonymy for acquisitions gained by hard work and diligent efforts, that for which one willingly suffers in order to achieve; the physical and financial loss is compounded by the knowledge that all that time and effort is also squandered.

34)    The self-inflicted punishment of involving oneself with the unchaste wife is as bad as if the home had been plundered by an outsider, and the son’s possessions were placed in his house for his own enjoyment and use. cp 1:10-14

35)    The term softened to groan denotes a cry of rage or a roar (19:12), and represents a verbal expression of anguish caused by extreme destitution, wretched poverty, and mental bankruptcy; there is no denial of the maximum suffering he endures.

36)    Regret and remorse have come too late, this is the recognition of the quality of life he will endure for the remainder of his time on earth, and all because he allowed himself to be convinced that the father’s viewpoint was not the best approach to life.

37)    The latter end (lit “at your afterwards”) is best equated with the bitter end of the seductress’s efforts rather than the end of the son’s life, since vs 14 implies a certain recovery and recognition that the father was right, after all.

38)    Put another way, the ‘good times’ the son enjoyed have resulted in the type of lifestyle no one would wish upon another, and (per vss 9-10) there is no hope of recovering the former glory – all because he ‘knew better’.

39)    As von Rad notes, “One can never judge life in accordance with the appearance of the moment, but one must keep ‘the end’ in view.”

40)    The verb hl'K' KahLaH when consumed/spent/finished represents the connotation meaning to come to completion; the body is used up, exhausted, wasted away, and has come to the point of failure.

41)    The failure comes about not through excessive sexual indulgence (cp vss 18-19), but through “the hard labor occasioned by illegality and immorality” (Waltke); rather than the satisfying fruits of legitimate sex, the son’s immoral lifestyle involved constantly increasing demands and losses to debauchery.

42)    The more common term rf'B' BahSHahR denotes the entire fleshly substance of the body, and represents existence in the land of the living, while the more emphatic raev. SHə’ēR looking to the designates the meat full of blood, next to the bones, and represents physical strength and power.

43)    The youth regrets the waste of his mature vitality, although not a premature death; the son has the prospect of living a long life with the results of his licentious dissipation, knowing that it was his disobedience that brought it on.

44)    The son will also be able to give voice to the cry of rage and desperation, as and you will say represents the son’s recognition and mental agreement with that of which he was warned; too late, he can now only serve as proof of the consequences.

45)    The interrogative adverb %yae ‘ēYK how? illustrates that the son’s recognition of his plight came only after the debauchery was complete, and we may infer a certain sense of surprise and wonderment – “how did this happen?”.

46)    The strongest language possible implies his recovery, since he understands that his departure from the divine viewpoint in pursuit of cosmic ‘fun’ was the equivalent of an unregenerate heart, directly opposed to God, the Law, and his family.

47)    The chiastic parallels instruction and reproof are found in 3:11 in similar context, as commands to revere and maintain fidelity to the concepts; the abstract nouns summarize the specific teachings of his teachers, mentioned in the following verse.

48)    The descent into direct opposition to the previously held morality taught by the father is described as absolute again, with the strong term #a;n" Nah’aTZ spurned used to emphasize that this was no mere flirtation or slight involvement with evil, the son wound up totally immersed in opposition to that which is righteous.

49)    We repeat that the heart represents the totality of one’s existence, the central core of their person and personality and all the characteristics, aspects, and facets of their lives; the son changed with his entire being, and only now recognizes that fall!

50)    The repentance was effected by that which he formally rejected, tx;k;At TOKaCHaTH reproof; as Fox notes, “Proverbs emphasizes that chastisement is a positive education force, a way to wisdom (12:1), life (6:23), and honor (13:18)”.

51)    In other words, the misery he has now brought upon himself was allowed to happen in order to bring him back to reality; the argument against initial movement even in her direction is now further strengthened by the prediction of its results.

52)    The copulative waw of vs 13 coordinates the recovered voluptuary’s rejection of the teaching with the rejection of the teacher; the interrogative ‘ēYK is still in force, meaning that there was no recognition of this rebellion until now, either.

53)    The Hebrew idiom listen to the voice means to comply with or follow what is commanded by the voice; the singular noun with the plural teachers represents the fact that the voices of each were unified in the information presented.

54)    The teachers may refer to teachers within the family (1:8), the sages in the gate who address the gullible (1:21), and/or sages who taught the people as a whole (30:1), although there is little evidence to support the theory that the proverbs were taught in Hebrew schools.

55)    The self-condemnation is intensified by the admission that he had more than one teacher, but he rejected them all; another Hebrew idiom turn [the] ear pictures the inclination of the listener to concentrate ever more as the lesson continues.

56)    The term ja;m' Mah’aT has the root meaning of “be small”, and can have the meaning “almost” (cp Psalm 73:2), but in context it seems best to take it as soon (i.e. “a small time” – cp Ps 2:12), since it is unlikely that the father would represent the sinner as barely escaping punishment.

57)    Agreeing that the descent was not immediate, but a gradual process he did not recognize at the time, the repentant son uses hy"h' HahYaH to denote the intensifying slide toward destruction; the earliest failures, described in vs 8, gradually developed into the worse state of affairs.

58)    That state is kept undefined and ambiguous, with the phrase in all categories of evil/ distress denoting a developed headlong rush to participate in the wayward wife’s lifestyle, whatever particular area of evil she might practice.

59)    So, a more accurate gloss to bring out the meaning would be “In no time I became entrenched in all types of evil”, with the continuing theme of amazement and a lack of recognition of the changes at the time.

60)    Since the Mosaic Law prescribed stoning for both the man and woman in an adulterous affair (Lev 20:10), it is possible that the man in this woman’s life is merely her pimp, since an affair with a prostitute was not a capital offense.

61)    On the other hand, the son may have escaped detection, and come to his senses as the divine discipline continued to rain down; in either event, the results of his moral slide were apparent to the social contacts he had.

62)    This is the meaning of in the midst…, as he did not disappear from those with whom he had previously agreed; he still had contact with covenant-observant associations, he now marvels that they saw him declining when he did not.

63)    The lh'q' QahHahL assembly was used of any number of people gathered together for a particular function (Jsh 8:35), and probably has legal overtones as well; the son realizes that he stood guilty on a moral, social, and legal basis.

64)    The second term for the social setting is hd'[e ‘ēDhaH, which also denotes a collection of people, but does not have the nuance of “gathered for a purpose” (cp Jdg 14:8); this looks to the larger mass of society, whether they knew him or not.

From www.hbcpinellas.org/proverbs/prov5.doc accessed August 27, 2015 (edited). Hebrew requires the font Bwhebb.

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Instead, Be Intoxicated by Your Own Right Woman


Peter Pett organizes the first half of this chapter in this way:

Proverbs 5:15–20 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

A       Drink waters out of your own cistern, and running waters out of your own well. Should your springs be dispersed abroad, and streams of water in the streets?’ (Proverbs 5:15-16).

         B       Let them be for yourself alone, and not for strangers with you (Proverbs 5:17).

         B       Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth (Proverbs 5:18).

A       As a loving hind and a pleasant doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times, and be you ravished always with her love, for why should you, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a foreigner? (Proverbs 5:19-20).

Note that in A he is to drink water out of his own cistern and from his own well, rather than wasting his water by allowing it to stream out into the streets, and in the parallel he is to drink of his own wife’s breasts and love, and not allow his sexual accomplishments to be spread among strange women and foreigners. In B he is enjoy the sexual benefits of his wife for himself alone, for they are not be shared with others, and the consequence will be that he finds his blessing in her (or his wife will be blessed) and will find his enjoyment in the one who is the wife of his youth, his own spring.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 29, 2015.

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Jamieson, Fausset and Brown: By figures, in which well, cistern, and fountain [Prov. 5:15, Prov. 5:18] represent the wife, and rivers of waters [Prov. 5:16] the children, men are exhorted to constancy and satisfaction in lawful conjugal enjoyments.

 

Dr. Thomas Constable: Proverbs 5:15-23 point out a better way, namely: fidelity to one's marriage partner. Strict faithfulness need not result in unhappiness or failure to experience what is best in life, as the world likes to try to make us think. Rather, it guards us from the heartbreak and tragedy that accompany promiscuity. The figures of a cistern and a well (Proverbs 5:15) refer to one's wife (cf. Song of Solomon 4:15), who satisfies desire.


Bear in mind, we drink water to satisfy our thirst.


Drink waters from your cistern and flowing waters from a midst of your well.

Proverbs

5:15

Drink [only] waters from your [own] cistern and [drink] flowing waters out from your [own] well.

Only drink waters from your own cistern and only partake of the flowing water which comes from your own well.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Drink waters from your cistern and flowing waters from a midst of your well.

Latin Vulgate                          Drink water out of your own cistern, and the streams of your own well:...

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Drink waters from your well and running waters from your spring,...

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Drink water out of your own well, and running water from your own spring.

Septuagint (Greek)                Drink waters out of your own vessels, and out of your own springing wells.

 

Significant differences:           None. Cistern can refer to a place where water is stored.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Let water from your store and not that of others be your drink, and running water from your fountain.

Easy English                          You should drink water from your own taps!

And you should be loyal to your wife.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Be faithful to your own wife and give your love to her alone.

The Message                         Never Take Love for Granted

Do you know the saying, “Drink from your own rain barrel,

draw water from your own spring-fed well”?

It’s true. Otherwise, you may one day come home

and find your barrel empty and your well polluted. Vv. 15–16 are included here for context.

NIRV                                      Drink water from your own well.

Drink running water from your own spring.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Drink water from your own cistern,

gushing water from your own well.

Contemporary English V.       You should be faithful to your wife, just as you take water from your own well.

The Living Bible                     Drink from your own well, my son—be faithful and true to your wife.

New Century Version             Be faithful to your own wife,

just as you drink water from your own well.

New Life Version                    Drink water from your own pool, flowing water from your own well.

New Living Translation           Drink water from your own well—

share your love only with your wife. Hebrew Drink water from your own cistern, / flowing water from your own well.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          O son; Drink water from your own jars, and from the flow of your own well!

International Standard V        The Delights of Marital Faithfulness

Drink water from your own cistern,

and fresh [Lit. flowing] water from your own well.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Nay, drink, and drink deep, at thy own well, thy own cistern;...

Translation for Translators     Like a man is refreshed by drinking water from his own well [MET],

enjoy having sex [EUP] only with your own wife.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Drink the waters from your pit, discharged from amidst your well.

Conservapedia                       Drink your own collected waters, and running waters out of your own well. Original KJV uses the word cistern which is a receptacle for collecting and storing rain water etc. collected waters is better for communicating the point in the modern english.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                An Exhortation to Chastity

Drink water drawn from your own well, And streams from the depth of your spring;...

Lexham English Bible            Drink water from your [own] cistern and flowing waters from inside your own well.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Drink, then, from the water of your own cistern, from that which flows in your own well.

New American Bible (2011)   Drink water* from your own cistern,

running water from your own well. [5:15–16] Water: water may have an erotic meaning as in Sg 4:15, “[You are] a garden fountain, a well of living water.” Eating and drinking can be metaphors expressing the mutuality of love. The wife is the opposite of the adulterous woman; she is not an outsider, not unfeeling, not a destroyer of her husband’s self and goods. The best defense against adultery is appreciating and loving one’s spouse. The best defense against folly is to appreciate and love wisdom.

New Jerusalem Bible             Drink the water from your own storage-well, fresh water from your own spring.

Revised English Bible            Drink water from your own cistern, fresh water from your own spring.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           Drink the water from your own cistern, fresh water from your own well.

exeGeses companion Bible   Drink waters from your own well

and flowings from your own well:...

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Drink mayim out of thine own bor (cistern), and running waters out of thine own well.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Drink waters out of your own cistern [of a pure marriage relationship], and fresh running waters out of your own well. All of the Ten Commandments are reflected in the book of Proverbs; here it is the seventh, “You shall not commit adultery.”

The Expanded Bible              ·Be faithful to your own wife [LDrink water from your own well; Song 4:10–15],

·just as you drink [Lgushing] water from your own ·well [cistern].

The Geneva Bible                  Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well. He teaches us sobriety exhorting us to live of our own labours and to be beneficial to the godly who want.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 15-23

Chastity Contrasted with Unchastity

Drink waters out of thine own cistern and running waters out of thine own well, seeking the satisfaction of permitted desire and intercourse only and alone within the bounds of holy wedlock.

Syndein/Thieme                     {Look for your Right Woman}

Drink waters of pleasure from your own cistern {your right woman} . . . and flowing waters {good sex response} from your own well. {Note: RBT says this also applies to the woman and her right man also.}.

The Voice                               Here’s what you should do to be satisfied:

go home and drink in the pleasures of your own cistern, your wife;

enjoy the sweet, fresh water that has been there all along, flowing from your own well.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Drink water from your own cistern, And the flowings from the midst of your own well;"

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Drink of the water of your own well, and of the rivers that run out of your own springs.

NASB                                     Drink water from your own cistern

And fresh [Lit flowing] water from your own well.

New European Version          Drink water out of your own cistern, springing water out of your own spring.

Stuart Wolf                             Drink waters from your own cistern, and running water from your own well.

World English Bible                Drink water out of your own cistern,

Running water out of your own well.

Young’s Updated LT             Drink waters out of your own cistern, Even flowing ones out of your own well.

 

The gist of this verse:          David exhorts Solomon to drink water only from his own well, which is an analogy that David is setting up.


Proverbs 5:15a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

shâthâh (שָתָה) [pronounced shaw-THAW]

drink [actually or metaphorically]; drink together [at a banquet]; feast; sit

2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperative

Strong’s #8354 BDB #1059

mayim (מַיִם) [pronounced mah-YIHM]

water (s)

masculine plural noun

Strong’s #4325 BDB #565

min (מִן) [pronounced mihn]

from, away from, out from, out of from, off, on account of, since, above, than, so that not, beyond, more than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

bôwr (בּוֹר) [pronounced bohr]

pit, cistern, well; prison, dungeon; grave, sepulcher; the dead

masculine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix; pausal form

Strong’s #953 BDB #92

Although this word properly means pit, well; it is therefore associated with being in the ground, suggesting that some ancient prisons were in the ground as well (see Gen. 40:15). The association between being in the ground and a grave is obvious.


Translation: Drink [only] waters from your [own] cistern... According to Conservapedia, a cistern is a receptacle where water is stored or collected.


We have a parallelism here, where these two statements appear to say the same thing. David admonishes his son to only drink water from his own cistern. This is generally good advice because any impurities or problems with the water, your body has learned how to handle. When I have gone to Mexico or to the Philippines, it is an important consideration to drink bottled water. However, the people there can drink the very same water that I cannot. They are able to do this because this is the water which they have grown up with. They have become immune to the impurities and bacteria in their water. So, while they are drinking from the water in their own cistern; I am unable to.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: Drink waters out of your own cistern, etc.; i.e. in the wife of your own choice, or in the legitimate sphere of marriage, seek the satisfaction of your natural impulses. The pure, innocent, and chaste nature of such pleasures is appropriately compared with the pure and wholesome waters of the cistern and the wellspring. The "drinking" carries with it the satisfying of a natural want.

 

Jim Rickard is more explicit: “Drinking water” is used because you drink water to quench your thirst. Being thirsty is analogous for sexual desire and drinking is a figure of the sexual satisfaction of conjugal love, of which Paul says, 1 Cor 7:9, “it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” So “water”, as in Song of Sol 5:1, stands for quenching one’s sexual thirst.

 

J. Vernon McGee: When I was the pastor of a certain church, a man of the congregation came to me and announced he was leaving his wife and son and was going to run off with another woman. They were all church members — whether or not they were Christians only God knows. I was a young preacher at that time, and I really laid it on the line to him. He rose in indignation and said, "Are you trying to rob me of my salvation?" I answered, "Brother, if you have salvation, I am not trying to rob you of it. But I do want to say this to you, and I want you to remember it: If you are not God's child, you are acting according to the way the devil's children act. If you happen to be a child of God, one of these days God will take you to His woodshed and He will whip you within an inch of your life. I am not sure but that He may even take your life." The fellow just sneered, and he went ahead and married the other woman. The years have gone by, and those two are the loneliest, saddest, most frustrated, most unlovely people I know. I am confident they would both say, "If only I could go back and do it over." 


Proverbs 5:15b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

nâzal (נָזַל) [pronounced naw-ZAHL]

steams, floods, flowing [running] waters; that which is flowing

masculine plural, Qal active participle

Strong’s #5140 BDB #633

min (מִן) [pronounced mihn]

from, off, out from, out of, away from, on account of, since, than, more than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

tâveke (תָּוֶ) [pronounced taw-VEKE]

midst, among, middle

masculine singular construct

Strong's #8432 BDB #1063

With the min preposition, this can mean from the midst [of anything]; out from, out of.

beʾêr (בְּאֵר) [pronounced be-AIR]

well, pit; spring

feminine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #875 BDB #91

Keil and Delitzsch: Aben–Ezra...rightly distinguishes between בור and באר: the former catches the rain, the latter wells out from within...The poet shows that he also is aware of this distinction, for he calls the water which one drinks from the בור by the name מים, but on the other hand that out of the באר by the name נוזלים, running waters...The בור offers only stagnant water (according to the Sohar, the בור has no water of its own, but only that which is received into it), although coming down into it from above; but the באר has living water, which wells up out of its interior (מתּוך, 15b, intentionally for the mere מן), and is fresh as the streams from Lebanon.


Translation: ...and [drink] flowing waters out from your [own] well. This seems to say the same thing. Because we are speaking of flowing waters here, this sounds more like a spring than a well.


However, this is not a dissertation on drinking the correct water for your health. Solomon is to remain with those who worship the God of David, the God of Moses and the God of Abraham. This is the woman that he should spend his life with. He needs to find a woman where he is drinking from his own well. This is confirmed in Prov. 5:18–19a Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. (ESV)

 

Jim Rickard: Sexual desires should be controlled and channeled in one’s marriage, not wasted as described in Prov 5:7-14. As a person would not get water from his neighbor’s faucet because he has his own, 2Kings 18:31, so a man should have his physical needs met by his own wife, not someone else’s.

 

The NET Bible: Paul Kruger develops this section as an allegory consisting of a series of metaphors. He suggests that what is at issue is private versus common property. The images of the cistern, well, or fountain are used of a wife (e.g., Song 4:15) because she, like water, satisfies desires. Streams of water in the street would then mean sexual contact with a lewd woman. According to 7:12 she never stays home but is in the streets and is the property of many (P. Kruger, “Promiscuity and Marriage Fidelity? A Note on Prov 5:15-18,” JNSL 13 [1987]: 61-68).

 

Peter Pett: Solomon opens this subsection with a vivid illustration. ‘Drink waters out of your own cistern’ must surely be explained in terms of ‘let her breasts satisfy you at all times’ (Proverbs 5:19). The cistern was a private source of water, not accessible to others without strict permission. Thus his wife and her sexual attributes are being seen as his source of sexual enjoyment, and his alone. The parallel ‘running waters out of your own well’ stresses the purity and satisfactory nature of the provision. Whereas the water from a cistern (a pit with a small opening at the top for storing water) might after a time become comparatively dirty and muddy, running water was always pure and wholesome. And note again the emphasis on ‘your own well’. The well would private and for the sole use of the householder, although it would be fed from a spring...Both their cisterns and their wells, and their wives’ sexual favours are to be for themselves alone. They are not to be freely available to strangers and foreigners living among them. This is, of course, the very opposite for prostitutes. (The point is not that strangers must not be allowed to drink from their cisterns and wells, once given permission, only that they are not open to being open to anyone. They are exclusive).


The Voice gives a good translation for this verse, which is also an interpretation at the same time:

 

The Voice                     Here’s what you should do to be satisfied:

go home and drink in the pleasures of your own cistern, your wife;

enjoy the sweet, fresh water that has been there all along, flowing from your own well.

 

The Christian Community Bible: Drink, then, from the water of your own cistern. Let people be responsible first in their married life. This chapter deals with the consequences of licentiousness. It invites a man to value the intimacy of his marriage and after many years to be able to continue being the lover of his wife: be always in love with her.

 

It is strange that today it is necessary to be reminded of such things in a society of abundance where infidelity is extolled as if it multiplied the possibilities of enjoyment and of finding oneself. The contempt for fidelity and the family is the first cause of death in a country: children become rare and selfishness is the law. The Bible knows that people only reach maturity by respecting a law and that sexual liberty only brings decline to a disenchanted heart.

 

Matthew Poole: the sense is, be content with those delights which God allows you, with the proper use of the marriage bed. Why should you ramble here and there, trespassing against God and men, to steal their waters, which you might freely take out of your own cistern or well. The ground of the metaphor is this, that waters were scarce and precious in those countries, and therefore men used to make cisterns and wells for their own private use.

 

Whedon: Waters often stand for posterity. Numbers 24:7. Fountains, wells, and cisterns, in the East were regarded as of great importance. Hence they were largely used metaphorically for that which is noble, desirable, and even sacred. Compare Psalms 68:26; Isaiah 43:1; Song of Solomon 4:12; Genesis 26:15-20; Jeremiah 18:14. These verses, under an allegory, contain an exhortation to restrain the sexual appetite within the boundaries of thine own married life.


Compare this to the notion of drinking from the adulteress woman, who is a deep pit and a narrow well (Prov. 23:27).


Just as, the most important item for the private house is a well; the most important item for the man is his wife.


I have mentioned that drinking from your own well is generally harmless; the same is true with the interaction with one’s wife. It is also a healthy endeavor. If there was no promiscuity or adultery, almost all sexually transmitted diseases would die out.

 

Robert Dean: A study back in the 1980s on American young people over the past 150 years indicated that in the late nineteenth century the average age for sexual maturity or reaching puberty was around eighteen years of age, but the average time frame for reaching emotional maturity, recognizing responsibility, was about fourteen years of age. Because in many cases the children grew up having to take responsibilities on the farm or whatever the environment was, and they would start helping with the family from a young age. So they developed a sense of responsibility and knowing right from wrong long before they faced the temptations of sexual activity. By the 1980s the average age of puberty had moved to twelve—it might even be earlier now for some, due to a lot of factors—but the level of emotional maturity was about age twenty-two or twenty-three. So there is now a ten-year span between reaching sexual maturity and having the emotional maturity to handle these problems. This had led to numerous breakdowns in society.


Smith makes some good points here:

Chuck Smith on How God Made Us

The Bible speaks so much of the beauty of the love and the love relationship within marriage. God has ordained marriage. In the beginning when God made them male and female. He said, For this cause shall a man leave his mother and father, and cleave to his wife: and they two shall become one flesh. Therefore, that which God has joined together, let no man put asunder ( Matthew 19:5-6 ). Now when God created us and He created our bodies, in a true understanding of the scriptural teaching, the real you is not your body. The real you is spirit that dwells in your body. But as my spirit is dwelling in my body, my body does have certain appetites, certain drives, certain needs. There are certain hormones and chemicals and all that work in my body. And these working through the glands, sends signals to my brain, and they keep my body in balance.


If I run around the church, I am burning up a lot of oxygen. And as the oxygen burns up, as the oxygen is being carried by the blood to the various cells of my body that they might burn, the muscles and so forth, that they might burn this oxygen. The byproduct of the burnt oxygen is carbon dioxide. And as this carbon dioxide begins to fill up in my bloodstream, as it gets to a certain level, it sends a message to my brain and it says, "There"s too much carbon dioxide in the blood. You need to get rid of it and the cells are needing some fresh oxygen supply." And my brain responds to these chemical messages that are coming to it as the body is monitoring its own chemical structures. And so the brain sends the message to the lungs to start pumping. It sends a message to the heart, "Get to working. Start really pumping it through." And to the lungs, "Get to really pumping also." And so I start to pant and my heartbeat increases. And thus, I am exhaling the carbon dioxide, the waste materials, and I"m inhaling the fresh oxygen to give fresh shots through my whole system. And this is known as the homeostasis; it keeps my body in balance.


Now if the moisture level gets low in my body, again, a message is sent to my brain, "You’re needing more moisture." And it sends a message to my throat. It gets dry. Man, I got to have a drink of water, you know. I’ve been out perspiring and my moisture level gets down to a dangerous level. And so the chemicals, they respond and I get thirsty.


Now God has built in these systems and they’re marvelous. If He didn’t build in these little systems, when you ran around and all, you just fall over and you could actually die. With all of that extra carbon dioxide in your blood and without the oxygen you need, you’d pass out soon. You wouldn’t be able to run very far. You’d run so far, and then you’d just pass out. But God has put these balances and these drives there. The air drive, and the thirst drive, and then, of course, your cells need other types of energy supplies and so you get hungry. Now this is somewhere where the system has gone haywire, I am sure, but I am sure that I don’t need to eat as much as I do. But yet I have to eat. That’s all a part of the whole system to keep it going.


Now God wanted the earth to be populated by man. And so God created the reproduction organs in the body. And God created strong sexual drives, strong sexual urges. And He made the experience very exciting, very pleasurable in order that children might be born. Otherwise, the human species probably would have disappeared from the world years ago, as man would have found it more pleasurable to go fishing. So it is a God-created drive. The purpose is primarily the populating of the earth. And God has ordained that these drives be satisfied and be fulfilled within the bonds of a marriage covenant, where two persons of opposite sex make a covenant before God that they will love, honor, cherish one another until death separates them. Because God also knows that the children that are born of this relationship need to have the security, the stability of a strong, happy, loving home, lest society disintegrates.


So the whole thing has been planned of God. It’s a part of God’s process. In its place it is not evil. It’s absolutely beautiful and desirable. God has created it in order that it might become a deepest expression of the oneness that does exist between a husband and a wife, where the two become one flesh, joined together, one flesh. And even God has taken this beautiful experience and spiritualized it in likening it unto that relation that exists in the deepest love and the oneness between Christ and His church.


Now, move it out of the environment in which and for which God has created it, and that which was created to be beautiful and meaningful and glorious becomes sinful. Missing the mark. Twisting the use. And it becomes wrong. And it now is laden with feelings of guilt; it has all of its counter issues that come forth from it. It becomes counterproductive.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/csc/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 28, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

Joe Guglielmo: If God only approves of sexual relations within the bounds of marriage, why didn’t He make that sex drive kick in after we are married? That is a good question. The answer is simple, we have a choice, to walk in the Spirit or work in the flesh. We can give into the flesh but as we do we move away from the Lord. Thus, the Lord is telling us, “Crucify the flesh, don’t give in to the flesh, walk in the Spirit and enjoy that fellowship with Me!” He will give us the strength that we need to say no to our flesh and to grow in Him as we pray, as we discipline our bodies unto godliness! Stand strong in the Lord and the power of His might!  Also, it is our sexual drive which, in part, leads men and women to marriage.


——————————

 

Because of the odd interpretations given this next verse, let me first offer Matthew Henry’s overall view of this passage: Let him that is married take delight in his wife, and let him be very fond of her, not only because she is the wife that he himself has chosen and he ought to be pleased with his own choice, but because she is the wife that God in his providence appointed for him and he ought much more to be pleased with the divine appointment, pleased with her because she is his own. Let your fountain be blessed (Prov. 5:18); think yourself very happy in her, look upon her as a blessed wife, let her have your blessing, pray daily for her, and then rejoice with her. Those comforts we are likely to have joy of that are sanctified to us by prayer and the blessing of God. It is not only allowed us, but commanded us, to be pleasant with our relations...Mutual delight is the bond of mutual fidelity. It is not only taken for granted that the bridegroom rejoices over his bride (Isa. 62:5), but given for law. Eccles. 9:9 Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your life. This sets the overall tone and subject matter for vv. 15–19, thus helping us to stay on track.


Overflowing your streams in a street; in the public places rivers of waters.

Proverbs

5:16

[Should] your streams overflow in the streets? [Should] rivers of waters [flow] through the public places?

Should there be streams overflowing in the streets? Should rivers of waters run through our public places?


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Overflowing your streams in a street; in the public places rivers of waters.

Latin Vulgate                          Let your fountains be conveyed abroad, and in the streets divide your waters.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   ...And let your waters overflow in your streets and let them travel in your streets.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Let your water overflow into your streets, let it be disbursed abroad.

Septuagint (Greek)                Let not waters out of your fountain be spilled by you, but let your waters go into your streets.

 

Significant differences:           The sense in which the streams and rivers of water should overflow is not clear, which results in several interpretations above. I took it as a rhetorical question (see the nearly literal translation); the translators from the Greek, Latin and Syriac took these phrases as jussives.

 

The Latin has conveyed abroad rather than in the streets. The Greek has be spilled by you. The Syriac has be disbursed abroad and the Hebrew has in the public places, rivers of waters.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Easy English                          Do not have sex with another woman.

And do not let your water pour into the street!

Good News Bible (TEV)         Children that you have by other women will do you no good.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Contemporary English V.       And don't be like a stream from which just any woman may take a drink.

The Living Bible                     Why should you beget children with women of the street?

New Berkeley Version           Should your springs [Figurative of offspring; children.] be dispersed abroad,

your courses of water in the streets?

New Century Version             Don’t pour your water in the streets;

don’t give your love to just any woman.

New Life Version                    Should the waters from your well flow away, rivers of water in the streets?

New Living Translation           Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,

having sex with just anyone? Hebrew Why spill your springs in the streets, / your streams in the city squares?


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Let the waters of your springs overflow… carry your own water to city squares!

Beck’s American Translation Why should the water from your spring flow outside,

like streams of water out on the streets?

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Nay, drink, and drink deep, at thy own well, thy own cistern; thence let thy offspring abound, like waters from thy own fountain flowing through the public streets [Literally, ‘Let thy fountains be carried out in channels abroad; distribute thy well-water through the streets’; but the phrase evidently refers to a numerous family born in lawful wedlock.]; only let them be thy own, let there be no commerce between thyself and strangers. Vv. 15 and 17 are included for context.

Translation for Translators     Like you would not waste good water by pouring it into the street,

you should not have sex with other women. [MET, EUP]


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Are your fountains scattered outside, as channels of waters in the streets?

Conservapedia                       Let your fountains be separated abroad, and rivers of waters in the street.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                From your fountains that flow in your court, That run into pools with their streams.

Lexham English Bible            Shall your springs be scattered outward? In the streets, [shall there be] streams of water?


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  Do not let your fountains be wasted elsewhere nor in the public streets.

New American Bible (2011)   Should your water sources be dispersed abroad,

streams of water in the streets?

Revised English Bible            Do not let your well overflow into the road, your runnels of water pour into the street.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           Let what your springs produce be dispersed outside, streams of water flowing in the streets; but let them be for you alone and not for strangers with you. V. 17 is included for context.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...why shatter the fountains in the outways

and rivulets of waters in the broadways?

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Your springs will gush forth

In streams in the public squares.

Judaica Press Complete T.    May your springs spread out rivulets of water in the squares.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Should thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and channels of mayim in the rekhovot (town squares)?


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Should your offspring be dispersed abroad as water brooks in the streets?

The Expanded Bible              Don’t ·pour your water in the streets [Llet your fountains burst forth outside];

·don’t give your love to just any woman [Lstreams of water in the public squares].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad and rivers of waters in the streets, in the proper enjoyment of marital love.

NET Bible®                             Should your springs be dispersed outside,

your streams of water in the wide plazas?

Syndein/Thieme                     Your fountains {sexual acts} shall not overflow to other women in the streets, the dividing of waters {creates confusion in the life of a nation}.

The Voice                               Take care. Should your own springs, your body, be freely shared?

Should your streams of water satisfy anyone in the streets? Absolutely not!


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Should your springs scatter forth in the streets, Your rillets of water in the public squares?

Darby Translation                  Thy fountains shall be poured forth, as water-brooks in the broadways.

Emphasized Bible                  Let not thy fountains, flow over, abroad, in the streets, dividings of waters:...

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

Green’s Literal Translation    Should your overflowing springs be scattered outside, like rivers of waters in the streets?

Stuart Wolf                             Should they be dispersed, your springs/fountains, outside? In the broad streets, canals?.

Webster’s Bible Translation  Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, [and] rivers of waters in the streets.

World English Bible                Should your springs overflow in the streets, Streams of water in the public squares?

Young’s Updated LT             Let your fountains be scattered abroad, In broad places rivulets of waters.

 

The gist of this verse:          David appears to be asking a question: should you let your streams overflow into the streets?


Proverbs 5:16a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

pûwts (פּוּץ) [pronounced poots]

to break, to dash into pieces; to disperse [sometimes, to disperse themselves; to be dispersed], to scatter; to overflow

3rd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong’s #6327 BDB #806

The NET Bible: The verb means “to be scattered; to be dispersed”; here the imperfect takes a deliberative nuance in a rhetorical question.

maʿeyân (מַעְיָן) [pronounced mahģ-YAWN]

spring, fountain; a place irrigated with fountains

masculine plural noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #4599 BDB #745

chûts (חוּץ) (ץח) [pronounced khoots]

outside, street; out of the city (the fields, country, deserts); our of doors, abroad

masculine singular noun with the hê locale

Strong’s #2351 BDB #299

The directional hê allows us to insert the words to or toward into the translation.

Preacher”s Complete Homiletical Commentary: In order to make the idea in this verse agree with those preceding and following it, Stuart and other commentators insert a negative: "Let (not) your fountains," etc. Lange’s Commentary considers this needless, and retains the same idea by conceiving the sentence to be an interrogative indicated, not by its form, but by its tone: "Will your fountains?" &c. So also Hitzig. Holden, Noyes, Wordsworth, Miller, etc., read as in the authorised version.


Translation: [Should] your streams overflow in the streets? King David continues with his water analogy. Is it the right thing for streams to overflow in the streets? Could you move along your street easily if there was an overflow of water there? The answer is, of course not! (This is written before the River Walk of San Antonio and the before the waters of Italy; which are possible because of cement.)


The idea is, the water that you drink from needs to be confined; you do not run it through the streets and then drink it.


In the ancient world, the streets were absolutely filthy! People would take their chamber pots and fling the contents out of the windows; if people did not urinate in the streets, their urine ended up in the streets. I would think there is good evidence that men urinated in the streets regularly, as there are references in the Bible to those who pisseth against a wall (1Sam. 25:22, 34 1Kings 14:10 16:11 21:21 2Kings 9:8). This indicates that men typically turned their backs and urinated against the walls. So, what do you think about letter your water run through the streets before you drink from it? Not really too appetizing.


Proverbs 5:16b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

rechôbôwth (רְחֹבוֹת) [pronounced rekh-oh-BOATH]

wide places, wide streets, broad open place; markets; courts of justice; public places

feminine plural noun with the definite article

Strong's #7344 (plural of #7339) BDB #932

Jamieson, Fausset and Brown: "wide places" [can refer to] markets, courts of justice, and any public place.

peleg (פֶּלֶג) [pronounced PEH-lehg]

a [manmade] channel, a canal; a river, a stream; a cleft, a division

masculine plural construct

Strong’s #6388 BDB #811

mayim (מַיִם) [pronounced mah-YIHM]

water (s)

masculine plural noun

Strong’s #4325 BDB #565


Translation: [Should] rivers of waters [flow] through the public places? Another parallel thought: should rivers of waters flow through the public places? Can you shop and go about your business if there is water everywhere? Obviously, David has never been to the floating markets of Thailand. But the clear answer for his time is, no!


Two translations add in the concept of the parallelism:

Translation for Translators     Like you would not waste good water by pouring it into the street,

you should not have sex with other women. [MET, EUP]

The Voice                               Take care. Should your own springs, your body, be freely shared?

Should your streams of water satisfy anyone in the streets? Absolutely not!


Just as you would not drink the water from the streets, which has gathered all sorts of common filth, so you would not have sex outside of your marriage, particularly with a woman who does not believe. Obviously, you would not want your own woman put out into the street to be ravished, just as you would not want the water of your well to flow through the filthy streets before you drink from it.


American teens, helped along by a non-judgmental society and sex education, have been engaging in more and more sexual contact. Now, 1 in 4 teens contract a sexually transmitted disease every year. This is what happens when your water runs through the streets before you drink from it.


This could also be understood to having many children—even from lawful marriages—who are now scattered throughout the city (which is confusion).


I don’t know if this is discussed much, but if Solomon reigned for 40 years, and he began as a young king, then he died at a very young age. Not only did he die at a very young age (probably in his 50's), but his body was falling apart at that time as well (Ecclesiastes 12:1–5). What we do know about Solomon, in this golden age of Israel, is that he had 1000 wives and mistresses. It is not out of the question for Solomon to have encountered a great many venereal diseases in his time.


Although others interpret this verse as referring to having a lot of children and having them spread abroad, the problem is, this does not fit in well with vv. 15 and 17, which both speak of drinking water only from your own well and that this is for you alone, and it is not for others. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that v. 16 continues with that same theme, rather than to speak of children at this point. Aben Ezra, cited by many, interprets that the fountains refer to a multitude of lawfully begotten children who are spread abroad; and Jarchi believes that this is multiplying disciples and teaching them the Law.

 

This incorrect view can be found in Jamieson, Fausset and Brown: By figures, in which well, cistern, and fountain [Prov. 5:15, Prov. 5:18] represent the wife, and rivers of waters [Prov. 5:16] the children, men are exhorted to constancy and satisfaction in lawful conjugal enjoyments. Poole takes the same view (which is the viewpoint of many scholars): your children proceeding from your wife, called your fountain, Prov. 5:18, and from yourself, as the Israelites are said to come from the fountain of Israel (Deut. 33:28 Psalm 68:26). Compare Isa. 51:1. And fountains are here put for rivers flowing from them, as it is explained in the next clause, and as it is Psalm 104:10, by a metonymy of the cause for the effect. And this title may be the more fitly given to children, because as they are rivers in respect of their parents, so when they grow up, they also become fountains to their children. For the second phrase, Poole adds: they will be multiplied, and in due time appear abroad in the world to your comfort and honour, and for the good of others; whereas whores are commonly barren, and men are ashamed to own the children of whoredom.


Although I see it as there being two primary interpretations, the Pulpit Commentary lists 4.

The Pulpit Commentary on the 4 Interpretations of Proverbs 5:16

The figurative language is still continued, and under the terms "fountains" and "rivers of waters," are to be understood children, the legitimate issue of lawful marriage. So Aben Ezra and the majority of modern commentators, Schultens, Doderlein, Holden, Muenscher, Noyes, Wardlaw, etc. The meaning appears to be, "Let thy marriage be blessed with many children, who may go forth abroad for the public good." Other interpretations have been adopted. Thus:

(1)     Delitzsch takes the words fountans and "rivers of waters" as used figuratively for the procreative power, and renders, "Shall your streams flow abroad, and water brooks in the streets?" and interprets, "Let generative power act freely and unrestrainedly within the marriage relation.

(2)     Schultens and Dathe, followed by Holden, regard the verse as expressing a conclusion on the preceding, "Then shall your springs be dispersed abroad, even rivers of waters in the streets." The objection to this is that it necessitates the insertion of the copulative vau (w) before the verb, yaphutzu, "be dispersed.

(3)     Zockler and Hitzig read the verse interrogatively, "Shall your streams flow abroad as water brooks in the streets?" on the analogy of Prov. 6:30 and Psalm 56:7.

(4)     The reading of the LXX, adopted by Origen, Clemens Alexandrinus, places a negative before the verb..., i.e. "Let not your waters flow beyond your fountain;" i.e. "confine yourself to your wife." Fountains. The Hebrew ma"yanim, plural of mayan, derived from ayin ("a fountain") with the formative men, is rather a stream or rill water flowing on the surface of the ground. It is used, however, of a fountain itself in Gen. 7:11 Gen. 8:2. Rivers of waters...rather, water courses or water brooks. (cf. Job. 38:25) The peleg represents the various streams into which the mayan, "fountain," divides itself at its source or in its course. We find the same expression, pal"gey–mayim, used of tears in Psalm 119:136 Lam. 3:48. It occurs again in our book in Prov. 21:1, "The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord as the rivers of waters..." On "abroad" ...and "in the streets" ..., see Prov. 1:20.

Sometimes, a similar passage where water is found (in a well, in a cistern, running as a stream or in a lake) may be helpful; however, many times, the same image can be used to stand for many things. In many passages, for instance, water is associated with the Word of God.

From The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:16 (edited).

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

From Precept Austin: David Watson writes that "The expression 'free love' is a contradiction in terms. If it's free, it's not love; if it's love, it's not free.


——————————


They are to you for yourself alone and [it is] not to strangers with you.

Proverbs

5:17

They are to you for you alone and [they are] not for the strangers with you.

They are to you for you alone and they are not for the strangers with you.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        They are to you for yourself alone and [it is] not to strangers with you.

Latin Vulgate                          Keep them to yourself alone, neither let strangers be partakers with you.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   And let them be to you alone, and let not estranged males be sexual partners with you.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Let it be for yourself alone, let not strangers be partners with you.

Septuagint (Greek)                Let them be yours alone, and let no stranger partake with you.

 

Significant differences:           The PEA Bible obviously does some interpretation in this verse. The words partake, partakers, partners are not found in the Hebrew text.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Let them be for yourself only, not for other men with you.

Easy English                          Your wife, like your water, should be yours, only.

Do not share your water with other men!

Easy-to-Read Version            Your children should belong only to you. You should not have to share them with people out of your own home.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Your children should grow up to help you, not strangers.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           They are yours alone,

not for you as well as strangers.

Contemporary English V.       Save yourself for your wife and don't have sex with other women.

The Living Bible                     Why share your children with those outside your home?

New Berkeley Version           But let them be only your own,

and not those of aliens, too.

New Century Version             These things are yours alone

and shouldn’t be shared with strangers.

New Living Translation           You should reserve it for yourselves.

Never share it with strangers.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Let it be yours all alone… do not share it with strangers!

Beck’s American Translation Keep them for yourself alone,

and don’t share them with strangers.

Translation for Translators     Enjoy having sex only with your wife;

do not have sex with other women.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      They are yours alone, not for commoners with you.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                And reserved for your own use alone, Not for you, and for strangers as well.

Lexham English Bible            May they be yours alone, and not for strangers [who are] with you.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

The Heritage Bible                 Let them be only your own, and not a stranger’s with you.

New American Bible (2011)   Let them be yours alone,

not shared with outsiders;...

Revised English Bible            Let them be for yourself alone, not shared with strangers.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

exeGeses companion Bible   They are only your own

and not strangers with you.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               They will be yours alone,

Others having no part with you.

Judaica Press Complete T.    You alone shall have them, and strangers shall have nothing with you.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Let them be only thine own, and never zarim (strangers) with thee.

The Scriptures 1998              And not for strangers with you.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                [Confine yourself to your own wife] let your children be for you alone, and not the children of strangers with you.

The Expanded Bible              These things are yours alone

and shouldn’t be shared with strangers.

The Geneva Bible                  Let them be only thine own, and not strangers with thee. Distribute them not to the wicked and infidels, but reserve them for yourself, your family and them who are of the household of faith.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Let them be only thine own, that is, the waters of this fountain in lawful wedlock, and not strangers' with thee, in illegitimate intercourse.

NET Bible®                             Let them be for yourself alone,

and not for strangers with you.

Syndein/Thieme                     Let them {your sex acts} be for your one and only {your right woman}, and not for a reversionistic promiscuous woman.

The Voice                               They should be kept pure for you and you alone,

not for sharing with strangers.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Let them be yours, for you alone, And not for aliens along with you."

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Let the wells flow out abroad, that there may be rivers of water in the streets: but let them be only your own, and not strangers with you. V. 16 is included for context.

New King James Version       Let them be only your own,

And not for strangers with you.

Stuart Wolf                             Let them become for you alone, and not to exist for strangers with you.

World English Bible                Let them be for yourself alone, Not for strangers with you.

Young’s Updated LT             Let them be to you for yourself, And not to strangers with you.

 

The gist of this verse:          David is indicating an exclusivity with one’s private well (which is the right woman for Solomon).


We continue the analogy. One’s own well, one’s own cistern belongs to you, and it is not something that is freely given out to any stranger.


Proverbs 5:17a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

hâyâh (הָיָה) [pronounced haw-YAW]

to be, is, was, are; to become, to come into being; to come to pass

3rd person masculine plural, Qal imperfect

Strong's #1961 BDB #224

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

No Strong’s # BDB #510

The NET Bible: The ל (lamed) preposition denotes possession: “for you” = “yours.” The term לְבַדֶּךָ (lÿvadekha) is appositional, underscoring the possession as exclusive.

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

bad (בַּד) [pronounced bahd]

separation, by itself, alone

masculine singular noun; with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix; pausal form

Strong’s #905 BDB #94

Together, the lâmed preposition and bad (בַּד) mean in a state of separation, by itself, alone, only; apart.


Translation: They are to you for you alone... We are referring back to the well and to the cistern. These things are important and indicate ownership. Let’s say your next door neighbor hooked up a hose to your water outlet and began to water his lawn. You might strenuously object to this. I had a situation where my water bill suddenly went from $30 to $100/month, and for no reason. After a few months of complaining, the water service came out and looked the situation over. At my insistence, when I figured out what was going on, they finally dug up the meters and the pipes. My next door neighbors had hooked up their new sprinkler system to my water meter. They got the green lawn and I got the water bill! My water was supposed to be for me and me alone!


In the ancient world, ownership of a well was very important, and the survival of a family depended upon whatever wells they have dug. Quite obviously, a family and a farm need water. There was no set of water delivery set up in those days as we enjoy in the United States. So having water was absolutely necessary.


Proverbs 5:17b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

ʾêyn (אֵין) [pronounced ān]

nothing, not, [is] not; not present, not ready; expresses non-existence, absence or non-possession; [there is] no [none, not one, no one, not]

particle of negation; substantive of negation

Strong’s #369 BDB #34

lâmed (לְ) [pronounced le]

to, for, towards, in regards to

directional/relational preposition

No Strong’s # BDB #510

zûwr (זוּר) [pronounced zoor]

a stranger, an alien; an enemy; of another family; a strange woman, an adulteress; strange children [bastards]; unlawful; another; new, unheard of; unauthorized person

masculine plural, Qal active participle

Strong's #2114 BDB #266

ʾêth (אֶח) [pronounced ayth]

with, at, near, by, among, directly from

preposition (which is identical to the sign of the direct object); with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix; pausal form

Strong's #854 BDB #85

This preposition can also refer to being in one’s possession or in one’s keeping. This can also mean to proceed from someone. The key to this word is close association with, close proximity to beyond simple geographical proximity.


Translation: ...and [they are] not for the strangers with you. I am continuing the they are from the first half of this verse, which refers to the well and cistern which belong to the hearer of Proverbs 5 (Solomon at the time). He did not have his own well, but he would; just as he did not have his woman at this time, but he would.


The word they refers back to the well and cistern, not back to multiple wives. Under one interpretation, it is said to refer to one’s wife and children. However, this is allegorical at this point, so we do not have to match up the pronoun they with a man’s right woman. It goes back to what we are speaking of. David will define what this allegory is all about in the next few verses, so that it does not go over Solomon’s head. However, perhaps worried that we the reader might stop of v. 17 and read no further, some translations give us an interpretation within their translation:

 

Contemporary English V.       Save yourself for your wife and don't have sex with other women.

Translation for Translators     Enjoy having sex only with your wife;

do not have sex with other women.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Let them be only thine own, that is, the waters of this fountain in lawful wedlock, and not strangers' with thee, in illegitimate intercourse.


King David, in this discourse, is simply defining the boundaries that a young man ought to respect; and the boundary is marriage to a young man’s right woman. That is the boundary for his affection and sexual activity. Just as digging a well means that well is for you and your household, and just like you don’t let your water run through the filthy streets first before drinking it, so is the right woman designed for her man, and so that is who should be desired, appreciated and exclusively ravished.

 

The NET Bible: The point is that what is private is not to be shared with strangers; it belongs in the home and in the marriage. The water from that cistern is not to be channeled to strangers or to the public.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: The home is a divine institution of the first importance for the welfare of mankind. Here and throughout the Bible the sanctity of the home is insisted on as something to be guarded inviolably. It is evident that this beautiful institution is in harmony with our nature. To live according to nature is not to indulge ill-regulated passions, to follow chance impulses, to subordinate reason and conscience to instinct and appetite. It is to live so as to secure the harmonious working of our whole nature and of the general body of mankind. Thus regarded, family life is natural; it falls in best with the requirements of the race, it ministers best to its advancement. Polygamy is always degrading. As men rise in the moral scale they cast it off. The home is the foundation of the state. Where home life is most corrupt social and political institutions are in greatest danger. The homes of England are the surest guardians of her internal order and peace. May no corrupt casuistry ever dare to lay its foul finger on these holy shrines! The worst fruits of atheism and of the confessional are seen in specious pretexts for committing that horrible sacrilege.

 

As an aside, some commentators interpret v. 16 as referring to children; and therefore, this verse refers to multiple children conceived legitimately. Clarke, for instance: The off-spring of a legitimate connection; a bastard brood, however numerous, is no credit to any man. Gill takes the same approach: Or "they shall be your own", as the Targum; meaning not the cistern, the well, or the wife, but the fountains and rivers, or the children; by a man's cleaving to his own wife, who is a chaste and virtuous woman, he is satisfied that the children he has by her are his own, and not another's; whereas if he has to do with a common harlot, it is uncertain whose children they are, she prostituting herself to many. Again, I do not see this as the correct understanding of this passage.


Interestingly enough, in the garden, under perfect environment, Adam and the woman could eat from every tree in the garden but one. In a fallen world, man has only the choice of one Tree, the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. In marriage, a man is to eat from only one tree (or drink from one stream), that being his right woman.


Another incorrect approach to this verse is to understand they to refer to one’s children; and that it is better to have lawful children rather than a bunch of bastards. The Pulpit Commentary puts forth this interpretation. The problem is still the same. There is no clear reference back to children (or even forward to children). To understand it that way, you have to manufacture children in v. 16 and then perpetuate them into v. 17. This would be fine, if there were some call to do this. However, given that David explains this allegory and leaves out children suggests that he never meant in his teaching to reference legitimate versus illegitimate children.


——————————


Throughout the previous few verses, I have explained why this is all about a young man and his right woman, and that this is not a reference to children. David will now explain the allegory, and you will notice that he does not mention children.


Let your spring be blessed, and rejoice more with a woman of your youth, a hind of love and a doe of grace. Her breasts intoxicate you in every time; in her love you will wander continuously.

Proverbs

5:18–19

Let your [own] spring be blessed and be joyful with the wife of your youth, [for she is] a hind of love and a doe of grace. [Let] her breasts intoxicate you always; and you will wander continuously in her love.

Enjoy your own spring, which is blessed and enjoy the wife of your youth, for she is like a hind of love or a doe of grace. Let her breasts intoxicate you always and wander forever in her love.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Let your spring be blessed, and rejoice more with a woman of your youth, a hind of love and a doe of grace. Her breasts intoxicate you in every time; in her love you will wander continuously.

Latin Vulgate                          Let your vein be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth: Let her be your dearest hind, and most agreeable fawn: let her breasts inebriate you at all times: be you delighted continually with her love.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   And your fountain shall be blessed and rejoice with the wife of your youth-

An affectionate hind and an affectionate mountain goat; learn her ways always and think on her love.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Let your fountain be blessed: and rejoice in the wife of your youth. Let her be like a loving hind, and pleasant mountain roe; learn her ways always, and be mindful of her love.

Septuagint (Greek)                Let your fountain of water be truly your own, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. Let your loving deer and your graceful colt company with you, and let her be considered your own, and be with you at all times, for ravished with her love you shall be greatly increased.

 

Significant differences:           Where the Hebrew has blessed, the Greek has truly your own. To the 3rd and 4th phrase, the Greek adds with you (not found in the Hebrew). The final phrase in the Greek does not really match up with the Hebrew. Keil and Delitzsch: The LXX obliterates the strong sensual colouring of this line.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Let blessing be on your fountain; have joy in the wife of your early years.

As a loving hind and a gentle doe, let her breasts ever give you rapture; let your passion at all times be moved by her love.

Easy English                          Enjoy your own water!

And enjoy your own wife always!

She gives love and grace, like a deer (a beautiful wild animal).

Her breasts always satisfy you. Her love always attracts you.

Easy-to-Read Version            So, be happy with your own wife. Enjoy the woman you married while you were young. She is like a beautiful deer, a lovely fawn. Let her love satisfy you completely. Let her love intoxicate you always.

God’s Word                         Let your own fountain be blessed,

and enjoy the girl you married when you were young,

a loving doe and a graceful deer [Or “graceful goat.”].

Always let her breasts satisfy you.

Always be intoxicated with her love.

Good News Bible (TEV)         So be happy with your wife and find your joy with the woman you married---pretty and graceful as a deer. Let her charms keep you happy; let her surround you with her love.

The Message                         Your spring water is for you and you only,

not to be passed around among strangers.

Bless your fresh-flowing fountain!

Enjoy the wife you married as a young man!

Lovely as an angel, beautiful as a rose—

don’t ever quit taking delight in her body.

Never take her love for granted!

Why would you trade enduring intimacies for cheap thrills with a whore?

for dalliance with a promiscuous stranger? Vv. 17 and 20 are included for context.

New Simplified Bible              Let your fountain be blessed. Rejoice with the wife of your youth.

She is like a loving deer and a graceful doe. Let her breasts satisfy you at all times. Always be delighted with her love.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           May your spring be blessed.

Rejoice in the wife of your youth.

She is a lovely deer, a graceful doe.

Let her breasts intoxicate you all the time;

always be drunk on her love.

Contemporary English V.       Be happy with the wife you married when you were young. She is beautiful and graceful, just like a deer; you should be attracted to her and stay deeply in love.

The Living Bible                     Be happy, yes, rejoice in the wife of your youth. Let her breasts and tender embrace [Let her breasts and tender embrace, literally, “As a loving hind and a pleasant doe, let her breasts.”] satisfy you. Let her love alone fill you with delight.

New Berkeley Version           Letr your own fountain be blessed;

derive delight from the wife of your youth;

a lovely hind, a graceful doe,

let her breasts satisfy you at all times;

be always infatuated with her love;...

New Century Version             Be happy with the wife you married when you were young.

She gives you joy, as your fountain gives you water.

She is as lovely and graceful as a deer.

Let her love always make you happy;

let her love always hold you captive.

New Life Version                    Let your well be honored, and be happy with the wife you married when you were young. Let her be like a loving, female deer. Let her breasts please you at all times. Be filled with great joy always because of her love.

New Living Translation           Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you.

Rejoice in the wife of your youth.

She is a loving deer, a graceful doe.

Let her breasts satisfy you always.

May you always be captivated by her love.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Let your spring be just yours, and find your joy in the wife of your youth… your friendly hind and your favored filly. Let her share conversation with you; hold her high and keep her nearby, for this friendship will mean a great deal.

Beck’s American Translation Let your own fountain be blessed;

have pleasure with the girl you married when you were young—

a doe to be loved and a lovely wild goat.

Always let her breasts satisfy you,

always be intoxicated with her love.

International Standard V        Let your fountain be blessed

and enjoy the wife of your youth.

Like a loving deer, a beautiful doe,

let her breasts satisfy you all the time.

Be constantly intoxicated by her love.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       A blessing on that fountain of thine! take thy pleasure with the bride thy manhood wins for thee. Thy own bride, gentle as a hind, graceful as a doe; be it her bosom that steals away thy senses with the delight of a lover that loves still.

Translation for Translators     Let your wife be a source of great pleasure to you.

Be happy/Enjoy sex with the woman whom you married when you were both young.

She is as pretty and graceful as a young female deer.

Allow her breasts to always satisfy you.

Allow her lovemaking to excite you.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Your spring is happy. Joy with the woman of your youth,

a lover with grace as a hind mountain-goat. Her teats soak you continually with her love in any period that you err.

Conservapedia                       Let your fountain be blessed [In the context of rejoicing with ones wife "fountain" can be "interpreted" in more then one way. ] and rejoice with the wife of your youth. Let her be as the loving hind and the pleasant roe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times, be ravished always always with her love.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                And let your spring always be blessed, And rejoice with the wives of your youth, With the lovely gazelles, graceful ever; At all times be entranced by their breasts, And dream at all times of their love.

HCSB                                     Let your fountain be blessed, and take pleasure in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful fawn--let her breasts always satisfy you; be lost in her love forever.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  Thy fountain shall be blessed; and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love, without eyes for anyone else.

Lexham English Bible            May your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth. [She is] a deer of love and a doe of grace; may her breasts satisfy you {always}; by her love may you be intoxicated continually.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  May your fountainhead be blessed and may you find joy in the wife of your youth,

your beautiful hind and graceful gazelle! May her breasts be your delight at all times: be always in love with her.

The Heritage Bible                 Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. Let her be as the loving doe and graceful ibex [a very graceful animal similar to the deer but smaller.]; let her breasts satisfy your appetite at all times; stray with her love always.

New American Bible (2002)   Let your fountain be yours alone, not one shared with strangers;

And have joy of the wife of your youth,

your lovely hind, your graceful doe [Lovely hind . . . graceful doe: oriental symbols of feminine beauty and charm; cf ⇒ Song 2:7, 9, ⇒ 17.]. Her love will invigorate you always, through her love you will flourish continually,

When you lie down she will watch over you, and when you wake, she will share your concerns; wherever you turn, she will guide you. Vv. 17 and 6:22 added for context.

New American Bible (2011)   Let your fountain be blessed and have joy of the wife of your youth,

your lovely hind, your graceful doe. [Lovely hind…graceful doe: ancient Near Eastern symbols of feminine beauty and charm; cf. Sg 2:7, 9, 17.]

Of whose love you will ever have your fill,

and by her ardor always be intoxicated.

New Jerusalem Bible             May your fountain-head be blessed! Find joy with the wife you married in your youth, fair as a hind, graceful as a fawn: hers the breasts that ever fill you with delight, hers the love that ever holds you captive.

 

Revised English Bible            Let your fountain, the wife of your youth, be blessed; find your joy in her.

A lovely doe, a graceful hind, let her be your companion; her love will satisfy you at all times and wrap you round continually.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           Let your fountain, the wife of your youth, be blessed; find joy in her a lovely deer, a graceful fawn; let her breasts satisfy you at all times, always be infatuated with her love.

exeGeses companion Bible   Blessed - your fountain.

Cheer with the woman of your youth;

she is as the hind of loves and the roe of charism:

her nipples satisfy you at all times;

and continually err inadvertently with her love.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Let your fountain be blessed;

Find joy in the wife of your youth—

A loving doe, a graceful mountain goat.

Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;

Be infatuated with love of her always.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Let thy makor (fountain) be blessed; and rejoice with the isha of thy youth.

Let her be as the loving deer and graceful doe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou enraptured tamid (ever) with ahavat (love of) her.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Let your fountain [of human life] be blessed [with the rewards of fidelity], and rejoice in the wife of your youth.

Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant doe [tender, gentle, attractive]—let her bosom satisfy you at all times, and always be transported with delight in her love.

The Expanded Bible              ·Be happy with the wife you married when you were young [LRejoice in the wife of your youth].

·She gives you joy, as your fountain gives you water [LMay your spring be blessed].

She is a lovely deer and a graceful doe.

Let her ·love [or breasts] always make you happy;

let her love always ·hold you captive [intoxicate/inebriate you; Song 4:10].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Let thy fountain be blessed, the children of lawful wedlock being gifts of the Lord, and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Cf Deut. 24:5; Ecc. 9:9.

Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe, or the graceful gazelle, emblems of the graceful, fascinating, lively nature of a young wife; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times, her bosom charming her husband, and be thou ravished always with her love, said of the ecstatic joy of the loving husband which meets with the glad approval of God within holy wedlock.

NET Bible®                             May your fountain be blessed,

and may you rejoice in your young wife [Or “in the wife you married when you were young” (cf. NCV, CEV); Heb “in the wife of your youth” (so NIV, NLT). The genitive functions as an attributive adjective: “young wife” or “youthful wife.” Another possibility is that it refers to the age in which a man married his wife: “the wife you married in your youth.”]

a loving doe, a graceful deer;

may her breasts satisfy you at all times,

may you be captivated by her love always.

Syndein/Thieme                     Your fountain {sex life} shall be permanently blessed {wait will be worth it}. Therefore take pleasure in the woman of your vigor {your right woman} who is an amorous sexy doe . . . a wild she-goat of grace. Her breasts shall intoxicate you at all times. You shall always wander up and down her body in the area of her love. {Note: Verse 19 starts at either 'who is . . .' or at 'a wild she . . .' Does not affect interpretation of verse so pass!}.

The Voice                               May your fountain, your sex life, be blessed by God;

may you know true joy with the wife of your youth.

She who is lovely as a deer and graceful as a doe—

as you drink in her love,

may her breasts satisfy you at all times.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    May your fountain become blessed; Rejoice in the wife of your youth, A loving hind and a graceful ibex; May her affections satisfy you in every season; May you be intoxicated by her love continually.

Context Group Version          Let your fountain be esteemed; And rejoice in the woman { or wife } of your youth.

[ As ] a loving hind and a pleasant doe, Let her nipples satisfy you at all times; And be ravished always with her love.

Darby Translation                  Let thy fountain be blessed; and have joy of the wife of thy youth. As a lovely hind and a graceful roe, let her breasts satisfy thee at all times: be thou ravished continually with her love.

Emphasized Bible                  Let thy well-spring be blessed,—and get thy joy from the wife of thy youth:—A loving hind! a graceful doe! let, her bosom, content thee at all times, and, in her love, mayst thou stray evermore.

English Standard V. – UK       Let your fountain be blessed,

and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

a lovely deer, a graceful doe.

Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;

be intoxicated [Hebrew be led astray; also verse 20] always in her love.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Let your well be blessed, and be glad with the wife of your youth. Loving is the *hind and friendly is the Roo: let her breasts always satisfy you, and hold you ever content with her love.

NASB                                     Let your fountain be blessed,

And rejoice in the wife of your youth.

As a loving hind and a graceful doe,

Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;

Be exhilarated [Lit intoxicated] always with her love.

New European Version          Let your spring be blessed. Rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe and a graceful deer— let her breasts satisfy you at all times. Be captivated always with her love.

New King James Version       Let your fountain be blessed,

And rejoice with the wife of your youth.

As a loving deer and a graceful doe,

Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;

And always be enraptured with her love.

Stuart Wolf                             Let your fountain become blessed, and take joy/rejoice from/with the wife of your youth,

May she be a doe of love acts/loving doe, a graceful mountain goat; may her breasts refresh/satisfy you at all times, with her loving go astray continually.

Updated Bible Version 2.11   Let your fountain be blessed; And rejoice in the wife of your youth.

[As] a loving hind and a pleasant doe, Let her nipples immerse you at all times; And be ravished always with her love.

Webster’s Bible Translation  Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

[Let her be as] the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.

Young’s Updated LT             Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice because of the wife of your youth, A hind of loves, and a roe of grace! Let her loves satisfy you at all times, In her love magnify yourself continually.

 

The gist of this passage:     David tells Solomon to focus upon his wife and family; and to enjoy the love and sexual relations with his wife.


Proverbs 5:18a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

hâyâh (הָיָה) [pronounced haw-YAW]

to be, is, was, are; to become, to come into being; to come to pass

3rd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect; apocopated jussive

Strong's #1961 BDB #224

A jussive expresses the speaker’s desire, wish or command. We often add into the translation may or let. The jussive involves only the imperfect form of a verb and may be used in the 2nd or 3rd persons (although the latter is the most common). A strong verb is identified as a jussive by context, as it is no different than the imperfect form. A weak verb as a jussive is generally a shortened form of the imperfect.

mâqôwr (מָקוֹר) [pronounced maw-KOHR]

spring, fountain; source of monstrous blood; flow of blood; figuratively of eye

masculine singular noun with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #4726 BDB #881

bârake (בָּרַ) [pronounced baw-RAHKe]

blessed, blessed be [is], blessings to; happiness to [for], happiness [is]; praised is, celebrated is

Qal passive participle

Strong’s #1288 BDB #138

The NET Bible: The positive instruction is now given: Find pleasure in a fulfilling marriage. The “fountain” is another in the series of implied comparisons with the sexual pleasure that must be fulfilled at home. That it should be blessed (the passive participle of בָּרַךְ, barakh) indicates that sexual delight is God-given; having it blessed would mean that it would be endowed with fruitfulness, that it would fulfill all that God intended it to do.


Translation: Let your [own] spring be blessed... This is a metaphorical reference which could be understood to refer to both to one’s own family and to one’s own spiritual race. Israel was to remain pure, not due to racial considerations, but for religious reasons. Now, this did not mean that people of other races could not become Jews—this happened all of the time.


However, given the context and what King David says (particularly in the next part of v. 18), it makes more sense for this to simply refer to the wife of one’s youth, a man’s right woman. None of this context appears to refer to one’s family and definitely not to one’s nation.

 

Gill: [That is,] Your wife; make her happy by keeping to her and from others; by behaving in a loving, affable, and respectful manner to her; by living comfortably with her, and providing well for her and her children: or reckon her a happiness, a blessing that God has bestowed.

 

The Geneva Bible gives the common mistaken notion: Let thy fountain be blessed [means] Your children who will come from you in great abundance showing that God blesses marriage and curses whoredom.


However, the relationship to children is dispelled in vv. 18b–20, where David explains his analogy, and never speaks of one’s family or children or nation.


Proverbs 5:18b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

sâmach (שָמַח) [pronounced saw-MAHKH]

rejoice, be glad, be joyful, be merry

2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperative

Strong’s #8055 BDB #970

The NET Bible: The form is a Qal imperative with a vav (ו) of sequence; after the jussive of the first half this colon could be given an equivalent translation or logically subordinated.

min (מִן) [pronounced mihn]

from, off, away from, out from, out of, from off; on account of, since, above, than, so that not, beyond, more than, greater than

preposition of separation

Strong's #4480 BDB #577

ʾîshshâh (אִשָּה) [pronounced eesh-SHAW]

woman, wife

feminine singular construct

Strong's #802 BDB #61

neʿûrîym (נעוּרִים) [pronounced neģoo-REEM]

childhood, youth (it is always found in the plural, so we might render it youthful years); adolescence

masculine plural noun with a 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #5271 BDB #655

proverbs054.gif

Translation: ...and be joyful with the wife of your youth,... Solomon was to enjoy life with his right woman. This is the ideal. From Gen. 1 and 2, throughout the writings of David and Solomon, and confirmed by Jesus Christ, and taught by Paul and Peter, the right relationship is one man and one woman.


With this, David clearly moves away from the analogy and tells Solomon clearly what the meaning is. He is speaking about Solomon’s one wife in the future.


Proverbs 5:18 (a graphic); from pinimg.com; accessed September 2, 2015.

 

The Apologetics Study Bible: The book of Proverbs...sees sex as a gift from God that is to be enjoyed in the context of the commitment of marriage. An intimate relationship with one's spouse and the physical delight such a relationship can bring is commended by Proverbs and is seen as a powerful antidote to the temptations that can lead to unfaithfulness and immorality.

 

Joe Guglielmo: What happens many times today is that when people get married, once the vows are said and the papers are signed, the dating is over. Wrong! Men are especially guilty of this because we are so goal oriented. Once that goal is achieved, we move on to something else. Let me ask you this, when was the last time you dated your wife? If you can’t remember, you better plan a date. Send her flowers. Do those things you did when you were dating her, and more. Show her you love her even more today than you did when you were dating her. If you refuse to do that, then just make an appointment for marriage counseling now, you are going to need it! 


Solomon, despite not taking David’s advice, later writes: Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. (Eccles. 9:9; ESV) Notice how Solomon writes wife and not wives.


This may seem odd for David to say, as he had about 10 wives and 10 mistresses. However, by the time that Solomon came along, David appears to have channeled all his affection toward Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. I say this for several reasons:

David’s Faithfulness to Bathsheba Throughout Their Marriage

(1)     Although David’s wives and mistresses are mentioned on many previous occasions, after his original taking of Bathsheba, they are never mentioned again; nor does David take any new wives.

(2)     When Absalom violated David’s mistresses, David never had sex with them again.

(3)     When David is dying and a virgin is placed into bed with him to keep him warm, the Bible notes that he did not know her (that is, he did not have relations with her).

(4)     He also has 4 sons by Bathsheba. He previously had one child per wife (back in the day). This suggests a much more developed and long-lasting relationship.

(5)     Bathsheba petitions David directly on behalf of Solomon when David is old. And she is not speaking to David to suggest that he make Solomon king; David had apparently already given his word to her about that. She is warning him about what is going on across town with one of David’s other sons, who is attempting to become king.

All of these things point toward a relationship with Bathsheba which began as an affair (and David was severely punished for doing this), but which became his final and exclusive relationship with a woman.

I never read a commentator on this when studying the book of Samuel.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

Ray Pritchard: Then there is the problem of divorce and remarriage. There was a time when the church of Jesus Christ was hardly affected by divorce. Thirty or forty years ago divorce was like the scarlet sin. People who had been divorced had a hard time coming to church on Sunday morning. I am glad things have changed in one sense, because now we tell people that it doesn’t matter what their past is, we’re glad to have them here. But I think it has been a mixed blessing, because as our society has begun to change and disintegrate and as the traditional family has begun to disintegrate and as the nuclear family has blown up and exploded into smithereens, we see now there is divorce and remarriage and sexual innuendo. We are now in a society where marriages aren’t expected to last very long and where the traditional family isn’t much in evidence anymore. Now it seems as if the moral standard of our society has gone downhill and now we’re heading on down to the bottom.


What has happened is, our society has been hit every which way by Satan and by his cosmic thinking; and anyone my age has seen the sudden moral disintegration of the United States. The more that we can be turned toward sin and towards our lusts, the further Satan can take us from God.

 

Pritchard continues: This week I made a list of the Christian men I have known who have fallen into immorality. There was a doctor, a principal, a businessman, an accountant, a pastor, another pastor, a union man, a small business owner, a pastor, most recently another pastor, an investor and another doctor. It took me only five minutes to come up with this list.


Proverbs 5:19a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

ʾayeleth (אַיֶלֶת) [pronounced ahy-yeh-LEHTH]

hind, doe, deer

feminine singular construct

Strong’s #365 BDB #19

Although the spelling is slightly different, this appears to be identical to Strong’s #355 BDB #19. Also, the BDB in e-sword appears to have a slightly different spelling than what I find in the text.

ʾăhâbîym (אֲהָבִים) [pronounced uh-hawb-EEM]

love, affection; loves, amours

masculine plural noun

Strong’s #158 BDB #13

The NET Bible: The construct expression “a doe of loves” is an attributive genitive, describing the doe with the word “loves.” The plural noun may be an abstract plural of intensification (but this noun only occurs in the plural). The same construction follows with a “deer of grace” – a graceful deer.

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

yaʿelâh (יַעְלָה) [pronounced yahģ-LAW]

female mountain goat, doe

feminine singular construct

Strong’s #3280 BDB #418

I am spelling this, and therefore pronouncing it, as found on Owens’ work. Therefore, there are some differences between this and BDB.

chên (חֵן) [pronounced khayn]

grace, favor, blessing

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #2580 BDB #336

The NET Bible: The imagery for intimate love in marriage is now employed to stress the beauty of sexual fulfillment as it was intended. The doe and deer, both implied comparisons, exhibit the grace and love of the wife.


Translation: ...[for she is] a hind of love and a doe of grace. The relationship of a man to his woman is likened to a hind of love and to a doe of grace. These are both considered graceful and attractive creatures.

 

Barnes: Better, “A loving hind (is she) and pleasant roe.” As in the whole circle of Arab and Persian poetry the antelope and the gazelle are the chosen images of beauty, so they served with equal fitness for the masculine and feminine types of it. (Compare the names Tabitha and Dorcas Acts 9:36.

 

proverbs055.gif

Peter Pett: The figure in Proverbs 5:15 is now clearly explained. As one interested in nature (as a means of instruction) he compares the young wife to ‘a lovemaking deer’ or a ‘graceful doe’. There is an important lesson in this in that it supports the idea that sexual enjoyment in marriage is natural and good. As with certain animals, so with man. Most men in those days would have seen female deer engaged in erotic lovemaking and would know of the graceful female mountain goats (probably ibexes), and seen them also love-making. Thus he too must engage in erotic love-making with his wife, whilst also recognising her gracefulness and feminine beauty. There is a recognition of both sexual satisfaction and female gracefulness. In a similar way ‘his son’ must look to his wife’s breasts ...for satisfaction, and regularly be sexually satiated with her offered love. It is she from whom he should obtain his sexual satisfaction, not some strange woman or foreigner, who would dispense her favours and then be gone, leaving him dissatisfied.


Proverbs 5:19 (the first graphic); from God’s Word Images; accessed September 2, 2015. I had to include the image that had a deer in it.


Just as the reference to a well and cistern did not refer to multiple wives; so this reference to a hind and to a doe does not suggest multiple wives either.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: The expression, "the loving hind and pleasant roe," is, therefore, to be attached to the preceding verse, as carrying on the sense and as descriptive of the grace and fascinating charms of the young wife. As combining these attributes, she is to be the object of your love and devotion, the one in whom your affections are to find the fulfilment of their desires. Love and grace are her possessions. The loving hind (Hebrew, ayyeles ahavim); literally, the hind of loves, which may be understood...as pointing to the fondness of this animal for its young, or as descriptive of its beauty and the extreme gracefulness of its form. In this sense the phrase may be rendered, "the lovely hind." The ayyeleth...was in all probability the gazelle, Pleasant roe...literally, the ibex of grace. The particular expression only occurs here in the Bible...It does not appear that it is so much "the pleasantness" or amiability of this animal which is here alluded to as its gracefulness of form. As terms of endearment, the words entered largely into the erotic poetry of the East. Thus in the Song of Solomon 4:5 the bride likens her beloved to "a roe or young hart". (cf. also Song of Solomon 4:1–7 and 8:14) while numerous examples might be quoted from the Arabian and Persian poets. They were also employed sometimes as names for women.

 

Thompson’s Land and the Book: Here we have started up, and sent leaping over the plain, another of Solomon's favourites. What elegant creatures those gazelles are, and how gracefully they bound. We shall meet them all through Syria and Palestine, and the more you see of them the greater will be your admiration. Solomon is not alone in his partiality. Persian and Arab poets abound in reference to them. The fair ones of these fervid sons of song are often compared to the coy gazelle that comes by night and pastures upon their hearts. They are amiable, affectionate, and loving, by universal testimony, and accordingly no sweeter comparison can be found than that of Proverbs.

 

Whedon: Animals which were much prized and petted on account of their beauty and affectionate dispositions. They were kept in palaces and courts, and adorned with chains and garlands, and highly esteemed for their graceful playfulness. This seems to indicate the characteristics of a good wife, and also the endearing fondness with which she should be treated. The latter pare of the verse may express this sentiment, If you are entranced with love, let it be with your own wife. This is not to be understood as a license to excess, but as a prohibition of unlawful indulgence. Zockler translates: The lovely hind, the graceful gazelle, let her bosom charm you always. In her love delight yourself evermore. Fitly chosen images, he remarks, to illustrate the graceful, lively, fascinating nature of a young wife...There are numerous passages from Eastern poets which show the popularity of this figure in Oriental poetry. “These pretty animals,” says Thomson, “are amiable, affectionate, and loving by universal testimony, and no sweeter comparison can be found.” 


Proverbs 5:19b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

dadêy (דַּדֵּי) [pronounced dah-DAY]

breasts, nipples

masculine dual noun with the 3rd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #1717 BDB #186

râvâh (רָוָה) [pronounced raw-VAW]

to be drunk, to become intoxicated; to drench, to water abundantly, to saturate

3rd person masculine plural, Piel imperfect with the 2nd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #7301 BDB #924

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

kôl (כֹּל) [pronounced kohl]

with a plural noun, it is rendered all of, all; any of

masculine singular construct with a masculine plural noun

Strong’s #3605 BDB #481

ʿêth (עֵת) [pronounced ģayth]

time, the right time, the proper time; opportunity

feminine singular noun

Strong’s #6256 BDB #773

Based upon the best translators, these 3 words together can be translated, in all times, at all time; at every opportunity.


Translation: [Let] her breasts intoxicate you always;... Her breasts are a metonym for sexual activity. The man is to greatly enjoy his wife (this is David teaching Solomon). Similarly, with a man of faith, the woman is supposed to enjoy her husband as well.

 

Ray Pritchard: “Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another man’s wife?” Listen to me, brothers. God has created a way that is better than looking at dirty movies. He has created a way that is better than going to some prostitute, a way that is better than looking at some cheap magazine, than flirting with someone else on the job. It’s called loving your wife. If you love your wife and enjoy her and her body, you will find release for what God has put within you. Before Hugh Hefner messed it up, God thought it up. As man and woman come from the hand of Almighty God, they come as male and female. Within that relationship, the sexual relationship of a man and woman is holy, righteous, pure, good and ought to be enjoyed. That’s what the Bible says. To men who feel this tremendous urge, don’t go running somewhere else, go back to the wife that God has given you.


In surveys which have been done for decades, married people are always the ones said to be having the most sex and the most satisfactory sex. Generally speaking, married people are those having the most satisfactory lives as well.

 

Clarke: As the infant is satisfied with the breasts of its mother; so shouldst thou be with the wife of thy youth.


Intoxication suggests that one is fully given over the sexual desire for one’s wife, and that there is great joy, fun and excitement to be taken from this sexual relationship. For anyone who knows women, this takes time and cultivation. A woman is a responder. You cannot continually abuse a woman and then expect that she will respond to you physically. The woman needs to be loved, valued, and appreciated; and all of this is up to the man. It is not up to the woman to make a marriage work. As men, we take the initiative, and we need to make certain that our woman knows of her importance to us—a man who is unable to lead or unable to initiate should not get married. He is not ready.


What David is teaching here is not initiation or leadership; but exclusivity. The relationship between one man and one woman is different from all other relationships of the man or of the woman. It is normal for a man to have attractions to various women—however, a part of life is being able to focus and channel this affection and desire toward one woman. The benefits last a lifetime.


Proverbs 5:19c

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

ʾahăbâh (אַהָבָה) [pronounced ah-hub-VAW]

[human] love; sexual desire

feminine singular noun often translated like a verb with the 2nd person feminine singular suffix

Strong’s #160 BDB #13

shâgâh (שָגָה) [pronounced shaw-GAWH]

to wander, to go astray; to err, to transgress; to commit a sin unknowingly; to reel through wine, to be intoxicated

2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong's #7686 BDB #993

The NET Bible: The verb שָגָה (shagah) means “to swerve; to meander; to reel” as in drunkenness; it signifies a staggering gait expressing the ecstatic joy of a captivated lover. It may also mean “to be always intoxicated with her love” (cf. NRSV).

tâmîyd (תָּמִיד) [pronounced taw-MEED]

continuously, continuity; regularly, at regular intervals; continuity, perpetuity

masculine singular noun/adverb

Strong’s #8548 BDB #556


Translation: ...and you will wander continuously in her love. David has experienced love with several wives and with one wife, and he tells his son Solomon that concentrating on one woman is by far the best.

 

The Pulpit Commentary: The teacher, by a bold figure, describes the entire fascination which the husband is to allow the wife to exercise over him. The verb shagah is "to reel under the influence of wine," and is so used in the succeeding vers. 20 and 23, and Prov. 20:1 and Isa. 28:7. The primary meaning, "to err from the way," scarcely applies here...[it describes] "an intensity of love connected with the feeling of superabundant happiness" (Delitzsch).

 

Keil and Delitzsch: shâgâh (שגה)...signifies...figuratively,...to be wholly captivated by her, so that one is no longer in his own power, can no longer restrain himself - the usual word for the intoxication of love and of wine (Prov. 20:1).


God is very pro-sex; but there are boundaries for its expression.

Sexual Love in Marriage

Commentator

Commentary

J. Vernon McGee

These verses describe love in marriage, and the Word of God makes it very clear that physical love and sexual love in marriage are to be sanctified and brought to a very high level. There was a time when speaking of these things was taboo. They were not mentioned as though they were immoral or some sort of a dirty thing even among married folk. Do you notice how God describes physical love in marriage? God lifts it to the very highest plane. Remember that marriage was designed by God Himself and was given to the human family for the welfare and good of mankind. A part of the immorality of our day is the attempt to get rid of marriage.

The Evidence Bible

It comes as a shock to the world that God’s Word speaks so openly about sex. It is a gift of God given for both procreation and pleasure, within the bounds of marriage. Those who refuse to keep sexual intimacy within the bounds of the marriage bed will suffer the consequences of their actions (vv. 20–23). It is interesting to note that a man and a woman can have sexual relations thousands of times within their marriage with no fear of AIDS or any sexually transmitted diseases.

Jim Rickard

“At all times” and “Always” means whenever the son is thirsty the quality of the wife’s lovemaking is totally satisfying and its quantity unending. Likewise, the father admonishes that inhibitions be left behind in the marriage bed, and emphasizes that the blessed wife’s lovemaking should always be available to drench and intoxicate the thirsty husband. The explicit rhetorical question balances the implicit question of vs. 16, both asserting that the intimacy of sexual union belongs only within marriage. It encompasses not only the blessings of marriage and the delight of the marital relationship, but the dreadful consequences of infidelity.

Steve Zeisler

Then the third wonderful word of advice that's given to the son by his father here is to be intoxicated with his wife physically. "Exhilarated" in the New American Standard translation really means "drunk." It is very clearly physical lovemaking spoken of here. It is her breasts that are to satisfy you always. The graceful hind and doe and so on are erotic poetry. He is saying that your physical relationship with your wife ought at times to sweep you away. It ought to be a part of your life that isn't lost to you. It's one that you cultivate. You can make love with someone you have slept with, walked with, and talked with, more sensitively and freely, if you choose to, than someone you've just met for the first time. It's an important part of marriage, something that neither this father nor God himself is in any way hesitant to speak of. You have the refreshment of understanding, the joy of years spent together, and physical intimacy that you refuse to let die. You refuse to let it become routine, you refuse to let it be a source of manipulation or discord in your marriage. You choose to be lovers...what the proverbist is saying here is that in reality the potential for joy, for ecstasy, for refreshment, and delight exist in the marriage.

Most commentators expressed similar sentiments.

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proverbs056.gif

There is something else that ought to be noted here: remember that David is a king and Solomon would be his successor; and that David knew this (which is part of the reason that he is teaching Solomon). So, when it comes to women, David could have easily said, “Look, kid, you are going to be king; women are going to flock to you. Be careful about the women that you choose to marry; but this is one of the great perks of the job.” But this is not the approach that David takes. He speaks very respectfully of women; he speaks very carefully about Solomon and one woman. At no time does David imply that Solomon has a choice because of his position to take many woman; at no time does David suggest that Solomon treat women however he wants to, because they will flock to him as king. David speaks of passion, enjoyment and blessedness of marriage; which is in stark contrast to the way that critics of the Bible say that women are treated in Scripture.


Proverbs 5:19 (a graphic); from pinimg.com; accessed September 2, 2015.


There are two words used in the previous two phrases, both of which refer to intoxication. This does not mean that the Bible looks at being drunk with liquor as a good thing or as an okay thing. Intoxication with one’s wife is a good thing; intoxication related to other substances is not.


By the way, if a woman loves you (and most men will have this experience), this love is to be cherished and appreciated. Every day, give yourself a good look in the mirror, and recognize, “I am one lucky man.” Most men ought to recognize, “There is no reason that a creature so beautiful should love this ugly mug.”


God provided, for all mankind, the institution of marriage and family. Again, Solomon wrote: Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. (Eccles. 9:9; ESV) Marriage is one of the great things in life, and it is designed for believers and unbelievers alike. Because it is so fundamental and so closely related to the plan of God, we should expect Satanic constant attacks against it. In my lifetime, I have seen marriage declared an old an obsolete institution, I have seen live-together replace marriages, I have seen high divorce rates, and I have seen homosexual marriage (the same people on the left who decry marriages as old and out-of-date also believe that one of the most important things for society is the homosexual marriage). All of these things are found throughout the world, designed in every way possible to destroy marriage; and yet, nearly every person in the world will find themselves in a normal relationship which potentially could lead to a marriage; or in a marriage. It is the natural pairing which occurs. God designed marriage to fulfill a great many needs (far more than simply physical). The society which appreciates marriage and enshrines it will be blessed and stabilized by it.


You protect your love and you protect you marriage and your children with your focus directed toward your wife. You avoid focusing upon other women; you avoid comparing your wife to other women. She is the woman you have chosen; she is the woman that you have committed to, so your focus needs to be toward her and not toward others.


The parallel, of course, is, what keeps you functioning in the spiritual life is your focus upon Jesus Christ. You do not focus on people, on circumstances or on things. Now, focusing upon Jesus Christ does not mean you think about those goofy pictures made of him by ascetics throughout the years. One thing you can be assure of is, He did not look like any of those pictures. But you focus on Jesus Christ by focusing upon His Word. You focus upon what you have learned in Bible class, because that will be challenged as time goes on. You will be tested in every way possible. People will treat you poorly, you will suffer injustices, and your neighbor will buy a more bitchin’ car than the one that you own. You focus on keeping short accounts with God (rebounding whenever you sin) and by taking in the Word of God. Then you apply Bible doctrine to your life. The key is, what goes on in your thinking. Philip. 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (ESV)



I need to edit this.

Matthew Henry and Marriage (Proverbs 5:15–19)

1.     Let young men marry, marry and not burn. Have a cistern, a well of thy own (Prov. 5:15), even the wife of thy youth, Prov. 5:18. Wholly abstain, or wed. – Herbert. “The world is wide, and there are varieties of accomplishments, among which thou mayest please thyself.”

2.     Let him that is married take delight in his wife, and let him be very fond of her, not only because she is the wife that he himself has chosen and he ought to be pleased with his own choice, but because she is the wife that God in his providence appointed for him and he ought much more to be pleased with the divine appointment, pleased with her because she is his own. Let thy fountain be blessed (Prov. 5:18); think thyself very happy in her, look upon her as a blessed wife, let her have thy blessing, pray daily for her, and then rejoice with her. Those comforts we are likely to have joy of that are sanctified to us by prayer and the blessing of God. It is not only allowed us, but commanded us, to be pleasant with our relations; and it particularly becomes yoke–fellows to rejoice together and in each other. Mutual delight is the bond of mutual fidelity. It is not only taken for granted that the bridegroom rejoices over his bride (Isa. 62:5), but given for law. Ecc. 9:9, Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of thy life. Those take not their comforts where God has appointed who are jovial and merry with their companions abroad, but sour and morose with their families at home.

3.     Let him be fond of his wife and love her dearly (Prov. 5:19): Let her be as the loving hind and the pleasant roe, such as great men sometimes kept tame in their houses and played with. Desire no better diversion from severe study and business than the innocent and pleasant conversation of thy own wife; let her lie in thy bosom, as the poor man's ewe–lamb did in his (2Sam. 12:3), and do thou repose thy head in hers, and let that satisfy thee at all times; and seek not for pleasure in any other. “Err thou always in her love. If thou wilt suffer thy love to run into an excess, and wilt be dotingly fond of any body, let it be only of thy own wife, where there is least danger of exceeding.” This is drinking waters, to quench the thirst of thy appetite, out of thy own cistern, and running waters, which are clear, and sweet, and wholesome, out of thy own well, Prov. 5:15. 1Cor. 7:2, 1Cor. 7:3.

4.     Let him take delight in his children and look upon them with pleasure (Prov. 5:16, Prov. 5:17): “Look upon them as streams from thy own pure fountains” (the Jews are said to come forth out of the waters of Judah, Isa. 48:1), “so that they are parts of thyself, as the streams are of the fountain. Keep to thy own wife, and thou shalt have,” (1.) “A numerous offspring, like rivers of water, which run in abundance, and they shall be dispersed abroad, matched into other families, whereas those that commit whoredom shall not increase,” Hos. 4:10. (2.) “A peculiar offspring, which shall be only thy own, whereas the children of whoredom, that are fathered upon thee, are, probably, not so, but, for aught thou knowest, are the offspring of strangers, and yet thou must keep them.” (3.) “A creditable offspring, which are an honour to thee, and which thou mayest send abroad, and appear with, in the streets, whereas a spurious brood is thy disgrace, and that which thou art ashamed to own.” In this matter, virtue has all the pleasure and honour in it; justly therefore it is called wisdom.

5.     Let him then scorn the offer of forbidden pleasures when he is always ravished with the love of a faithful virtuous wife; let him consider what an absurdity it will be for him to be ravished with a strange woman (Prov. 5:20), to be in love with a filthy harlot, and embrace the bosom of a stranger, which, if he had any sense of honour or virtue, he would loathe the thoughts of. “Why wilt thou be so sottish, such an enemy to thyself, as to prefer puddle–water, and that poisoned too and stolen, before pure living waters out of thy own well?” Note, If the dictates of reason may be heard, the laws of virtue will be obeyed.

From Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; from e-Sword, Prov. 5:15–23 (edited).

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This is taken from the Doctrine of Divine Institutions (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Marriage as the Third Divine Institution

1.      Marriage, the third divine institution, mixes freedom, privacy, authority and responsibility (and, unless otherwise indicated, these points apply to believers and unbelievers alike).

2.      Monogamy, a permanent relationship between one man and one woman, is ordained of God to remind mankind that He has from the beginning a design called right man-right woman, Gen. 1:26:27 5:1-2 2:18-25 1 Cor 7:2-4.

3.      Marriage is the most basic and fundamental organization in the human race. Even the unbeliever, whose life is a total failure, can have great temporary happiness by marrying the right woman, Eccl. 9:9

4.      Under the authority of the laws of divine establishment, the right man-right woman relationship becomes the normal, legitimate expression of category 2 love, 1Cor 7:9 1Tim. 5:14 Eph. 5:22, 23, 28, 33 Heb. 13:4. Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers.

         1)      As an aside, I have known believers and unbelievers alike who have led immoral and licentious lives; and, in marriage, turned this around. The relationship of marriage became clearly more important than, say, skirt chasing.

5.      The husband has authority and responsibility for his wife, and the wife has volition, which, in marriage, she has, at least at one point in time, surrendered to her husband. The husband has all the authority; there are no exceptions or rationalizations. Violations of a principle do not change the principle. Col. 3:18–19

6.      It is the husband’s duty to love his wife and the wife’s part to obey her husband. This does not mean that the husband has to sit around and work up emotional feelings for his wife; but he is to treat her with respect and care, as she becomes his responsibility in marriage. Eph. 5:25–31

7.      Marriage is the basis for stability in society and for the formation of civilization.

8.      The laws of divine establishment are designed to protect freedom and to preserve the human race; marriage both protects and preserves the human race.

9.      Marriage is a relationship analogous to our relationship with God. God has the authority and He has taken upon Himself the responsibility for us. As believers, we may accept or reject His authority, which affects the nature of the relationship. Eph. 5:22–26

10.    It is the stability of marriage—this applies to both believers and unbelievers—that allows for preservation of a nation, which in turn preserves the human race and human freedom.

11.    When a husband and wife pray to the same God, this is a corporate witness for God in the Angelic Conflict. Matt. 18:20 1Peter 3:7

12.    Satan, society and unbelievers attack the institution of marriage:

         1)      Satan attacks marriages from within, to try to destroy them.

         2)      Marriage is presented by society as a 50-50 proposition with no clear line of authority (as has happened in the era of the woman’s movement).

         3)      Satan and society attack the marriage unit with substitutes, usually attempting to exploit the sexual drive: promiscuity, sexual perversions, homosexuality, lesbianism, and various distortions of marriage (homosexual unions, polygamy, living together).

         4)      Homosexuality is one of the great attacks upon marriage in the time in which we live. Why is there this great move within education to present homosexuality as normal behavior? Why do homosexuals want to teach to children that anal intercourse between 2 males is equivalent to normal intercourse even before a child knows what that word even means? It’s not difficult. If you get to a young person before or at puberty, sexual function at that age can impact long-term sexual behavior. Teaching homosexual behavior as normal behavior leads to more homosexual behavior.

         5)      It is a lie that we are either born homosexual or heterosexual. Although there are certainly a number of people with that predilection in their lives, children are pliable, and homosexuals recognize that. A significant number of young people, if caught at or before puberty, can be sufficiently brainwashed to at least try out homosexual acts. Even though 80% of these people, in adulthood, will not engage in homosexual acts; homosexuals are simply interested in more sexual objects, not necessarily life-long converts.

         6)      Most people far overestimate the number of homosexuals in society. In a recent study of over 110,000 men and women, only 2.2% of men and 1.5% of women were attracted exclusively or mostly to the same sex.1 People estimate that about 25% of people are gay or lesbian.2 This is because of the fundamental dishonesty of the gay and lesbian movement in conjunction with liberal propaganda, which exaggerates greatly the plight of gays and lesbians in society and their numbers. After all, if people knew that the fundamental definition of marriage was being changed by less than 2% of the population; and that a very small percentage of that 2% would actually participate in such a change; support for gay marriage would decrease dramatically. However, the fundamental key to this movement is dishonesty and distortion.

         7)      Robert Dean: We see this today. This is what is lost in the current debate that we are gradually losing related to same-sex marriage. Marriage is not something just for believers. It is for believers and unbelievers. Marriage is a foundational element in all culture and it is what it is because God designed it that way, and once we get a culture based on human viewpoint paganism they then want to go in and change and modify these different foundational elements. Once you completely shift your foundational elements what happens to the house built on that foundation? It collapses. The problem we have in our culture is that when you reach a larger and larger majority that buys into these ideas then eventually you are going to see a complete self-destruction of the culture. It will implode. We are not going to fall because we are going to be defeated from the outside; we are going to fall because we are going to be defeated from the inside.3

         8)      There is always a fundamental dishonesty of Satanic attacks against the divine institutions. No proponent of teaching homosexuality in the classroom will ever be honest about their intentions. They will never say, “We think that homosexuality as a behavior needs to be taught to children before they have reached puberty.” They will introduce it dishonestly, in the form of a bullying program or as an alternative children’s book, or as an attempt to lessen rampant prejudice.

13.    Even for the unbeliever, God’s Word recommends that he do two things to find happiness in life: find his right woman and marry her; and then to find the work that he loves doing, and to pursue that. Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going (Eccles. 9:9–10; ESV).

At one time, during a time when America was great, this defined life in the United States. I write this in 2015, and we may elect a good president and we may not, but it is the thinking of the people of the United States combined with their actions which will determine whether or not this nation will return to its former greatness.

1 See http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr036.pdf accessed June 9, 2011.

2 See http://www.gallup.com/poll/147824/adults-estimate-americans-gay-lesbian.aspx accessed June 9,

3 From Dean Bible Ministries; accessed March 1, 2015.

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As an aside, people are quite enthralled with politics, but bear in mind, particularly in the election of a president, whoever we elect merely reflects the thinking of a majority of the people (for the most part). We currently are enduring the worst administration of my lifetime, but, we don’t have it because President Obama imposed himself upon us—we elected him. There are large segments of the population who support whatever he does, no matter what a failure his presidency has been. But this is not all or mostly Obama; this is the people of the United States and the thinking of Americans. Right now, a majority of people apparently support gay marriage; and, at the same time, a majority of people believe in God, believe in Jesus Christ, and go to church regularly or semi-regularly. Now, (excuse the expression) what the hell are they being taught in church, that they think that gay marriage is a good idea? How can we be a majority Christian nation and yet a majority supporting gay marriage? This means that significant numbers of believers have no clue as to the truth of the Bible and the importance of the male-female marriage relationship. This ought to be fundamental. If someone goes to church weekly, how can they attend for a year without knowing something about God’s view of marriage and the concept of right man/right woman? This means that there are thousands of pastors who are not doing their job. Their job is to teach the Word of God. You cannot teach much of the Bible without coming across the subject of men, women and marriage.


Proverbs 5:19 (another graphic); from Unashamed Marriage; accessed September 2, 2015.


One of the great truths of the spiritual life is, believers are changed from the inside out, not from the government on high on down. Political leaders certainly have an affect on society by what they say and do (the Bible testifies to this on many occasions), but even this is a result of this information being processed in the souls of people of their nation. Few people have greater influence on the thinking of Americans than pastor-teachers; which is why the pastor-teacher needs to be faithful to his calling. And this is even in congregations of 5, 10 or 20 people (as an aside, there are few things that require more faithfulness than a pastor of a small congregation).


Peck: God created our sexuality for us to enjoy. This is one area where there’s a big difference between what we as an evangelical Christian church believe and what the Roman Catholic church teaches. The Catholic church believes that the only purpose of human sexuality is reproduction, to have children. This is why all forms of birth control are considered a serious sin in the Roman Catholic church. However, the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century questioned that idea, and based on texts like this one in Proverbs, the Reformers concluded that God’s purpose for sex was also enjoyment and intimacy between a husband and a wife. You see, God didn’t make sexual activity pleasurable in order to coax us into having kids, but he designed also it to cultivate pleasure and intimacy in marriage. Reproduction is a big part of our sexuality, but it’s not the whole story.

Timothy Peck on, the Bible’s Healthy View of Sex

This brings us to the alternative. I think Christianity has gotten a bad rap on the issue of sexuality. People have thought that Christianity was anti-sex. Often the media in our country characterizes Christians as prudes, puritan fanatics who’re repressed and try to restrict everyone else’s fun. But the Bible has a very positive view of sexuality. And the alternative to sexual sin isn’t repression or pretending that our sexuality doesn’t exist.


Look at the alternative in vv. 15-19. This section is striking in its frankness and honesty. The author uses the metaphor of water to describe our own sexuality. He encourages his son to stay within the sexual boundaries of marriage. The marriage bed is likened to a well or a cistern in his yard, that place where he finds water to refresh his soul and strengthen his body.


This reflects a profoundly positive attitude toward our sexuality. Here we find God’s blessing on human sexuality. May your sexuality be blessed. God is not against human sexuality. He’s the one who created it, he’s the one who thought of it, he’s the one who wired us as sexual beings, as men and women.


Yet v. 18 also gives us the context for this blessing: marriage. Rejoice in your wife or your husband. The Bible never talks about sex without also thinking about marriage. God’s creation intention in Genesis chapters 1 and 2 are always in the backdrop of the Bible’s discussion of human sexuality. You see, God’s creation of the first man and the first woman provides the context for human sexuality.


In v. 19 Proverbs borders on erotica as it reflects on the seductive beauty of a wife to her husband. The gracefulness of a deer was a common metaphor for beauty in the ancient world. Perhaps if Proverbs was being written today, the wife would be called a "fox," but here she’s called a doe and a graceful deer. The word translated "captivated" in v. 19 usually means "intoxicated with wine." The idea is that the husband is intoxicated with his passion and desire for his wife. This is how a husband and wife feel about each other on their wedding day, when their brimming with idealism and excitement. The idea is for this erotic passion to be cultivated throughout the marriage.


God also created a boundary for the enjoyment of sexuality, and that boundary is the covenant of marriage. You see, when you’re intimate with another person, you become especially vulnerable to that person. So God created a the safest possible relationship in order to protect us from being hurt deeply. God created a covenant relationship, a relationship of mutual trust and mutual commitment, a relationship that’s entered into with vows. God knows that sexual wounds are among the deepest and most profound wounds that can be inflicted on a person. Just ask someone who was molested as a child or exploited by another person. So God created a special kind of relationship to provide a safe context for sexual expression. Not that we won’t get hurt in marriage because we surely will. Since we live in a fallen and sinful creation, all of us are sexually broken to some extent or another, but marriage provides the safest context for us to enjoy our sexuality.


This means that if we express our sexuality outside of this covenant relationship we’ve gone outside the boundaries. The Bible teaches that premarital sexual expression is wrong and destructive in our lives. The Bible uses the word "fornication" to describe premarital sex. It teaches that all extramarital sexual expression is wrong and destructive in our lives. The Bible uses the word adultery to describe extramarital sex. The Bible also teaches that all same sex sexual expression is wrong and destructive. The Bible uses the word homosexuality to describe same sex activity.

From Wise Up About Sex (pp. 4 & 5); accessed September 1, 2015.

Chapter Outline

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And why are you intoxicated, my son, in a strange woman and [why do] you embrace a bosom of a foreign woman?

Proverbs

5:20

Why are you intoxicated, my son, with a strange woman and [why do] you embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?

Why do you allow yourself to become intoxicated, my son, with a strange woman? Why do you embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And why are you intoxicated, my son, in a strange woman and [why do] you embrace a bosom of a foreign woman?

Latin Vulgate                          Why are you seduced, my son, by a strange woman, and are cherished in the bosom of another?

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Do not go astray, my son, with an estranged woman, neither embrace the bosom of an estranged woman.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    My son, be not misled by a strange woman, neither embrace the bosom of a strange woman.

Septuagint (Greek)                Be not intimate with a strange woman, neither fold yourself in the arms of a woman not your own.

 

Significant differences:           None, other than some vocabulary differences in the Greek.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             Why let yourself, my son, go out of the way with a strange woman, and take another woman in your arms?

Easy English                          My son, do not get close to another man’s wife.

Do not allow her to tempt you to do a wrong action.

Easy-to-Read Version            But don’t go staggering into the arms of another woman!

Good News Bible (TEV)         Son, why should you give your love to another woman? Why should you prefer the charms of another man's wife?

The Message                         Why would you trade enduring intimacies for cheap thrills with a whore?

for dalliance with a promiscuous stranger?

NIRV                                      My son, why be captured by another man’s wife?

Why hug a woman who has gone astray?

New Simplified Bible              Why will you be intimate with an immoral woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Why, my son, should you lose your senses with a mysterious woman

and embrace the breasts of a foreign female?

Contemporary English V.       Don't go crazy over a woman who is unfaithful to her own husband!

The Living Bible                     Why delight yourself with prostitutes, embracing what isn’t yours?

New Berkeley Version           ...for why, my son, should you be infatuated with a loose woman

and embrace the bosom of an outsider?

New Century Version             My son, don’t be held captive by a woman who takes part in adultery.

Don’t fondle a woman who is not your wife

New Life Version                    My son, why should you be carried away with a sinful woman and fall into the arms of a strange woman?

New Living Translation           Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman,

or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Don't spend time with strange women, and never hug one that's not yours.

Beck’s American Translation Why should you, my son, fall for an adultress woman

and hug a stranger’s bosom?

New Advent (Knox) Bible       What, my son, wouldst thou yield to the wiles of a stranger, dally with her embraces that is none of thine?

Translation for Translators     My son, do not be [RHQ] captivated/charmed by an immoral woman!

Do not fondle the breasts of another man's wife!


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      My son, why err with a commoner, and embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                ‘ Why, my son, be entranced with the love, And embrace to a breast that is strange?

Jubilee Bible 2000                  And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a woman belonging to someone else, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

Lexham English Bible            Why should you be intoxicated, my child, by a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

NIV – UK                                Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife?

Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

The Heritage Bible                 And my son, why will you stray with an adulterous woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

proverbs058.gif

New American Bible (2002)   Why then, my son, should you go astray for another's wife and accept the embraces of an adulteress?

New Jerusalem Bible             Why be seduced, my son, by someone else's wife, and fondle the breast of a woman who belongs to another?

Revised English Bible            Why, my son, are you wrapped in the love of an adulteress? Why do you embrace a loose woman?


Proverbs 5:20 (a graphic); from enfuzed.com; accessed September 2, 2015.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           My son, why be infatuated with an unknown woman? Why embrace the body of a loose woman?

exeGeses companion Bible   And why, my son,

err inadvertently with a stranger?

- embrace the bosom of a stranger?

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Why be infatuated, my son, with a forbidden woman?

Why clasp the bosom of an alien woman?

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And why wilt thou, beni (my son), be intoxicated with a zarah (strange woman), and embrace the kheyk (bosom) of a nochriyah (foreign [heathen] woman)?


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                Why should you, my son, be infatuated with a loose woman, embrace the bosom of an outsider, and go astray?

The Expanded Bible              My son, ·don’t be held captive [Lwhy should you be intoxicated/inebriated…?] by a ·woman who takes part in adultery [Lstranger].

Don’t fondle the bosom of a ·woman who is not your wife [Lforeigner].

Kretzmann’s Commentary    And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, with a wanton harlot, professing the same delight in her company which he might and should lawfully have with the wife given him by the Lord, and embrace the bosom of a stranger? of one in whose case such familiarity is excluded by the prohibition of the Sixth Commandment.

NET Bible®                             But why should you be captivated [In the interrogative clause the imperfect has a deliberative nuance.], my son, by an adulteress,

and embrace the bosom of a different woman [Heb “foreigner” (so ASV, NASB), but this does not mean that the woman is non-Israelite. This term describes a woman who is outside the moral boundaries of the covenant community – she is another man’s wife, but since she acts with moral abandonment she is called “foreign.”]?

Syndein/Thieme                     {Conclusion}

So why, my sons {students}, should you wander up and down the body of a promiscuous woman?

Or embrace the female genitalia of a nymphomaniac?

The Voice                               My son, why get caught up in some other woman

and embrace the breast of a stranger?

Wisdom recognizes the beauty of sexual intimacy. After all, God designed us as sexual beings. But for physical intimacy to retain the beauty of its design, it must be shared wisely. It is meant to be shared with someone who is your own. In marriage two become one (Genesis 2:24), so they belong together and belong to each other. In that safe place of belonging, one finds fulfillment. So a husband or a wife must partake only of the partner’s body and love. To seek intimacy elsewhere is foolish.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

English Standard V. – UK       Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman

and embrace the bosom of an adulteress [Hebrew a foreign woman]?

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           My son, will you have pleasure in an harlot, and embrace the bosom of another woman?

NASB                                     For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress [Lit strange woman]

And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

New European Version          For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another?

New King James Version       For why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman,

And be embraced in the arms of a seductress?

Stuart Wolf                             And for what purpose, my son, would you go astray with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

Webster’s Bible Translation  And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

Young’s Updated LT             And why will you magnify yourself, My son, with a stranger? And embrace the bosom of a strange woman?

 

The gist of this passage:     David asks, why would you be captivated by an adulteress/strange woman? Why would you embrace a foreign woman?


Proverbs 5:20a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

mâh (מָה) [pronounced maw]

what, how, why

interrogative; exclamatory particle

Strong’s #4100 BDB #552

shâgâh (שָגָה) [pronounced shaw-GAWH]

to wander, to go astray; to err, to transgress; to commit a sin unknowingly; to reel through wine, to be intoxicated

2nd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong's #7686 BDB #993

bên (בֵּן) [pronounced bane]

son, descendant

masculine singular noun with the 1st person singular suffix

Strong’s #1121 BDB #119

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

zûwr (זוּר) [pronounced zoor]

a stranger, an alien; an enemy; of another family; a strange woman, an adulteress; strange children [bastards]; unlawful; another; new, unheard of; unauthorized person

feminine singular, Qal active participle

Strong's #2114 BDB #266


Translation: Why are you intoxicated, my son, with a strange woman... King David encourages Solomon to become intoxicated with the wife of his youth; to focus upon and to enjoy a wife with a similar background.


If Solomon is young as I believe that he is, then this is not so much a question as it is a way of making a point that Solomon should avoid the strange woman, which is a reference to women who do not believe in Solomon’s God.

 

Gill: after all those inconveniences and miseries that follow upon a relationship with an immoral, woman, and all those advantages of a marriage state set before you; why will you be, so foolish and mad as to have a fondness for the immoral woman...and neglect entering into a marriage state, or forsake the wife of [your] youth.


Proverbs 5:20b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

châbaq (חָבַק) [pronounced khaw-BAHK]

to embrace; to embrace the rock or the dunghill means to lie (or make one’s bed) upon them

2nd person masculine singular, Piel imperfect

Strong’s #2263 BDB #287

chêyq (חֵיק or חֵק) [pronounced khayk]

bosom, chest; hollow [portion of a chariot], lower [bottom] [portion of the altar]; midst

masculine singular construct

Strong’s #2436 BDB #300

nŏkerîy (נָכְרִי) [pronounced nawcke-REE or nohk-REE]

foreign, alien, stranger; strange; foreign woman, a harlot; of another family; metaphorically, unknown, unfamiliar; new, unheard of

feminine singular adjective

Strong’s #5237 BDB #648

This has that odd vowel qames-hartuf (ŏ as in cost) that looks exactly like a qâmats (â as in car).


Translation: ...and [why do] you embrace the bosom of a foreign woman? This is a parallel question to the one above—the why is taken from the previous phrase. Instead of being intoxicated by the breasts of his wife, David is warning Solomon against embracing the body of a foreign woman or a prostitute (again, the key here is not the difference in race or nationality, but in spiritual understanding and belief).


Warnings against such women abound in Scripture—particularly in Proverbs: Prov. 2:16–19 6:24 7:5 22:14 23:27–28, 33 1Kings 11:1–3.


This is the material which we have just completed:

Paul Apple Sums Up Prov. 5:15-20

DRINK FROM YOUR OWN WELL – FINDING SEXUAL ENJOYMENT IN YOUR OWN WIFE PROTECTS THE BLESSING OF YOUR FAMILY

A.      (Prov. 5:15) Find Sexual Satisfaction With Your Own Wife

“Drink water from your own cistern, And fresh water from your own well.”

B.      (Prov. 5:16-17) Jealously Guard Your Own Wife

“Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? Let them be yours alone, And not for strangers with you.”

C.     (Prov. 5:18-19) Potential for Erotic Love With Your Own Wife

“Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth. As a loving hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; Be exhilarated always with her love.”

D.     (Prov. 5:20) No Need to Look Elsewhere

“For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress, And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?”

From http://bibleoutlines.com/library/pdf/proverbs.pdf (Chapter 5); accessed August 31, 2015 (slightly edited).

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


——————————


Peter Pett organizes the first half of this chapter in this way:

Proverbs 5:21–23 as a Chiasmos, from Peter Pett

A       For the ways of man are before the eyes of YHWH, and he makes level all his paths (Proverbs 5:21).

         B       His own iniquities will take the wicked (Proverbs 5:22 a),

         B       And he will be held with the cords of his sin (Proverbs 5:22 b).

A       He will die for lack of disciplinary instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he will go astray (Proverbs 5:23).

In A man in general walks in the eyes of YHWH and He makes level paths for him, but in the parallel the wicked, lacking instruction and foolish, goes astray. And this is because centrally in B he is ‘taken’ and tied up by his own sins.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 29, 2015.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


For before [two] eyes of Yehowah paths of man and all his ways [He] levels [out].

Proverbs

5:21

For the paths of man [are] before the eyes of Yehowah and [He] makes smooth out all of his ways.

For man’s way of life is before Jehovah and He makes smooth all of his paths.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        For before [two] eyes of Yehowah paths of man and all his ways [He] levels [out].

Latin Vulgate                          The Lord beholds the ways of man, and considers all his steps.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   Because the ways of a man are in front of Lord Jehovah and all his paths are open before him.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and all his paths lie open in his presence.

Septuagint (Greek)                For the ways of a man are before the eyes of God, and He looks on all his paths.

 

Significant differences:           The verb in the second phrase either has a different subject or does not match up with the verb in the Hebrew.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             For a man's ways are before the eyes of the Lord, and he puts all his goings in the scales.

Easy English                          God sees everything that you do.

He watches all your actions.

Easy-to-Read Version            The Lord clearly sees everything you do. The Lord watches where you go.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The LORD sees everything you do. Wherever you go, he is watching.

The Message                         Mark well that God doesn’t miss a move you make;

he’s aware of every step you take.

Names of God Bible               Each person’s ways are clearly seen by Yahweh,

and he surveys all his actions.

NIRV                                      The Lord watches your ways.

He studies all your paths.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           The Lord’s eyes watch over every person’s path,

observing all their ways.

Contemporary English V.       The LORD sees everything, and he watches us closely.

The Living Bible                     For God is closely watching you, and he weighs carefully everything you do.

New Berkeley Version           For directly before the eyes of the Lord are a man’s ways,

and all his paths are well considered [See v. 6.].

New Century Version             The Lord sees everything you do,

and he watches where you go.

New Life Version                    For the ways of a man are seen by the eyes of the Lord, and He watches all his paths.

New Living Translation           For the Lord sees clearly what a man does,

examining every path he takes.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          For the eyes of God watch the ways of a man, and He keeps track of the things that he doe.

Beck’s American Translation The LORD’s eyes see the road every person takes;

He observes all his paths.

International Standard V        Indeed, what a man does is [Lit. Indeed, a man’s ways are] always in the LORD’s presence [Lit. in front of the LORD’s eyes],

and he weighs all his paths.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       The Lord is watching, and knows what a man’s errand is, let him betake himself where he will.

Today’s NIV                          For your ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all your paths.

Translation for Translators     I say that because Yahweh sees clearly everything that we do;

he knows where we are going on the roads that we walk on.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      For the ways of man are in view of Yahweh's eyes, and he ponders all his tracks.

Conservapedia                       For the ways of man are in front of the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his ways.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                For man’s ways are observed by the Loan, Who carefully weighs all his paths.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he weighs all his goings.

Lexham English Bible             For before the eyes of Yahweh [are] {human ways}, and all his paths he examines.

NIV – UK                                For your ways are in full view of the Lord,

and he examines all your paths.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  For Yahweh watches the ways of men and he observes all their paths.

The Heritage Bible                 Because the ways of man are in front of the eyes of Jehovah, and he equals out all his paths.

New American Bible (2002)   For each man's ways are plain to the LORD'S sight; all their paths he surveys;... These verses are best read after Proverb 5:27. [Since there is no Prov. 5:27, perhaps they meant 6:27?]

New American Bible (2011)   Indeed, the ways of each person are plain to the LORD’s sight;

all their paths he surveys;... Job 14:16; 31:4; 34:21.

New Jerusalem Bible             For the eyes of Yahweh observe human ways, and survey all human paths.

New RSV                               For human ways are under the eyes of the Lord,

and he examines all their paths.

Revised English Bible            The LORD watches a man's ways, marking every course he takes.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           For ADONAI is watching a man's ways; he surveys all his paths.

exeGeses companion Bible   For the ways of man

are in front of the eyes of Yah Veh

and he weighs all his routes.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               For a man’s ways are before the eyes of God;

He surveys his entire course.

Judaica Press Complete T.    For man's ways are opposite the Lord's eyes, and He weighs all his paths.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           For the drakhim ish are before the eyes of Hashem, and He pondereth all his ma’agalot (paths).

The Scriptures 1998              For the ways of man Are before the eyes of יהוה, And He considers all his paths.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                For the ways of man are directly before the eyes of the Lord, and He [Who would have us live soberly, chastely, and godly] carefully weighs all man’s goings.

The Expanded Bible              The ·Lord sees everything you do [Leyes of the Lord are on the path of every person],

and he watches ·where you go [Lall their ways].

The Geneva Bible                  For the ways of man [are] before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings. He declares that unless a man joins to his wife both in heart and in outward conversation, he will not escape the judgments of God.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He pondereth all his goings, His omniscience marking the conduct of every person and noting every unchaste desire, thought, word, and act.

NET Bible®                             For the ways of a person [Heb “man.”] are in front of the Lord’s eyes,

and the Lord [Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.] weighs all that person’s [Heb “all his”; the referent (the person mentioned in the first half of the verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.] paths.

Syndein/Thieme                     For before the eyes of Jehovah/God are the ways of man. He 'weights on the scales' {God does the judging} all of man's tracks to one door and then another and then another.

The Voice                               You see, the Eternal sees our ways before Him.

He watches every move we make and knows where those paths lead.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    For the ways of a man are before the eyes of Yahweh, Who ponders all his routes."

Context Group Version          For the ways of man are before the eyes of YHWH; And he makes level all his paths.

Emphasized Bible                  For, before the eyes of Yahweh, are the ways of a man,—and, all his tracks, doth he consider:...

Green’s Literal Translation    For the ways of man are before the eyes of Jehovah, and He ponders all his tracks.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           For every mans ways are open in the sight of the Lord, and he ponders all their goings.

NASB                                     For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the Lord,

And He watches all his paths.

New European Version          For the ways of man are before the eyes of Yahweh, He examines all his paths.

Stuart Wolf                             Because/for in front of the eyes of Yhwh are the ways of man, and all his tracks He ponders/considers.

World English Bible                For the ways of man are before the eyes of Yahweh. He examines all his paths.

Young’s Updated LT             For over-against the eyes of Jehovah are the ways of each, And all his paths He is pondering.

 

The gist of this passage:     God watches all that we do.


Proverbs 5:21a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

kîy (כִּי) [pronounced kee]

for, that, because; when, at that time, which, what time

explanatory or temporal conjunction; preposition

Strong's #3588 BDB #471

nôkach (נֹכַח) [pronounced NOH-kahkh]

front, in front of, towards the front of, before, in the sight of, opposite to; on behalf of

substantive (preposition/adverb)

Strong’s #5227 BDB #647

ʿêynayim (עֵינַיִם) [pronounced ģay-nah-YIM]

eyes, two eyes, literal eye(s), spiritual eyes; face, appearance, form; surface

feminine dual construct

Strong’s #5869 (and #5871) BDB #744

Owens lists this as a plural.

This is variously translated: before the eyes of, in front of the eyes of, directly before the eyes of. opposite the eyes of. Less literal translations indicates that this indicates that the subject is carefully or clearly watching the object.

YHWH (יהוה) [pronunciation is possibly yhoh-WAH]

transliterated variously as Jehovah, Yahweh, Yehowah

proper noun

Strong’s #3068 BDB #217

derâkîym (דְּרָכִים) [pronounced deh-raw-KEEM]

ways, roads, paths; journeys, courses; works; towards; manner, habit, a way [of life, living]; of moral character

masculine plural construct

Strong's #1870 BDB #202

ʾîysh (אִיש) [pronounced eesh]

a man, a husband; anyone; a certain one; each, each one, everyone

masculine singular noun (sometimes found where we would use a plural)

Strong's #376 BDB #35


Translation: For the paths of man [are] before the eyes of Yehowah... In part, David is giving this advice because God is watching over all of us. He sees our paths; He sees our manner of life.

 

Ironside: This fact is just what the soul needs to realize the solemnity of being in this world for God. His eyes are on all our ways. Nothing escapes that holy gaze. All is naked and open before Him. He weighs and ponders every thought and word and action. Nothing is too insignificant for His notice; nothing too great for His attention. At the judgment seat of Christ He will make known His estimate of it all. In that day how many of us would give worlds, if we possessed them, to have been more faithful on earth! 

 

Keil and Delitzsch: man at every stage and step of his journey is observed and encompassed by God: it is impossible for him to escape from the knowledge of God or from dependence on Him.


This is the first use of man and of Yehowah in this chapter of Proverbs.


David gives this advice to Solomon for two basic reasons: (1) it is better for Solomon and for Solomon’s love live; (2) God is watching Solomon as well, and God will judge him.


We find nearly the exact same statement in Job 34:21 For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and He sees all his steps. (ESV; capitalized)


Obviously, what is being discussed here is God’s omniscience. See Thomas Tyree’s Doctrine of the Omniscience of God (also posted in Bible Doctrine Resource). Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge offers up these passages on omniscience: Prov. 15:3 2Chron. 16:9 Job. 31:4 34:21 Psalm 11:4 17:3 139:1–12 Jer. 16:17 17:10 23:24 32:19 Hosea 7:2 Heb. 4:13 Rev. 2:18, 23.


I need to edit this.

The Pulpit Commentary on, How We Should Respond to the Omniscience of God

1.      It should make us true. What is the use of paltry devices for the deception of men when the only question of consequence concerning the treatment of our conduct is How will God regard it? What folly to wear a mask if he sees behind it! The gaze of God should shame and burn all lies out of the soul.

2.      It should make us dread to do wrong. An Eastern legend tells how one stole a jewel called "the eye of God," but though he fled far with his treasure and hid in dark caverns, he was tortured by the piercing light that it threw out till, unable to endure the horror of it, he gave himself up to justice. We all have the eye of God on our ways. Let us beware that we never go where we should not wish him to see us.

3.      It should lead to confession of sin. If God knows all, is it not best to make a clean breast of it, and humble ourselves before him? We cannot hide or cloke our sins from God. It is foolish to attempt to do so. But let us be thankful that we cannot. While we try to hide them they only scorch our own bosom. If we confess them, "he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.

4.      It should induce confidence in God. It is sometimes a relief to know that the worst is out. God knows all. Yet he endures us, yet he loves us still. He who thus watches looks upon us as a mother regards her child, grieving for what is wrong, but tenderly seeking to save and protect us from all harm. Why should we fear the gaze of God? His sleepless eye is our great security. (see 2Ch_16:9)

5.      It should incline us to faithful service. We should learn to be ashamed of the eye service of men pleasers, and seek to win the approval of our rightful Lord. He is no hard tyrant. When we try to please him, though ever so imperfectly, he is pleased, and will say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:21.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Proverbs 5:21b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

kôl (כֹּל) [pronounced kohl]

with a plural noun, it is rendered all of, all; any of

masculine singular construct with a masculine plural noun

Strong’s #3605 BDB #481

maʿegâllâth (מַעְגָּלָת) [pronounced mahģ-gawl-AWTH]

entrenchments, tracks, ruts [wherein a wheel revolves], wagon ramparts; ways; courses of action

masculine plural noun with the 3rd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #4570 BDB #722

The NET Bible: BDB 814 s.v. פָּלַס 2 suggests that the participle מְפַּלֵּס (mÿpalles) means “to make level [or, straight].” As one’s ways are in front of the eyes of the Lord, they become straight or right. It could be translated “weighs” since it is a denominative from the noun for “balance, scale”; the Lord weighs or examines the actions.

pâlaç (פָּלַס) [pronounced paw-LAHÇ]

weighs [out], balances; makes level, makes smooth

Piel participle

Strong’s #6424 BDB #814

The Heritage Bible: palac, rolls flat, makes level, weighs out. This principle is constantly placed before us in the Word of God. In the end everything must be equaled out. Every man will reap what he sows, Gal 6:7. Every word spoken, every deed done, is not complete, at peace, until it has reaped its results. The sowing is only one half. The other half is the reaping. There will be nothing at the end without its other half.


Translation: ...and [He] makes smooth out all of his ways. God makes smooth all of our ways. This does not mean that there are never any problems. However, God has seen to our lives and our ways.

 

Peter Pett: Man in general walks ‘before the eyes of YHWH’. In other words YHWH sees him and all that he does. And this is true for all. Furthermore He makes level all his paths. He smoothes the way for him, and removes stumbling blocks from before him. As Jesus reminded us, He makes the sun to shine, and pours out His rain, on both the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:45). He has made full provision for him. All are provided for and the pathway would be smooth were it not for sin., for God is generally beneficent. God has planned out our lives for us; and He has mapped out the most wonderful life for each one of us. Pett continues: In terms of this passage those who walk in the smooth way are those who follow wisdom and cling to their true wives, finding their satisfaction in them, whilst those who lack instruction go after prostitutes and the pleasures of sin. But here the principle is generalised and applied to all sin. It is not just immorality which traps men, it is all sin.


In context, Solomon has (or will have) a strong libido. David tells him to channel this into his right woman. God, with the institution of marriage, guides man into happiness on earth, as well as gives man a place for his libido to go to.


In a football game, for instance, there are rules. The slightest difference in the inflation of a football can become a serious issue. Quite obviously, a quarterback can run for days out of bounds and the other team will ignore him. There are rules and regulations and these things must be adhered to in order for us to have a good game. If anything goes, that might interest a few people from the outset, but how can you even keep score if anything goes?


proverbs059.gif

Life is the same way; and love is the same way. God has a manner of life for all of us, and in most cases, this will include a right man or a right woman (always from the opposite camp). There are rules and laws for this; there are boundary lines. David is attempting to teach his son Solomon what the boundary lines are.


Proverbs 5:21 (a graphic); from faith moment.com; accessed September 2, 2015. This verse is a reference to the omniscience of God. See the Doctrine of the Omniscience of God (Bible Doctrine Resource); (Cherreguine Bible Doctrine Ministries) and (Grace Bible Church). This is a doctrine I need to put together one of these days.


God sees all that we do. This goes back to David’s advice to Solomon. God sees what we do, and God is able to discipline us for the sins we commit. We may find our health failing; our mental attitude and emotional response to life may be adversely affected. Our sins may destroy us socially. David’s sins were known throughout Israel and there were revolutions because of his sins. There are a great many consequences for sin, but God’s discipline is foremost among those consequences.


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Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


The Logical End of the Wicked Man


His iniquities capture him, the unrighteous; and in cords of sin he is taken a hold of.

Proverbs

5:22

His iniquities have seized him, the unrighteous; by cords of sin he is taken a hold of.

His iniquities seize him, by cords of iniquity, the unrighteous is taken a hold of.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        His iniquities capture him, the unrighteous; and in cords of sin he is taken a hold of.

Latin Vulgate                          His own iniquities catch the wicked, and he is fast bound with the ropes of his own sins.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   The evil man will be held captive in his debts and he will be bound in the cords of his sins.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    The wicked shall be caught by his own iniquities, and he will be bound with the cords of his sins.

Septuagint (Greek)                Iniquities ensnare a man, and everyone is bound in the chains of his own sins.

 

Significant differences:           The PEA Bible has debts rather than iniquities. That such a man is unrighteous is not mentioned in the Greek. The second phrase is consistently rendered in all the ancient languages.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             The evil-doer will be taken in the net of his crimes, and prisoned in the cords of his sin.

Easy English                          Evil actions are like a trap for an evil man.

His own evil deeds are like an enemy who ties up the evil man.

Easy-to-Read Version            The sins of an evil person will trap him. His sins will be like ropes holding him.

God’s Word                         A wicked person will be trapped by his own wrongs,

and he will be caught in the ropes of his own sin.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The sins of the wicked are a trap. They get caught in the net of their own sin.

New Simplified Bible              His own iniquities will catch the wicked. He will be held with the cords of his sins.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           The wicked will be caught by their own evil acts,

grabbed by the ropes of their own sin.

Contemporary English V.       Sinners are trapped and caught by their own evil deeds.

The Living Bible                     The wicked man is doomed by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him.

New Berkeley Version           His own iniquities seize the wicked,

and he is held fast by the ropes of his own sin.

New Century Version             An evil man will be caught in his wicked ways;

the ropes of his sins will tie him up.

New Living Translation           An evil man is held captive by his own sins;

they are ropes that catch and hold him.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Unlawful acts are a snare to all men, and you'll be bound in the chains of your sins.

Beck’s American Translation A wicked person is trapped by his wrongs

and caught in the ropes of his sin.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       The sinner will be ensnared by his own guilt, caught in the toils of his own wrong-doing; doomed by his own incontinence, by his own great folly bemused. V. 23 is included for context.

Translation for Translators     Evil men's sinful desires hold them fast;

their sins are like ropes that bind them.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      Iniquities claim the wicked, with the ropes of his sin supporting him.

Conservapedia                       His own wrongdoings will take the wicked himself, and he will be tied in his own sins.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                His own vices capture the bad, And hold him enchained in his sins;...

Jubilee Bible 2000                  His own iniquities shall take hold of the wicked, and he shall be imprisoned with the cords of his sins.

Lexham English Bible            His iniquities shall ensnare him, the evildoer, and in the vanity of his sin he shall be caught.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  The wicked will be caught in his own evil and remain entangled in the nets of his own sin.

The Heritage Bible                 His own crookedness shall capture the wicked himself, and he shall be held with the ropes of his sins.

New American Bible (2011)   By their own iniquities the wicked will be caught,

in the meshes of their own sin they will be held fast;...

New Jerusalem Bible             The wicked is snared in his own misdeeds, is caught in the meshes of his own sin.

Revised English Bible            He who is wicked is caught in his own iniquities, held fast in the toils of his own sin;...


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           A wicked person's own crimes will trap him, he will be held fast by the ropes of his sin.

exeGeses companion Bible   His own perversities capture the wicked

- upheld by the cords of his own sins:...

Hebrew Names Version         The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               The wicked man will be trapped in his iniquities;

He will be caught up in the ropes of his sin.

Judaica Press Complete T.    His iniquities shall trap the wicked man, and he shall be hanged with the ropes of his sin.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           His own avonot shall entrap the rashah himself, and he shall be held fast by the cords of his chattat.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                His own iniquities shall ensnare the wicked man, and he shall be held with the cords of his sin.

The Expanded Bible              An evil man will be ·caught [captured] in his wicked ways;

the ropes of his sins will tie him up.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, overtake every evil-doer, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins, as fetters holding him captive and keeping him securely for the final punishment.

NET Bible®                             The wicked will be captured by his own iniquities [Heb “his own iniquities will capture the wicked.” The translation shifts the syntax for the sake of smoothness and readability.],

and he will be held [The lack of discipline and control in the area of sexual gratification is destructive. The one who plays with this kind of sin will become ensnared by it and led to ruin.] by the cords of his own sin [The Hebrew is structured chiastically: “his own iniquities will capture the wicked, by the cords of his own sin will he be held.”].

Syndein/Thieme                     His own perversity/reversionism will trap him with a reversionistic woman. Furthermore, he will be seized and bound with the chains of his own feminine idol. {Note: By having sex with the wrong women, he is fashioning himself to an idol he is fashioning with his own phallus. The pleasure in sex is in the mastery of sex, not becoming a slave to it.}.

The Voice                               The wicked will be snared by their own wrongdoing.

Their flaws will tie their own hands, and they will be dragged through life by the cords of their sins.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    Concerning the wicked man, his depravities, they shall seize him, And by the cables of his sin shall he be held firm."

Context Group Version          His own iniquities shall take the wicked, And he shall be held with the cords of his disgrace.

Emphasized Bible                  His own iniquities, shall entrap him with the lawless, and, by the cords of his own sin, shall he be seized.

Green’s Literal Translation    His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be held with the cords of his sin.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           The wickedness of the ungodly shall catch himself, and with the snares of his own sins shall he be trapped.

NASB                                     His own iniquities will capture the wicked,

And he will be held with the cords of his sin.

New European Version          The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.

New King James Version       His own iniquities entrap the wicked man,

And he is caught in the cords of his sin.

Stuart Wolf                             His iniquities will capture the wicked man, and with the cords of his sin he will be bound.

World English Bible                The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.

Young's Literal Translation     His own iniquities do capture the wicked, And with the ropes of his sin he is holden.

 

The gist of this passage:     The wicked will be entrapped by their own sins.


Proverbs 5:22a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

ʿâvôwn (עָווֹן) [pronounced ģaw-VOHN]

iniquity, crime, offense, transgression, depraved action, guilt, punishment from wrongdoing

masculine plural noun with the 3rd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #5771 BDB #730

lâkad (לָכַד) [pronounced law-KAHD]

to capture, to seize, to take, to choose [by lot]

3rd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect with the 3rd person masculine singular suffix

Strong’s #3920 BDB #539

The NET Bible: The word is the subject of the clause, but the pronominal suffix has no clear referent. The suffix is proleptic, referring to the wicked.

Although this is a 3rd person masculine singular, it seems like this ought to be a 3rd person masculine plural verb.

ʾêth (אֶח) [pronounced ayth]

untranslated generally; occasionally to, toward

indicates that the following substantive is a direct object

Strong's #853 BDB #84

râshâʿ (רָשָע) [pronounced raw-SHAWĢ]

unrighteous; malevolent, lawless, corrupt, wicked (hostile to God); criminal; guilty [of sin] [against God or man]; having an unrighteous cause

masculine singular adjective; can act like a substantive with the definite article

Strong’s #7563 BDB #957

Owens: many omit [this word].

The NET Bible: The suffix on the verb is the direct object suffix; “the wicked” is a second object by apposition: They capture him, the wicked. Since “the wicked” is not found in the LXX, it could be an old scribal error; or the Greek translator may have simply smoothed out the sentence. C. H. Toy suggests turning the sentence into a passive idea: “The wicked will be caught in his iniquities” (Proverbs [ICC], 117).


Translation: His iniquities have seized him, the unrighteous;... This final word might by thrown in here for emphasis. You will note in the commentary above that there are two views.


David is describing for Solomon addiction. A person’s iniquities have seized him. This can be an addiction to alcohol, drugs or to sex. There is a point at which the object of your addiction begins to control you.


This addiction is spoken of in Rom. 1:22–28 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. (ESV) You see what God has done—God gives them over to their personally destructive passions; God gives them over to their own debased minds.

 

Gill comments: His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself,.... As in a snare or net,...in which the adulterer is so entangled that he cannot extricate himself; he may fancy that when he grows old his lusts will be weakened, and he shall be able to get clear of them, and have repentance for them, but he will find himself mistaken; he will become but more and more hardened by them and confirmed in them, and will have neither will nor power to repent of them, and shake off those shackles with which he is bound: and it may be understood of the guilt and punishment of his sins; that the horrors of a guilty conscience shall seize him, there will be no need of any others to arrest him, these will do that office; or diseases shall come upon him for his sins, and bring him to the dust of death, and so to everlasting destruction.


Proverbs 5:22b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

chebel (חֶבֶל) [pronounced KHEB-vel]

rope, cord, bands; a measuring rope; a territory, lot, portion; a group [of things]

masculine plural construct

Strong’s #2256 BDB #286

chaţţâʾth (חַטָּאת) [pronounced khat-TAWTH]

misstep, slip of the foot; sin; sinfulness; a sin-offering; penalty [for sin], calamity, misfortune

feminine singular noun with the 3rd person masculine singular suffix

Strong's #2403 BDB #308

tâmake (תָּמַ) [pronounced taw-MAHK]

to be taken hold of, to be held, to be grasped

3rd person masculine singular, Niphal imperfect

Strong’s #8551 BDB #1069


Translation: ...by cords of sin he is taken a hold of. Cords is in the plural, suggesting that sin grabs a person in a number of ways. As a sin is committed more and more, that sin develops a greater hold on the person committing the sin. It becomes a cord or a trap which further entraps the sinner, every time that sin is committed. This describes the concept of addiction to some sins.


One cord alone is easy to break; but as another and then another and then another cord are added, it becomes more difficult to extricate oneself from such a sin.

 

Gill: [This] phrase denotes the strength of sin, the impotency of man to get rid of it, and the sure and inevitable ruin that comes by it.

 

Poole: In vain he thinks to disentangle himself from his lusts by repenting when he grows in years, and to escape punishments; yet he continues to be in perfect bondage to his lusts, and is neither able nor willing to set himself at liberty.


David was speaking from experience. He had faced addictive sins in his life as well; he was addicted to sex, and this nearly ended his kingship.


It becomes an addiction when the lust controls you. It becomes an addiction when the cords of this sin bind you further and further.

 

I wondered if other commentators saw the concept of addictive behavior in this passage. Nearly all of them made reference to the addictive nature of some sins. Clarke: Most people who follow unlawful pleasures, think they can give them up whenever they please; but sin repeated becomes customary; custom soon engenders habit; and habit in the end assumes the form of necessity; the man becomes bound with his own cords, and so is led captive by the devil at his will.

 

Alexander MacLaren: We all know that anything once done becomes easier to do again. That is true about both good and bad actions, but ‘ill weeds grow apace,’ and it is infinitely easier to form a bad habit than a good one. The young shoot is green and flexible at first, but it soon becomes woody and grows high and strikes deep. We can all verify the statement of our text by recalling the tremors of conscience, the self-disgust, the dread of discovery which accompanied the first commission of some evil deed, and the silence of undisturbed, almost unconscious facility, that accompanied later repetitions of it. Sins of sense and animal passion afford the most conspicuous instances of this, but it is by no means confined to these...experience teaches not only that evil deeds quickly consolidate into evil habits, but that as the habit grips us faster, the poor pleasure for the sake of which the acts are done diminishes...Many a man is so completely wrapped in the net which his own evil deeds have made for him, that he commits the sin once more, not because he finds any pleasure in it, but for no better reason than that he has already committed it often, and the habit is his master.

 

MacLaren: Let us then remember how swiftly deeds become habits, and how the fetters, which were silken at first, rapidly are exchanged for iron chains, and how the craving increases as fast as the pleasure from gratifying it diminishes. Let us remember that there are many kinds of evil which seem to force their own repetition, in order to escape their consequences and to hide the sin. Let us remember that no man can venture to say, ‘This once only will I do this thing.’ Let us remember that acts become habits with dreadful swiftness, and let us beware that we do not forge chains of darkness for ourselves out of our own godless deeds.


Most every expositor understood that this was about the addictive nature of sin.

Charles Simeon’s Horae Homiletical on the Force of a Sinful Habit

The force of habit is well known: it operates as a second nature; so constant is it in its exercise, and so imperious in its demands. There is this difference however in habits of piety, and habits of sin: that the one are easily lost; but the other are with great difficulty overcome...There is not a sinner in the universe who cannot from his own experience attest the truth of it. Every sin has a power to enslave the mind, and to lead captive him who has indulged it.


The man addicted to drinking previous to the formation of his habit, had perhaps no particular love to strong drink, or desire after it: but he has been drawn into company, he has there acquired a taste for conviviality, and at last, by repeated excesses, he has contracted such a thirst for intoxicating liquors, that he cannot deny himself the use of them, or use them in moderation. He can see his character sinking in the estimation of all the sober part of the community, his health impaired, his fortune injured, his family suffering, and his eternal interests sacrificed: and yet he cannot cast off the habit which he has contracted: his soul is bound with it as with a cord, and he cannot burst his bonds.


In a similar plight is he who has given himself up to the gratification of his lusts and passions. They, at least as far as the mind is concerned, are increased by indulgence, so that every object calls forth desire, and “the eyes of the libertine are full of adultery, and cannot cease from sin [Note: 2 Peter 2:14.].” His very soul, as it were, is sensualized, and, whether sleeping or waking, his imagination roves after the gratification of his lawless appetites

There are self-identified homosexuals who believe in Jesus Christ and are saved, yet find themselves so addicted to their lifestyle that they deny and/or distort the very Scriptures which tell them of Jesus Christ, in order to continue in their sin.

From http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/shh/view.cgi?bk=19&ch=5 accessed August 30, 2015.

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This needs to be edited.

The Pulpit Commentary on, The Cords of Sin

I.      THE SINNER IS IN BONDAGE. Such a condition is not expected when a man freely gives the reins to his passions, and weakly yields himself to temptation. On the contrary, he supposes that he is enjoying a larger liberty than they possess who are constrained to walk in the narrow path of righteousness. Moreover, even when this shocking condition is reached, he is slow to admit its existence. He will not confess his bondage; perhaps he scarcely feels it. Thus the Jews were indignant in rejecting any such notion when our Lord offered deliverance from the slavery of sin. (John 8:33) But this only proves the bondage to be the greater. The worst degradation of slavery is that it so benumbs the feelings and crushes the manliness of its victims, that some of them do not notice the yoke that would gall the shoulders of all men who truly appreciated their condition. The reality of the bondage is soon proved, however, whenever a slave tries to escape. Then the chains of sin are felt to be too strong for the sinner to break. He cries, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?". (Rom. 7:24)

II.      THE CORDS THAT BIND THE SINNER ARE SPUN OUT OF HIS OWN SINS. Satan does not need to build any massive prison walls, or to call upon Vulcan to forge fetters for his captives. He has but to leave them to themselves, and their own misdeeds will shut them in, as the rank new growth of a tropical forest encloses the rotting trunks of the older trees, from the seed of which it sprang.

         1.      This results from the force of habit. All conduct tends to become permanent. The way wears into ruts. Men become entangled in their own past.

         2.      This is confirmed by wilful disregard of saving influences. If the sinner repented and called for deliverance, he might be saved from the fearful bondage of his sins. But proudly choosing to continue on his own course, he has consented to the tightening of the cords that bind him.

III.    CHRIST ALONE CAN LIBERATE FROM THE BONDAGE OF SIN. Left to itself, the slavery will be fatal. The sinner will never be free to live to any good purpose. He will not be able to escape in the day of doom; his own sins will tie him to his fate. In the end they will strangle him. Inasmuch as the cords are spun out of his own conduct, they are part of himself, and he cannot untie their knots or cut their strands. They are stronger than the cords with which Delilah bound Samson, while the helpless, guilty sinner is weaker than the shorn Nazarite. But it is to men in this forlorn condition that the gospel of Christ is proclaimed, with its glorious promise of liberty to the captives. (Isa. 61:1) Christ brings liberating truth, (John 8:32) redeeming grace, and the saving power of a mighty love, those attractive "cords of a man" (Hos. 11:4) which are even stronger than the binding cords of sin.

The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:22.

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From Precept Austin: Illustration of the subtle, corrupting effect of sin: What happened to the great city of Ephesus? Often mentioned in the New Testament, it was one of the cultural and commercial centers of its day. Located at the mouth of the Cayster River, it was noted for its bustling harbors, its broad avenues, its gymnasiums, its baths, its huge amphitheater, and especially its magnificent Temple of Diana. What happened to bring about its gradual decline until its harbor was no longer crowded with ships and the city was no longer a flourishing metropolis? Was it smitten by plagues, destroyed by enemies, or demolished by earthquakes? No, silt was the reason for its downfall—silent and non-violent silt. Over the years, fine sedimentary particles slowly filled up the harbor, separating the city from the economic life of the sea traders. Little evil practices, little acts of disobedience may seem harmless. (Song 2:15) But let the silt of sin gradually accumulate, and we will find ourselves far from God. Life will become a spiritual ruin. In the book of Hebrews we are warned of the danger of “the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb 3:13-note). James said that the attractive pleasures of sin are really a mask covering death (Jas 1:15-note).God forbid that we let the "silt of sin" accumulate in our lives.

 

Another illustration from Precept Austin: Sin Is Like An Insect! It was reported recently that an enormous pine tree in the mountains of Colorado had fallen victim to a pine beetle and died. According to locals, up to that point the tree was thought to be indestructible. It had survived fourteen lightning strikes and many years of Colorado winters, including avalanches and fires. But it was eventually brought down from within by a tiny insect that did its work silently. That's the way it is with sin in a person's life, be they a Christian or a non-Christian. Watch over your heart with all diligence.


Now let’s put vv. 21–22 together: For the paths of man [are] before the eyes of Yehowah and [He] makes smooth out all of his ways. His iniquities have seized him, the unrighteous; by cords of sin he is taken a hold of. Here, God is observing us, but it is not God who imposes discipline at this point. Our own sins take a hold of us; our own sins seize us.


There are many passages on the self–destructive nature of sin: Prov. 1:18, 31 11:3, 5 Psalm 7:15–16 9:15 Jer. 2:19 Hos. 4:11–14 Gal. 6:7–8.


Although I took this from Precept Austin, the original author is unknown.

20 Reasons Not to Sin

1.      A little sin leads to more sin.

2.      Sin invites the discipline of God.

3.      The time spent in my sin is forever wasted.

4.      My sin never pleases but always grieves the God Who loves me.

5.      My sin places a greater burden on my spiritual leaders.

6.      In time, sin always brings heaviness to my heart.

7.      Others, including my family, suffer consequences due to my sin.

8.      My sin makes the enemies of God rejoice.

9.      Sin deceives me into believing I have gained when in reality I have lost.

10.    Sin may keep me from qualifying for spiritual leadership.

11.    The supposed benefits of sin will never outweigh the consequences of disobedience.

12.    Repenting of sin is a painful process.

13.    My sin may influence others to sin.

14.    My sin may keep others from knowing Christ.

15.    Sin makes light of the Cross, upon which Christ died for the very purpose of taking away my sin.

16.    It is impossible to sin and follow the Spirit at the same time.

17.    Others more earnest than I have been destroyed by just such sins.

18.    God chooses not to hear the prayers of those who cherish their sin (Ps 66:18).

19.    My unwillingness to reject this sin now grants it authority over me greater than I understand.

20.    I promised God He would be the Lord of my life.

From http://www.preceptaustin.org/proverbs_515-23_commentary.htm accessed September 1, 2015.

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Timothy Fleck: It’s absolutely amazing how many men and women are addicted to pornography. Many live a double life. Yet usually this addiction doesn’t stop at pornography, but untreated, it leads to more and more self-destructive behaviors. It leads to online relationships, prostitution, and so forth. One of my best friends in seminary lost his ministry because of a sexual addiction that raged out of control in his life. Those of us who were exposed to pornography early on in our development always have to be on guard against this. This is why each month when I meet with my accountability group we ask each other if we’ve exposed ourselves to any sexually explicit material.


It will be obvious that Pritchard wrote these things decades ago, as this was written before the internet and before DVD’s; but what he has to say is still accurate.

Ray Pritchard on Pornography

It is not easy these days. There is a lot that militates against sexual purity. For one thing, the media is all against us. Every year, every week, every month, every day you turn on the TV, listen to the radio, buy a magazine, read a book, put a video into the VCR, and out comes a veritable tidal wave of sexual innuendo. Did you know that in America on the major TV network screens this year there will be over 20,000 acts of simulated or suggested physical intercourse? It will be there for everybody to see. And Ted Turner was absolutely right a few years ago when he said that the media is the most powerful force in America today. The media taken together is a vast conglomerate that is pushing our society in a particular direction—far more powerful than education, far more powerful than the churches of America, far more powerful than the government in Washington. Take the media moguls of today and the leading media companies of today, and those are the people who are setting the agenda for the American culture. They are not setting it toward biblical morality. They are certainly not setting it toward purity.


There is a second reason it is difficult, and that is the scourge of pornography. Pornography in America today has become a multi-billion dollar business. I speak not just of adult pornography, but also of child pornography. It is as if somebody has turned a valve and a giant sewer has been let loose, pouring raw sewage of pornography across our society. We’re all slimed with it today. I think the main change today is that if 40 years ago you wanted to buy a dirty magazine, you would go down to some disreputable portion of town with $5.00 in your pocket, and would find some disreputable type person and slip them the $5.00. They would reach down under the counter and out of that brown wrapping paper they would pull a magazine and off you’d slink back to the darkness to look at it. But today all kinds of pornography are easily available, not just to adults but to teenagers and children. I read an article the other day by somebody who said that the main problem facing our children today is boredom because by the age of 10 the average child in America will have seen, read or heard implied every kind of sexual activity there is. Between man and woman, man and man, woman and woman, man and beast, every possible grouping of degenerate and perverted sex that could be. The problem is that in the old days sex was something mysterious. There is no mystery anymore. Now kids are simply bored with it. We as men understand that.

Like every other addiction, not viewing pornography in the first place is the best approach.

From http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/purity-staying-clean-in-a-dirty-world/ accessed September 2, 2015.

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There are actually two easy fixes for addictive sins, if these fixes are applied at the right time. If a believer never goes down that road in the first place of a sin which is clearly addictive (sexual sins, drinking to excess, taking any drugs which distorts one’s thinking and/or reality), then the habit will never be formed. Also, the person who first believes in Jesus Christ has all scar tissue removed, so that, even if they were in an addictive lifestyle, they simply can stop their participation in it. The passages related to this are Isaiah 43:25 44:22 Ephesians 1:7 Colossians 1:14.

 

I can personally attest to this. I was beset by two sins at the time of salvation. One of them I returned to, the other one I did not. The one which I did not return to never became a serious issue in my life again, except for a brief relapse.


As Timothy Fleck points out, Proverbs warns the young believer about going onto the wrong path; but it does not deal with the person who has already chosen that path. However, such topics are taken up elsewhere in Scripture.


——————————


He dies in an absence of discipline; and in an abundance of his folly, he goes astray.

Proverbs

5:23

He dies [the sin unto death] because of a lack of [corrective] instruction; and he goes astray in his abundance of foolishness [or, impiety].

Such a man will die the sin unto death because he has not responded to corrective discipline and instruction; he has gone astray in his life because of his abundance of foolishness and impiety.


Here is how others have translated this verse:


Ancient texts:

 

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        He dies in an absence of discipline; and in an abundance of his folly, he goes astray.

Latin Vulgate                          He shall die, because he has not received instruction, and in the multitude of his folly he shall be deceived.

Plain English Aramaic Bible   He will die without instruction and in the abundance of his error he will be led astray.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

Septuagint (Greek)                Such a man dies with the uninstructed, and he is cast forth from the abundance of his own substance, and has perished through folly.

 

Significant differences:           The Hebrew word translated discipline can also be translated instruction.


Limited Vocabulary Translations:

 

Bible in Basic English             He will come to his end for need of teaching; he is so foolish that he will go wandering from the right way.

Easy English                          An evil man will die, because he has no discipline.

He wanders because he is a fool.

Easy-to-Read Version            That evil person will die because he refused to be disciplined. He will be trapped by his own desires.

God’s Word                         He will die for his lack of discipline

and stumble around because of his great stupidity.

Good News Bible (TEV)         They die because they have no self-control. Their utter stupidity will send them to their graves.

The Message                         The shadow of your sin will overtake you;

you’ll find yourself stumbling all over yourself in the dark.

Death is the reward of an undisciplined life;

your foolish decisions trap you in a dead end. Vv. 22–23 in the Message.

NIRV                                      They will die because they refused to be corrected.

Their sins will capture them because they were very foolish.


Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

 

Common English Bible           Those without instruction will die,

misled by their own stupidity.

Contemporary English V.       They get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control.

The Living Bible                     He shall die because he will not listen to the truth; he has let himself be led away into incredible folly.

New Berkeley Version           He dies for lack of discipline;

but with the magnitude of his folly he is infatuated [Blind to his real situation.].

New Century Version             He will die because he does not control himself,

and he will be held captive by his foolishness.

New Life Version                    He will die for want of teaching, and will go the wrong way because of the greatness of his foolish ways.

New Living Translation           He will die for lack of self-control;

he will be lost because of his great foolishness.


Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

 

American English Bible          Those who don't learn this will come to their end, and then they will lose all they own… they'll perish in their own foolish ways.

Beck’s American Translation He dies because he had no discipline

and by all his foolish lust he’s lost.

Translation for Translators     Evil men will die because they are unable to say “No” to their desires;

they will go astray/be lost because of the foolish things that they do.


Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

 

Ancient Roots Translinear      He dies with no correction, erring in the abundance of his babblings.

Conservapedia                       He shall die without correction, and in his great foolishness he will go astray.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                By his want of reflection he dies,

And his numberless follies betray.”

HCSB                                     He will die because there is no instruction, and be lost because of his great stupidity.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  He shall die because he did not submit to chastening; and due to the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

NIV – UK                                For lack of discipline they will die,

led astray by their own great folly.


Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

 

Christian Community (1988)  He will die for want of discipline and will drown in the rising tide of his own evil.

The Heritage Bible                 He shall die without corrective discipline, and he shall stray in the abundance of his foolishness.

New American Bible (2002)   He will die from lack of discipline, through the greatness of his folly he will be lost.

New Jerusalem Bible             For want of discipline, he dies, led astray by his own excessive folly.

Revised English Bible            He who is wicked is caught in his own iniquities, held fast in the toils of his own sin;

for want of discipline he will perish, wrapped in the shroud of his boundless folly. V. 22 is included for context.


Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

 

Complete Jewish Bible           He will die from lack of discipline; the magnitude of his folly will make him totter and fall.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...he dies without discipline;

and in the greatness of his folly

he errs inadvertently.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               He will die for lack of discipline,

Infatuated by his great folly.

Judaica Press Complete T.    He shall die without discipline, and he shall err with his exceeding foolishness.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           He shall die without musar; and in the greatness of his folly he shall be led astray.


Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

 

The Amplified Bible                He will die for lack of discipline and instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he will go astray and be lost.

The Expanded Bible              He will die ·because he does not control himself [Lwithout discipline/instruction],

and he will be ·held captive [or intoxicated; inebriated] by his ·foolishness [stupidity].

The Geneva Bible                  He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray. [This is] Because he will not give ear to Gods word and be admonished.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    He shall die without instruction, for want of correction, because he would not accept it, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray, thus bringing destruction upon himself. Such is the way of the libertine, a few years of forbidden voluptuousness followed by everlasting condemnation.

NET Bible®                             He will die because there was no discipline;

because of the greatness of his folly he will reel.

Syndein/Thieme                     He shall die without doctrine {sin unto death}. And in the magnitude of his folly {all the signs of his reversionism - here promiscuity} he shall go astray.

The Voice                               Because they have no discipline, their spirits die and their bodies will soon follow;

because they are immensely foolish, they wander lost and confused.


Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

 

Concordant Literal Version    He himself shall die in his lack of discipline, And in his great folly he shall expire.".

Context Group Version          He shall die for lack of instruction; And in the greatness of his senseless shame he shall go astray.

Emphasized Bible                  He, shall die, for lack of discipline, and, by the abounding of his perversity, shall he be lost.

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

Green’s Literal Translation    He shall die without instruction, and in the greatness of his foolishness he shall go astray.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Because he would not be reformed, he shall die: and for his great foolishness he shall be destroyed.

New King James Version       He shall die for lack of instruction,

And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

Stuart Wolf                             He himself will die with/for a lack of disciplined instruction, and with greatness of folly he will go astray.

Young’s Updated LT             He dies without instruction, And in the abundance of his folly magnifies himself!

 

The gist of this passage:     A miserable death or the sin unto death for the person who dies without Bible doctrine.


Proverbs 5:23a

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

hûwʾ (הוּא) [pronounced hoo]

he, it; him, himself as a demonstrative pronoun: that, this (one); same

3rd person masculine singular, personal pronoun; sometimes the verb to be, is implied

Strong’s #1931 BDB #214

mûwth (מוּת) [pronounced mooth]

to die; to perish, to be destroyed; to be put to death; to die prematurely [by neglect of wise moral conduct]

3rd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong's #4191 BDB #559

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

ʾêyn (אֵין) [pronounced ān]

nothing, not, [is] not; not present, not ready; expresses non-existence, absence or non-possession; [there is] no [none, not one, no one, not]

particle of negation; substantive of negation

Strong’s #369 BDB #34

With the bêyth preposition, it means, literally, in nothing, with nothing; and together, they mean in not, in defect of, when there was not, without.

mûwçâr (מוּסָר) [pronounced moo-SAWR]

discipline [of the moral nature], chastening, correction; admonition; instruction, doctrine

masculine singular noun

Strong’s #4148 BDB #416


Translation: He dies [the sin unto death] because of a lack of [corrective] instruction;... Corrective instruction can also be translated corrective discipline; and this suggests that a man give over to his lusts (chasing after so many women) can complete his life under the sin unto death. God tries to correct him, but he refuses to be corrected.


If it is instruction, the person (believer or unbeliever) may refuse it or be negative towards it. If it is discipline, where God steps in to control the behavior of the believer (or society steps in to control the behavior of the believer or unbeliever), then he may respond, or he may be negative towards it. At a certain point, and unbeliever by his own sins, may die (AIDS, drug overdose, drug-related death); or the believer may be subject to the sin unto death.


The person here is subject to the sin unto death because they are not moved by correct discipline. It is not that God does not attempt to correct them, but that they refuse to be corrected.


Usually, when there is a doctrine out there which covers the topic, I defer to that doctrine; however, there are at least 3 sources out there, which, individually, present an incomplete picture. Therefore, I have taken their material and put it together below. However, almost none of the doctrine below is original with me.

Doctrine of The Sin Unto Death

1.      Introduction and definition

         1)      The phrase "sin unto death" describes the final stage of divine discipline in which God removes from the earth the person who is totally alienated from God. The "sin unto death" is not a particular sin; but it is, rather, a mental attitude of total indifference to and rebellion against the will and purpose of God.

         2)      The spiritual condition of the person who comes under the "sin unto death" is characterized by continual and maximum carnality (remaining out of fellowship); and this punishment represents God's final step of chastisement to those who are in maximum alienation from God. Only God can discern the true nature of a person's mind, attitude, or volition; and only God knows whether a person is actually implacable and deserving of physical death.

         3)      The "sin unto death" is described as a principle in 1John 5:16 Psalm 118:17,18 Ezek. 18:21-32.

         4)      The sin unto death is not a particular sin nor is it a list of sins.

         5)      There are definite characteristics by which to recognize the conditions which lead to God's applying the "sin unto death":

                  (1)     A persistent, unconfessed sin.

                  (2)     Sin which continues unchecked with no repentance, may bring a person under this category.

                  (3)     The person who persistently ignores Grace, warnings, and discipline may come under the "sin unto death." Lev. 26.

                  (4)     Sin which has a maximum adverse effect on other people (causing stumbling) may lead a person into severe discipline, even to the sin unto death.

2.      Illustrations

         1)      Illustrations of the Sin Unto Death.

                  (1)     Gen X of the Exodus generation. They are described in Num. 14:26–30 And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, "How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me. Say to them, 'As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.’ ” See also Num. 14:20–23, 33 Joshua 5:6 Heb. 3:7–11

                  (2)     Nadab and Abihu. Their lines were ended, and Eleazar was not commanded to provide for their lines to be preserved. Lev. 10:1-2 1Chr. 24:1-2

                  (3)     Eli and his sons. 1Sam. 2:12-17,22-36 3:1-21 4:4-18

                  (4)     Saul and his sons. 1Sam. 15:10-35; 31:1-7 1Chr. 10:13-14

                  (5)     Ananias and Saphira. Acts 5:1-11

                  (6)     Hymenaeus and Alexander. 1Tim. 1:20

         2)      Illustrations of the Sin Unto Death judgment being stayed.

                  (1)     David’s almost dying the sin unto death. 2Sam. 12:13

                  (2)     Hezekiah’s close call. 2Kgs. 20:1-11; Isa. 38:1-22

                  (3)     The Corinthian man who committed incest. 1Cor. 5:5 2Cor. 2:6-11

         3)      Illustrations of the Sin Unto Death judgment being stayed, then reinstated.

                  (1)     Moses’ deferment (Ex. 4:24) and later judgment (Deut. 32:48-52).

                  (2)     Balaam’s deferment (Num. 22:31) and later judgment (Num. 31:8).

3.      Suffering the sin unto death does not mean a loss of salvation. With regards to the incestuous believer in Corinth, Paul wrote: You are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord (1Cor. 5:5). Our salvation is dependent upon Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for our sins. It is not dependent upon the sort of life we lead post-salvation. If you can lose your salvation after God has saved you, then your salvation is dependent upon you. Our salvation is a matter of faith alone in Christ alone; and once we have believed in Jesus Christ, we cannot lose the eternal life which God grants us. John 5:24 Point of fact: I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. 2Tim. 2:13 if we are faithless, He [yet] remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

4.      There are at least nine descriptive terms for the Sin unto Death in the Bible.

         1)      Delivered over to Satan (1Cor.5:5 1Tim.1:20 Phil.3:19).

         2)      Carcasses falling (Heb.3:17; 1 Cor.10:5; Num.14:29).

         3)      Given over to death (Psalm118:18).

         4)      Taken away (John 15:2 Acts 5:1-11).

         5)      Swift destruction (2Peter 2:1, 12).

         6)      Destroyed by the Destroyer (1Cor.10:10 Jude 5).

         7)      Crawling out a burning house with clothes on fire (Jude 23)

         8)      Premature death (Eph.6:1-4 Ex.20:12 Deut.5:16)

         9)      Sleep (euphemism for death of believer) (1Cor.11:27-32/ Eucharist/ 11:30)

5.      There are sins which are not "unto death."

         1)      First of all, there is a sin not unto death (ἁμαρτάνοντα ἁμαρτίαν μὴ πρὸς θάνατον). 1John 5:16–17

                  (1)     The context is a confident prayer ministry based upon our life in Christ. 1John 5:13-15

                  (2)     Intercessory prayer is prescribed for brothers sinning non-leading-to-death sin.

                  (3)     We should never request that any brother is subject to the sin unto death.  Such a request is an ἐρωτάω request (1John 5:16b) rather than an αἰτέω request (1John 5:14–16a).

         2)      A sin which is confessed is not "unto death." God does not discipline us with the sin unto death for a forgiven sin. 1John 1:9 1Cor. 11:31 Psalm 32:5 38

         3)      A sin which is discontinued is not "unto death." Heb. 12:1 Ezek. 18:21-32

         4)      The person who responds positively to divine discipline is not involved in the "sin unto death." Heb. 12:6, 11-15

         5)      The antithesis of death as a purpose-consequence is the glory of God purpose-consequence. John 11:4

                  (1)     Unrepentant, unconfessed sin results in operational death and premature physical death.

                  (2)     Confessed sin restores operational life and extends physical life with the purpose-consequence of God’s glory being achieved.

6.      So there is no fear that you might be suddenly subject to the sin unto death, there is a series of steps leading to that point. Heb. 12:5–11

         1)      Light discipline, called knocking in Heb. 12:5a Rev. 3:19–20 (which is a discipline passage, not a salvation passage, as it is too often incorrectly portrayed).

         2)      Heavy or severe discipline. Do not faint when you are reproved by Him; for those whom the lord loves He disciplines and He scourges every son whom He receives (Heb. 12:5b–6). Scourging certainly represents severe discipline.

         3)      Then the sin unto death.

         4)      There are exceptions to this, as we saw above with Ananias and Saphira. They were give a very short time to be honest and they chose not to be.

7.      Summary and conclusions

         1)      The OT and the NT provide multiple illustrations for the Sin Unto Death.

         2)      Illustrations are provided as warnings. 1Cor. 10:1-11

         3)      The bottom-line cause of Sin Unto Death is idolatry (which is placing something else over God in your scale of values). 1John 5:21

                  (1)     The case of "lying to the Holy Spirit" (Ananias and Sapphira). Acts 5:1-10. Ananias and Saphira pursued the idolatry of approbation-lust (Acts 5:1-11).

                  (2)     The case of persistent carnality while sitting at the Lord's Table. Defiling the Lord’s Supper is the idolatrous practice of eating the table of demons. 1Cor. 10:20-22 11:30–31

                  (3)     Apostasy is the idolatrous practice of living the teachings of demons. Rev. 2:20-24  1Tim. 4:1

                  (4)     The case of disobedience to the Word of God.. King Saul did not kill Agag although directly ordered to do so by God; he insisted on personally offering sacrifices in the place of divinely appointed priests; and he consulted a witch, itself a capital offense. 1Chron.10:13,14 1Sam. 13:9-14

                  (5)     The case of self-righteousness and dependence on man which was perpetuated (case of Hezekiah). Isa. 38

                  (6)     The case of apostasy on the part of a believer. Num. 31:8 1Tim. 1:19,20.

Sources:

http://www.realtime.net/~wdoud/topics/sindeath.html

http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/?page_id=539

http://www.doctrinalstudies.com/pdf/D100105.pdf

These were all accessed February 11, 2013. However, L. S. Chafer taught the sin unto death briefly in his 8 volume set Systematic Theology (Vol. VII, p. 166); which doctrine was expanded upon considerably by R. B. Thieme, Jr. I believe that most of the doctrine above ultimately originated with Thieme.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


What God’s discipline does is, step into the situation, cause great pain to the sinner, and, in some cases, get him to back off of his sin. The illustration in this chapter has been King David, who sinned with Bathsheba. She was married to one of David’s men, so when he was out fighting for his country, David took Bathsheba. Then, when she was pregnant and David tried to deceptively patch things up, he finally just had her husband killed. God did not ignore these series of acts. For 10 years, David suffered as a result; and after that, David’s faithfulness toward Bathsheba was exemplary.


The point being, God has to step in with discipline sometimes to break a believer of his sin.


How many times has a drug addict ended up in jail, then he takes stock of his life, and comes out a changed man, eschewing drugs from that point on in his life? Being thrown into prison sobered him up, took him away from that sin, and allowed him to see himself as he really is—trapped by the cords of his own sin.


I have heard of marijuana decriminalization advocates calling for treatment and not jail, but I have seen more people cured of addiction by jail time followed by treatment when returned to the outside, than by treatment alone.


Proverbs 5:23b

Hebrew/Pronunciation

Common English Meanings

Notes/Morphology

BDB and Strong’s Numbers

we (or ve) (וְ or וּ) [pronounced weh]

and, even, then; namely; when; since, that; though; as well as

simple wâw conjunction

No Strong’s # BDB #251

be (בְּ) [pronounced beh]

in, into, through; at, by, near, on, upon; with, before, against; by means of; among; within

a preposition of proximity

No Strong’s # BDB #88

The NET Bible: The preposition בּ (bet) is used in a causal sense: “because” (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV).

rôb (רֹב) [pronounced rohbv]

multitude, abundance, greatness

masculine singular construct

Strong’s #7230 BDB #913

ʾivveleth (אִוֶּלֵת) [pronounced ihv-VEH-lehth]

folly, foolishness; impiety; perhaps power, preeminence

feminine singular noun

Strong’s #200 BDB #17

The NET Bible: The word אִוַּלְתּוֹ (’ivvalto, “his folly”) is from the root אול and is related to the noun אֶוִיל (’evil, “foolish; fool”). The noun אִוֶּלֶת (’ivvelet, “folly”) describes foolish and destructive activity. It lacks understanding, destroys what wisdom builds, and leads to destruction if it is not corrected.

shâgâh (שָגָה) [pronounced shaw-GAWH]

to wander, to go astray; to err, to transgress; to commit a sin unknowingly; to reel through wine, to be intoxicated

3rd person masculine singular, Qal imperfect

Strong's #7686 BDB #993

Owen translates this he is lost in Prov. 5:23.

The NET Bible: The verb שָגָה (shagah, “to swerve; to reel”) is repeated in a negative sense. If the young man is not captivated by his wife but is captivated with a stranger in sinful acts, then his own iniquities will captivate him and he will be led to ruin.


Translation: ...and he goes astray in his abundance of foolishness [or, impiety]. He goes astray or he is lost because of a great deal of folly, foolishness or impiety. God teaches one thing; and the man spoken of here (a warning to Solomon) is a man who has rejected this teaching.


A more relaxed translation: Such a man will die the sin unto death because he has not responded to corrective discipline and instruction; he has gone astray in his life because of his abundance of foolishness and impiety.


God can intervene directly or indirectly (via the laws of society) to both instruct and to discipline us, regarding our sins. However, without that, we can go astray in our own lives, as a result of our own considerable foolishness and impiety.

 

Joe Guglielmo: Think about that for a minute. Before you commit some immoral activity, understand that God is right there with you. You can’t hide anything from Him! It is like Hannah said in her prayer found in 1Samuel 2:3 Talk no more so very proudly; Let no arrogance come from your mouth, For the LORD is the God of knowledge; And by Him actions are weighed. Sin is very destructive in our lives. What happens is that as we indulge in sin we move away from God’s Word and as we move away from God’s Word we are more vulnerable to more sin and it is a vicious cycle that can only be broken as we repent of our sin. The Psalmist said, How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. Psalm 119:9-11.

 

Matthew Henry: [A]nd so shall his doom be, he shall never find the way home again. Those that are so foolish as to choose the way of sin are justly left of God to themselves to go in it till they come to that destruction which it leads to, which is a good reason why we should guard with watchfulness and resolution against the allurements of the sensual appetite.

 

Ironside, speaking of the unbeliever, writes: Certain retribution will follow the disobedient. The very sins he delights in are the links of the chain that will bind him forever. Having refused instruction in life, he will die without it; he will be left to go astray in the folly his soul loved. Dying in his sins, he goes out into the darkness, where the light he refused will never shine on him again! 

 

Joe Guglielmo: Make no mistake about it, when we disobey God our hearts will harden towards Him! The cost is high, so don’t take the bait that Satan is hanging in front of you because behind that bait is a hook! 


This is (Prov. 5:21-23)

Paul Apple: There Is No Escaping God’s Accountability

You Cannot Fly under the Radar of God’s Accountability

A.      (Prov. 5:21) God is Watching

“For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the Lord, And He watches all his paths.”

B.      (Prov. 5:22) Sin is a Snare

“His own iniquities will capture the wicked, And he will be held with the cords of his sin.”

C.     (Prov. 5:23) Foolishness is Fatal

“He will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray.”

From http://bibleoutlines.com/library/pdf/proverbs.pdf (Chapter 5); accessed August 31, 2015 (slightly edited).

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

 

Ray Pritchard: You want a good biblical example of what happens when a man ignores those words? Look at Solomon, the man who wrote those words. Later in his life, led astray by his many wives, he got into immorality and idolatry. He died basically a broken and ruined man. The man who wrote those words came to no good end.


We are responsible for what we do.

Jim Rickard’s The Law of Volition Responsibility

1.      Under the Law of Volition Responsibility, we cause our own misery and suffering, Gal 6:7 (Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.) This is the most common and the first cause for human suffering in general, and is also a specific cause for believers. Our emphasis here is on believers only. Under the law of Divine Punitive Action, God many times allows the Law of Volitional Responsibility to dictate our discipline. As we have seen, the son in Prov 5:9-14 is projected to have tremendous consequences and regret for his negative volition towards Bible Doctrine and his actions.

2.      Every human being must take the responsibility for his own decisions and his own actions in life. You must understand that you can never blame others for your misery, your unhappiness, and your suffering. You take full responsibility yourself, based on your own wrong decisions related to your associations, your activities, your motives, and your functions in life.

3.      Human volition is the source of personal sins, human good, and evil. In God’s plan for your life, sin, human good, and evil are all absolutely rejected. But it is inevitable that throughout all of our lives as Christians we will sin, perform human good, and fail in evil.

4.      At salvation all sins were judged at the Cross. Yet all our sins have natural consequences in life, for which the individual who commits them must take full responsibility. We must always link consequences with bad decisions, rather than blaming someone else. A short trip to unhappiness is to always blame others for your problems, not seeing them as a result of your bad decisions. Gal 6:8 states the Law of Volition Responsibility: For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

5.      Volition and decision making is the source of both sins of ignorance and sins of cognizance. Therefore each person must be held responsible for his own decisions, whether he understands their category or their consequences.

6.      The consequences are generally classified as self-imposed misery, self- induced misery, and self -indulged misery, as we saw in Prov 5:9-14, cf. Prov 28:8: He who sows wickedness reaps trouble, (Law of Volitional Responsibility), and the rod of His punishment, (Divine discipline) will surely come to him. Here we see the combination of the Law of Volitional Responsibility, (with its self-imposed, induced and indulged misery), and Divine Discipline, just as in Prov 5:21-23.

         1)      “Self-imposed” means voluntarily assumed or endured.

         2)      “Self-induced” means willfully acquired or brought on.

         3)      “Self-indulged” means yielding to the desires and whims of oneself, especially to an excessive degree.

Hos 8:7 They who sow to the wind shall also reap the whirlwind. Col 3:25 For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of that wrong which he has done, and there is no partiality, (from God).

7.      The Law of Volitional Responsibility applies to four categories of your life: thinking, motivation, decision making, and action.

         1)      Self-imposed misery is suffering caused by bad thinking and wrong motivation. It is caused by ignorance of Bible doctrine and resultant self-deception. Bad or negative thinking or motivation includes all wrong mental attitudes, all forms of arrogance, and everything by which you react to life in your thinking. So by wrong thinking and wrong motivation we enter into self-imposed misery before we make any decisions that cause self-induced misery. Prov 11:22 As a golden ring in a pig’s snout, so is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion. A woman can get so carried away with her beauty that she makes a lot of bad decisions in her mental attitude, and so brings on to herself self-imposed misery. We see the same for the man prone to anger in Prov 19:19 A man of great anger will bear the penalty, for if you rescue him, you will only have to do it again.

         2)      Negative or wrong decisions result then in self ¬induced misery. This is classified in two ways:

                  (1)     Deliberate wrong actions which bring self-induced misery

                  (2)     Impulsive wrong actions which is self-gratification or self-indulged misery.

         3)      There are at least seven categories of wrong decisions which produce self-¬induced misery under the Law of Volitional Responsibility.

                  (1)     Wrong decisions based on sin.

                  (2)     Wrong decisions based on human good.

                  (3)     Wrong decisions resulting in evil.

                  (4)     Wrong decisions based on erroneous emotions. This is one of the worst reasons to make a decision. For emotions cannot think, cannot rationalize, have no common sense.

                  (5)     Wrong decisions based on bad judgment. This is a very common cause, and is due to lack of common sense, total disorientation to life, and not knowing your limitations.

                  (6)     Wrong decisions based on lust.

                  (7)     Wrong decisions based on false teaching.

Since deliberate wrong actions originate from wrong motives and wrong decisions, these cause self-induced misery, whereas impulsive actions are spontaneous and impetuous. Hence, they circumvent motives and decisions and generally fall back to thinking related to lust and self-gratification and are related to a locked in system of arrogance.

Related Scripture and discussion: Prov 13:20 He who walks with the wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will receive sin/evil (suffer harm / misery). We make good and bad decisions with regard to the people with whom we associate. If you associate with the wrong crowd, you are making a decision that will cause you a tremendous amount of unhappiness! Prov 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit (arrogance) before stumbling (a fall). “Destruction” and “stumbling” here refer to both self-imposed and self-induced misery under the Law of Volitional Responsibility.

Yet for the positive believer, when we have God’s Word in the right lobe (heart) of our soul as a result of being Occupied with Christ, we will not bring upon ourselves the self-induced misery that is common in the world, because we will be making good decisions on a consistent basis. Therefore, the result is inner peace and happiness (+H). Prov 19:23 The fear of (Occupation with) the LORD leads to life, so that one may sleep satisfied, untouched by evil. Phil 4:11–13 Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

8.      Under the Law of Volition Responsibility, the believer inflicts on himself suffering, sometimes unbearable, from the following categories.

         1)      Personal sins.

         2)      Function of human good.

         3)      Function of evil.

         4)      Function of moral or immoral degeneracy.

         5)      “Grieving the Spirit.”

         6)      “Quenching the Spirit.”

         7)      Lack of common sense and bad judgment.

         8)      Subjective arrogance, the overestimation of your own abilities, or failing to see yourself in the light of reality.

Both believer and unbeliever function under the Law of Volitional Responsibility, not only from sin, but also from the violation of the Laws of Divine Establishment, which are the operational laws for the entire human race within the framework of a national entity. There is intense suffering from violating: the sacredness of life, property, and privacy in criminal acts; marriage; the family unit; your nation; etc.

9.      Many wrong decisions come from arrogance, self-centeredness, selfishness, self-righteousness, and the practice of making thousands of wrong decisions. To protect us from this God has provided various forms of authority that begin with Himself and the Bible, and includes: parents, pastor teachers, coaches, bosses, policemen, government officials, and all other forms of authority. That is why we have added, “Authority Orientation” to the list of Problem Solving Devices. As 1Cor 11:30 tells us: ...some are weak and sick, and a number sleep. That means that many wrong decisions result in fatigue, mental illnesses and psychotic, neurotic, and sociopathic behavior on the part of believers.

10.    Man manufactures many of his own problems and resultant suffering. God manufactures solutions and blessings in the midst of suffering.

11.    As we have already seen, the book of Proverbs is a composition of good and bad thoughts, motives, decisions, and actions in life. Proverbs teaches the believer how to live without learning the hard way, i.e., from mistakes and suffering through self-imposed, self-induced, and self ¬indulged misery. Most wrong decisions reflect indifference or negative volition toward Bible doctrine, as mentioned in many verses in Prov 1 and 8. Prov 22:8 He who sows wickedness reaps trouble (Law of Volition Responsibility), and the rod of His punishment will surely come (Divine Discipline). This illustrates both self-induced misery and Divine discipline as a result of bad decisions due to indifference or ignorance of God’s Word. For more on Divine discipline see, Deut 8:5; 2 Sam 7:14; Psa 119:75; Prov 3:12; 13:24; 19:18; 23:13-14; Heb 12:6-10; Rev 3:19. Prov 2 taught us that good decisions always result from metabolized doctrine resident within your soul, called CHOKMAH or wisdom, (the equivalent of the Greek word EPIGNOSIS). Compare also: Prov 12:13; 15:17, 33; 17:1, 13, 20; 19:8, 15-16, 23, 25; 20:19, 22; 21:9, 19, 21; 22:8; 23:9, 27 28, 29 30; 24:17 18; 25:16; 29:1.

12.    The Standard Operating Procedure for Dealing with Problems. There are three items in the procedure of dealing with problems.

         1)      Recognize your problem of post-salvation sinning, Job 15:14; Prov 20:9; Rom 3:19ff; James 3:2, 1 John 1:7-8, 10. Job 15:14 What is man, that he should be pure, or he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? Prov 20:9 Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin”? Rom 3:20 Because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. James 3:2 For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. 1John 1:7-8, 10 But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us….If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

         2)      Utilize the solution: The Rebound Technique, 1 John 1:9, Luke 15:18; Lev 5:5; 16:21; 26:40; Numb 5:7; Psa 32:5; 38:18. Lev 5:5 So it shall be when he becomes guilty in one of these, that he shall confess that in which he has sinned. Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”, and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah. In Luke 15:18 the prodigal son says, “I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight.” 1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Rebound is then supported by the other Problem Solving Devices: (Filling of the Holy Spirit, the Faith-Rest Drill, Grace Orientation, Doctrinal Orientation, Authority Orientation, A Personal Sense of Destiny, Personal Love for God the Father, Impersonal Love for all Mankind, Sharing the Happiness of God, and Occupation with Christ).

         3)      Emphasize the priority: God emphasis over people emphasis, Rom 12:2-3; Heb 12:1-4. Rom. 12:2-3 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. Heb 12:1-4 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Remember, it is your volition that decided to let people, temptations, your sin nature, sin, human good, evil, etc., to be a problem in your life or not. If you keep your emphasis and focus on God, those things will not be a problem to you.


The Christian way of life or Plan of God is designed for you to master the subject by listening, listening to God’s Word as it is taught and when it is in your soul. One subject that you must master is the Problem Solving Devices, which are the defense system of your soul. The only thing you need to bring is your very own positive volition.

From http://gracedoctrine.org/proverbs-chapter-5/ accessed August 26, 2015 (edited).

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E. Stanley Jones: You cannot “get away with it,” for it registers itself in the inner deterioration, in the inner hell of not being able to respect yourself, in compelling you to live underground in blind labyrinths.


As David already warned his son Solomon: My son, pay attention to my words; listen closely to my sayings. Don't lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and health to one's whole body. Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life. Don't let your mouth speak dishonestly, and don't let your lips talk deviously. Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established. Don't turn to the right or to the left; keep your feet away from evil. (Pro 4:20–27; HCSB)


This needs to be edited.

There are two fearful evils in which Impenitent sin is sure to end, two classes of penalty which the wrong doer must make up his mind to pay. He has to submit to

The Pulpit Commentary on, The End of an Evil Course

I.       AS INWARD TYRANNY OF THE MOST CRUEL CHARACTER. (Ver. 22) We may never have seen the wild animal captured by the hunter, making violent efforts to escape its tolls, failing, desperately renewing the attempt with fierce and frantic struggles, until at length it yielded itself to its fate in sullen despair. But we have witnessed something far more romantic than that. We have watched some human soul caught in the meshes of vice (intemperance, it may be), or entangled in the bonds of sin (coveteousness, it may be), struggling to be free, failing in its endeavour, renewing the attempt with determined eagerness, and failing again, until at length it yields to the foe, vanquished, ruined, lost! "His own iniquities have taken the wicked himself, he is holden in the cords of his sins.

         1.      Sin hides its tyranny from view; its cords are so carried that they are not seen; nay, they are so wound around the soul that at first they are not felt, and the victim has no notion that he is being enslaved.

         2.      Gradually and stealthily it fastens its fetters on the soul; e.g. intemperance, impurity, untruthfulness, selfishness, worldliness.

         3.      It finally obtains a hold from which the soul cannot shake itself free; the man is "holden;" sin has him in its firm grip; he is a captive, a spiritual slave. Beside this terrible tyranny, the persistent wrong doer has to endure

II.      AFTER CONSEQUENCES YET MORE CALAMITOUS. (Ver. 23) These are:

         1.      Death in the midst of folly. "He shall die without instruction," unenlightened by eternal truth, in the darkness of error and sin; he will die, "hoping nothing, believing nothing, and fearing nothing nothing which a man should die in the hope of, nothing which a man should live to believe and die in the faith of, nothing which a man should fear, living or dying. He shall die without peace to smooth his dying pillow, without hope to light up his closing eyes.

         2.      Exclusion from future blessedness through his folly. "In the greatness of his folly he shall go astray. While the simplest wisdom would have led him to seek and find entrance into the City of God, in the greatness of his folly he wanders off to the gates of the City of Sorrow.

         3.      If the path of folly has been entered upon and is now being trodden, return at once without delay. Further on, perchance a very little further on, it may be too late-the cords of sin may be too strong for the soul to snap. Arise at once, in the strength of the strong Deliverer, and regain the freedom which is being lost.

         4.      Enter in earliest days the path of spiritual freedom. Bear the blessed yoke of the Son of God, that every other yoke may be broken. Enrol in his ranks whoso "service is perfect freedom.

The Pulpit Commentary; 1880-1919; by Joseph S. Exell, Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones, from e-sword, Prov. 5:22.

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Ray Pritchard: First Steps in a New Direction

Do you want to make a new start? I give you three suggestions.

1.      Listen to what God is saying. Turn off the TV, the radio, put those books away.

2.      Talk it over with another godly man. If you have a struggle in this area, and about 75-80% of men do struggle in this area, don’t fight this battle alone.

3.      Stay away from temptation. This is very simple. Brothers, there are some books you ought not to read. I don’t know which ones they are because I don’t know what you’re reading. But every time you read it you know it. There are some magazines you ought not to read, some radio stations you ought not to listen to, some TV programs you ought to turn off. There are some relationships you ought to be breaking in your life right now because they are leading you in the wrong direction. It could be a group of guys just kind of pulling you that way by their talk. Or it could be a relationship with a woman in your life that you know is not going in the right direction. You need to break it off right now. If you have the Holy Spirit living inside you and you know Jesus Christ, then you know what you ought to and ought not to be doing, so stay away from temptation. If you play with fire long enough, you will get burned.

The temptation to sexual impurity is very real. A man would be a fool to deny it. The problem is very prevalent because we live in a sex-saturated society. We’re told in Proverbs 5 that we have a two-fold defense.

1.      Stay out of harm’s way.

2.      Enjoy your own wife.

I tell you this on the basis of God’s word. If you choose to ignore this teaching, you will die. We’ll be having a premature funeral for you, because sexual immorality leads to an early grave.

I have spoken to men, but many men are single. Some are in high school, junior high, students at Moody Bible Institute or others colleges and universities in our area. Some are career professionals who are single. What are you supposed to do? That’s another sermon. But let’s understand this. God doesn’t have two standards. He doesn’t have a high standard for married men and a low standard for singles. You are still called to purity, faithfulness, holiness, and abstinence. I am not saying it is going to be easy. God set the bar, not me. Singles have to make the same commitment as married men.

From http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/purity-staying-clean-in-a-dirty-world/ accessed September 2, 2015.

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Summary of Proverbs 5:15–23, by Stuart Wolf

1)      The figurative admonition drink water, among the plain, direct, and unvarnished admonitions of chapters 1-9 is quite distinct, and brings with it problems of interpretation; perhaps the ambiguity is designed to stimulate the son to personal reflection.

2)      The allegory almost exhausts the vocabulary for sources of water, but the key to the interpretation is given in 18b, “enjoy the wife of your youth”; Solomon is emphasizing the variety and diverse kinds of sex a man may share with his wife.

3)      The symbolic water represents that which quenches one’s sexual thirst, not merely a minor satisfaction but the total removal of lack in that area; satisfying the sex drive is compared to taking in solid food in 30:20, and SoS 5:1 clearly represents intense and exhaustive fulfillment.

4)      One of the most prized of possessions in arid and stony Palestine is the cistern, a manufactured, hollowed area, generally pear shaped and several feet deep; in Isa 36:16 it is a synecdoche for enjoying one’s home, in peace and prosperity.

5)      The verb drink also governs verset B, and cistern water is intensified by a poetic word lz;n' NahZaL running/fresh water; the idea is copious and fresh running water, with a higher oxygen content (and thus fresher) than stored cistern water.

6)      Again using quite suggestive imagery, the source of this desirable liquid is said to be in the middle/midst (%w<T' TahWeK) of the source, further identified as your own well; the term looks to the middle or general center of the object.

7)      The text presumes that the husband’s wife is his possession, or that she belongs to him; it is also equally true that the body of a husband belongs to his wife, and this ‘ownership’ is to be used for the mutual satisfaction of the partnership. 1Cor 7:4-5

8)      A strong rhetorical question in vs 16, expecting a negative answer – “Of course not!”, continues the allegory, which could be rendered with jussive force, “let your springs be dispersed abroad”; several interpreters have gone this route (i.e. promised virility for sexual fidelity and exercise), but that contradicts the entire message of the context!

9)      Others propose that the husband’s failure to take his marriage responsibilities seriously, instead succumbing to the temptation of the strumpet, opens the door for his wife to take on adulterous lovers.

10)    This questionably assumes that the virtuous wife will become a harlot if neglected, and fails to explain the shift from singular images in vss 15 and 18 to plural images in vss 16-17; additionally, Fox even emended the text to include “lest”.

11)    Kruger notes that “the whole allegory rests on the matter of private vs. common property, i.e. one’s privately owned cistern (vs 15) as against the springs and channels of water in the open squares (vs 16).”

12)    The outside (#Wx CHUTS “abroad”) and the streets of the city were where the harlots plied their trade, but this fails to explain the plural of vs 17 “let them be yours alone”; the picture is not one of using that which is commonly available to anyone (i.e. less valuable), the streams are pictured as inherently valuable and not to be lost.

13)    The most sensible explanation is that Solomon is drawing upon the normal jealousy a husband would feel if the situation were reversed; although a certain double standard in this regard is a cosmic reality, an adjusted believer would be outraged, so how does it make sense to purposely act in exactly the manner he would find intolerable?

14)    Using the most extreme example, the father uses the term gl,P, PeLeG canals (“streams”) to denote the regular and established pattern that the son’s hypothetical wife could establish –“How would you like it if she became a literal harlot?”

15)    The symbol water again represents sexual fulfillment and refreshment, completing the rhetorical question as to which is preferable: your own satisfaction at the source of a woman bound by covenant and love, or your lack as she fulfills others?

16)    The jussive hy"h' HahYaH let them become looks to an ongoing action, as one continually strives to accomplish a monogamous life of active enjoyment between the partners; there is no point (until death parts) that they have completed the mission and can then move on to others.

17)    An additional reason for the plural could be inferred, as the command is for the son to keep his “waters” away from others, and at the same time to keep himself away from other sources of satisfaction.

18)    An emphatic construction brings the force of this isolation, approaching even a radical separation; literally let them become for you yourself, to the point of being alone, the functions within the bedroom and without are to be polar opposites.

19)    The parallel admonition and not exist for strangers with you further emphasizes the need for privacy in conjugal bliss, providing a verbal link with the warnings of vss 8-9; to the same degree one is to avoid the harlot, he is to exclusively cling to his wife.

20)    The jussive let…become blessed is implicitly directed to the divine realm, as a prayerful desire of the father that the wife fulfill her role to the same degree he commands the son. cp Ruth 2:19

21)    The term fountain (rAqm' MahQOR) describes an abundant source of liquid, and is usually used figuratively (but cp Lev 12:7, 20:18), indicating vigorous supply of that which fulfills the needs of the recipient. 14:27

22)    The adjective blessed denotes the power to produce well-being, satisfaction, contentment, and prosperity; regardless of any other circumstances in the student’s life, there is one area in which he may become SHahLOM successful.

23)    J. Scharbert states that the formula “blessed be so-and-so” is not used of just anyone, but only of people to whom one is particularly indebted (cp 1Sam 26:25) or with whom one is socially connected (Dt 33:20); the son should never forget that his “loving doe” is responsible for his sense of well-being, etc.

24)    The waw and denotes that as a consequence of the wife’s blessed state, the son will find joy with her; while the Bible may seem to represent a male chauvinistic viewpoint, it is clear that God desires the man to please the woman’s sexual urges, as well.

25)    The term xm;f' SHahMaCH rejoice is not a term for a suppressed state of mind or something neutral, it is used for elementary, spontaneous, outward joy, such as manifested in joyful frolicking (Jer 50:11), and clapping one’s hands and stomping one’s feet (Eze 25:6); the picture is one of unrestrained celebration.

26)    A poetic, picturesque from is used instead of a more restrained “in” (cp Jdg 9:19) to complete the metaphor of drawing water from a well, giving the verb an added nuance of “get joy”, indicating an active pursuit thereof.

27)    Again, although the phrase from the wife could be taken only as the mediator of sensual pleasure, Proverbs nowhere denies the higher view of marriage (2:17, 11:16, 31:10f); the one-sidedness of the admonition is simple: sensual man can find a satisfaction from his wife that no other woman can provide.

28)    The Genitive of your youth could legitimately be translated “your youthful wife”, but the similar uses in 2:17 and Mal 2:14 support the given translation; regardless of the age or time spent together, total sexual satisfaction has only one real source.

29)    The Jussive force continues into vs 19, as the father’s wish/prayer is that the wife will fulfill her part in the partnership, being as sexually active for her husband as he is to be for her; while the metaphor may lose some of its romance in the English, several aspects can be gleaned as to its propriety here.

30)    Appearing only here in Proverbs, the term hl'Y"a; ‘aYYahLaH doe probably refers to the Iranian fallow deer, which reaches a height of about 2.5 ft. and around 80 lbs.; the picture is a gentle, non-threatening, passive creature of aesthetically pleasing value.

31)    A rare word (3x, only pl.) bh;a; ‘aHaBh refers to sensual love in Hos 8:9 (i.e. without consideration of affection), and its use in Pr 7:18 clearly points to repetitive physical gratification, although that passage deals with the immoral female.

32)    During mating season (Oct – Dec), hormonal changes occur in female deer that drive them to separate from their families and travel to find a male’s territory; once the dominant male in the territory is found, the doe will passively accept his advances.

33)    The graceful mountain goat is mentioned only here in the Bible, and is most likely the ibex, which reaches a height of 35 inches at the shoulders; the males have large, powerful horns that reach high and wide over the back, females horns are shorter.

34)    Western culture does not generally draw favorable comparisons regarding beauty from the animal world, but the Song also reflects a culture which does use animal imagery as “evocative metaphors for erotica” (Waltke). cp SoS 2:9, 4:5

35)    Waltke further explains that he “had difficulty identifying with that culture and imagery until on one occasion…I came into close contact with [Palestinian] mountain goats and observed their bright, black eyes, their graceful limbs, and their irresistible silky hair.”

36)    The term dD; DaDh breasts probably originated in infant’s babble, and although used only of erotica in its other uses (Eze 23:3, 8, 21), the combination here with hw"r' RahWaH refresh/satisfy more likely looks to the richest and most satisfying “drink” for a husband, from his wife’s erogenous members, represented by the breasts.

37)    In the Qal, the term RahWaH means “to drink one’s fill”, and in the Piel (as here) it means “to make saturated with a liquid”, which liquid is explicitly identified in the parallel as “her love”.

38)    The term t[e ’ēTH usually means “an appointed, predetermined, or observed time”, but that sense can be neutralized by the presence of the pluralizing use at all times or anytime; it means whenever the son is thirsty. cp Ex 18:22

39)    Similar to the English concept of love, the Hebrew hb'h]a; ‘aHəBhaH is a complex term, occurring between a man and woman (SoS 2:4), male friends (1Sam 18:3), or God’s love for His own (Dt 7:8).

40)    It looks to affection acted upon, physical demonstrations of the delight one feels in causing pleasure for another; the purest form of lovemaking is found in the relationship of man and wife.

41)    An intriguing term is found as the final verb, glossed by various interpreters as “become intoxicated”, “be ravished”, and “be captivated”; the root meaning of the verb is “to go astray unconsciously”, and is used of wandering sheep (Eze 34:6) and the effects of intoxicating drinks or visions (Pr 20:1)

42)    SoS 5:1 uses a similar admonition, to participate fully in the excesses of consumption (“drink and become drunk, lovers”); in quantity, quality, and characteristics, the father admonishes that inhibitions are to be left behind in the marriage bed.

43)    Unlike other references to drunkenness (cp 23:29f), there is no sense of disapproval here, the metaphor refers to the level of effect that excessive alcoholic consumption has on the body – the husband should be affected to the same degree with sex.

44)    The parallel dymiT' TahMiYDh again emphasizes that the wife’s lovemaking should be available always, to drench and intoxicate the thirsty husband; if the young man is physically exhausted and satisfied, the harlot will hold no appeal.

45)    A Disjunctive waw brings the allegory back into the context of the lecture to avoid the immoral woman; in view of the vastly superior way of conjugal bliss, involvement with the harlot is absurd.

46)    The interrogative why? (hM'l' LahMMaH – lit. “for what?”) is used in a quasi-rhetorical manner, and expresses amazement and indignation against the alternative consumption of the harlot’s wares.

47)    Multiple encounters of almost infinite variety are encouraged between the son and his wife, but one single encounter with the strumpet would be a moral disaster; if one is going to “stray”, which object makes sense?

48)    The sexual forays with a strange woman are implied in the question, since mere physical presence in her periphery is not the point; Solomon is warning that, even though the activity will produce emotional/physical/sexual satisfaction, the experiences will be counterfeit, inferior, and self-destructive.

49)    The interrogative also covers verset B, reminding the son that the bosom that will bring him lasting and repeated happiness belongs to the person closest to him, not some individual with no common goals or history.

50)    The term qb;x' CHahBhaQ embrace “basically designates an expression of love by the position or action of one’s hands or arms” (TWOT), whether toward a relative (Gen 29:13), one’s self (Pr 6:10), or toward a sexual partner (Pr 4:8b).

51)    The qyxe CHēYQ bosom is specifically the outer and somewhat lower part of the body below the breasts, where beloved ones, including a son (1Kin 17:19), a wife (2Sam 12:8), or infants (Ruth 4:16) and animals (2Sam 12:3) are held in protection and for mutual comfort.

52)    The harlot is outside the covenant relationship and makes no effort to join the community of the righteous, and is therefore called a foreigner; it should be obvious that, regardless of national origin, this female is to be avoided at all costs.

53)    In conclusion, the father grounds his teaching in theology, i.e. Yhwh’s omniscience (vs 21) and justice (vss 22-23), entailing perfect justice for all; the point that sinning against God and exhibiting insolence to the wisdom literature are inseparable is nicely summarized in these concluding verses.

54)    The conjunction yKi KiY introduces the summarizing argument; behind all the utilitarian arguments there is ultimately a religious reason – the omniscient God upholds a moral order wherein sin brings its own punishment with it. Gal 6:7-8

55)    The phrase the ways of man expands the teaching to every individual, not just the adulterer, since this particular vice is really only one of many; the acts of sin are themselves only examples of universal immoralism.

56)    The metonymy before (or “straight in front of”) the eyes of Yhwh is the same as “in Yhwh’s presence”, looking to the same status from different perspectives; one may enter the presence of the Lord willingly, but there is no denying that He is intimately in the presence of all.

57)    The parallel suggests that, additionally, it refers to His evaluation or judgment, meaning that He is watching each man for the purpose of determining how to respond to the manner of life exhibited.

58)    Again emphasizing that this sin is merely one of many in the type of person considered, the phrase all his paths includes this as only one reason for judgment; if God watches every area of our lives, He will see us involved in this one, as well.

59)    The participial construction He is watching (sl;P' PahLaS) has the idea of evaluating a particular action/activity, and determining what the equal and just response would be; another implication of lex talionis is certainly an interpretive option.

60)    Gemser notes “The adulterer wrongly believes that he can do his business unnoticed in the dark (Job 24:15), but the Lord, who sees everything (Job 34:21) lets sin punish itself (cp 1:31-32).

61)    Vs 22 narrows the focus to sinful behavior, singling out the agent who commits the iniquities, an all encompassing word (!A[' ’ahWON) that refers to both the misdeeds and their punishment, i.e. immorality resulting in guilt.

62)    In 1:18 the wicked lie in wait for their own blood; now, personified, the sins themselves set and spring the trap leading to death; when enmeshed in this type of lifestyle, the sinner loses control over his choices, and can live only in a self-destructive manner that ensures his death. cp 4:16

63)    As we have seen, there is no distinction, nor is any tension felt by Solomon, between Yhwh who upholds the moral order and the moral order of act-consequence; no miraculous intervention is necessary, sin itself will capture him.

64)    We have a figurative use of dk;l' LahKaDh, but its literal uses revolve around the capture of property from an enemy (Num 23:32) or a person (Jer 48:7); the sinner’s entire estate will suffer solely because he lived an immoral life in open rebellion.

65)    The inevitable effects and attachments of the sins he willingly and repeatedly commits are viewed as cords such as were used to secure an animal in a trap; again emphasizing the cause-effect principle.

66)    So adding to the notion that judgment is inevitable, verset B adds that there is noescape from it; we reiterate the principle of grace before judgment, but after grace comes judgment, and it will not have been worth it.

67)    An intensive verb, %m;T' TahMaK is much stronger than “held”, it has the nuance of being held firmly, immobilized and helpless to resist; sin is again personified, as holding the cords that capture the victim, who will be held fast for the slaughter.

68)    Vs 23 integrates the religious language with wisdom vocabulary, effectively equating the two; like Solomon, our Father desires the best for His children, but without the sometimes unpleasant aspects of MUSahR we will never achieve it.

69)    The emphatic pronoun aWh HU’ focuses attention on the guilty wicked of vs 22, cementing the argument against that lifestyle; it is not as if he will escape his fate by passing it on to another, he himself will die.

70)    In all likelihood, will die refers not merely to either a premature death or clinical death, but eternal death, occasioned by the rejection and/or lack of life-giving information; other than 30:7, death stands opposed to the eternal life of the righteous.

71)    Rendered “for the lack…”, the term !yIa; ‘aYiN looks to non-existence, and could be translated in there not being, thus describing what is missing that would have prevented the catastrophe awaiting the wicked for his chosen lifestyle.

72)    The instruction refers to both the admonitions, advice, exhortations and rebukes and the necessary self discipline it entails; learning the information is the first step, putting it into play is the necessary conclusion.

73)    The coordinating conjunction waw links the striking contrast between what the wicked is missing and what he has in abundance; Fox describes folly as “moral corruption from the standpoint of its impact on judgment and reason”.

74)    In other words, the stupidity of choosing this type of lifestyle is lost on the wicked victim, he does not even recognize what he is bringing upon himself; the abundance of false/illegitimate moral choices has blinded him to reality.

75)    Having thrown away the moral compass of Divine viewpoint, he too, like the harlot, will go astray, ultimately to his death; wandering through life with no idea where or into what circumstances one may be going is not the life the father desires for his beloved son.

76)    The same term used in vss 19 and 20 (hg"v' SHahGaH) for straying into legitimate delights here refers to straying into moral error after perversely rejecting the right path; the decline and ultimate end of the wicked is rarely foreseen, it is recognized only after it is too late to repair.

From www.hbcpinellas.org/proverbs/prov5.doc accessed August 27, 2015 (edited). Hebrew requires the font Bwhebb.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


Chapter Outline

 

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

Beginning of Document

Doctrines Covered and Alluded to

Chapters of the Bible Alluded

Definition of Terms

Introduction

Addendum

www.kukis.org

 

Exegetical Studies in Proverbs


——————————


Addendum


We can go through this same chapter of Proverbs and look at this as if the right woman is Bible doctrine (wisdom and knowledge) and that the strange, foreign woman is like the thinking of Satan.

Two Women—a Metaphorical Approach to Proverbs 5

Knowledge and Wisdom

The Cosmic System/False Doctrine

God has provided Bible doctrine for Israel from the very beginning.

Satan has continually tried to tempt Israel away from God’s Word and God’s plan.

The life of the believer ought to be concerned with the wisdom of God, which guides us. It was Israel which, for over 1000 years, was given the Word of God to read, study and preserve.

The believer should not allow himself to be tempted by the flattering words of Satan. Remember that he told the woman who sinned, “Eat this fruit and you will become like the Most High.”

God’s words are life.

Satan’s cosmic thinking leads the unbeliever to hell and the believer to the sin unto death.

Drink from the water of the Word.

Do not drink water which has been run through the filthy streets, picking up all sorts of false concepts.

The believer with wisdom is stable and knows God’s path for himself.

The believer with cosmic thinking is unsteady, swerving, and never in God’s will.

Do not turn away from the sound words of doctrine.

When you hear false doctrine, then stay away from that place.

With Bible doctrine comes great blessing.

With false doctrine often comes physical, emotional and social ruin.

Bible doctrine is the water from the well of the Jew. They were given the Word of God to be an integral part of their life and culture.

Do not become infatuated by false doctrine and chase after that which God has forbidden—the false gods of the heathen.

With Bible doctrine, our life is filled with more and more options; and more and more blessing.

False teaching leads to sin and to entanglement of sin.

 

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


 

Precept Austin On, Scriptural Strategies in Our War Against Lust

 1.     Depend on God's power not your own for the Victory, learning to walk by the Spirit (1Sa 17:47 contrast with 1Sa 11:1, 2, 3, 4, 5; Gal 5:16, 17-note, Eph 5:18-note, Php 2:12, 13-note, Ezek 36:27, Zech 4:6, Ro 8:13-note, 2Cor 12:9-note, 2Co 12:10-note)

2.      Recognize and affirm that sexuality is a good gift from God. (James 1:17, Ge 2:24, 25; Pr 5:15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20-notes, 1Co 7:3, 4, 5, 1Ti 4:3)

3.      Recognize that God gives us prohibitions not to deny us something good but that we might experience His good and acceptable and perfect will for our lives. (Ex 20:14, 1Co 6:18, 1Co 7:2, 1Th 4:3-note)

4.      Believe that God is for you in this battle and desires for us to be more than conquerors in Christ Jesus (Deut 10:12, 13, Ps 84:11, Ro 8:31, 32-note)

5.      Consider and meditate on the potential temporal and eternal loss for those who make lust a lifestyle (Mt 5:27, 28, 29-note, Pr 5:4, 5, Pr 7:27-notes, Eccl 7:26, Jdg 16:18, 19, 20, 21-notes)

6.      Consider the truth that there is more joy in God's presence than in the presence of sin. (Ps 16:11, Ps 73:25, 26)

7.      Recognize that lust weakens our soul and we must fight against it by abstaining (1Peter 2:11-note, cp Mark 4:19)

8.      Cultivate a passion for God's Word and His glory (1Pe 2:2-note, 2Sa 12:9, 10, 14 - note what David in his sin with Bathsheba despised!)

9.      Develop a mental grid that views everything in relation to God. (1Co 10:31, Col 3:17-note)

10.    Recognize that God designed marriage to be a picture of His commitment to His Bridegroom, the church. (Ephesians 5:21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32-notes)

11.    Zealously guard your eyes, turning from anything that might give a provision to your lust (Job 31:1, Ro 13:14-note, 2Ti 2:22-note, Ps 101:3, see context Ps 101:1,2, 4)

12.    Think often that Christ suffered to redeem you for purity, for His possession and for His purpose. (Titus 2:14-note, 1Pe 1:18-note; 1Pe 2:24-note, 1Co 5:15)

13.    Beware of pride rising up making you think that past success guarantees future victory over lust (1Cor 10:12, Gal 2:13 contrasted with Acts 11:24, 1Pe 2:11-note wages war is present tense = continually until we die!)

14.    Beware of feeling above accountability. (3 John 9 Diotrephes not submissive, James 4:6, 10, 1Pe 5:6-note, 2Chr 32:36, 33:12, 19, 23, Pr 18:12, 22:4, Is 57:15)

15.    Seek a band of brothers where you wage war together encouraging one another daily in regard to the deceitfulness of sin. (Heb 3:12-note, Heb 3:13-note, 2Ti 2:22-note) (See Related Discussion: The Deceitfulness of Sin)

16.    Memorize and meditate on many scriptures. (Ps 119:9, 11, 1:2, Josh 1:8-note, Job 23:12-note , Jer 15:16, 1Jn 2:14, Php 4:8-note)

17.    Take every pernicious, prurient thought captive to Christ and replace them with good thoughts (1Cor 10:3, 4, 5, Php 4:8-note)

18.    Beware of the trap that you deserve relief through gratifying your sinful flesh, remembering that every test carries with it the potential of a temptation to sin (Acts 14:22, Luke 9:58, 2Ti 2:3-note, 2Ti 4:16, 17-note)

19.    Pray at all times in the Spirit for God's protection and deliverance. (Ep 6:18-note, Lk 22:40, 46, Mt 26:40, 41, 1Chr 4:10, Ps 19:13, 119:116, 117, 133, Pr 30:8, 9, Mt 6:13-note)

20.    Think often that God has given you even now many good things so how could you brazenly sin against Him! (Ge 39:7,8, 9)

From http://www.preceptaustin.org/proverbs_51-14_commentary.htm accessed September 1, 2015. These verses are all linked to notes at Precept Austin.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


When I study a chapter of the Bible, one of the questions which I nearly always have is, why is this chapter in the Word of God?

Why Proverbs 5 is in the Word of God

1.      This psalm speaks about sexual immorality and how destructive it can be.

2.      It also speaks about the importance of the relationship between one man and one woman—including their sexual relationship. Marriage is fundamental to a national entity.

3.      We find it remarkable that either David (who had 20 wives and mistresses) and Solomon (who had 1000 wives and mistresses) spoke of the importance of a marriage to one person.

4.      There are a great many applications to this life when it comes to engaging in immorality. Prov. 5 lists many results of such a lifestyle.

5.      We learn of the many regrets of a skirt-chaser.

6.      Prov. 5 speaks of the omniscience of God.

7.      I think that it became clear in this chapter of Proverbs that the strange or foreign woman also represents false doctrine; and is in direct opposition to wisdom, which will be personified as a woman in Prov. 8. Hence, there are two women—the right woman and the wrong woman; and there is true and false doctrine as well. Whichever one you pursue makes all the difference in the world.

 

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


There are a great many things to be studied in the book of Proverbs; here are a few of the studies that we embarked on and learned from.

What We Learn from Proverbs 5

1.      We had the opportunity to study the doctrines of wormwood, flattery, Sheol.

2.      We had the opportunity to study the flattering woman.

3.      We studied David and how he was an errant father for his first set of children. We briefly studied the difficulty that this led to.

4.      We studied the cosmic system.

5.      We found out how God’s path is the one that leads to happiness and contentment.

6.      We examined the many attacks against marriage in American society.

7.      We studied the devastating affects of pornography.

8.      We studied marriage as the 3rd divine institution.

 

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


It may be helpful to see this chapter as a contiguous whole:

A Complete Translation of Proverbs 5

A Reasonably Literal Translation

A Reasonably Literal Paraphrase

Listen to Sound Teaching

Attend to my wisdom, my son, [and] listen [lit., spread out your ear] to my insight; [with the intent] to guard [divine] purposes and your lips will guard knowledge.

Attend to my wisdom, my son and listen to my doctrinal teaching; guard the purposes of God and guard Biblical knowledge.

Advice to a Young Man About the Wrong Woman

The lips of the strange woman drips honey; her mouth is smoother than oil; but her end [is] bitter like wormwood; [and her end] is sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet descend [to] death, her steps acquire Sheol; so that she does not make level [her] path of life, [but] is [instead] staggering in the ruts of her actions—[yet] she does not know [it] [or, you do not know (it)].

The lips of the strange woman seem to drip honey, and the inside of her mouth is smoother than oil; but the end she brings will be bitter like wormwood; and it will be as sharp as any two-edged sword. The feet of this woman descend down to death, and her steps will take you to Sheol. However, although she does not know why, she cannot make her path of life level; she is always stuck in a series of ruts due to her own actions.

Therefore, O [my] sons, listen to me and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Therefore, my sons, listen carefully to what I am teaching and do not depart from these words.

Remove your way from her and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not give to others your majesty and [so that you do not give] your years to [a person] without mercy [or, the cruel one]; so that strangers are not filled with your strength [or, the product of your labors] and [so that all of] your work [does not end up] in the house of a foreigner, and you groan [with dissatisfaction] at your end, when is completed your flesh and bone [lit., flesh and body].

Remove your way from the unchaste woman and do not come near to the entrance of her home, so that you do not end up giving away your majesty and your years to those who are not grace oriented. Do not allow strangers to sap away your strength so that all of your production does not end up in the house of a foreigner, so that you groan with unhappiness when you are about to die.

Rejecting Bible Doctrine Places One in Ruin

Therefore, you will say, “How I hated discipline [or, instruction] and my heart has abhorred reproof. I have not listened to the voice of my [Bible] instructors; and I have not inclined my ear to [doctrinal] teachers.

Consequently, you will say, “How I hated discipline and how much my heart abhorred reproof. I did not listen to my Bible teachers; and I did not concentrate on doctrinal teaching.

I was in almost complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation even the assembly.”

As a result of negative volition, I find myself nearly in complete ruin, in the midst of the congregation and in the midst of the assembly.”

Advice: Concentrate on Your Right Woman

Drink [only] waters from your [own] cistern and [drink] flowing waters out from your [own] well.

Only drink waters from your own cistern and only partake of the flowing water which comes from your own well.

[Should] your streams overflow in the streets? [Should] rivers of waters [flow] through the public places?

Should there be streams overflowing in the streets? Should rivers of waters run through our public places?

They are to you for you alone and [they are] not for the strangers with you. Let your [own] spring be blessed and be joyful with the wife of your youth, [for she is] a hind of love and a doe of grace. [Let] her breasts intoxicate you always; and you will wander continuously in her love.

They are to you for you alone and they are not for the strangers with you. Enjoy your own spring, which is blessed and enjoy the wife of your youth, for she is like a hind of love or a doe of grace. Let her breasts intoxicate you always and wander forever in her love.

Why are you intoxicated, my son, with a strange woman and [why do] you embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?

Why do you allow yourself to become intoxicated, my son, with a strange woman? Why do you embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?

For the paths of man [are] before the eyes of Yehowah and [He] makes smooth out all of his ways.

For man’s way of life is before Jehovah and He makes smooth all of his paths.

Addictive Sin Leads One to Death

His iniquities have seized him, the unrighteous; by cords of sin he is taken a hold of. He dies [the sin unto death] because of a lack of [corrective] instruction; and he goes astray in his abundance of foolishness [or, impiety].

His iniquities seize him, by cords of iniquity, the unrighteous is taken a hold of. Such a man will die the sin unto death because he has not responded to corrective discipline and instruction; he has gone astray in his life because of his abundance of foolishness and impiety.

Chapter Outline

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines


The following Psalms would be appropriately studied at this time:


R. B. Thieme, Jr. did not cover this chapter in his 1966 Proverbs series.


In my reading, I came across this story, but could not find a good place to put it (the teacher used this as an illustration in Prov. 5—not sure what it illustrated, but it is a good story):

 

I read recently about a junior high school in Oregon that faced a unique problem in the girl’s bathroom. Each day, when the girls put their lipstick on in the bathroom, they’d press their lips onto the mirror in the bathroom, leaving dozens of little lip prints. Finally the principal decided something had to be done, so he called the girls into the bathroom and met them there with the school custodian. He explained that the lip prints were a major problem for the custodian, who had to clean the mirrors every day. To demonstrate how difficult it was, he asked the custodian to clean one of the mirrors. He took out a long handled brush, dipped it into the toilet, and scrubbed the mirror. Since then there haven’t been any lip prints on the mirrors.


Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Proverbs 5

prov5translation.jpg

Word Cloud from Exegesis of Proverbs 5

prov5exegesis.jpg


These two graphics should be very similar; this means that the exegesis of Proverbs 5 has stayed on topic and has covered the information found in this chapter of the Word of God.


Chapter Outline

 

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

Beginning of Document

Doctrines Covered and Alluded to

Chapters of the Bible Alluded

Definition of Terms

Introduction

Addendum

www.kukis.org

 

Exegetical Studies in Proverbs