Proverbs 5

Chapter 5

Avoid Immoral Women

¹My son, pay attention to my wisdom;

listen carefully to my wise counsel.

²Then you will show discernment,

and your lips will express what you’ve learned.

³For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,

and her mouth is smoother than oil.

⁴But in the end she is as bitter as poison,

as dangerous as a double-edged sword.

⁵Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead straight to the grave.

⁶For she cares nothing about the path to life.

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

⁷So now, my sons, listen to me.

Never stray from what I am about to say:

⁸Stay away from her!

Don’t go near the door of her house!

⁹If you do, you will lose your honor

and will lose to merciless people all you have achieved.

¹⁰Strangers will consume your wealth,

and someone else will enjoy the fruit of your labor.

¹¹In the end you will groan in anguish

when disease consumes your body.

¹²You will say, “How I hated discipline!

If only I had not ignored all the warnings!

¹³Oh, why didn’t I listen to my teachers?

Why didn’t I pay attention to my instructors?

¹⁴I have come to the brink of utter ruin,

and now I must face public disgrace.”

¹⁵Drink water from your own well—

share your love only with your wife.

¹⁶Why spill the water of your springs in the streets,

having sex with just anyone?

¹⁷You should reserve it for yourselves.

Never share it with strangers.

¹⁸Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you.

Rejoice in the wife of your youth.

¹⁹She is a loving deer, a graceful doe.

Let her breasts satisfy you always.

May you always be captivated by her love.

²⁰Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman,

or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?

²¹For the Lord sees clearly what a man does,

examining every path he takes.

²²An evil man is held captive by his own sins;

they are ropes that catch and hold him.

²³He will die for lack of self-control;

he will be lost because of his great foolishness.