Viewing the original 1611 KJV with archaic English spelling.
Click to switch to the Standard KJV.



+     Text Size    

1 My sonne, attend vnto my wisedome, and bowe thine eare to my vnderstanding.

2 That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keepe knowledge.

3 ¶ For the lips of a strange woman drop as an hony combe, and her mouth is smoother then oyle.

4 But her end is bitter as wormewood, sharpe as a two edged sword.

5 Her feete goe downe to death: her steps take hold on hell.

6 Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her wayes are moueable, that thou canst not know them.

7 Heare me now therefore, O yee children: & depart not from the words of my mouth.

8 Remoue thy way farre from her, and come not nie the doore of her house:

9 Lest thou giue thine honour vnto others, and thy yeeres vnto the cruell:

10 Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, and thy labors be in the house of a stranger,

11 And thou mourne at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

12 And say, How haue I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproofe?

13 And haue not obeyed the voyce of my teachers, nor inclined mine eare to them that instructed me?

14 I was almost in all euill, in the midst of the congregation & assembly.

15 ¶ Drinke waters out of thine owne cisterne, and running waters out of thine owne well.

16 Let thy fountaines bee dispersed abroad, and riuers of waters in the streets.

17 Let them be onely thine owne, and not strangers with thee.

18 Let thy fountaine be blessed: and reioyce with the wife of thy youth.

19 Let her bee as the louing Hinde and pleasant Roe, let her breasts satisfie thee at all times, and be thou rauisht alwayes with her loue.

20 And why wilt thou, my sonne, be rauisht with a strange woman, and imbrace the bosome of a stranger?

21 For the wayes of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and he pondereth all his goings.

22 ¶ His owne iniquities shall take the wicked himselfe, and he shall be holden with the coards of his sinnes.

23 He shall die without instruction, and in the greatnesse of his folly he shal goe astray.

Viewing the original 1611 KJV with archaic English spelling
Click to switch to the Standard KJV.


Commentary for Proverbs 5

Exhortations to wisdom. The evils of licentiousness. (1-14) Remedies against licentiousness, The miserable end of the wicked. (15-23)1-14 Solomon cautions all young men, as his children, to abstain from fleshly lusts. Some, by the adulterous woman, here understand idolatry, false doctrine, which tends to lead astray men's minds and manners; but the direct view is to warn against seventh-commandment sins. Often these have been, and still are, Satan's method of drawing men from the worship of God into false religion. Consider how fatal the consequences; how bitter the fruit! Take it any way, it wounds. It leads to the torments of hell. The direct tendency of this sin is to the destruction of body and soul. We must carefully avoid every thing which may be a step towards it. Those who would be kept from harm, must keep out of harm's way. If we thrust ourselves into temptation we mock God when we pray, Lead us not into temptation. How many mischiefs attend this sin! It blasts the reputation; it wastes time; it ruins the estate; it is destructive to health; it will fill the mind with horror. Though thou art merry now, yet sooner or later it will bring sorrow. The convinced sinner reproaches himself, and makes no excuse for his folly. By the frequent acts of sin, the habits of it become rooted and confirmed. By a miracle of mercy true repentance may prevent the dreadful consequences of such sins; but this is not often; far more die as they have lived. What can express the case of the self-ruined sinner in the eternal world, enduring the remorse of his conscience!

15-23 Lawful marriage is a means God has appointed to keep from these destructive vices. But we are not properly united, except as we attend to God's word, seeking his direction and blessing, and acting with affection. Ever remember, that though secret sins may escape the eyes of our fellow-creatures, yet a man's ways are before the eyes of the Lord, who not only sees, but ponders all his goings. Those who are so foolish as to choose the way of sin, are justly left of God to themselves, to go on in the way to destruction.

Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.

Discussion for Proverbs 5

Bible Options

Sponsored Links