Proverbs 5:20

Proverbs 5:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?
• New International Version (NIV)Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife? Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?
• New King James Version (NKJV)For why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman, And be embraced in the arms of a seductress?

Context of Proverbs 5:20

18Enjoy sex with your own wife. May the wife that you married when you were young continue to give you joy. 19May she be as pretty and beautiful as a young deer. May her breasts always make you happy. May she love you in a way that gives you joy. So my son, do not let an adulteress deceive you. Do not enjoy the body of another man's wife. 21The Lord sees everything that a person does. He knows every path that you go along. 22The sins of a wicked person will be the trap that catches him. They will hold him like strong ropes.

Proverbs 5:20 word by word

וְלָ֤מָּה תִשְׁגֶּ֣ה בְנִ֣י בְזָרָ֑ה וּ֝תְחַבֵּ֗ק חֵ֣ק נָכְרִיָּֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And why wilt thou, my sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• be ravishedשָׁגָהshâgâh · to wanderH7686
• with a strange womanזוּרzûr · be a strangerH2114
• and embraceחָבַקchâbaq · to embraceH2263
• the bosomחֵיקchêyq chêq chôq · bosom: embraceH2436
• of a strangerנׇכְרִיnokrîy · foreignH5237

Cross-references for Proverbs 5:20

• Proverbs 2:16If you have wisdom, you will not listen to the sweet words of a prostitute. A woman who likes to have sex with many men will not deceive you.
• Proverbs 6:24They will keep you safe from any bad woman, so that the sweet words of an adulteress will not deceive you.
• Proverbs 7:5If you do that, it will keep you safe from sin. You will not agree to sleep with an adulteress or a prostitute when she speaks sweet words to you.
• Proverbs 22:14The mouth of an adulteress is like a deep hole. If you make the Lord angry, you will fall into it!
• Proverbs 23:27Prostitutes are a dangerous trap for men. Women who are not faithful to their husbands can cause men to fall into danger, like a deep well.
• 1 Kings 11:1Solomon loved Pharaoh's daughter and many other foreign women. Those women were Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites.

Commentaries on Proverbs 5:20

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20Emphasis is laid (see the Proverbs 2:16 note) upon the origin of the beguiler.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-23Verses 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…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-23These instructions on loving one's wife and avoiding immoral women were originally for young men starting their careers (see also Proverbs 2:16–22; 7:1–27). This topic is also common in ancient Egyptian wisdom writings.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-2015-20. By figures, in which well, cistern, and fountain [Pr 5:15, 18] represent the wife, and rivers of waters [Pr 5:16] the children, men are exhorted to constancy and satisfaction in lawful conjugal enjoyments. In Pr 5:16, fountains (in the plural) rather denote the produce or waters of a spring, literally, "what is from a spring," and corresponds with "rivers of waters."Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 5:20

• Adultery
• Chastity
• Harlot (Prostitute)
• Temptation
• Women
• Young Men

In the dictionaries

• Strange Woman
• Cord
• Harlot
• Mouth
• Education
• Embrace
• Hezekiah (2)
• Proverbs, the Book of
• Purity
• Song of Songs

Commentaries on Proverbs 5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings