Avoid Immorality
(Leviticus 20:10-21; 1 Corinthians 5:1-8)
1My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding:
2That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.
3For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:
4But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.
5Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.
6Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.
7Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.
8Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:
9Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:
10Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;
11And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,
12And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;
13And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!
14I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.
15Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well.
16Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.
17Let them be only thine own, and not strangers' with thee.
18Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.
19Let 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.
20And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?
21For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings.
22His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.
23He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
Avoiding Immorality
(Leviticus 20:10–21; 1 Corinthians 5:1–8)
1 My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding:
2 that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.
3 For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,
4 But in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.
6 She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.
7 Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.
8 Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,
9 lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;
10 lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.
11 You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,
12 and say, “How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;
13 neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor turned my ear to those who instructed me!
14 I have come to the brink of utter ruin, in the midst of the gathered assembly.”
15 Drink water out of your own cistern, running water out of your own well.
16 Should your springs overflow in the streets, streams of water in the public squares?
17 Let them be for yourself alone, not for strangers with you.
18 Let your spring be blessed. Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19 A loving doe and a graceful deer—let her breasts satisfy you at all times. Be captivated always with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another?
21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of Yahweh. He examines all his paths.
22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
23 He will die for lack of instruction. In the greatness of his folly, he will go astray.
Avoiding Immorality
(Leviticus 20:10–21; 1 Corinthians 5:1–8)
1 My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
incline your ear to my insight,
2 that you may maintain discretion
and your lips may preserve knowledge.
3 Though the lips of the forbidden woman a drip honey
and her speech b is smoother than oil,
4 in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a double-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to Sheol. c
6 She does not consider the path of life;
she does not know that her ways are unstable.
7 So now, my sons, listen to me,
and do not turn aside from the words of my mouth.
8 Keep your path far from her;
do not go near the door of her house,
9 lest you concede your vigor to others,
and your years to one who is cruel;
10 lest strangers feast on your wealth,
and your labors enrich the house of a foreigner.
11 At the end of your life you will groan
when your flesh and your body are spent,
12 and you will say, “How I hated discipline,
and my heart despised reproof!
13 I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my mentors.
14 I am on the brink of utter ruin
in the midst of the whole assembly.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern,
and running water from your own well.
16 Why should your springs flow in the streets,
your streams of water in the public squares?
17 Let them be yours alone,
never to be shared with strangers.
18 May your fountain be blessed,
and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth:
19 A loving doe, a graceful fawn—
may her breasts satisfy you always;
may you be captivated d by her love forever.
20 Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress,
or embrace the bosom of a stranger? e
21 For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD,
and the LORD examines f all his paths.
22 The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him;
the cords of his sin entangle him.
23 He dies for lack of discipline,
led astray by his own great folly.
Footnotes:
3 a Or the adulteress
3 b Or her palate
5 c Or lay hold of Sheol
19 d Or be led astray ; also in verse 20
20 e Or a foreign woman or another man’s wife
21 f Or ponders or makes level
Avoid Immorality
(Leviticus 20:10-21; 1 Corinthians 5:1-8)
1My son! to my wisdom give attention, To mine understanding incline thine ear,
2To observe thoughtfulness, And knowledge do thy lips keep.
3For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And smoother than oil is her mouth,
4And her latter end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a sword with mouths.
5Her feet are going down to death, Sheol do her steps take hold of.
6The path of life -- lest thou ponder, Moved have her paths -- thou knowest not.
7And now, ye sons, hearken to me, And turn not from sayings of my mouth.
8Keep far from off her thy way, And come not near unto the opening of her house,
9Lest thou give to others thy honour, And thy years to the fierce,
10Lest strangers be filled with thy power, And thy labours in the house of a stranger,
11And thou hast howled in thy latter end, In the consumption of thy flesh and thy food,
12And hast said, 'How have I hated instruction, And reproof hath my heart despised,
13And I have not hearkened to the voice of my directors, And to my teachers have not inclined mine ear.
14As a little thing I have been all evil, In the midst of an assembly and a company.
15Drink waters out of thine own cistern, Even flowing ones out of thine own well.
16Let thy fountains be scattered abroad, In broad places rivulets of waters.
17Let them be to thee for thyself, And not to strangers with thee.
18Let thy fountain be blessed, And rejoice because of the wife of thy youth,
19A hind of loves, and a roe of grace! Let her loves satisfy thee at all times, In her love magnify thyself continually.
20And why dost thou magnify thyself, My son, with a stranger? And embrace the bosom of a strange woman?
21For over-against the eyes of Jehovah are the ways of each, And all his paths He is pondering.
22His own iniquities do capture the wicked, And with the ropes of his sin he is holden.
23He dieth without instruction, And in the abundance of his folly magnifieth himself!
