Proverbs 5:20
New International Version
Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife? Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?

New Living Translation
Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman, or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?

English Standard Version
Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?

Berean Standard Bible
Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, or embrace the bosom of a stranger?

King James Bible
And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

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?

New American Standard Bible
For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress, And embrace the breasts of a foreigner?

NASB 1995
For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

NASB 1977
For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress, And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

Legacy Standard Bible
So why should you, my son, be intoxicated with a strange woman And embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?

Amplified Bible
Why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an immoral woman And embrace the bosom of an outsider (pagan)?

Christian Standard Bible
Why, my son, would you lose yourself with a forbidden woman or embrace a wayward woman?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Why, my son, would you be infatuated with a forbidden woman or embrace the breast of a stranger?

American Standard Version
For why shouldest thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

Contemporary English Version
Don't go crazy over a woman who is unfaithful to her own husband!

English Revised Version
For why shouldest thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Why should you, my son, be intoxicated with an adulterous woman and fondle a loose woman's breast?

Good News Translation
Son, why should you give your love to another woman? Why should you prefer the charms of another man's wife?

International Standard Version
Why should you be intoxicated by an adulteress, my son, and embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?

Majority Standard Bible
Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, or embrace the bosom of a stranger?

NET Bible
But why should you be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, and embrace the bosom of a different woman?

New Heart English Bible
For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another?

Webster's Bible Translation
And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

World English Bible
For why should you, my son, be captivated with an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another?
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And why do you magnify yourself, "" My son, with a stranger? And embrace the bosom of a strange woman?

Young's Literal Translation
And why dost thou magnify thyself, My son, with a stranger? And embrace the bosom of a strange woman?

Smith's Literal Translation
And wherefore, my son, wilt thou wander with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Why art thou seduced, my son, by a strange woman, and art cherished in the bosom of another ?

Catholic Public Domain Version
Why are you seduced, my son, by a strange woman, and why are you kept warm by the bosom of another?

New American Bible
Why then, my son, should you be intoxicated with a stranger, and embrace another woman?

New Revised Standard Version
Why should you be intoxicated, my son, by another woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
My son, be not misled by a strange woman, neither embrace the bosom of a strange woman.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Do not go astray, my son, with an estranged woman, neither embrace the bosom of an estranged woman.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Why then wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, And embrace the bosom of an alien?

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Be not intimate with a strange woman, neither fold thyself in the arms of a woman not thine own.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Avoiding Immorality
19A loving doe, a graceful fawn—may her breasts satisfy you always; may you be captivated by her love forever. 20Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, or embrace the bosom of a stranger? 21For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and the LORD examines all his paths.…

Cross References
Proverbs 6:24-29
to keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress. / Do not lust in your heart for her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes. / For the levy of the prostitute is poverty, and the adulteress preys upon your very life. ...

Proverbs 7:5-27
that they may keep you from the adulteress, from the stranger with seductive words. / For at the window of my house I looked through the lattice. / I saw among the simple, I noticed among the youths, a young man lacking judgment, ...

1 Corinthians 6:18-20
Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. / Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; / you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.

Hebrews 13:4
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

Matthew 5:27-28
You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ / But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5
For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality; / each of you must know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, / not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God;

1 Corinthians 7:2-5
But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. / The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. / The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife. ...

Ephesians 5:3-5
But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed. / Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving. / For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Galatians 5:19-21
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; / idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, / and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Colossians 3:5-6
Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. / Because of these, the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.

Exodus 20:14
You shall not commit adultery.

Leviticus 18:20
You must not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife and thus defile yourself with her.

Deuteronomy 5:18
You shall not commit adultery.

Job 31:1
“I have made a covenant with my eyes. How then could I gaze with desire at a virgin?

Malachi 2:14-16
Yet you ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have broken faith, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. / Has not the LORD made them one, having a portion of the Spirit? And why one? Because He seeks godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith with the wife of your youth. / “For I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “He who divorces his wife covers his garment with violence,” says the LORD of Hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith.


Treasury of Scripture

And why will you, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

with

Proverbs 2:16-19
To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; …

Proverbs 6:24
To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.

Proverbs 7:5
That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.

Jump to Previous
Adulteress Adventuress Alien Arms Bosom Captivated Embrace Exhilarated Foreigner Infatuated Loose Magnify Ravished Shouldest Strange Stranger Thyself Way Wife Wilt
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Adulteress Adventuress Alien Arms Bosom Captivated Embrace Exhilarated Foreigner Infatuated Loose Magnify Ravished Shouldest Strange Stranger Thyself Way Wife Wilt
Proverbs 5
1. Solomon exhorts to wisdom
3. He shows the mischief of unfaithfulness and riot
15. He exhorts to contentedness, generosity, and chastity
22. The wicked are overtaken with their own sins














Why be captivated
The word "captivated" in this context suggests being ensnared or entrapped. The Hebrew root word here is "שׁגה" (shagah), which implies a sense of wandering or going astray. This term is often used in the Old Testament to describe a deviation from the path of righteousness. The imagery of being captivated serves as a warning against the seductive allure of sin, which can lead one away from God's intended path. Historically, the Israelites were often warned against idolatry and foreign influences, which could lead them astray from their covenant with God. This verse echoes that sentiment, urging believers to remain steadfast and not be led astray by temptations.

my son
The phrase "my son" is a common address in the book of Proverbs, emphasizing the personal and intimate nature of the wisdom being imparted. It reflects the relationship between a father and child, where the father seeks to guide and protect his offspring. In a broader sense, it represents God's paternal care for His people, offering guidance and wisdom to help them navigate life's challenges. This familial language underscores the importance of the advice being given, as it comes from a place of love and concern.

by an adulteress
The term "adulteress" refers to a woman who engages in sexual relations outside of marriage. In Hebrew, the word used is "נָכְרִיָּה" (nokriyah), which can also mean foreign or strange. This highlights the danger of engaging with those who are outside the covenant community and who may lead one away from God's laws. In the historical context of ancient Israel, maintaining purity and faithfulness within marriage was paramount, as it reflected the covenant relationship between God and His people. The adulteress symbolizes not just sexual immorality but also spiritual unfaithfulness.

or embrace the bosom
The phrase "embrace the bosom" is a euphemism for engaging in intimate or sexual relations. The Hebrew word "חָבַק" (chabaq) means to embrace or hold closely. This imagery conveys the physical and emotional intimacy that should be reserved for the marital relationship. The warning here is against forming such bonds with someone who is not one's spouse, as it violates the sanctity of marriage and God's design for human relationships. The embrace is meant to be a symbol of love and commitment, not of fleeting passion or infidelity.

of a stranger
The word "stranger" in this context is translated from the Hebrew "זָר" (zar), which can mean foreign or alien. It signifies someone who is outside the community of faith, someone who does not share the same values or covenant relationship with God. Engaging with a stranger in this intimate manner represents a breach of the boundaries set by God for His people. Historically, Israel was often warned against intermingling with foreign nations, as it could lead to idolatry and a turning away from God. This verse serves as a reminder to maintain purity and faithfulness, both in marriage and in one's spiritual walk.

Verses 20, 21. - The adulterer to be restrained by the fact of God's omniscience and the Divine punishment. Vers. 20 and 21 should apparently be taken together. The teaching assumes a higher tone, and rises from the lower law which regulates fidelity to the wife, based upon personal attractions, to the higher law, which brings the husband's conduct into relation with the duty he owes to Jehovah. Not merely is his conduct to be regulated by love and affection alone, but it is to be fashioned by the reflection or consciousness that the Supreme Being presides over all, and takes cognizance of human action. Without losing sight that the marriage contract has its own peculiar obligations, the fact is insisted upon that all a man's ways are open to the eyes of the Lord. Verse 20. - And why; i.e. what inducement is there, what reason can be given, for conjugal infidelity, except the lewd and immoral promptings of the lower nature, except sensuality in its lowest form? Ravished. The verb shagah recurs, but in a lower sense, as indicating "the foolish delirium of the libertine hastening after the harlot" (Zockler). With a strange woman (Hebrew, b'zarah); i.e. with a harlot. On zarah, see Proverbs 2:16 and Proverbs 7:5. The b' (בְּ) localizes the sources of the intoxication. Embrace (Hebrew, t'khab-bek). On this verb, see Proverbs 4:8. The bosom of a stranger (Hebrew, kheh nok'riyyah). A parallel expression having the same force as its counterpart. The more usual form of khek is kheyk, and means "the bosom" of a person. In Proverbs 16:33 it is used of the lap, and in Proverbs 17:23 and Proverbs 21:14 for the bosom or folds of a garment.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Why
וְלָ֤מָּה (wə·lām·māh)
Conjunctive waw | Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

be captivated,
תִשְׁגֶּ֣ה (ṯiš·geh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 7686: To stray, to mistake, to transgress, to reel, be enraptured

my son,
בְנִ֣י (ḇə·nî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1121: A son

by an adulteress,
בְזָרָ֑ה (ḇə·zā·rāh)
Preposition-b | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 2114: To turn aside, to be a, foreigner, strange, profane, to commit adultery

or embrace
וּ֝תְחַבֵּ֗ק (ū·ṯə·ḥab·bêq)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 2263: To clasp, embrace

the bosom
חֵ֣ק (ḥêq)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 2436: The bosom

of a stranger?
נָכְרִיָּֽה׃ (nā·ḵə·rî·yāh)
Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 5237: Foreign, alien


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OT Poetry: Proverbs 5:20 For why should you my son be (Prov. Pro Pr)
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