What does Proverbs 5:15 mean?
What is the meaning of Proverbs 5:15?

Drink water

“Drink water…” (Proverbs 5:15) begins with an imperative that pictures receiving refreshment. Solomon uses the everyday act of drinking to symbolize sexual enjoyment within marriage.

• Water refreshes and sustains; marital intimacy is God’s life-giving provision (Proverbs 5:18-19).

• The command is personal—participate actively, not passively resist temptation (1 Corinthians 7:3-5).

• This invitation comes after warnings about the bitterness of adultery (Proverbs 5:3-11), showing God’s safer, sweeter alternative.


from your own cistern

A cistern stores collected rainwater—valuable, protected, privately owned.

• “Your own” stresses exclusivity: the husband-wife covenant (Genesis 2:24).

• Guarded boundaries keep purity intact (Proverbs 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4).

• Just as a household would never allow strangers to drain its cistern, spouses must not share sexual privileges outside marriage (Exodus 20:14; 1 Corinthians 7:2).


and running water

“Running water” (literally flowing or fresh) portrays intimacy that is vibrant rather than stagnant.

• Ongoing affection prevents thirst for forbidden streams (Proverbs 5:19-20).

• Fresh water suggests mutual delight continually renewed (Song of Songs 4:15).

• It is God who supplies the flow; when spouses honor Him, He keeps their union lively (Ecclesiastes 9:9).


from your own well

A well taps a deep source; it belongs to the household by long-term right.

• Marital love is designed to be deep, enduring, and covenantally secure (Malachi 2:14).

• Drawing “from your own” highlights stewardship: cherish, invest, and protect what God entrusted (Ephesians 5:25-28).

• Straying to another’s well violates both God’s command and one’s spouse, bringing inevitable loss (Hebrews 13:4; Proverbs 6:27-29).


summary

Proverbs 5:15 calls husbands (and by extension wives) to find all sexual fulfillment within the God-given bounds of marriage. Like refreshing water kept in a private cistern or drawn from a personal well, marital intimacy is exclusive, life-giving, and to be enjoyed continually. Staying faithful safeguards the soul, honors the spouse, and glorifies the Lord who designed marriage for our good and His glory.

In what ways does Proverbs 5:14 challenge modern views on moral responsibility?
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