Skip to main content

Proverbs chapter 5 in Hebrew and English

23 verses, about 2 minutes to read aloud. The Hebrew has its vowel points and the English stands under each verse.

The whole chapter is here, a verse to a line.

בְּנִי לְחָכְמָתִי הַקְשִׁיבָה לִתְבוּנָתִי הַט־אָזְנֶֽךָ׃

My son, attend unto my wisdom; Incline thine ear to my understanding;

לִשְׁמֹר מְזִמּוֹת וְדַעַת שְׂפָתֶיךָ יִנְצֹֽרוּ׃

That thou mayest preserve discretion, And that thy lips may keep knowledge.

כִּי נֹפֶת תִּטֹּפְנָה שִׂפְתֵי זָרָה וְחָלָק מִשֶּׁמֶן חִכָּֽהּ׃

For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And her mouth is smoother than oil;

וְאַחֲרִיתָהּ מָרָה כַלַּעֲנָה חַדָּה כְּחֶרֶב פִּיּֽוֹת׃

But her end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword.

רַגְלֶיהָ יֹרְדוֹת מָוֶת שְׁאוֹל צְעָדֶיהָ יִתְמֹֽכוּ׃

Her feet go down to death; Her steps take hold on the nether-world;

אֹרַח חַיִּים פֶּן־תְּפַלֵּס נָעוּ מַעְגְּלֹתֶיהָ לֹא תֵדָֽע׃

Lest she should walk the even path of life, Her ways wander, but she knoweth it not.

וְעַתָּה בָנִים שִׁמְעוּ־לִי וְאַל־תָּסוּרוּ מֵאִמְרֵי־פִֽי׃

Now therefore, O ye children, hearken unto me, And depart not from the words of my mouth.

הַרְחֵק מֵעָלֶיהָ דַרְכֶּךָ וְאַל־תִּקְרַב אֶל־פֶּתַח בֵּיתָֽהּ׃

Remove thy way far from her, And come not nigh the door of her house;

פֶּן־תִּתֵּן לַאֲחֵרִים הוֹדֶךָ וּשְׁנֹתֶיךָ לְאַכְזָרִֽי׃

Lest thou give thy vigour unto others, And thy years unto the cruel;

פֶּן־יִשְׂבְּעוּ זָרִים כֹּחֶךָ וַעֲצָבֶיךָ בְּבֵית נָכְרִֽי׃

Lest strangers be filled with thy strength, And thy labours be in the house of an alien;

וְנָהַמְתָּ בְאַחֲרִיתֶךָ בִּכְלוֹת בְּשָׂרְךָ וּשְׁאֵרֶֽךָ׃

And thou moan, when thine end cometh, When thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

וְאָמַרְתָּ אֵיךְ שָׂנֵאתִי מוּסָר וְתוֹכַחַת נָאַץ לִבִּֽי׃

And say: ‘How have I hated instruction, And my heart despised reproof;

וְלֹא־שָׁמַעְתִּי בְּקוֹל מוֹרָי וְלִמְלַמְּדַי לֹא־הִטִּיתִי אָזְנִֽי׃

Neither have I hearkened to the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

כִּמְעַט הָיִיתִי בְכָל־רָע בְּתוֹךְ קָהָל וְעֵדָֽה׃

I was well nigh in all evil In the midst of the congregation and assembly.’

שְׁתֵה־מַיִם מִבּוֹרֶךָ וְנֹזְלִים מִתּוֹךְ בְּאֵרֶֽךָ׃

Drink waters out of thine own cistern, And running waters out of thine own well.

יָפוּצוּ מַעְיְנֹתֶיךָ חוּצָה בָּרְחֹבוֹת פַּלְגֵי־מָֽיִם׃

Let thy springs be dispersed abroad, And courses of water in the streets.

יִהְיוּ־לְךָ לְבַדֶּךָ וְאֵין לְזָרִים אִתָּֽךְ׃

Let them be only thine own, And not strangers’with thee.

יְהִי־מְקוֹרְךָ בָרוּךְ וּשְׂמַח מֵאֵשֶׁת נְעוּרֶֽךָ׃

Let thy fountain be blessed; And have joy of the wife of thy youth.

אַיֶּלֶת אֲהָבִים וְיַעֲלַת חֵן דַּדֶּיהָ יְרַוֻּךָ בְכָל־עֵת בְּאַהֲבָתָהּ תִּשְׁגֶּה תָמִֽיד׃

A lovely hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; With her love be thou ravished always.

וְלָמָּה תִשְׁגֶּה בְנִי בְזָרָה וּתְחַבֵּק חֵק נָכְרִיָּֽה׃

Why then wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, And embrace the bosom of an alien?

כִּי נֹכַח עֵינֵי יְהוָה דַּרְכֵי־אִישׁ וְכָל־מַעְגְּלֹתָיו מְפַלֵּֽס׃

For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, And He maketh even all his paths.

עַווֹנוֹתָיו יִלְכְּדֻנוֹ אֶת־הָרָשָׁע וּבְחַבְלֵי חַטָּאתוֹ יִתָּמֵֽךְ׃

His own iniquities shall ensnare the wicked, And he shall be holden with the cords of his sin.

הוּא יָמוּת בְּאֵין מוּסָר וּבְרֹב אִוַּלְתּוֹ יִשְׁגֶּֽה׃

He shall die for lack of instruction; And in the greatness of his folly he shall reel.

The Hebrew is the Leningrad Codex, free to view and copy, compared letter by letter with a second edition, Miqra according to the Masorah, under the CC BY-SA licence. The English is the Jewish Publication Society translation of 1917, in the public domain.

Where this chapter stands in the Tanakh.

  • Chapter 5 of the 31 chapters of Proverbs
  • Proverbs is one of the Writings
  • 23 verses, 160 words, about 2 minutes to read

Proverbs has 31 chapters, and each one has its own page.

All of Proverbs·All the books of the Tanakh·Psalms and prayers

Questions about this chapter

How many verses does Proverbs chapter 5 have?

Proverbs chapter 5 has 23 verses and 160 words.

How does Proverbs chapter 5 begin?

The first verse begins in Hebrew with the words בני לחכמתי הקשיבה לתבונתי.

Where does Proverbs chapter 5 stand in the Tanakh?

It is chapter 5 of the 31 chapters of Proverbs, which is one of the Writings.

How long does it take to read Proverbs chapter 5?

About 2 minutes, at a steady pace.