Proverbs 5 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

Proverbs 5 Short Summary:

Proverbs 5 is a continuation of Solomon’s discussion of true wisdom. In chapter 5, he makes it clear that a wise man doesn’t get involved with forbidden women. A wise man will not be caught in adultery with a woman who is not his wife, because he knows adultery leads to ruin and shame.

Proverbs 5 Summary

THEMES:

• Adultery will lead a man to his ruin, and wise men don’t get involved with forbidden women.

DEFINITIONS:

• Wormwood (5:4) – An herb with a bitter taste. It was used in the ancient world to make medicine.

• Sheol (5:5) - The place of the dead, the grave. It can sometimes be used to refer to dark and unknown places, like places underground.

• Cistern (5:15) – A tank for storing water.

OUTLINE:

• WARNINGS AGAINST ADULTERY AND LACK OF SELF DISCIPLINE (5:1-23):

  • This chapter is primarily a warning against adultery and the ruin it brings to a man.

  • A forbidden woman can look very appealing. Solomon writes, “the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil” (5:3).

  • She makes herself alluring, but her appeal is only surface deep. She lacks depth and wisdom.

  • Any woman who seduces a man into sin is lost, a wandering woman, who “does not ponder the path of life” (5:6).

  • Any man who involves himself with such a woman is a fool, walking into his own ruin, and giving away his honor.

  • A man who falls into her trap will eventually regret his decision and berate himself over his lack of discipline.

  • Solomon encouraged men to find satisfaction in their own wives. He likens a man’s sexual desire to thirst, and writes that every man should quinch his thirsty by drinking from his own cistern.

  • Solomon wanted all men to be “intoxicated” by their wives, because the marriage bed is where wise men find satisfaction.

  • Those who seek satisfaction elsewhere do not walk in the way of wisdom.

  • “The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin. He dies for lack of discipline, and because of his great folly his is led astray” (5:23).

APPLICATION:

• A foolish man “dies for lack of discipline” (5:23).

• Self discipline is a trait we need to practice early in life, because you’ll always pay for a lack of self discipline later.

• Self discipline in morality is of supreme importance, especially when we’re talking about sexual temptation.

• If you never discipline yourself sexually, and you run to your computer, to your girlfriend, or to a one night hook up to satisfy yourself everytime you get an urge, you’re gonna find your lifestyle leading you into all kinds of trouble.  

• You are going to have a reputation that you don’t want. You’re not going to be thought of as an honorable person or a wise person.

• We need to begin as soon as possible to exercise our muscle of self discipline. We also need to recognize that we need God’s help to succeed in winning battles against temptation, because our flesh is weak.

• There was never a wise man who was not also a self disciplined man. Godly men are not controlled by their passions. They are not slaves to their cravings.