Proverbs 5

 1MY SON, be attentive to my Wisdom [godly Wisdom learned by actual and costly experience], and incline your ear to my understanding [of what is becoming and prudent for you],

    2That you may exercise proper discrimination and discretion and your lips may guard and keep knowledge and the wise answer [to temptation].

    3For the lips of a loose woman drip honey as a honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil;^(A)

    4But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged and devouring sword.

    5Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold of Sheol (Hades, the place of the dead).

    6She loses sight of and walks not in the path of life; her ways wind about aimlessly, and you cannot know them.

    7Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

    8Let your way in life be far from her, and come not near the door of her house [avoid the very scenes of temptation],^(B)

    9Lest you give your honor to others and your years to those without mercy,

    10Lest strangers [and false teachings] take their fill of your strength and wealth and your labors go to the house of an alien [from God]--

    11And you groan and mourn when your end comes, when your flesh and body are consumed,

    12And you say, How I hated instruction and discipline, and my heart despised reproof!

    13I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers nor submitted and consented to those who instructed me.

    14[The extent and boldness of] my sin involved almost all evil [in the estimation] of the congregation and the community.

    15^[a]Drink waters out of your own cistern [of a pure marriage relationship], and fresh running waters out of your own well.

    16Should your offspring be dispersed abroad as water brooks in the streets?

    17[Confine yourself to your own wife] let your children be for you alone, and not the children of strangers with you.

    18Let your fountain [of human life] be blessed [with the rewards of fidelity], and rejoice in the wife of your youth.

    19Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant doe [tender, gentle, attractive]--let her bosom satisfy you at all times, and always be transported with delight in her love.

    20Why should you, my son, be infatuated with a loose woman, embrace the bosom of an outsider, and go astray?

    21For the ways of man are directly before the eyes of the Lord, and He [Who would have us live soberly, chastely, and godly] carefully weighs all man's goings.^(C)

    22His own iniquities shall ensnare the wicked man, and he shall be held with the cords of his sin.

    23He will die for lack of discipline and instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he will go astray and be lost.

   

Proverbs 6

 1MY SON, if you have become security for your neighbor, if you have given your pledge for a stranger or another,

    2You are snared with the words of your lips, you are caught by the speech of your mouth.

    3Do this now [at once and earnestly], my son, and deliver yourself when you have put yourself into the ^[b]power of your neighbor; go, bestir and humble yourself, and beg your neighbor [to pay his debt and thereby release you].

    4Give not [unnecessary] sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eyelids;

    5Deliver yourself, as a roe or gazelle from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

    6Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider her ways and be wise!--^(D)

    7Which, having no chief, overseer, or ruler,

    8Provides her food in the summer and gathers her supplies in the harvest.

    9How long will you sleep, O sluggard? When will you arise out of your sleep?^(E)

    10Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to lie down and sleep--

    11So will your poverty come like a robber or one who travels [with slowly but surely approaching steps] and your want like an armed man [making you helpless].^(F)

    12A worthless person, a wicked man, is he who goes about with a perverse (contrary, wayward) mouth.

    13He winks with his eyes, he speaks by shuffling or tapping with his feet, he makes signs [to mislead and deceive] and teaches with his fingers.

    14Willful and contrary in his heart, he devises trouble, vexation, and evil continually; he lets loose discord and sows it.

    15Therefore upon him shall the crushing weight of calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken, and that without remedy.

    16These six things the Lord hates, indeed, seven are an abomination to Him:

    17A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimate himself and underestimate others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,^(G)

    18A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil,

    19A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren.

    20My son, keep your father's [God-given] commandment and forsake not the law of [God] your mother [taught you].^(H)

    21Bind them continually upon your heart and tie them about your neck.^(I)

    22When you go, they [the words of your parents' God] shall lead you; when you sleep, they shall keep you; and when you waken, they shall talk with you.

    23For the commandment is a lamp, and the whole teaching [of the law] is light, and reproofs of discipline are the way of life,^(J)

    24To keep you from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a loose woman.

    25Lust not after her beauty in your heart, neither let her capture you with her eyelids.

    26For on account of a harlot a man is brought to a piece of bread, and the adulteress stalks and snares [as with a hook] the precious life [of a man].

    27Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned?

    28Can one go upon hot coals and his feet not be burned?

    29So he who cohabits with his neighbor's wife [will be tortured with evil consequences and just retribution]; he who touches her shall not be innocent or go unpunished.

    30Men do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry;

    31But if he is found out, he must restore seven times [what he stole]; he must give the whole substance of his house [if necessary--to meet his fine].

    32But whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks heart and understanding (moral principle and prudence); he who does it is destroying his own life.

    33Wounds and disgrace will he get, and his reproach will not be wiped away.

    34For jealousy makes [the wronged] man furious; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance [upon the detected one].

    35He will not consider any ransom [offered to buy him off from demanding full punishment]; neither will he be satisfied, though you offer him many gifts and bribes.

   

Proverbs 7

 1MY SON, keep my words; lay up within you my commandments [for use when needed] and treasure them.

    2Keep my commandments and live, and keep my law and teaching as the apple (the pupil) of your eye.

    3Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.

    4Say to skillful and godly Wisdom, You are my sister, and regard understanding or insight as your intimate friend--

    5That they may keep you from the loose woman, from the adventuress who flatters with and makes smooth her words.

    6For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice.

    7And among the simple (empty-headed and emptyhearted) ones, I perceived among the youths a young man void of good sense,

    8Sauntering through the street near the [loose woman's] corner; and he went the way to her house

    9In the twilight, in the evening; night black and dense was falling [over the young man's life].

    10And behold, there met him a woman, dressed as a harlot and sly and cunning of heart.

    11She is turbulent and willful; her feet stay not in her house;

    12Now in the streets, now in the marketplaces, she sets her ambush at every corner.

    13So she caught him and kissed him and with impudent face she said to him,

    14Sacrifices of peace offerings were due from me; this day I paid my vows.

    15So I came forth to meet you [that you might share with me the feast from my offering]; diligently I sought your face, and I have found you.

    16I have spread my couch with rugs and cushions of tapestry, with striped sheets of fine linen of Egypt.

    17I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

    18Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; let us console and delight ourselves with love.

    19For the man is not at home; he is gone on a long journey;

    20He has taken a bag of money with him and will come home at the day appointed [at the full moon].

    21With much justifying and enticing argument she persuades him, with the allurements of her lips she leads him [to overcome his conscience and his fears] and forces him along.

    22Suddenly he [yields and] follows her reluctantly like an ox moving to the slaughter, like one in fetters going to the correction [to be given] to a fool or ^[c]like a dog enticed by food to the muzzle

    23Till a dart [of passion] pierces and inflames his vitals; then like a bird fluttering straight into the net [he hastens], not knowing that it will cost him his life.

    24Listen to me now therefore, O you sons, and be attentive to the words of my mouth.

    25Let not your heart incline toward her ways, do not stray into her paths.

    26For she has cast down many wounded; indeed, all her slain are a mighty host.^(K)

    27Her house is the way to Sheol (Hades, the place of the dead), going down to the chambers of death.

   

Footnotes:

1. Proverbs 5:15 All of the Ten Commandments are reflected in the book of Proverbs; here it is the seventh, "You shall not commit adultery."
2. Proverbs 6:3 The Bible consistently teaches that one is not to forsake a friend, and this passage is not to be otherwise construed. But it is one thing to lend a friend money, and quite another thing to promise to pay his debts for him if he fails to do so himself. It might cost one, under the rigid customary laws governing debt, his money, his land, his bed, and his clothing--and if these were not sufficient, he and his wife and children could be sold as slaves, not to be released until the next Year of Jubilee--fifty years after the previous one. God's Word is very plain on the subject of not underwriting another person's debts (see Prov. 11:15; 17:18; 22:26).
3. Proverbs 7:22 The Septuagint (Greek translation of the Old Testament) so reads at this point.

Cross references:

1. Proverbs 5:3 : Ezek 20:30; Col 2:8-10; II Pet 2:14-17
2. Proverbs 5:8 : Prov 4:15; Rom 16:17; I Thess 5:19-22
3. Proverbs 5:21 : II Chron 16:9; Job 31:4; 34:21; Prov 15:3; Jer 16:17; Hos 7:2; Heb 4:13
4. Proverbs 6:6 : Job 12:7
5. Proverbs 6:9 : Prov 24:33, 34
6. Proverbs 6:11 : Prov 10:4; 13:4; 20:4
7. Proverbs 6:17 : Ps 120:2, 3
8. Proverbs 6:20 : Eph 6:1-3
9. Proverbs 6:21 : Prov 3:3; 7:3
10. Proverbs 6:23 : Ps 19:8; 119:105
11. Proverbs 7:26 : Neh 13:26

Mark 3

 1AGAIN JESUS went into a synagogue, and a man was there who had one withered hand [^[a]as the result of accident or disease].

    2And [the Pharisees] kept watching Jesus [closely] to see whether He would cure him on the Sabbath, so that they might get a charge to bring against Him [^[b]formally].

    3And He said to the man who had the withered hand, Get up [and stand here] in the midst.

    4And He said to them, Is it lawful and right on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to take it? But they kept silence.

    5And He glanced around at them with vexation and anger, grieved at the hardening of their hearts, and said to the man, Hold out your hand. He held it out, and his hand was [completely] restored.

    6Then the Pharisees went out and immediately held a consultation with the Herodians against Him, how they might [devise some means to] put Him to death.

    7And Jesus retired with His disciples to the lake, and a great throng from Galilee followed Him. Also from Judea

    8And from Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre and Sidon--a vast multitude, hearing all the many things that He was doing, came to Him.

    9And He told His disciples to have a little boat in [constant] readiness for Him because of the crowd, lest they press hard upon Him and crush Him.

    10For He had healed so many that all who had distressing bodily diseases kept falling upon Him and pressing upon Him in order that they might touch Him.

    11And the spirits, the unclean ones, ^[c]as often as they might see Him, fell down before Him and kept screaming out, You are the Son of God!

    12And He charged them strictly and severely under penalty again and again that they should not make Him known.

    13And He went up on the hillside and called to Him [^[d]for Himself] those whom He wanted and chose, and they came to Him.

    14And He appointed twelve to ^[e]continue to be with Him, and that He might send them out to preach [as apostles or special messengers]

    15And to have authority and power to heal the sick and to drive out demons:

    16[They were] Simon, and He surnamed [him] Peter;

    17James son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, and He surnamed them Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder;

    18And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew (Nathaniel), and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus (Judas, not Iscariot), and Simon the Cananaean [also called Zelotes],

    19And Judas Iscariot, he who betrayed Him.

    20Then He went to a house [probably Peter's], but a throng came together again, so that Jesus and His disciples could not even take food.

    21And when those ^[f]who belonged to Him (^[g]His kinsmen) heard it, they went out to take Him by force, for they kept saying, He is out of ^[h]His mind (beside Himself, deranged)!

    22And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, He is possessed by Beelzebub, and, By [the help of] the prince of demons He is casting out demons.

    23And He summoned them to Him and said to them in parables (illustrations or comparisons put beside truths to explain them), How can Satan drive out Satan?

    24And if a kingdom is divided and rebelling against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

    25And if a house is divided (split into factions and rebelling) against itself, that house will not be able to last.

    26And if Satan has raised an insurrection against himself and is divided, he cannot stand but is [surely] coming to an end.

    27But no one can go into a strong man's house and ransack his household goods right and left and seize them as plunder unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may [thoroughly] plunder his house.^(A)

    28Truly and solemnly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever abusive and blasphemous things they utter;

    29But whoever speaks abusively against or maliciously misrepresents the Holy Spirit can never get forgiveness, but is guilty of and is in the grasp of ^[i]an everlasting trespass.

    30For they ^[j]persisted in saying, ^[k]He has an unclean spirit.

    31Then His mother and His brothers came and, standing outside, they sent word to Him, calling [for] Him.

    32And a crowd was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, Your mother and Your brothers and Your sisters are outside asking for You.

    33And He replied, Who are My mother and My brothers?

    34And looking around on those who sat in a circle about Him, He said, See! Here are My mother and My brothers;

    35For whoever does the things God wills is My brother and sister and mother!

   

Mark 4

 1AGAIN JESUS began to teach beside the lake. And a very great crowd gathered about Him, so that He got into a ship in order to sit in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was at the lakeside on the shore.

    2And He taught them many things in parables (illustrations or comparisons put beside truths to explain them), and in His teaching He said to them:

    3Give attention to this! Behold, a sower went out to sow.

    4And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

    5Other seed [of the same kind] fell on ground full of rocks, where it had not much soil; and at once it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil;

    6And when the sun came up, it was scorched, and because it had not taken root, it withered away.

    7Other seed [of the same kind] fell among thorn plants, and the thistles grew and pressed together and utterly choked and suffocated it, and it yielded no grain.

    8And other seed [of the same kind] fell into good (well-adapted) soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing, and yielded up to thirty times as much, and sixty times as much, and even a hundred times as much as had been sown.

    9And He said, He who has ears to hear, let him be hearing [and let him ^[l]consider, and comprehend].

    10And as soon as He was alone, those who were around Him, with the Twelve [apostles], began to ask Him about the parables.

    11And He said to them, To you has been entrusted the mystery of the kingdom of God [that is, ^[m]the secret counsels of God which are hidden from the ungodly]; but for those outside [^[n]of our circle] everything becomes a parable,

    12In order that they may [indeed] look and look but not see and perceive, and may hear and hear but not grasp and comprehend, ^[o]lest haply they should turn again, and it [^[p]their willful rejection of the truth] should be forgiven them.^(B)

    13And He said to them, Do you not discern and understand this parable? How then is it possible for you to discern and understand all the parables?

    14The sower sows the Word.

    15The ones along the path are those who have the Word sown [in their hearts], but when they hear, Satan comes at once and [by force] takes away the message which is sown in them.

    16And in the same way the ones sown upon stony ground are those who, when they hear the Word, at once receive and accept and welcome it with joy;

    17And they have no real root in themselves, and so they endure for a little while; then when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Word, they immediately are offended (become displeased, indignant, resentful) and they stumble and fall away.

    18And the ones sown among the thorns are others who hear the Word;

    19Then the cares and anxieties of the world and distractions of the age, and the pleasure and delight and false glamour and deceitfulness of riches, and the craving and passionate desire for other things creep in and choke and suffocate the Word, and it becomes fruitless.

    20And those sown on the good (well-adapted) soil are the ones who hear the Word and receive and accept and welcome it and bear fruit--some thirty times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some [even] a hundred times as much.

    21And He said to them, Is the lamp brought in to be put under a ^[q]peck measure or under a bed, and not [to be put] on the lampstand?

    22[^[r]Things are hidden temporarily only as a means to revelation.] For there is nothing hidden except to be revealed, nor is anything [temporarily] kept secret except in order that it may be made known.

    23If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening and let him perceive and comprehend.

    24And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure ^[s][of thought and study] you give [to ^[t]the truth you hear] will be the measure ^[u][of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you--and more [besides] will be given to you who hear.

    25For to him who has will more be given; and from him who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away [^[v]by force],

    26And He said, The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seed upon the ground,

    27And then continues sleeping and rising night and day while the seed sprouts and grows and ^[w]increases--he knows not how.

    28The earth produces [acting] by itself--first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

    29But when the grain is ripe and permits, immediately he ^[x]sends forth [the reapers] and puts in the sickle, because the harvest stands ready.

    30And He said, With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use to illustrate and explain it?

    31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all seeds upon the earth;

    32Yet after it is sown, it grows up and becomes the greatest of all garden herbs and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air are able to make nests and dwell in its shade.

    33With many such parables [Jesus] spoke the Word to them, as they were able to hear and ^[y]to comprehend and understand.

    34He did not tell them anything without a parable; but privately to His disciples (^[z]those who were peculiarly His own) He explained everything [fully].

    35On that same day [when] evening had come, He said to them, Let us go over to the other side [of the lake].

    36And leaving the throng, they took Him with them, [just] as He was, in the boat [in which He was sitting]. And other boats were with Him.

    37And a furious storm of wind [^[aa]of hurricane proportions] arose, and the waves kept beating into the boat, so that it was already becoming filled.

    38But He [Himself] was in the stern [of the boat], asleep on the [leather] cushion; and they awoke Him and said to Him, Master, do You not care that we are perishing?

    39And He arose and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, Hush now! Be still (muzzled)! And the wind ceased (^[ab]sank to rest as if exhausted by its beating) and there was [immediately] a great calm (^[ac]a perfect peacefulness).

    40He said to them, Why are you so timid and fearful? How is it that you have no faith (no ^[ad]firmly relying trust)?

    41And they were filled with great awe and ^[ae]feared exceedingly and said one to another, Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey Him?

   

Mark 5

 1THEY CAME to the other side of the sea to the region of the Gerasenes.

    2And as soon as He got out of the boat, there met Him out of the tombs a man [under the power] of an unclean spirit.

    3This man ^[af]continually lived among the tombs, and no one could subdue him any more, even with a chain;

    4For he had been bound often with shackles for the feet and ^[ag]handcuffs, but the handcuffs of [light] chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he rubbed and ground together and broke in pieces; and no one had strength enough to restrain or tame him.

    5Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always ^[ah]shrieking and screaming and ^[ai]beating and bruising and ^[aj]cutting himself with stones.

    6And when from a distance he saw Jesus, he ran and fell on his knees before Him in homage,

    7And crying out with a loud voice, he said, What have You to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? [What is there in common between us?] I ^[ak]solemnly implore you by God, do not begin to torment me!

    8For Jesus was commanding, Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!

    9And He asked him, What is your name? He replied, My name is Legion, for we are many.

    10And he kept begging Him urgently not to send them [himself and the other demons] away out of that region.

    11Now a great herd of hogs was grazing there on the hillside.

    12And the demons begged Him, saying, Send us to the hogs, that we may go into them!

    13So He gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out [of the man] and entered into the hogs; and the herd, numbering about 2,000, rushed headlong down the steep slope into the sea and were drowned in the sea.

    14The hog feeders ran away, and told [it] in the town and in the country. And [the people] came to see what it was that had taken place.

    15And they came to Jesus and looked intently and searchingly at the man who had been a demoniac, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, [the same man] who had had the legion [of demons]; and they were ^[al]seized with alarm and struck with fear.

    16And those who had seen it related in full what had happened to the man possessed by demons and to the hogs.

    17And they began to beg [Jesus] to leave their neighborhood.

    18And when He had stepped into the boat, the man who had been controlled by the unclean spirits kept begging Him that he might be with Him.

    19But Jesus refused to permit him, but said to him, Go home to your own [family and relatives and friends] and bring back word to them of how much the Lord has done for you, and [how He has] had sympathy for you and mercy on you.

    20And he departed and began to publicly proclaim in Decapolis [the region of the ten cities] how much Jesus had done for him, and all the people were astonished and marveled.^(C)

    21And when Jesus had recrossed in the boat to the other side, a great throng gathered about Him, and He was at the lakeshore.

    22Then one of the rulers of the synagogue came up, Jairus by name; and seeing Him, he prostrated himself at His feet

    23And begged Him earnestly, saying, My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, so that she may be healed and live.

    24And Jesus went with him; and a great crowd kept following Him and pressed Him ^[am]from all sides [so as almost to suffocate Him].

    25And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years,

    26And who had endured much ^[an]suffering under [the hands of] many physicians and had spent all that she had, and was no better but instead grew worse.

    27She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment,

    28For she kept saying, If I only touch His garments, I shall be restored to health.

    29And immediately her flow of blood was dried up at the source, and [^[ao]suddenly] she felt in her body that she was healed of her [^[ap]distressing] ailment.

    30And Jesus, recognizing in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around immediately in the crowd and said, Who touched My clothes?

    31And the disciples kept saying to Him, You see the crowd pressing hard around You ^[aq]from all sides, and You ask, Who touched Me?

    32Still He kept looking around to see her who had done it.

    33But the woman, knowing what had been done for her, though alarmed and frightened and trembling, fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.

    34And He said to her, Daughter, your faith (your ^[ar]trust and confidence in Me, springing from faith in God) has restored you to health. Go in ^[as](into) peace and be continually healed and freed from your [^[at]distressing bodily] disease.

    35While He was still speaking, there came some from the ruler's house, who said [to Jairus], Your daughter has died. Why bother and distress the Teacher any further?

    36^[au]Overhearing but ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear; only keep on believing.

    37And He permitted no one to accompany Him except Peter and James and John the brother of James.

    38When they arrived at the house of the ruler of the synagogue, He ^[av]looked [carefully and with understanding] at [the] tumult and the people weeping and wailing loudly.

    39And when He had gone in, He said to them, Why do you make an uproar and weep? The little girl is not dead but is sleeping.

    40And they laughed and ^[aw]jeered at Him. But He put them all out, and, taking the child's father and mother and those who were with Him, He went in where the little girl was lying.

    41Gripping her [firmly] by the hand, He said to her, Talitha cumi--which translated is, Little girl, I say to you, arise [^[ax]from the sleep of death]!

    42And instantly the girl got up and started walking around--for she was twelve years old. And they were utterly astonished and overcome with amazement.

    43And He strictly commanded and warned them that no one should know this, and He [^[ay]expressly] told them to give her [something] to eat.

   

Footnotes:

1. Mark 3:1 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
2. Mark 3:2 Kenneth Wuest, Word Studies.
3. Mark 3:11 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
4. Mark 3:13 Kenneth Wuest, Word Studies.
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