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Friday, July 18th, 2025
the Week of Proper 10 / Ordinary 15
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Wycliffe Bible

Proverbs 31:3

Yyue thou not thi catel to wymmen, and thi richessis to do awei kyngis.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Adultery;   Chastity;   Young Men;   Thompson Chain Reference - Woman;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Chastity;   Kings;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Lemuel;   Proverb, the Book of;   Woman;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Lemuel;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Agur;   Lemuel;   Proverbs, the Book of;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Lemuel;   Proverbs, Book of;   Sex, Biblical Teaching on;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Acrostic;   Ethics;   Lemuel;   Marriage;   Massa;   Proverbs, Book of;   Song of Songs;   Trade and Commerce;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Lemuel ;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Lem'uel;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Lemuel;   Proverbs, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Chastity;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Don’t spend your energy on womenor your efforts on those who destroy kings.
Hebrew Names Version
Don't give your strength to women, Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
King James Version
Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.
English Standard Version
Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings.
New American Standard Bible
Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings.
New Century Version
Don't waste your strength on women or your time on those who ruin kings.
Amplified Bible
Do not give your [generative] strength to women [neither foreign wives in marriages of alliances, nor concubines], Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
World English Bible
Don't give your strength to women, Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Giue not thy strength vnto women, nor thy wayes, which is to destroy Kings.
Legacy Standard Bible
Do not give your excellence to women,Or your ways to that which blots out kings.
Berean Standard Bible
Do not spend your strength on women or your vigor on those who ruin kings.
Contemporary English Version
Don't waste your life chasing after women! This has ruined many kings.
Complete Jewish Bible
Don't give your strength to women or your ways to that which destroys kings.
Darby Translation
Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to them that destroy kings.
Easy-to-Read Version
Don't waste your strength on women. Women destroy kings, so don't waste yourself on them.
George Lamsa Translation
Give not your strength to women, nor your ways to the extravagance of kings.
Good News Translation
Don't spend all your energy on sex and all your money on women; they have destroyed kings.
Lexham English Bible
Do not give your strength to the women, and your ways to destroy kings.
Literal Translation
Do not give your strength to women, or your ways to that which wipes out kings.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
geue not ouer thy substaunce & mynde vnto women, which are the destruccio eue of kynges.
American Standard Version
Give not thy strength unto women, Nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.
Bible in Basic English
Do not give your strength to women, or your ways to that which is the destruction of kings.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.
King James Version (1611)
Giue not thy strength vnto women, nor thy wayes to that which destroyeth kings.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Geue not ouer thy strength & wayes vnto women, which are the destruction euen of kynges.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
When a man loves wisdom, his father rejoices: but he that keeps harlots will waste wealth.
English Revised Version
Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.
Update Bible Version
Don't give your strength to women, Nor your ways to [those women who] destroy kings.
Webster's Bible Translation
Give not thy strength to women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.
New English Translation
Do not give your strength to women, nor your ways to that which ruins kings.
New King James Version
Do not give your strength to women, Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
New Living Translation
do not waste your strength on women, on those who ruin kings.
New Life Bible
Do not give your strength to women, or your ways to that which destroys kings.
New Revised Standard
Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Do not give, to women, thy strength, nor thy ways, to them who ruin kings.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Give not thy substance to women, and thy riches to destroy kings.
Revised Standard Version
Give not your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings.
Young's Literal Translation
Give not to women thy strength, And thy ways to wiping away of kings.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings.

Contextual Overview

1 The wordis of Lamuel, the king; the visioun bi which his modir tauyte hym. 2 What my derlyng? what the derlyng of my wombe? what the derlyng of my desiris? 3 Yyue thou not thi catel to wymmen, and thi richessis to do awei kyngis. 4 A! Lamuel, nyle thou yiue wyn to kingis; for no pryuete is, where drunkenesse regneth. 5 Lest perauenture thei drynke, and foryete domes, and chaunge the cause of the sones of a pore man. 6 Yyue ye sidur to hem that morenen, and wyn to hem that ben of bitter soule. 7 Drinke thei, and foryete thei her nedinesse; and thenke thei no more on her sorewe. 8 Opene thi mouth for a doumb man, 9 and opene thi mouth for the causes of alle sones that passen forth. Deme thou that that is iust, and deme thou a nedi man and a pore man.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

strength: Proverbs 5:9-11, Proverbs 7:26, Proverbs 7:27, Hosea 4:11

to that: Deuteronomy 17:17, Nehemiah 13:26

Reciprocal: Proverbs 5:10 - wealth Acts 24:25 - temperance

Cross-References

Genesis 13:15
Y schal yyue al the lond which thou seest to thee and to thi seed, til in to with outen ende.
Genesis 21:22
In the same tyme Abymelech, and Ficol, prince of his oost, seide to Abraham, God is with thee in alle thingis whiche thou doist;
Genesis 26:24
where the Lord God apperide to him in that nyyt; and seide, Y am God of Abraham, thi fadir; nyle thou drede, for Y am with thee, and Y schal blesse thee, and Y schal multiplie thi seed for my seruaunt Abraham.
Genesis 28:4
and God yyue to thee the blessyngis of Abraham, and to thi seed aftir thee, that thou welde the lond of thi pilgrymage, which he bihiyte to thi grauntsir.
Genesis 28:13
and the Lord fastned to the laddir, seiynge to hym, Y am the Lord God of Abraham, thi fadir, and God of Isaac; Y schal yyue to thee and to thi seed the lond in which thou slepist.
Genesis 30:25
Sotheli whanne Joseph was borun, Jacob seide to his wyues fadir, Delyuere thou me, that Y turne ayen in to my cuntrey and to my lond.
Genesis 31:2
Also Jacob perseyuede the face of Laban, that it was not ayens hym as yistirdai, and the thridde dai agoon,
Genesis 31:3
moost for the Lord seide to hym, Turne ayen into the lond of thi fadris, and to thi generacioun, and Y shal be with thee.
Genesis 31:5
Y se the face of youre fadir, that it is not ayens me as `yisterdai and the thridde dai agoon; but God of my fadir was with me.
Genesis 31:13
Y am God of Bethel, where thou anoyntidist a stoon, and madist auow to me. Now therefor rise thou, and go out of this lond, and turne ayen in to the lond of thi birthe.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Give not thy strength unto women,.... Strength of body, which is weakened by an excessive use of venery b with a multiplicity of women; see, Proverbs 5:9; and strength of mind, reason, and wisdom, which is impaired by conversation with such persons; whereby time is consumed and lost, which should be spent in the improvement of knowledge: or "thy riches", as the Septuagint and Arabic versions, thy substance, which harlots devour, and who bring a man to a piece of bread, as the prodigal was, Proverbs 6:26; and even drain the coffers of kings and princes;

nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings; do not give thy mind to take such courses, and pursue such ways and methods, as bring ruin on kings and kingdoms, as conversation with harlots does; see Proverbs 7:26. Some think the design of this advice is to warn against any ambitious views of enlarging his dominions by invading neighbouring countries, and making war with neighbouring kings, to the ruin of them; but the former sense seems best. The Targum is,

"nor thy ways to the daughters of kings.''

Solomon was given to women, who proved very pernicious to him,

1 Kings 11:1. Some render it, "which destroyeth counsel" c; for whoredom weakens the mind as well as the body.

b "Venus enervat vireis", Avienus. c Don Joseph apud Schindler. col. 990.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

To that which destroyeth - The temptations of the harem were then, as now, the curse of all Eastern kingdoms.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Proverbs 31:3. Give not thy strength — Do not waste thy substance on women. In such intercourse the strength of body, soul and substance is destroyed. Such connections are those which destroy kings, מלכין melachin, the Chaldee termination instead of the Hebrew.


 
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