Who forsakes the companion of her youth, And forgets the covenant of her God.
Parallel translations
- WEB who forsakes the friend of her youth, and forgets the covenant of her God:
- KJV Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.
- BSB who abandons the partner of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God.
- NASB Who leaves the companion of her youth And forgets the covenant of her God;
- NLT She has abandoned her husband and ignores the covenant she made before God.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
She has abandoned her husband and forgotten the covenant of her God. It matters because it shows sexual sin involves breaking sacred covenant bonds.
Overview
Her unfaithfulness is not merely social but covenantal, forsaking both the companion of her youth and her vows before God. Marriage is portrayed as a covenant under God, not a mere contract. This dignifies marriage and reflects the covenant faithfulness God shows His people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Ezek 16:59–60“‘For thus says the Lord Yahweh: “I will also deal with you as you have done, who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant.
- Jer 3:4Will you not from this time cry to me, ‘My Father, you are the guide of my youth?’
- Ezek 16:8“‘“Now when I passed by you, and looked at you, behold, your time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over you, and covered your nakedness: yes, I swore to you, and entered into a covenant with you,” says the Lord Yahweh, “and you became mine.
- Mal 2:14–16Yet you say, ‘Why?’ Because Yahweh has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your companion, and the wife of your covenant.
- Prov 5:18Let your spring be blessed. Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 2:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.