Limitless Word
I have come to the brink of utter ruin, among the gathered assembly.”
Proverbs 5:14 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.
  • BSB I am on the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.”
  • NKJV I was on the verge of total ruin, In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
  • NASB “I was almost in total ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
  • NLT I have come to the brink of utter ruin, and now I must face public disgrace.”

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

He came to the brink of complete ruin before the whole assembly. Sin can bring one to public disgrace and near destruction.

Overview

The lamenter confesses that he reached the edge of utter ruin, and that within the public gathering, exposed to shame before the community. Sin pursued in secret often ends in open disgrace. This climax of the warning urges the wise to flee immorality before such ruin overtakes them.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Prov 13:20One who walks with wise men grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.
  • 2 Pet 2:10–18but chiefly those who walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries;
  • 1 Cor 10:6–8Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
  • Num 25:1–6Israel stayed in Shittim; and the people began to play the prostitute with the daughters of Moab;
  • Hos 4:11–14Prostitution, wine, and new wine take away understanding.
  • Jude 1:7–13Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them, having, in the same way as these, given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are shown as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Proverbs videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Proverbs 5:14YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ProverbsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 5:14 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.