He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter. He was like a stag caught in a trap,
Parallel translations
- WEB He followed her immediately, as an ox goes to the slaughter, as a fool stepping into a noose.
- KJV He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;
- BSB He follows her on impulse, like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer bounding into a trap,
- NKJV Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, Or as a fool to the correction of the stocks,
- NASB Suddenly he follows her As an ox goes to the slaughter, Or as one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
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 follows her at once, as unaware of his doom as an ox going to slaughter. He rushes into ruin without understanding.
Overview
The young man goes after her immediately, compared to an ox led unsuspecting to its death and a fool walking into a trap. The imagery captures both his thoughtlessness and the deadly outcome awaiting him. It vividly portrays how sin leads the heedless to destruction.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Job 13:27You also put my feet in the stocks, and mark all my paths. You set a bound to the soles of my feet,
- Acts 16:24who, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison, and secured their feet in the stocks.
- Jer 20:2Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was in Yahweh’s house.
- Acts 14:13The priest of Jupiter, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, and would have made a sacrifice along with the multitudes.
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 7:22 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.