Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well.
English Standard Version (ESV)
It's easy to hear this as just advice to be faithful in marriage, but notice the specific words: "cistern" and "well." A cistern collects and holds water, while a well is a source that bubbles up—together, they represent a sustained and abundant provision, highlighting that the true delights of intimacy are meant to be a rich, ongoing source of satisfaction, not just a fleeting escape.
Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well.
English Standard Version (ESV)
After sternly warning against the seductive allure of the "strange woman" and the destructive path she represents, the teacher pivots. He now offers a counter-vision, a commendation of the faithful enjoyment of marital intimacy as the pure and satisfying source of natural desires. This verse, and the ones immediately following, use vivid imagery of water to highlight the value and satisfaction found within a committed marriage, contrasting it with the illicit and ultimately empty pursuits being warned against.
In a world that often screams for more, this verse paints a picture of deep satisfaction found right where you are. What makes the 'waters' of your own life so precious?
Solomon uses the imagery of a 'cistern' and a 'well' to speak about the joys and provisions found within marriage. These weren't just casual metaphors; in the arid lands of ancient Israel, a reliable source of water was a treasure, essential for life and sustenance.
A Source of Life
Your 'cistern' and 'well' represent the intimate, life-giving relationship within marriage. It's a place of refreshment, purity, and satisfaction designed by God. The 'running waters' suggest a continuous, abundant supply – the ongoing blessings and pleasures of a faithful union.
Contrast with Stolen Pleasures
This image stands in stark contrast to the 'stolen waters' the young man is tempted by. Those fleeting, illicit encounters are compared to dirty, stagnant water, or worse, a broken cistern that cannot hold water at all (Jeremiah 2:13). They offer a deceptive appearance of sweetness but lead to ultimate emptiness and destruction.
Why does the Bible so strongly advocate for faithfulness in marriage? This verse points to a deeper purpose beyond mere rules.
Proverbs 5 isn't just about avoiding bad choices; it's about embracing the good. The exhortation to 'drink from your own cistern' is a powerful endorsement of marital fidelity as God's design for human flourishing.
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The Blessing of Belonging
Marriage is intended to be a unique place of exclusivity and deep connection. The 'waters' from your own well are pure, reliable, and meant for you alone. This imagery underscores the value and sanctity of the marital covenant, where intimacy is protected and cherished.
Foundation for a Pure Life
By finding satisfaction within the boundaries of marriage, a person safeguards their heart, conscience, and reputation. This contentment is presented not as a restriction, but as a source of true joy and peace, preventing the destructive consequences that come from pursuing forbidden desires.
Understand the original words
bor · Hebrew Noun
A man-made reservoir for water, used symbolically in this context to represent the legitimate, divinely ordained relationship within marriage as a source of satisfaction and life.
This passage uses similar imagery, calling the bride a 'fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon,' directly comparing the wife to a pure and abundant source of refreshment, much like the cistern and well in Proverbs.
Jeremiah 2:13Here, God likens Himself to a 'fountain of living waters' and rebukes Israel for abandoning Him for 'broken cisterns that can hold no water,' highlighting the immense value of true, life-giving sources and the folly of seeking satisfaction elsewhere.
Isaiah 51:1This verse calls the people to 'look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug,' drawing a parallel between the source of physical life (wells and cisterns) and the spiritual heritage found in God and His promises.
1 Corinthians 7:9Paul echoes the sentiment of channeling natural desires into the proper place, advising that if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, reinforcing the idea that marriage is the God-ordained and healthy outlet for these impulses.
bensonProverbs 5:15: "Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well."
Proverbs 5:15 . Drink waters out of thine own cistern — “The allegory here begun is carried on through several verses. It has been differently understood; but the interpretation which seems most generally followed, is that of those who conceive that the wise man here subjoins a commendation of matrimony, and the chaste preservation of the marriage- bed, for the propagation of a legitimate offspring…
clarkeProverbs 5:15: "Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well."
Drink waters out of thine own cistern - Be satisfied with thy own wife; and let the wife see that she reverence her husband; and not tempt him by inattention or unkindness to seek elsewhere what he has a right to expect, but cannot find, at home.
It's easy to hear this as just advice to be faithful in marriage, but notice the specific words: "cistern" and "well." A cistern collects and holds water, while a well is a source that bubbles up—together, they represent a sustained and abundant provision, highlighting that the true delights of intimacy are meant to be a rich, ongoing source of satisfaction, not just a fleeting escape.
After sternly warning against the seductive allure of the "strange woman" and the destructive path she represents, the teacher pivots. He now offers a counter-vision, a commendation of the faithful enjoyment of marital intimacy as the pure and satisfying source of natural desires. This verse, and the ones immediately following, use vivid imagery of water to highlight the value and satisfaction found within a committed marriage, contrasting it with the illicit and ultimately empty pursuits being warned against.
After sternly warning against the seductive allure of the "strange woman" and the destructive path she represents, the teacher pivots. He now offers a counter-vision, a commendation of the faithful enjoyment of marital intimacy as the pure and satisfying source of natural desires. This verse, and the ones immediately following, use vivid imagery of water to highlight the value and satisfaction found within a committed marriage, contrasting it with the illicit and ultimately empty pursuits being warned against.
"Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well." — It's easy to hear this as just advice to be faithful in marriage, but notice the specific words: "cistern" and "well." A cistern collects and holds water, while a well is a source that bubbles up—tog…
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Last reviewed October 2026