The ad, which ran as a poster and in Marie Claire, showed the man with his back to the camera with his hands crossed and bound above his head, smiling as he is whipped.
The back of a topless woman and the forearm of a third person who is also holding a whip can also be seen.
Nine complainants objected to the ad saying that it was excessively violent and offensive, condoned violence and was degrading, particularly because the poster could be seen by children.
However, the Advertising Standards Authority rejected these complaints.
"We considered the magazine ad was likely to be seen as a stylised fashion ad and that readers were unlikely to be offended or see it as condoning violence."
The watchdog also said the ad was unlikely to be seen by or harm children.
Marie Claire accepted that the ad could cause offence to some readers, but said that its magazine was not targeted at children so they were unlikely to see the ad.
Diesel said it appreciated that the type of imagery may not have been suitable for outdoor advertising and agreed that it would not repeat the approach again.
"The poster could be seen by everyone, it could be seen as condoning violence and was likely to cause serious or widespread offence. We told Diesel not to repeat the approach on poster," the watchdog said.
The ASA advised Diesel to consult the CAP copy advice team before preparing similar advertising in the future.
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