6  My son, if you have ^fput up security for your neighbor,

have given your pledge for a stranger,

2  if you are ^gsnared in the words of your mouth,

caught in the words of your mouth,

3  then do this, my son, and save yourself,

for you have come into the hand of your neighbor:

go, hasten,¹ and plead urgently with your neighbor.

4  ^hGive your eyes ⁱno sleep

and your eyelids no slumber;

5  save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter,²

like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6  ^jGo to the ^kant, O sluggard;

consider her ways, and be wise.

7  ^lWithout having any chief,

officer, or ruler,

8  she prepares her bread ^min summer

and gathers her food in harvest.

9  How long will you lie there, O sluggard?

When will you arise from your sleep?

10  ⁿA little sleep, a little slumber,

a little ^ofolding of the hands to rest,

11  and ^ppoverty will come upon you like a robber,

and want like an armed man.

12  A worthless person, a wicked man,

goes about with ^qcrooked speech,

13  ^rwinks with his eyes, signals³ with his feet,

^spoints with his finger,

14  with perverted heart ^tdevises evil,

continually sowing ^udiscord;

15  therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;

^vin a moment he will be broken beyond healing.

16  There are ^wsix things that the Lord hates,

seven that are an abomination to him:

17  haughty eyes, a lying tongue,

and hands that shed innocent blood,

18  a heart that devises wicked plans,

^xfeet that make haste to run to evil,

19  a false witness who ^ybreathes out lies,

and one who sows discord among brothers.

20  My son, keep your ^zfather’s commandment,

and ^aforsake not ^byour mother’s teaching.

21  ^cBind them on your heart always;

tie them around your neck.

22  ^dWhen you walk, they⁴ will lead you;

when you lie down, they will watch over you;

and when you awake, they will talk with you.

23  For the commandment is a ^elamp and the teaching a light,

and the ^freproofs of ^gdiscipline are the way of life,

24  ^hto preserve you from the evil woman,⁵

from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.⁶

25  Do not desire her beauty in your heart,

and do not let her capture you ⁱwith her eyelashes;

26  for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread,⁷

but a married woman⁸ hunts down a precious life.

27  Can a man carry ^jfire next to his chest

and his clothes not be burned?

28  Or can one walk on hot coals

and his feet not be scorched?

29  So is he who goes in to ^khis neighbor’s wife;

none who touches her will go unpunished.

30  People do not despise a thief if he steals

to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry,

31  but ^lif he is caught, he will pay ^msevenfold;

he will give all the goods of his house.

32  He who ⁿcommits adultery lacks sense;

he who does it destroys himself.

33  He will get wounds and dishonor,

and his disgrace will not be wiped away.

34  For ^ojealousy makes a man furious,

and he will not spare when he takes revenge.

35  He will accept no compensation;

he will refuse though you multiply gifts.

7  My son, keep my words

and ^ptreasure up my commandments with you;

2  ^qkeep my commandments ^rand live;

keep my teaching as ^sthe apple of your eye;

3  ^tbind them on your fingers;

write them on the tablet of your heart.

4  Say to wisdom, “You are ^umy sister,”

and call insight your intimate friend,

5  ^vto keep you from the forbidden¹ woman,

from the adulteress² with her smooth words.

6  For at the window of my house

I have looked out through my lattice,

7  and I have seen among the simple,

I have perceived among the youths,

a young man lacking sense,

8  passing along the street near her corner,

taking the road to ^wher house

9  in the ^xtwilight, in the evening,

at the time of night and darkness.

10  And behold, the woman meets him,

dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.³

11  She is ^yloud and wayward;

her feet do not stay at home;

12  now in the street, now in the market,

and at every corner ^zshe lies in wait.

13  ^aShe seizes him and kisses him,

and with bold face she says to him,

14  “I had to offer ^bsacrifices,⁴

and today I have paid my vows;

15  so now I have come out to meet you,

to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.

16  I have spread my couch with coverings,

colored linens from Egyptian ^clinen;

17  I have ^dperfumed my bed with myrrh,

aloes, and cinnamon.

18  Come, let us take our ^efill of love till morning;

let us delight ourselves with love.

19  For ^fmy husband is not at home;

he has gone on a long journey;

20  he took a bag of money with him;

at full moon he will come home.”

21  With much seductive speech she persuades him;

with her ^gsmooth talk she compels him.

22  All at once he follows her,

as an ox goes to the slaughter,

or as a stag is caught fast⁵

23  till an arrow pierces its liver;

as a bird rushes into a snare;

he does not know that it will cost him his life.

24  And now, O sons, listen to me,

and be attentive to the words of my mouth.

25  ^hLet not your heart turn aside to her ways;

do not stray into her paths,

26  for many a victim has she laid low,

and all her slain are a mighty throng.

27  ⁱHer house is the way to Sheol,

going down to the chambers of death.

8  ^jDoes not wisdom call?

Does not understanding raise her voice?

2  ^kOn the heights beside the way,

at the crossroads she takes her stand;

3  beside the gates in front of the town,

at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud:

4  “To you, O men, I call,

and my cry is to the children of man.

5  O ^lsimple ones, learn prudence;

O fools, ^mlearn sense.

6  Hear, for I will speak noble things,

and from my lips will come what is right,

7  for my mouth will utter truth;

wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

8  All the words of my mouth are righteous;

there is nothing twisted or ⁿcrooked in them.

9  They are all straight to him who understands,

and right to those who find knowledge.

10  ^oTake my ^pinstruction instead of ^qsilver,

and knowledge rather than choice gold,

11  for wisdom is ^rbetter than jewels,

and ^sall that you may desire cannot compare with her.

12  “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,

and I find knowledge and discretion.

13  ^tThe fear of the Lord is ^uhatred of evil.

Pride and arrogance and the way of evil

and ^vperverted speech I hate.

14  I have counsel and sound wisdom;

I have insight; I have strength.

15  By me kings reign,

and rulers decree what is just;

16  by me princes rule,

and nobles, all who govern justly.¹

17  I love those who love me,

and those who ^wseek me diligently find me.

18  Riches and honor are with me,

enduring wealth and righteousness.

19  My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,

and my yield than ^xchoice silver.

20  I walk in the ^yway of righteousness,

in the paths of justice,

21  granting an inheritance to those who love me,

and filling their treasuries.

22  ^z“The Lord ^apossessed² me ^bat the beginning of his work,³

the first of his acts of old.

23  Ages ago I was set up,

at the first, ^cbefore the beginning of the earth.

24  When there were no depths I was brought forth,

when there were no springs abounding with water.

25  ^dBefore the mountains had been shaped,

before the hills, I was brought forth,

26  before he had made the earth with its fields,

or ^ethe first of the dust of the world.

27  When he ^festablished the heavens, I was there;

when he ^gdrew a circle on the face of the deep,

28  ^hwhen he made firm the skies above,

when he established⁴ the ⁱfountains of the deep,

29  ^jwhen he ^kassigned to the sea its limit,

so that the waters might not transgress his command,

when he marked out the foundations of the earth,

30  then I was ^lbeside him, like a master workman,

and I was daily his⁵ delight,

rejoicing before him always,

31  rejoicing in his inhabited world

and delighting in the children of man.

32  “And now, O sons, listen to me:

blessed are those who keep my ways.

33  Hear instruction and be wise,

and do not ^mneglect it.

34  ⁿBlessed is the one who listens to me,

watching daily at my gates,

waiting beside my doors.

35  For whoever finds me finds ^olife

and obtains favor from the Lord,

36  but he who fails to find me injures himself;

all who hate me love death.”

9  Wisdom has built her house;

she has hewn her seven pillars.

2  She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine;

she has also set her table.

3  She has sent out her young women to ^pcall

from the highest places in the town,

4  ^q“Whoever is ^rsimple, let him turn in here!”

To him who lacks sense she says,

5  “Come, eat of my bread

and drink of the wine I have mixed.

6  Leave your simple ways,¹ and live,

and walk in the way of ^sinsight.”

7  ^tWhoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse,

and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury.

8  Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you;

^ureprove a wise man, and he will love you.

9  Give instruction² to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;

teach a righteous man, and he will ^vincrease in learning.

10  ^wThe fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,

and the ^xknowledge of the Holy One is ^yinsight.

11  For by me your days will be ^zmultiplied,

and years will be added to your life.

12  If you are wise, you are wise for yourself;

if you scoff, you alone will bear it.

13  The woman Folly is ^aloud;

she is seductive³ and knows nothing.

14  She sits at the door of ^bher house;

she takes a seat ^con the highest places of the town,

15  calling to those who pass by,

who are going straight on their way,

16  ^d“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”

And to him who lacks sense she says,

17  “Stolen ^ewater is sweet,

and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”

18  ^fBut he does not know that the dead⁴ are there,

that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

^hA wise son makes a glad ⁱfather,

but ^ja foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.

2  ^kTreasures gained ^lby wickedness do not profit,

but righteousness delivers from death.

3  ^mThe Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,

but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.

4  ⁿA slack hand causes poverty,

^obut the hand of the diligent makes rich.

5  He who gathers ^pin summer is a prudent son,

but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.

6  Blessings are on the head of the righteous,

^qbut the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.¹

7  ^rThe memory of the righteous is a blessing,

but the name of the wicked will rot.

8  The wise of heart will receive commandments,

but ^sa babbling fool will come to ruin.

9  Whoever ^twalks in integrity ^uwalks securely,

but he who makes his ways ^vcrooked will be found out.

10  Whoever ^wwinks the eye causes trouble,

and a babbling fool will come to ruin.

11  The mouth of the righteous ^xis a fountain of life,

but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

12  Hatred stirs up ^ystrife,

but love ^zcovers all offenses.

13  On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found,

but ^aa rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.

14  The wise lay up knowledge,

^bbut the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.

15  ^cA rich man’s wealth is his strong city;

the poverty of the poor is their ruin.

16  ^dThe wage of the righteous leads to ^elife,

the gain of the wicked to sin.

17  Whoever heeds ^finstruction is on the path to life,

but he who rejects reproof leads others astray.

18  The one who ^gconceals hatred has ^hlying lips,

and whoever utters slander is a fool.

19  ⁱWhen words are many, transgression is not lacking,

but ^jwhoever restrains his lips is prudent.

20  The tongue of the righteous is ^kchoice silver;

the heart of the wicked is of little worth.

21  The lips of the righteous feed many,

but fools die for lack of sense.

22  The blessing of the Lord makes rich,

and he adds no sorrow with it.²

23  Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool,

but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.

24  What the wicked dreads will come upon him,

but ^lthe desire of the righteous will be granted.

25  ^mWhen the tempest passes, the wicked is no more,

but the righteous is established forever.

26  Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,

so is the sluggard to those who send him.

27  The fear of the Lord ⁿprolongs life,

but the years of the wicked will be short.

28  ^oThe hope of the righteous brings joy,

but ^pthe expectation of the wicked will perish.

29  The way of the Lord is a stronghold to the blameless,

^qbut destruction to evildoers.

30  ^rThe righteous will never be removed,

but the wicked will not dwell in the land.

31  ^sThe mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,

but the ^tperverse tongue will be cut off.

32  The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,

but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.