20  ^lMy son, keep your father’s commandment,

^land forsake not your mother’s teaching.

21  ^mBind them on your heart always;

ⁿtie them around your neck.

22  ^oWhen you walk, they¹ will lead you;

^owhen you lie down, they will ^pwatch over you;

and when you awake, they will talk with you.

23  For the commandment is ^qa lamp and the teaching a light,

and the ^rreproofs of discipline are the way of life,

24  to preserve you from the evil woman,²

from the smooth tongue of ^sthe adulteress.³

25  ^tDo not desire her beauty in your heart,

and do not let her capture you with her ^ueyelashes;

26  for ^vthe price of a prostitute is only ^wa loaf of bread,⁴

but a married woman^{5 x}hunts down a precious life.

27  Can a man carry ^yfire next to his ^zchest

and his clothes not be burned?

28  Or can one ^awalk on hot coals

and his feet not be scorched?

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

none who touches her ^bwill go unpunished.

30  People do not despise a thief if he steals

to ^csatisfy his appetite when he is hungry,

31  but ^dif he is caught, he will pay ^esevenfold;

he will give all the goods of his house.

32  He who commits 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 ^fjealousy makes a man furious,

and he will not spare when ^ghe takes revenge.

35  He will accept no compensation;

he will refuse though you multiply gifts.