Proverbs 6
1 My son, if you be surety for your friend, if you have stricken your hand with a stranger,
My son! if thou hast been surety for thy friend, Hast stricken for a stranger thy hand,
2 You are snared with the words of your mouth, you are taken with the words of your mouth.
Hast been snared with sayings of thy mouth, Hast been captured with sayings of thy mouth,
3 Do this now, my son, and deliver yourself, when you are come into the hand of your friend; go, humble yourself, and make sure your friend.
Do this now, my son, and be delivered, For thou hast come into the hand of thy friend. Go, trample on thyself, and strengthen thy friend,
4 Give not sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eyelids.
Give not sleep to thine eyes, And slumber to thine eyelids,
5 Deliver yourself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.
Be delivered as a roe from the hand, And as a bird from the hand of a fowler.
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:
Go unto the ant, O slothful one, See her ways and be wise;
7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,
Which hath not captain, overseer, and ruler,
8 Provides her meat in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest.
She doth prepare in summer her bread, She hath gathered in harvest her food.
9 How long will you sleep, O sluggard? when will you arise out of your sleep?
Till when, O slothful one, dost thou lie? When dost thou arise from thy sleep?
10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
A little sleep, a little slumber, A little clasping of the hands to rest,
11 So shall your poverty come as one that travels, and your want as an armed man.
And thy poverty hath come as a traveller, And thy want as an armed man.
12 A naughty person, a wicked man, walks with a fraudulent mouth.
A man of worthlessness, a man of iniquity, Walking [with] perverseness of mouth,
13 He winks with his eyes, he speaks with his feet, he teaches with his fingers;
Winking with his eyes, speaking with his feet, Directing with his fingers,
14 Frowardness is in his heart, he devises mischief continually; he sows discord.
Frowardness [is] in his heart, devising evil at all times, Contentions he sendeth forth.
15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.
Therefore suddenly cometh his calamity, Instantly he is broken — and no healing.
16 These six things does the LORD hate: yes, seven are an abomination to him:
These six hath Jehovah hated, Yea, seven [are] abominations to His soul.
17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
Eyes high — tongues false — And hands shedding innocent blood —
18 An heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
A heart devising thoughts of vanity — Feet hasting to run to evil —
19 A false witness that speaks lies, and he that sows discord among brothers.
A false witness [who] doth breathe out lies — And one sending forth contentions between brethren.
20 My son, keep your father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of your mother:
Keep, my son, the command of thy father, And leave not the law of thy mother.
21 Bind them continually on your heart, and tie them about your neck.
Bind them on thy heart continually, Tie them on thy neck.
22 When you go, it shall lead you; when you sleep, it shall keep you; and when you wake, it shall talk with you.
In thy going up and down, it leadeth thee, In thy lying down, it watcheth over thee, And thou hast awaked — it talketh [with] thee.
23 For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:
For a lamp [is] the command, And the law a light, And a way of life [are] reproofs of instruction,
24 To keep you from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.
To preserve thee from an evil woman, From the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.
25 Lust not after her beauty in your heart; neither let her take you with her eyelids.
Desire not her beauty in thy heart, And let her not take thee with her eyelids.
26 For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life.
For a harlot consumeth unto a cake of bread, And an adulteress the precious soul hunteth.
27 Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?
Doth a man take fire into his bosom, And are his garments not burnt?
28 Can one go on hot coals, and his feet not be burned?
Doth a man walk on the hot coals, And are his feet not scorched?
29 So he that goes in to his neighbor’s wife; whoever touches her shall not be innocent.
So [is] he who hath gone in unto the wife of his neighbour, None who doth touch her is innocent.
30 Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry;
They do not despise the thief, When he stealeth to fill his soul when he is hungry,
31 But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.
And being found he repayeth sevenfold, All the substance of his house he giveth.
32 But whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding: he that does it destroys his own soul.
He who committeth adultery [with] a woman lacketh heart, He is destroying his soul who doth it.
33 A wound and dishonor shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away.
A stroke and shame he doth find, And his reproach is not wiped away,
34 For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
For jealousy [is] the fury of a man, And he doth not spare in a day of vengeance.
35 He will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though you give many gifts.
He accepteth not the appearance of any atonement, Yea, he doth not consent, Though thou dost multiply bribes!
