Proverbs 7
1 My son! Keep my sayings, And lay up my commands with you.
My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee.
2 Keep my commands, and live, And my law as the pupil of your eye.
Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thy eye.
3 Bind them on your fingers, Write them on the tablet of your heart.
Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thy heart.
4 Say to wisdom, “You [are] my sister.” And cry to understanding, “Relative!”
Say to wisdom, Thou [art] my sister; and call understanding [thy] kinswoman:
5 To preserve you from a strange woman, From a stranger who has made her sayings smooth.
That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger [which] flattereth with her words.
6 For at a window of my house, I have looked out through my casement,
For at the window of my house I looked through my casement,
7 And I see among the simple ones, I discern among the sons, A young man lacking understanding,
And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,
8 Passing on in the street, near her corner, And the way [to] her house he steps,
Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house.
9 In the twilight—in the evening of day, In the darkness of night and blackness.
In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:
10 And behold, a woman to meet him—(A harlot’s dress, and watchful of heart,
And behold, there met him a woman [with] the attire of a harlot, and subtil of heart.
11 She [is] noisy, and stubborn, her feet do not rest in her house.
(She [is] loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house:
12 Now in an out-place, now in broad places, And she lies in wait near every corner)—
Now [is she] without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.)
13 And she laid hold on him and kissed him, She has hardened her face and says to him,
So she caught him, and kissed him, [and] with an impudent face said to him,
14 “Sacrifices of peace-offerings [are] by me, Today I have completed my vows.
[I have] peace-offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come forth to meet you, To earnestly seek your face, and I find you.
Therefore I came forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.
16 I decked my bed [with] ornamental coverings, Carved works—cotton of Egypt.
I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved [works], with fine linen of Egypt.
17 I sprinkled my bed [with] myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, we are filled [with] love until the morning, We delight ourselves in loves.
Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves.
19 For the man is not in his house, He has gone on a long journey.
For the good-man [is] not at home, he is gone a long journey:
20 He has taken a bag of money in his hand, At the day of the new moon he comes to his house.”
He hath taken a bag of money with him, [and] will come home at the day appointed.
21 She turns him aside with the abundance of her speech, She forces him with the flattery of her lips.
With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she impelled him.
22 He is going after her straight away, he comes as an ox to the slaughter, And as a chain to the discipline of a fool,
He goeth after her quickly, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;
23 Until an arrow splits his liver, As a bird has hurried to a snare, And has not known that it [is] for its life.
Till a dart striketh through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it [is] for his life.
24 And now, you sons, listen to me, And give attention to sayings of my mouth.
Now therefore hearken to me, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn to her ways, Do not wander in her paths,
Let not thy heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths.
26 For many [are] the wounded she caused to fall, And mighty [are] all her slain ones.
For she hath cast down many wounded: yes, many strong [men] have been slain by her.
