Proverbs 6
1 My son, if thou have become surety for thy neighbour, —have struck for a stranger thy hands,
My son! if thou hast been surety for thy friend, Hast stricken for a stranger thy hand,
2 Thou hast been snared by the sayings of thy mouth, —thou hast been caught by the sayings of thy mouth.
Hast been snared with sayings of thy mouth, Hast been captured with sayings of thy mouth,
3 Do this then, my son, and deliver thyself, When thou hast come into the hand of thy neighbour, Go, haste thee, and urge thy neighbour;
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 Do not give sleep to thine eyes, or slumber to thine eyelashes;
Give not sleep to thine eyes, And slumber to thine eyelids,
5 Deliver thyself, as a gazelle out of the hand, and as a bird, out of 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, thou sluggard, observe her ways, and be wise;
Go unto the ant, O slothful one, See her ways and be wise;
7 Which, having no harvest, scribe, or ruler,
Which hath not captain, overseer, and ruler,
8 Prepareth, in the summer, her food, hath collected, in the harvest, her sustenance.
She doth prepare in summer her bread, She hath gathered in harvest her food.
9 How long, O sluggard, wilt thou lie? how long ere thou rise from thy sleep?
Till when, O slothful one, dost thou lie? When dost thou arise from thy sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest: —
A little sleep, a little slumber, A little clasping of the hands to rest,
11 So shall come in, as a highwayman, thy poverty, and, thy want, as one armed with a shield.
And thy poverty hath come as a traveller, And thy want as an armed man.
12 An abandoned man, a man of iniquity, [is he] who—goeth on in perversity of mouth;
A man of worthlessness, a man of iniquity, Walking [with] perverseness of mouth,
13 Winketh with his eyes, speaketh with his foot, pointeth with his fingers;
Winking with his eyes, speaking with his feet, Directing with his fingers,
14 [Hath] perverse things in his heart, deviseth mischief on every occasion, strifes, he sendeth forth.
Frowardness [is] in his heart, devising evil at all times, Contentions he sendeth forth.
15 For this cause, suddenly cometh his doom, in a moment, shall he be torn in pieces and there be no mending.
Therefore suddenly cometh his calamity, Instantly he is broken — and no healing.
16 These six things, doth Yahweh hate, yea, seven, are the abomination of his soul: —
These six hath Jehovah hated, Yea, seven [are] abominations to His soul.
17 Eyes that are lofty, a tongue that is false, and hands shedding innocent blood;
Eyes high — tongues false — And hands shedding innocent blood —
18 A heart contriving iniquitous devices, feet hasting to run into mischief;
A heart devising thoughts of vanity — Feet hasting to run to evil —
19 One that uttereth lies—a false witness, and one sending forth strifes between brethren.
A false witness [who] doth breathe out lies — And one sending forth contentions between brethren.
20 Observe thou, my son, the commandment of thy father, and do not decline from the instruction of thy mother:
Keep, my son, the command of thy father, And leave not the law of thy mother.
21 Bind them upon thy heart continually, fasten them upon thy neck;
Bind them on thy heart continually, Tie them on thy neck.
22 When thou walkest abroad, it shall guide thee, when thou sleepest, it shall watch over thee, when thou wakest, it shall speak to thee:
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, a lamp, is the commandment, and, the instruction, a light, and, the way of life, are the reproofs of correction:
For a lamp [is] the command, And the law a light, And a way of life [are] reproofs of instruction,
24 To keep thee from the wicked woman, from the flattery of the tongue of her that is a stranger.
To preserve thee from an evil woman, From the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.
25 Do not covet her beauty, in thy heart, neither let her take thee, by her eyelashes;
Desire not her beauty in thy heart, And let her not take thee with her eyelids.
26 Because, for the sake of an impure woman, [a man may be brought] even to a cake of bread, —and, a man’s wife, for a precious soul, may hunt!
For a harlot consumeth unto a cake of bread, And an adulteress the precious soul hunteth.
27 Can a man snatch up 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 Or can a man walk upon 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 goeth in unto his neighbour’s wife, no man shall be guiltless who toucheth her!
So [is] he who hath gone in unto the wife of his neighbour, None who doth touch her is innocent.
30 Men despise not a thief, when he stealeth, to satisfy his appetite, because he is famished;
They do not despise the thief, When he stealeth to fill his soul when he is hungry,
31 Yet, if found, he must pay back sevenfold, All the substance of his house, must he give:
And being found he repayeth sevenfold, All the substance of his house he giveth.
32 He that committeth adultery with a woman, lacketh sense, A destroyer of his own life, is he that doeth it;
He who committeth adultery [with] a woman lacketh heart, He is destroying his soul who doth it.
33 Smiting and shame, shall he find, and, his reproach, shall not be wiped out;
A stroke and shame he doth find, And his reproach is not wiped away,
34 For, jealousy, is the rage of a man, nor will he spare, in the day of avenging;
For jealousy [is] the fury of a man, And he doth not spare in a day of vengeance.
35 He will not look, at any ransom, neither will he consent, though thou increase the bribe.
He accepteth not the appearance of any atonement, Yea, he doth not consent, Though thou dost multiply bribes!
