Proverbiorum 6
1 Fili mi, si spoponderis pro amico tuo, defixisti apud extraneum manum tuam,
My son, suppose you have pledged to guarantee your neighbor's debt, or you have shaken hands in agreement with a stranger,
2 illaqueatus es verbis oris tui, et captus propriis sermonibus.
then you've trapped yourself by what you promised, you've been caught by what you said.
3 Fac ergo quod dico fili mi, et temetipsum libera: quia incidisti in manum proximi tui. Discurre, festina, suscita amicum tuum:
So this is what you have to do. You need to get out of it, because you've put yourself in that person's power. Go to your neighbor in all humility and ask him to release you from the commitment.
4 ne dederis somnum oculis tuis, nec dormitent palpebræ tuæ.
Don't delay, saying that you'll sleep on it. Don't rest until you've done it.
5 Eruere quasi damula de manu, et quasi avis de manu aucupis.
Get out of it like a gazelle escaping from a trap, like a bird from a bird-catcher's net.
6 Vade ad formicam o piger, et considera vias eius, et disce sapientiam:
Go and observe the ants, you slacker! Learn from what they do and become wise.
7 quæ cum non habeat ducem, nec præceptorem, nec principem,
They don't have a leader, an officer, or a ruler,
8 parat in æstate cibum sibi, et congregat in messe quod comedat.
yet they work hard during the summer getting their food, gathering what they need during the harvest.
9 Usquequo piger dormies? quando consurges e somno tuo?
So how long are you going to lie there, you slacker? When are you going to get up from your sleep?
10 Paululum dormies, paululum dormitabis, paululum conseres manus ut dormias:
You may say, “Please, just a little more sleep, a little longer snooze, a little more folding of the arms to rest”—
11 et veniet tibi quasi viator, egestas, et pauperies quasi vir armatus. Si vero impiger fueris, veniet ut fons messis tua, et egestas longe fugiet a te.
and poverty will attack you like a robber, destitution like an armed warrior.
12 Homo apostata, vir inutilis, graditur ore perverso,
Rebellious and wicked people go around telling lies,
13 annuit oculis, terit pede, digito loquitur,
winking slyly, giving sneaky foot gestures, rudely pointing with their fingers.
14 pravo corde machinatur malum, et omni tempore iurgia seminat.
Their warped minds plot evil schemes; they're always causing trouble.
15 Huic extemplo veniet perditio sua, et subito conteretur, nec habebit ultra medicinam.
As a result, disaster falls suddenly on such people; in just a moment they're destroyed without hope of healing.
16 Sex sunt, quæ odit Dominus, et septimum detestatur anima eius:
There are six things that the Lord hates, seven things that he absolutely detests:
17 Oculos sublimes, linguam mendacem, manus effundentes innoxium sanguinem,
arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that murder the innocent,
18 cor machinans cogitationes pessimas, pedes veloces ad currendum in malum,
a mind that plots evil schemes, feet that hurriedly run to do wrong,
19 proferentem mendacia testem fallacem, et eum, qui seminat inter fratres discordias.
a false witness that speaks lies, those who caused arguments in families.
20 Conserva fili mi præcepta patris tui, et ne dimittas legem matris tuæ.
My son, pay attention to your father's instruction, and don't reject your mother's teaching.
21 Liga ea in corde tuo iugiter, et circumda gutturi tuo.
Keep them always in mind. Tie them around your neck.
22 Cum ambulaveris, gradiantur tecum: cum dormieris, custodiant te, et evigilans loquere cum eis.
They will lead you as you walk along; they will watch over you as you sleep; when you wake up they will talk with you.
23 Quia mandatum lucerna est, et lex lux, et via vitæ increpatio disciplinæ:
For the instruction is a lamp, and the teaching is a light. The correction that comes from discipline is the way to life.
24 ut custodiant te a muliere mala, et a blanda lingua extraneæ.
It will protect you from an evil woman and the seductive words of a prostitute.
25 Non concupiscat pulchritudinem eius cor tuum, nec capiaris nutibus illius:
Don't let your mind lust after her beauty, or let her hypnotize you with her fluttering eyelashes.
26 pretium enim scorti vix est unius panis: mulier autem viri pretiosam animam capit.
You can buy a prostitute for the price of a loaf of bread, but adultery with another man's wife can cost you your life.
27 Numquid potest homo abscondere ignem in sinu suo, ut vestimenta illius non ardeant?
Can you put fire in your lap and not burn your clothes?
28 aut ambulare super prunas, ut non comburantur plantæ eius?
Can you walk on hot coals and not scorch your feet?
29 sic qui ingreditur ad mulierem proximi sui, non erit mundus cum tetigerit eam.
It's the same for anyone who sleeps with another man's wife. No one who touches her will remain unpunished.
30 Non grandis est culpa, cum quis furatus fuerit: furatur enim ut esurientem impleat animam:
People don't condemn a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he's hungry.
31 deprehensus quoque reddet septuplum, et omnem substantiam domus suæ tradet.
But if he's caught, he has to pay back seven times what he stole, even if it means handing over everything he has in his house.
32 Qui autem adulter est, propter cordis inopiam perdet animam suam:
Any man who commits adultery with a woman has no sense; he who does so destroys himself.
33 turpitudinem et ignominiam congregat sibi, et opprobrium illius non delebitur.
He will be wounded and dishonored. His disgrace will never be removed.
34 Quia zelus et furor viri non parcet in die vindictæ,
For jealousy makes a husband furious, and he won't hold back when he takes revenge.
35 nec acquiescet cuiusquam precibus, nec suscipiet pro redemptione dona plurima.
He refuses any compensation, and won't be paid off, however big the amount.
