Proverbiorum 7
1 Fili mi, custodi sermones meos, et præcepta mea reconde tibi.
[My] son, keep my words, and hide with thee my commandments. [My] son, honour the Lord, and thou shalt be strong; and fear none but him:
2 Fili, serva mandata mea, et vives: et legem meam quasi pupillam oculi tui:
keep my commandments, and thou shalt live; and [keep] my words as the pupils of [thine] eyes.
3 liga eam in digitis tuis, scribe illam in tabulis cordis tui.
And bind them on thy fingers, and write [them] on the table of thine heart.
4 Dic sapientiæ, soror mea es: et prudentiam voca amicam tuam,
Say that wisdom is thy sister, and gain prudence as an acquaintance for thyself;
5 ut custodiant te a muliere extranea, et ab aliena, quæ verba sua dulcia facit.
that she may keep thee from the strange and wicked woman, if she should assail thee with flattering words.
6 De fenestra enim domus meæ per cancellos prospexi,
For she looks from a window out of her house into the streets, at one whom she may see of the senseless ones, a young man void of understanding,
7 et video parvulos: considero vecordem iuvenem,
passing by the corner in the passages near her house,
8 qui transit per plateam iuxta angulum, et prope viam domus illius, graditur
and speaking, in the dark of the evening,
9 in obscuro, advesperascente die, in noctis tenebris, et caligine.
when there happens [to be] the stillness of night and of darkness:
10 Et ecce occurrit illi mulier ornatu meretricio, præparata ad capiendas animas: garrula, et vaga,
and the woman meets him having the appearance of a harlot, that causes the hearts of young men to flutter.
11 quietis impatiens, nec valens in domo consistere pedibus suis,
And she is fickle, and debauched, and her feet abide not at home.
12 nunc foris, nunc in plateis, nunc iuxta angulos insidians.
For at one time she wanders without, and at [another] time she lies in wait in the streets, at every corner.
13 Apprehensumque deosculatur iuvenem, et procaci vultu blanditur, dicens:
Then she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said to him,
14 Victimas pro salute vovi, hodie reddidi vota mea.
I have a peace-offering; today I pay my vows:
15 Idcirco egressa sum in occursum tuum, desiderans te videre, et reperi.
therefore I came forth to meet thee, desiring thy face; [and] I have found thee.
16 Intexui funibus lectulum meum, stravi tapetibus pictis ex Ægypto.
I have spread my bed with sheets, and I have covered it with double tapestry from Egypt.
17 Aspersi cubile meum myrrha, et aloe, et cinnamomo.
I have sprinkled my couch with saffron, and my house with cinnamon.
18 Veni, inebriemur uberibus, et fruamur cupitis amplexibus, donec illucescat dies.
Come, and let us enjoy love until the morning; come, and let us embrace in love.
19 Non est enim vir in domo sua, abiit via longissima.
For my husband is not at home, but is gone on a long journey,
20 Sacculum pecuniæ secum tulit: in die plenæ lunæ reversurus est in domum suam.
having taken in his hand a bundle of money: after many days he will return to his house.
21 Irretivit eum multis sermonibus, et blanditiis labiorum protraxit illum.
So with much converse she prevailed on him to go astray, and with the snares of her lips forced him from [the right path].
22 Statim eam sequitur quasi bos ductus ad victimam, et quasi agnus lasciviens, et ignorans quod ad vincula stultus trahatur,
And he followed her, being gently led on, and [that] as an ox is led to the slaughter, and as a dog to bonds, or as a hart shot in the liver with an arrow:
23 donec transfigat sagitta iecur eius: velut si avis festinet ad laqueum, et nescit quod de periculo animæ illius agitur.
and he hastens as a bird into a snare, not knowing that he is running for [his] life.
24 Nunc ergo fili mi, audi me, et attende verbis oris mei.
Now then, [my] son, hearken to me, and attend to the words of my mouth.
25 Ne abstrahatur in viis illius mens tua: neque decipiaris semitis eius.
Let not thine heart turn aside to her ways:
26 Multos enim vulneratos deiecit, et fortissimi quique interfecti sunt ab ea.
for she has wounded and cast down many, and those whom she has slain are innumerable.
