< Proverbiorum 7 >
1 Fili mi, custodi sermones meos, et praecepta mea reconde tibi. Fili
My son! keep my sayings, And my commands lay up with thee.
2 serva mandata mea, et vives: et legem meam quasi pupillam oculi tui:
Keep my commands, and live, And my law as the pupil of thine eye.
3 liga eam in digitis tuis, scribe illam in tabulis cordis tui.
Bind them on thy fingers, Write them on the tablet of thy heart.
4 Dic sapientiae, soror mea es: et prudentiam voca amicam tuam,
Say to wisdom, 'My sister Thou [art].' And cry to understanding, 'Kinswoman!'
5 ut custodiant te a muliere extranea, et ab aliena, quae verba sua dulcia facit.
To preserve thee from a strange woman, From a stranger who hath made smooth her sayings.
6 De fenestra enim domus meae per cancellos prospexi,
For, at a window of my house, Through my casement I have looked out,
7 et video parvulos, considero vecordem iuvenem,
And I do see among the simple ones, I discern among the sons, A young man lacking understanding,
8 qui transit per plateam iuxta angulum, et prope viam domus illius, graditur
Passing on in the street, near her corner, And the way [to] her house he doth step,
9 in obscuro, advesperascente die, in noctis tenebris, et caligine.
In the twilight — in the evening of day, In the darkness of night and blackness.
10 Et ecce occurrit illi mulier ornatu meretricio, praeparata ad decipiendas animas: garrula, et vaga,
And, lo, a woman to meet him — (A harlot's dress, and watchful of heart,
11 quietis impatiens, nec valens in domo consistere pedibus suis,
Noisy she [is], and stubborn, In her house her feet rest not.
12 nunc foris, nunc in plateis, nunc iuxta angulos insidians.
Now in an out-place, now in broad places, And near every corner she lieth in wait) —
13 Apprehensumque deosculatur iuvenem, et procaci vultu blanditur, dicens:
And she laid hold on him, and kissed him, She hath hardened her face, and saith to him,
14 Victimas pro salute vovi, hodie reddidi vota mea.
'Sacrifices of peace-offerings [are] by me, To-day I have completed my vows.
15 idcirco egressa sum in occursum tuum, desiderans te videre, et reperi.
Therefore I have come forth to meet thee, To seek earnestly thy face, and I find thee.
16 Intexui funibus lectulum meum, stravi tapetibus pictis ex Aegypto.
[With] ornamental coverings I decked my couch, Carved works — cotton of Egypt.
17 aspersi cubile meum myrrha, et aloe, et cinnamomo.
I sprinkled my bed — myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Veni, inebriemur uberibus, et fruamur cupitis amplexibus, donec illucescat dies.
Come, we are filled [with] loves till the morning, We delight ourselves in loves.
19 non est enim vir in domo sua, abiit via longissima.
For the man is not in his house, He hath gone on a long journey.
20 sacculum pecuniae secum tulit: in die plenae lunae reversurus est in domum suam.
A bag of money he hath taken in his hand, At the day of the new moon he cometh to his house.'
21 Irretivit eum multis sermonibus, et blanditiis labiorum protraxit illum.
She turneth him aside with the abundance of her speech, With the flattery of her lips she forceth him.
22 Statim eam sequitur quasi bos ductus ad victimam, et quasi agnus lasciviens, et ignorans quod ad vincula stultus trahatur,
He is going after her straightway, As an ox unto the slaughter he cometh, And as a fetter unto the chastisement of a fool,
23 donec transfigat sagitta iecur eius: velut si avis festinet ad laqueum, et nescit quod de periculo animae illius agitur.
Till an arrow doth split his liver, As a bird hath hastened unto a snare, And hath not known that it [is] for its life.
24 Nunc ergo fili mi, audi me, et attende verbis oris mei.
And now, ye sons, hearken to me, And give attention to sayings of my mouth.
25 Ne abstrahatur in viis illius mens tua: neque decipiaris semitis eius.
Let not thy heart turn unto her ways, Do not wander in her paths,
26 multos enim vulneratos deiecit, et fortissimi quique interfecti sunt ab ea.
For many [are] the wounded she caused to fall, And mighty [are] all her slain ones.
27 Viae inferi domus eius, penetrantes in interiora mortis. (Sheol )
The ways of Sheol — her house, Going down unto inner chambers of death! (Sheol )