AGAINST PLEDGES
1 My son, if thou art become surety for thy neighbor, If thou hast stricken thy hands for a stranger;
2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, Thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.
3 Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, Seeing thou art come into the hand of thy neighbor: Go, humble thyself, and importune thy neighbor;
4 Give not sleep to thine eyes, Nor slumber to thine eyelids;
5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, And as a bird from the hand of the fowler.
AGAINST SLOTH
6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; Consider her ways, and be wise:
7 Which having no chief, Overseer, or ruler,
8 Provideth her bread in the summer, And gathereth her food in the harvest.
9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?
10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep:
11 So shall thy poverty come as a robber, And thy want as an armed man.
AGAINST WORTHLESSNESS
12 A worthless person, a man of iniquity, Is he that walketh with a perverse mouth;
13 That winketh with his eyes, that speaketh with his feet, That maketh signs with his fingers;
14 In whose heart is perverseness, Who deviseth evil continually, Who soweth discord.
15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; On a sudden shall he be broken, and that without remedy.
WHAT YAHWEH HATES
16 There are six things which Jehovah hateth; Yea, seven which are an abomination unto him:
17 Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood;
18 A heart that deviseth wicked purposes, Feet that are swift in running to mischief,
19 A false witness that uttereth lies, And he that soweth discord among brethren.
COMMANDMENT AND INSTRUCTION AS GUARDIANS
20 My son, keep the commandment of thy father, And forsake not the law of thy mother:
21 Bind them continually upon thy heart; Tie them about thy neck.
22 When thou walkest, it shall lead thee; When thou sleepest, it shall watch over thee; And when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.
23 For the commandment is a lamp; And the law is light; And reproofs of instruction are the way of life:
24 To keep thee from the evil woman, From the flattery of the foreigner's tongue.
25 Lust not after her beauty in thy heart; Neither let her take thee with her eyelids.
26 For on account of a harlot a man is brought to a piece of bread; And the adulteress hunteth for the precious life.
WARNING AGAINST RELATIONS WITH A MARRIED WOMAN
27 Can a man take fire in his bosom, And his clothes not be burned?
28 Or can one walk upon hot coals, And his feet not be scorched?
29 So he that goeth in to his neighbor's wife; Whosoever toucheth her shall not be unpunished.
30 Men do not despise a thief, if he steal To satisfy himself when he is hungry:
31 But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; He shall give all the substance of his house.
32 He that committeth adultery with a woman is void of understanding: He doeth it who would destroy his own soul.
33 Wounds and dishonor shall he get; And his reproach shall not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy is the rage of a man; And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35 He will not regard any ransom; Neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.