1 W hen thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:

When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Thou considerest diligently that which before thee,

2 A nd put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.

And thou hast put a knife to thy throat, If thou a man of appetite.

3 B e not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat.

Have no desire to his dainties, seeing it lying food.

4 L abour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom.

Labour not to make wealth, From thine own understanding cease, Dost thou cause thine eyes to fly upon it? Then it is not.

5 W ilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

For wealth maketh to itself wings, As an eagle it flieth to the heavens.

6 E at thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meats:

Eat not the bread of an evil eye, And have no desire to his dainties,

7 F or as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

For as he hath thought in his soul, so he, `Eat and drink,' saith he to thee, And his heart not with thee.

8 T he morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, and lose thy sweet words.

Thy morsel thou hast eaten thou dost vomit up, And hast marred thy words that sweet.

9 S peak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.

In the ears of a fool speak not, For he treadeth on the wisdom of thy words.

10 R emove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

Remove not a border of olden times, And into fields of the fatherless enter not,

11 F or their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.

For their Redeemer strong, He doth plead their cause with thee.

12 A pply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.

Bring in to instruction thy heart, And thine ear to sayings of knowledge.

13 W ithhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.

Withhold not from a youth chastisement, When thou smitest him with a rod he dieth not.

14 T hou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.

Thou with a rod smitest him, And his soul from Sheol thou deliverest.

15 M y son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.

My son, if thy heart hath been wise, My heart rejoiceth, even mine,

16 Y ea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.

And my reins exult when thy lips speak uprightly.

17 L et not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.

Let not thy heart be envious at sinners, But -- in the fear of Jehovah all the day.

18 F or surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.

For, is there a posterity? Then thy hope is not cut off.

19 H ear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.

Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And make happy in the way thy heart,

20 B e not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:

Be not thou among quaffers of wine, Among gluttonous ones of flesh,

21 F or the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

For the quaffer and glutton become poor, And drowsiness clotheth with rags.

22 H earken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.

Hearken to thy father, who begat thee, And despise not thy mother when she hath become old.

23 B uy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.

Truth buy, and sell not, Wisdom, and instruction, and understanding,

24 T he father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.

The father of the righteous rejoiceth greatly, The begetter of the wise rejoiceth in him.

25 T hy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.

Rejoice doth thy father and thy mother, Yea, she that bare thee is joyful.

26 M y son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.

Give, my son, thy heart to me, And let thine eyes watch my ways.

27 F or a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.

For a harlot a deep ditch, And a strange woman a strait pit.

28 S he also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.

She also, as catching prey, lieth in wait, And the treacherous among men she increaseth.

29 W ho hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?

Who hath wo? who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? who hath plaint? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes?

30 T hey that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.

Those tarrying by the wine, Those going in to search out mixed wine.

31 L ook not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.

See not wine when it showeth itself red, When it giveth in the cup its colour, It goeth up and down through the upright.

32 A t the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.

Its latter end -- as a serpent it biteth, And as a basilisk it stingeth.

33 T hine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.

Thine eyes see strange women, And thy heart speaketh perverse things.

34 Y ea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.

And thou hast been as one lying down in the heart of the sea, And as one lying down on the top of a mast.

35 T hey have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

`They smote me, I have not been sick, They beat me, I have not known. When I awake -- I seek it yet again!'