1 M y son, give attention to my wisdom, Incline your ear to my understanding;

2 T hat you may observe discretion And your lips may reserve knowledge.

3 F or the lips of an adulteress drip honey And smoother than oil is her speech;

4 B ut in the end she is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword.

5 H er feet go down to death, Her steps take hold of Sheol.

6 S he does not ponder the path of life; Her ways are unstable, she does not know it.

7 N ow then, my sons, listen to me And do not depart from the words of my mouth.

8 K eep your way far from her And do not go near the door of her house,

9 O r you will give your vigor to others And your years to the cruel one;

10 A nd strangers will be filled with your strength And your hard-earned goods will go to the house of an alien;

11 A nd you groan at your final end, When your flesh and your body are consumed;

12 A nd you say, “How I have hated instruction! And my heart spurned reproof!

13 “ I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to my instructors!

14 “ I was almost in utter ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

15 D rink water from your own cistern And fresh water from your own well.

16 S hould your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets?

17 L et them be yours alone And not for strangers with you.

18 L et your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth.

19 A s a loving hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; Be exhilarated always with her love.

20 F or why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?

21 F or the ways of a man are before the eyes of the Lord, And He watches all his paths.

22 H is own iniquities will capture the wicked, And he will be held with the cords of his sin.

23 H e will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray.