1 M y son, if you have become surety for your neighbor, Have given a pledge for a stranger,

2 I f you have been snared with the words of your mouth, Have been caught with the words of your mouth,

3 D o this then, my son, and deliver yourself; Since you have come into the hand of your neighbor, Go, humble yourself, and importune your neighbor.

4 G ive no sleep to your eyes, Nor slumber to your eyelids;

5 D eliver yourself like a gazelle from the hunter’s hand And like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6 G o to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise,

7 W hich, having no chief, Officer or ruler,

8 P repares her food in the summer And gathers her provision in the harvest.

9 H ow long will you lie down, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?

10 “ A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest”—

11 Y our poverty will come in like a vagabond And your need like an armed man.

12 A worthless person, a wicked man, Is the one who walks with a perverse mouth,

13 W ho winks with his eyes, who signals with his feet, Who points with his fingers;

14 W ho with perversity in his heart continually devises evil, Who spreads strife.

15 T herefore his calamity will come suddenly; Instantly he will be broken and there will be no healing.

16 T here are six things which the Lord hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him:

17 H aughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood,

18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil,

19 A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.

20 M y son, observe the commandment of your father And do not forsake the teaching of your mother;

21 B ind them continually on your heart; Tie them around your neck.

22 W hen you walk about, they will guide you; When you sleep, they will watch over you; And when you awake, they will talk to you.

23 F or the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life

24 T o keep you from the evil woman, From the smooth tongue of the adulteress.

25 D o not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her capture you with her eyelids.

26 F or on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life.

27 C an a man take fire in his bosom And his clothes not be burned?

28 O r can a man walk on hot coals And his feet not be scorched?

29 S o is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife; Whoever touches her will not go unpunished.

30 M en do not despise a thief if he steals To satisfy himself when he is hungry;

31 B ut when he is found, he must repay sevenfold; He must give all the substance of his house.

32 T he one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense; He who would destroy himself does it.

33 W ounds and disgrace he will find, And his reproach will not be blotted out.

34 F or jealousy enrages a man, And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

35 H e will not accept any ransom, Nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts.