1 W hen thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Thou considerest diligently that which before thee,

When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Consider diligently him that is before thee;

2 A nd thou hast put a knife to thy throat, If thou a man of appetite.

And put a knife to thy throat, If thou be a man given to appetite.

3 H ave no desire to his dainties, seeing it lying food.

Be not desirous of his dainties; Seeing they are deceitful food.

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

Weary not thyself to be rich; Cease from thine own wisdom.

5 F or wealth maketh to itself wings, As an eagle it flieth to the heavens.

Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings, Like an eagle that flieth toward heaven.

6 E at not the bread of an evil eye, And have no desire to his dainties,

Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, Neither desire thou his dainties:

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

For as he thinketh within himself, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; But his heart is not with thee.

8 T hy morsel thou hast eaten thou dost vomit up, And hast marred thy words that sweet.

The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, And lose thy sweet words.

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

Speak not in the hearing of a fool; For he will despise the wisdom of thy words.

10 R emove not a border of olden times, And into fields of the fatherless enter not,

Remove not the ancient landmark; And enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

11 F or their Redeemer strong, He doth plead their cause with thee.

For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their cause against thee.

12 B ring in to instruction thy heart, And thine ear to sayings of knowledge.

Apply thy heart unto instruction, And thine ears to the words of knowledge.

13 W ithhold not from a youth chastisement, When thou smitest him with a rod he dieth not.

Withhold not correction from the child; For if thou beat him with the rod, he will not die.

14 T hou with a rod smitest him, And his soul from Sheol thou deliverest.

Thou shalt beat him with the rod, And shalt deliver his soul from Sheol.

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

My son, if thy heart be wise, My heart will be glad, even mine:

16 A nd my reins exult when thy lips speak uprightly.

Yea, my heart will rejoice, When thy lips speak right things.

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

Let not thy heart envy sinners; But be thou in the fear of Jehovah all the day long:

18 F or, is there a posterity? Then thy hope is not cut off.

For surely there is a reward; And thy hope shall not be cut off.

19 H ear thou, my son, and be wise, And make happy in the way thy heart,

Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And guide thy heart in the way.

20 B e not thou among quaffers of wine, Among gluttonous ones of flesh,

Be not among winebibbers, Among gluttonous eaters of flesh:

21 F or the quaffer and glutton become poor, And drowsiness clotheth with rags.

For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.

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

Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, And despise not thy mother when she is old.

23 T ruth buy, and sell not, Wisdom, and instruction, and understanding,

Buy the truth, and sell it not; Yea, wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.

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

The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; And he that begetteth a wise child will have joy of him.

25 R ejoice doth thy father and thy mother, Yea, she that bare thee is joyful.

Let thy father and thy mother be glad, And let her that bare thee rejoice.

26 G ive, my son, thy heart to me, And let thine eyes watch my ways.

My son, give me thy heart; And let thine eyes delight in my ways.

27 F or a harlot a deep ditch, And a strange woman a strait pit.

For a harlot is a deep ditch; And a foreign woman is a narrow pit.

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

Yea, she lieth in wait as a robber, And increaseth the treacherous among men.

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

Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? Who hath complaining? who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes?

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

They that tarry long at the wine; They that go to seek out mixed wine.

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

Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, When it sparkleth in the cup, When it goeth down smoothly:

32 I ts latter end -- as a serpent it biteth, And as a basilisk it stingeth.

At the last it biteth like a serpent, And stingeth like an adder.

33 T hine eyes see strange women, And thy heart speaketh perverse things.

Thine eyes shall behold strange things, And thy heart shall utter perverse things.

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

Yea, 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.

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

They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not hurt; They have beaten me, and I felt it not: When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.