10 Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth,

And with thy riches in the house of a stranger; 11 And thou mourn at the last,

When thy flesh and thy body are consumed, 12 And say," How have I hated instruction, "And my heart despised reproof;

13" And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, "Nor inclined mine ear to my instructors!

14" I have been in almost all evil,

"In the midst of the congregation and assembly."

15 Drink waters out of thine own cistern,

And streams out of thine own well.

16 Then shall thy springs be dispersed abroad, Even rivers of waters in the streets.

17 They shall belong to thee alone,

And not to strangers with thee.

18 Let thy fountain be blessed,

And rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

19 Let her be as the lovely hind and the pleasant roe; Let her breasts satisfy thee at all times;

And be thou ravished always with her love.

20 And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a wanton,

And embrace the bosom of an harlot?

21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of Jehovah, And he pondereth all his goings.

22 His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, And he shall be held fast with the cords of his

sins.

23 He shall die because he did not mind instruction; And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

CHAPTER VI.

1 My son, if thou become surety for thy neighbour; If thou join thy hand with a stranger;

2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, Thou art taken with the words of thy mouth. 3 Do this therefore, my son, that thou mayst be delivered,

Because thou art come into the hand of thy neighbour,

Go, hasten, stir up thy friends.

4 Give not sleep to thine eyes,

Nor slumber to thine eyelids.

5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the toils, And as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard';

Consider her ways, and be wise:

7 Who, though she hath no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8 Provideth her meat in the summer,

And gathereth her food in the harvest. 9 How long, sluggard, wilt thou repose? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

10 Ever desiring a little sleep more, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep.

11 But thy poverty shall come as a traveller, And thy want as an armed man.

12 The worthless person, the wicked man,

Walketh with a perverse mouth.

13 He winketh with his eyes,

He speaketh with his feet,
He teacheth with his fingers.

14 Perverseness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief; He continually soweth discord.

15 Suddenly, therefore, shall his calamity come, Suddenly shall he be destroyed without remedy.

16 These six things doth Jehovah hate;

Yea, seven are an abomination unto him:

17 A proud look; a lying tongue;

And hands that shed innocent blood; 18 A heart that deviseth wicked counsels; Feet that are swift in running to evil; 19 A false witness that speaketh lies;

And him that soweth discord among brethren.

20 My son, keep thy father's commandment,
And forsake not the precepts of thy mother.
21 Bind them continually upon thine heart;
Tie them about thy neck.

22 When thou goest, they shall lead thee;

When thou sleepest, they shall keep thee;

And when thou wakest, they shall talk with thee. 23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the precept a light;

And the reproofs of instruction are the way of

life:

24 To keep thee from the evil woman,

From the flattery of the harlot's tongue.

25 Desire not her beauty in thine heart,

Neither let her beguile thee with her eyes.

26 For by means of a lewd woman a man is brought

to a piece of bread;

And the adulteress layeth snares for the precious

27 Can a man take fire in his bosom,

And his clothes not be burnt?

28 Can a man walk upon hot coals, And his feet not be burnt?

29 So it is with him that goeth in to his neighbour's wife;

Whosoever toucheth her shall not be unpunished. 30 Men do not disregard a thief when he steals,

Even to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry : 31 But when discovered, 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 that doeth it destroyeth his own life. 33 Hurt and dishonour shall he receive,

And his disgrace shall not be wiped away. 34 When jealousy inflames the rage of man, He will not spare in the day of vengeance. 35 He will not accept any ransom,

Nor rest content though thou multiply thy gifts.

CHAPTER VII.

1 My son, keep my words,

And lay up my commandments with thee. 2 Keep my commandments, and thou shalt live; And my doctrine as the apple of thine eye.

3 Bind them upon thy fingers,

Write them upon the table of thine heart. 4 Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister, And call understanding thy kinswoman;

5 That they may preserve thee from the wanton, From the harlot that flattereth with her words.

6 When at the window of my house,

I looked through the lattice;

7 And I beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths,

A young man void of understanding, 8 Passing through the street near the corner, And he went the way to her house,

9 In the twilight, in the evening,

In the dark and gloomy night:

10 And behold, there met him a woman,

With the attire of an harlot, and subtile of heart.

11 (She is loud and stubborn;

Her feet abide not in her house :

12 Now she is without, now in the streets,
And lieth in wait at every corner.)'
13 And she caught him, and kissed him,

And with an impudent face said unto him,
14" I have a sacrificial-banquet with me;
"This day I have paid my vows:

15

Therefore came I forth to meet thee,

Diligently to seek thee, and have found thee.

16" I have decked my couch with coverings of

tapestry,

"With embroideries of Egyptian linen.

17" I have perfumed my bed,

"With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

18 "

Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning;

"Let us solace ourselves with loves.