Proverbs 6
1 MY SON, if you have become security for your neighbor, if you have given your pledge for a stranger or another,2 You are snared with the words of your lips, you are caught by the speech of your mouth.3 Do this now [at once and earnestly], my son, and deliver yourself when you have put yourself into the power of your neighbor; go, bestir and humble yourself, and beg your neighbor [to pay his debt and thereby release you].4 Give not [unnecessary] sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eyelids;5 Deliver yourself, as a roe or gazelle from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider her ways and be wise!--7 Which, having no chief, overseer, or ruler,8 Provides her food in the summer and gathers her supplies in the harvest.9 How long will you sleep, O sluggard? When will you arise out of your sleep? 10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to lie down and sleep--11 So will your poverty come like a robber or one who travels [with slowly but surely approaching steps] and your want like an armed man [making you helpless]. 12 A worthless person, a wicked man, is he who goes about with a perverse (contrary, wayward) mouth.13 He winks with his eyes, he speaks by shuffling or tapping with his feet, he makes signs [to mislead and deceive] and teaches with his fingers.14 Willful and contrary in his heart, he devises trouble, vexation, and evil continually; he lets loose discord and sows it.15 Therefore upon him shall the crushing weight of calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken, and that without remedy.16 These six things the Lord hates, indeed, seven are an abomination to Him:17 A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimate himself and underestimate others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil,19 A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren.20 My son, keep your father’s [God-given] commandment and forsake not the law of [God] your mother [taught you]. 21 Bind them continually upon your heart and tie them about your neck. 22 When you go, they [the words of your parents’ God] shall lead you; when you sleep, they shall keep you; and when you waken, they shall talk with you.23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the whole teaching [of the law] is light, and reproofs of discipline are the way of life, 24 To keep you from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a loose woman.25 Lust not after her beauty in your heart, neither let her capture you with her eyelids.26 For on account of a harlot a man is brought to a piece of bread, and the adulteress stalks and snares [as with a hook] the precious life [of a man].27 Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned?28 Can one go upon hot coals and his feet not be burned?29 So he who cohabits with his neighbor’s wife [will be tortured with evil consequences and just retribution]; he who touches her shall not be innocent or go unpunished.30 Men do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry;31 But if he is found out, he must restore seven times [what he stole]; he must give the whole substance of his house [if necessary--to meet his fine].32 But whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks heart and understanding (moral principle and prudence); he who does it is destroying his own life.33 Wounds and disgrace will he get, and his reproach will not be wiped away.34 For jealousy makes [the wronged] man furious; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance [upon the detected one].35 He will not consider any ransom [offered to buy him off from demanding full punishment]; neither will he be satisfied, though you offer him many gifts and bribes.
Proverbs 6
Like a Deer from the Hunter
1-5 Dear friend, if you've gone into hock with your neighbor or locked yourself into a deal with a stranger, If you've impulsively promised the shirt off your back and now find yourself shivering out in the cold, Friend, don't waste a minute, get yourself out of that mess. You're in that man's clutches! Go, put on a long face; act desperate. Don't procrastinate— there's no time to lose. Run like a deer from the hunter, fly like a bird from the trapper!
A Lesson from the Ant
6-11 You lazy fool, look at an ant. Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two. Nobody has to tell it what to do. All summer it stores up food; at harvest it stockpiles provisions. So how long are you going to laze around doing nothing? How long before you get out of bed? A nap here, a nap there, a day off here, a day off there, sit back, take it easy—do you know what comes next? Just this: You can look forward to a dirt-poor life, poverty your permanent houseguest!
Always Cooking Up Something Nasty
12-15 Riffraff and rascals talk out of both sides of their mouths. They wink at each other, they shuffle their feet, they cross their fingers behind their backs. Their perverse minds are always cooking up something nasty, always stirring up trouble. Catastrophe is just around the corner for them, a total smashup, their lives ruined beyond repair.
Seven Things God Hates
16-19 Here are six things God hates, and one more that he loathes with a passion: eyes that are arrogant, a tongue that lies, hands that murder the innocent, a heart that hatches evil plots, feet that race down a wicked track, a mouth that lies under oath, a troublemaker in the family.
Warning on Adultery
20-23 Good friend, follow your father's good advice; don't wander off from your mother's teachings. Wrap yourself in them from head to foot; wear them like a scarf around your neck. Wherever you walk, they'll guide you; whenever you rest, they'll guard you; when you wake up, they'll tell you what's next. For sound advice is a beacon, good teaching is a light, moral discipline is a life path.
24-35 They'll protect you from wanton women, from the seductive talk of some temptress. Don't lustfully fantasize on her beauty, nor be taken in by her bedroom eyes. You can buy an hour with a whore for a loaf of bread, but a wanton woman may well eat you alive. Can you build a fire in your lap and not burn your pants? Can you walk barefoot on hot coals and not get blisters? It's the same when you have sex with your neighbor's wife: Touch her and you'll pay for it. No excuses. Hunger is no excuse for a thief to steal; When he's caught he has to pay it back, even if he has to put his whole house in hock. Adultery is a brainless act, soul-destroying, self-destructive; Expect a bloody nose, a black eye, and a reputation ruined for good. For jealousy detonates rage in a cheated husband; wild for revenge, he won't make allowances. Nothing you say or pay will make it all right; neither bribes nor reason will satisfy him.