Proverbs 6

¹My son, if thou art become surety for thy neighbor, If thou hast stricken thy hands for a stranger;

²Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, Thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

³Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, Seeing thou art come into the hand of thy neighbor: Go, humble thyself, and importune thy neighbor;

⁴Give not sleep to thine eyes, Nor slumber to thine eyelids;

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

⁶Go to the ant, thou sluggard; Consider her ways, and be wise:

⁷Which having no chief, Overseer, or ruler,

⁸Provideth her bread in the summer, And gathereth her food in the harvest.

⁹How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

¹⁰Yeta little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep:

¹¹So shall thy poverty come as a robber, And thy want as an armed man.

¹²A worthless person, a man of iniquity, Is he that walketh with a perverse mouth;

¹³That winketh with his eyes, that speaketh with his feet, That maketh signs with his fingers;

¹⁴In whose heart is perverseness, Who deviseth evil continually, Who soweth discord.

¹⁵Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; On a sudden shall he be broken, and that without remedy.

¹⁶There are six things which Jehovah hateth; Yea, seven which are an abomination unto him:

¹⁷Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood;

¹⁸A heart that deviseth wicked purposes, Feet that are swift in running to mischief,

¹⁹A false witness that uttereth lies, And he that soweth discord among brethren.

²⁰My son, keep the commandment of thy father, And forsake not the law of thy mother:

²¹Bind them continually upon thy heart; Tie them about thy neck.

²²When thou walkest, it shall lead thee; When thou sleepest, it shall watch over thee; And when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.

²³For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; And reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

²⁴To keep thee from the evil woman, From the flattery of the foreigner’s tongue.

²⁵Lust not after her beauty in thy heart; Neither let her take thee with her eyelids.

²⁶For on account of a harlota man is broughtto a piece of bread; And the adulteress hunteth for the precious life.

²⁷Can a man take fire in his bosom, And his clothes not be burned?

²⁸Or can one walk upon hot coals, And his feet not be scorched?

²⁹So he that goeth in to his neighbor’s wife; Whosoever toucheth her shall not be unpunished.

³⁰Men do not despise a thief, if he steal To satisfy himself when he is hungry:

³¹But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; He shall give all the substance of his house.

³²He that committeth adultery with a woman is void of understanding: He doeth it who would destroy his own soul.

³³Wounds and dishonor shall he get; And his reproach shall not be wiped away.

³⁴For jealousy is the rage of a man; And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

³⁵He will not regard any ransom; Neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

Proverbs 6

¹My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, if you have struck hands in pledge with a stranger,

²if you have been trapped by the words of your lips, ensnared by the words of your mouth,

³then do this, my son, to free yourself, for you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands: Go, humble yourself, and press your plea with your neighbor.

⁴Allow no sleep to your eyes or slumber to your eyelids.

⁵Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

⁶Walk in the manner of the ant, O slacker; observe its ways and become wise.

⁷Without a commander, without an overseer or ruler,

⁸it prepares its provisions in summer; it gathers its food at harvest.

⁹How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?

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

¹¹and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

¹²A worthless person, a wicked man, walks with a perverse mouth,

¹³winking his eyes, speaking with his feet, and pointing with his fingers.

¹⁴With deceit in his heart he devises evil; he continually sows discord.

¹⁵Therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in an instant he will be shattered beyond recovery.

¹⁶There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to Him:

¹⁷haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,

¹⁸a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that run swiftly to evil,

¹⁹a false witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up discord among brothers.

²⁰My son, keep your father’s commandment, and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.

²¹Bind them always upon your heart; tie them around your neck.

²²When you walk, they will guide you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you.

²³For this commandment is a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way to life,

²⁴to keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.

²⁵Do not lust in your heart for her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes.

²⁶For the levy of the prostitute is poverty, and the adulteress preys upon your very life.

²⁷Can a man embrace fire and his clothes not be burned?

²⁸Can a man walk on hot coals without scorching his feet?

²⁹So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished.

³⁰Men do not despise the thief if he steals to satisfy his hunger.

³¹Yet if caught, he must pay sevenfold; he must give up all the wealth of his house.

³²He who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself.

³³Wounds and dishonor will befall him, and his reproach will never be wiped away.

³⁴For jealousy enrages a husband, and he will show no mercy in the day of vengeance.

³⁵He will not be appeased by any ransom, or persuaded by lavish gifts.