My son, if sinners would take you out of the right way, do not go with them.

Truly, to no purpose is the net stretched out before the eyes of the bird:

Such is the fate of everyone who goes in search of profit; it takes away the life of its owners.

Wisdom is crying out in the street; her voice is loud in the open places;

Because your ears were shut to my voice; no one gave attention to my out-stretched hand;

Truly, if you are crying out for good sense, and your request is for knowledge;

For the Lord gives wisdom; out of his mouth come knowledge and reason:

To take you out of the power of the strange woman, who says smooth words with her tongue;

For the upright will be living in the land, and the good will have it for their heritage.

For trading in it is better than trading in silver, and its profit greater than bright gold.

Do not keep back good from those who have a right to it, when it is in the power of your hand to do it.

Say not to your neighbour, Go, and come again, and tomorrow I will give; when you have it by you at the time.

Do not take up a cause at law against a man for nothing, if he has done you no wrong.

Get wisdom, get true knowledge; keep it in memory, do not be turned away from the words of my mouth.

Keep far from it, do not go near; be turned from it, and go on your way.

Keep your eyes on what is in front of you, looking straight before you.

And you will be full of grief at the end of your life, when your flesh and your body are wasted;

As a loving hind and a gentle doe, let her breasts ever give you rapture; let your passion at all times be moved by her love.

Why let yourself, my son, go out of the way with a strange woman, and take another woman in your arms?

She gets her meat in the summer, storing up food at the time of the grain-cutting.

A false witness, breathing out untrue words, and one who lets loose violent acts among brothers.

In your walking, it will be your guide; when you are sleeping, it will keep watch over you; when you are awake, it will have talk with you.

So it is with him who goes in to his neighbour's wife; he who has anything to do with her will not go free from punishment.

Men do not have a low opinion of a thief who takes food when he is in need of it:

He who takes another man's wife is without all sense: he who does it is the cause of destruction to his soul.

Looking out from my house, and watching through the window,

At nightfall, in the evening of the day, in the black dark of the night.

And the woman came out to him, in the dress of a loose woman, with a designing heart;

Now she is in the street, now in the open spaces, waiting at every turning of the road.

So I came out in the hope of meeting you, looking for you with care, and now I have you.

He has taken a bag of money with him; he is coming back at the full moon.

Is not wisdom crying out, and the voice of knowledge sounding?

At the top of the highways, at the meeting of the roads, she takes her place;

Where the roads go into the town her cry goes out, at the doorways her voice is loud:

I am crying out to you, O men; my voice comes to the sons of men.

Give ear, for my words are true, and my lips are open to give out what is upright.

For good faith goes out of my mouth, and false lips are disgusting to me.

Then I was by his side, as a master workman: and I was his delight from day to day, playing before him at all times;

Take my teaching and be wise; do not let it go.

Happy is the man who gives ear to me, watching at my doors day by day, keeping his place by the pillars of my house.

She has sent out her women-servants; her voice goes out to the highest places of the town, saying,

If you are wise, you are wise for yourself; if your heart is full of pride, you only will have the pain of it.

The foolish woman is full of noise; she has no sense at all.

Seated at the door of her house, in the high places of the town,

Crying out to those who go by, going straight on their way, she says:

Hate is covered up by the lips of the upright man, but he who lets out evil about another is foolish.

The blessing of the Lord gives wealth: hard work makes it no greater.

It is sport to the foolish man to do evil, but the man of good sense takes delight in wisdom.

The lips of the upright man have knowledge of what is pleasing, but twisted are the mouths of evil-doers.

Scales of deceit are hated by the Lord, but a true weight is his delight.

At the death of an upright man his hope does not come to an end, but the hope of the evil-doer comes to destruction.

The upright man is taken out of trouble, and in his place comes the sinner.

With his mouth the evil man sends destruction on his neighbour; but through knowledge the upright are taken out of trouble.

When things go well for the upright man, all the town is glad; at the death of sinners, there are cries of joy.

By the blessing of the upright man the town is made great, but it is overturned by the mouth of the evil-doer.

He who keeps back grain will be cursed by the people; but a blessing will be on the head of him who lets them have it for a price.

He who, with all his heart, goes after what is good is searching for grace; but he who is looking for trouble will get it.

In the sin of the lips is a net which takes the sinner, but the upright man will come out of trouble.

The breathing out of true words gives knowledge of righteousness; but a false witness gives out deceit.

Care in the heart of a man makes it weighted down, but a good word makes it glad.

He who keeps a watch on his mouth keeps his life; but he whose lips are open wide will have destruction.

There is a glad dawn for the upright man, but the light of the sinner will be put out.

Wealth quickly got will become less; but he who gets a store by the work of his hands will have it increased.

Hope put off is a weariness to the heart; but when what is desired comes, it is a tree of life.

There is much food in the ploughed land of the poor; but it is taken away by wrongdoing.

Wisdom is building her house, but the foolish woman is pulling it down with her hands.

A true witness does not say what is false, but a false witness is breathing out deceit.

The hater of authority, searching for wisdom, does not get it; but knowledge comes readily to the open-minded man.

He who is quickly angry will do what is foolish, but the man of good sense will have quiet.

The knees of the evil are bent before the good; and sinners go down in the dust at the doors of the upright.

He who is slow to be angry has great good sense; but he whose spirit is over-quick gives support to what is foolish.

Better is a simple meal where love is, than a fat ox and hate with it.

A man has joy in the answer of his mouth: and a word at the right time, how good it is!

The house of the man of pride will be uprooted by the Lord, but he will make safe the heritage of the widow.

When a man's ways are pleasing to the Lord, he makes even his haters be at peace with him.

Lips of righteousness are the delight of kings; and he who says what is upright is dear to him.

The wrath of the king is like those who give news of death, but a wise man will put peace in place of it.

How much better it is to get wisdom than gold! and to get knowledge is more to be desired than silver.

Better it is to have a gentle spirit with the poor, than to take part in the rewards of war with men of pride.

Wisdom is a fountain of life to him who has it; but the punishment of the foolish is their foolish behaviour.

The grey head is a crown of glory, if it is seen in the way of righteousness.

A thing may be put to the decision of chance, but it comes about through the Lord.

An offering of money is like a stone of great price in the eyes of him who has it: wherever he goes, he does well.

It is better to come face to face with a bear whose young ones have been taken away than with a foolish man acting foolishly.

The start of fighting is like the letting out of water: so give up before it comes to blows.

A friend is loving at all times, and becomes a brother in times of trouble.

A sinner takes an offering out of his robe, to get a decision for himself in a cause.

A foolish man has no pleasure in good sense, but only to let what is in his heart come to light.

The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the upright man running into it is safe.

The property of a man of wealth is his strong town, and it is as a high wall in the thoughts of his heart.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and those to whom it is dear will have its fruit for their food.

Further, without knowledge desire is not good; and he who is over-quick in acting goes out of the right way.

A false witness will not go without punishment, and the breather out of deceit will not go free.

He who gets wisdom has love for his soul: he who keeps good sense will get what is truly good.

A false witness will not go without punishment, and the breather out of deceit will be cut off.

A man of great wrath will have to take his punishment: for if you get him out of trouble you will have to do it again.

Let your ear be open to suggestion and take teaching, so that at the end you may be wise.

The fear of the Lord gives life: and he who has it will have need of nothing; no evil will come his way.

The hater of work puts his hand deep into the basin, and will not even take it to his mouth again.

A good-for-nothing witness makes sport of the judge's decision: and the mouth of evil-doers sends out evil like a stream.