Wisdom calls out in the street;
she raises her voice in the public squares.

It will rescue you from a forbidden woman,
from a stranger with her flattering talk,

who abandons the companion of her youth
and forgets the covenant of her God;

for her house sinks down to death
and her ways to the land of the departed spirits.

None return who go to her;
none reach the paths of life.

for she is more profitable than silver,
and her revenue is better than gold.

She is more precious than jewels;
nothing you desire compares with her.

Long life is in her right hand;
in her left, riches and honor.

Her ways are pleasant,
and all her paths, peaceful.

She is a tree of life to those who embrace her,
and those who hold on to her are happy.

Don’t abandon wisdom, and she will watch over you;
love her, and she will guard you.

Cherish her, and she will exalt you;
if you embrace her, she will honor you.

Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey
and her words are smoother than oil,

Her feet go down to death;
her steps head straight for Sheol.

She doesn’t consider the path of life;
she doesn’t know that her ways are unstable.

Keep your way far from her.
Don’t go near the door of her house.

A loving doe, a graceful fawn—
let her breasts always satisfy you;
be lost in her love forever.

When you walk here and there, they will guide you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
when you wake up, they will talk to you.

Don’t lust in your heart for her beauty
or let her captivate you with her eyelashes.

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

She will keep you from a forbidden woman,
a stranger with her flattering talk.

Crossing the street near her corner,
he strolled down the road to her house

She is loud and defiant;
her feet do not stay at home.

She seduces him with her persistent pleading;
she lures with her flattering talk.

He follows her impulsively
like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer bounding toward a trap

Don’t let your heart turn aside to her ways;
don’t stray onto her paths.

For she has brought many down to death;
her victims are countless.

Her house is the road to Sheol,
descending to the chambers of death.

Doesn’t Wisdom call out?
Doesn’t Understanding make her voice heard?

At the heights overlooking the road,
at the crossroads, she takes her stand.

Wisdom has built her house;
she has carved out her seven pillars.

She has prepared her meat; she has mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.

She has sent out her female servants;
she calls out from the highest points of the city:

“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here!”
To the one who lacks sense, she says,

She sits by the doorway of her house,
on a seat at the highest point of the city,

“Whoever is inexperienced, enter here!”
To the one who lacks sense, she says,

But he doesn’t know that the departed spirits are there,
that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

A capable wife is her husband’s crown,
but a wife who causes shame
is like rottenness in his bones.

Every wise woman builds her house,
but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.

Better for a man to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than a fool in his foolishness.

Let your father and mother have joy,
and let her who gave birth to you rejoice.

for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!”
than to demote you in plain view of a noble.

The one who controls her controls the wind
and grasps oil with his right hand.

This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

an unloved woman when she marries,
and a servant girl when she ousts her queen.

The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will not lack anything good.

She rewards him with good, not evil,
all the days of her life.

She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from far away.

She rises while it is still night
and provides food for her household
and portions for her female servants.

She evaluates a field and buys it;
she plants a vineyard with her earnings.

She draws on her strength
and reveals that her arms are strong.

She sees that her profits are good,
and her lamp never goes out at night.

She extends her hands to the spinning staff,
and her hands hold the spindle.

Her hands reach out to the poor,
and she extends her hands to the needy.

She is not afraid for her household when it snows,
for all in her household are doubly clothed.

She makes her own bed coverings;
her clothing is fine linen and purple.

Her husband is known at the city gates,
where he sits among the elders of the land.

Strength and honor are her clothing,
and she can laugh at the time to come.

She opens her mouth with wisdom
and loving instruction is on her tongue.

She watches over the activities of her household
and is never idle.

Her sons rise up and call her blessed.
Her husband also praises her:

Give her the reward of her labor,
and let her works praise her at the city gates.