If they say, “Come with us,
Let us lie in wait for blood,
Let us ambush the innocent without cause;

Indeed, it is useless to spread the baited net
In the sight of any bird;

But they lie in wait for their own blood;
They ambush their own lives.

So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence;
It takes away the life of its possessors.

At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings:

“Turn to my reproof,
Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.

“Because I called and you refused,
I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;

I will also laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your dread comes,

“So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way
And be satiated with their own devices.

“But he who listens to me shall live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

For the upright will live in the land
And the blameless will remain in it;

But the wicked will be cut off from the land
And the treacherous will be uprooted from it.

For length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you.

It will be healing to your body
And refreshment to your bones.

Do not be afraid of sudden fear
Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes;

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
When it is in your power to do it.

Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back,
And tomorrow I will give it,”
When you have it with you.

Though He scoffs at the scoffers,
Yet He gives grace to the afflicted.

Avoid it, do not pass by it;
Turn away from it and pass on.

For they eat the bread of wickedness
And drink the wine of violence.

The way of the wicked is like darkness;
They do not know over what they stumble.

Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life.

She does not ponder the path of life;
Her ways are unstable, she does not know it.

And you groan at your final end,
When your flesh and your body are consumed;

As a loving hind and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be exhilarated always with her love.

The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense;
He who would destroy himself does it.

Wounds and disgrace he will find,
And his reproach will not be blotted out.

For at the window of my house
I looked out through my lattice,

She is boisterous and rebellious,
Her feet do not remain at home;

“Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you.

“For my husband is not at home,
He has gone on a long journey;

He has taken a bag of money with him,
At the full moon he will come home.”

Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hastens to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.

Beside the gates, at the opening to the city,
At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:

“The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way,
Before His works of old.

While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.

When He set for the sea its boundary
So that the water would not transgress His command,
When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

“Heed instruction and be wise,
And do not neglect it.

“Blessed is the man who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at my doorposts.

Wisdom has built her house,
She has hewn out her seven pillars;

She has sent out her maidens, she calls
From the tops of the heights of the city:

“Come, eat of my food
And drink of the wine I have mixed.

If you are wise, you are wise for yourself,
And if you scoff, you alone will bear it.

She sits at the doorway of her house,
On a seat by the high places of the city,

He who walks in integrity walks securely,
But he who perverts his ways will be found out.

Wise men store up knowledge,
But with the mouth of the foolish, ruin is at hand.

It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich,
And He adds no sorrow to it.

What the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom,
But the perverted tongue will be cut out.

The lips of the righteous bring forth what is acceptable,
But the mouth of the wicked what is perverted.

A false balance is an abomination to the Lord,
But a just weight is His delight.

When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices,
And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.

By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,
But by the mouth of the wicked it is torn down.

He who is guarantor for a stranger will surely suffer for it,
But he who hates being a guarantor is secure.

There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,
And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want.

He who withholds grain, the people will curse him,
But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,
But the mouth of the upright will deliver them.

A fool’s anger is known at once,
But a prudent man conceals dishonor.

He who speaks truth tells what is right,
But a false witness, deceit.

Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down,
But a good word makes it glad.

The one who guards his mouth preserves his life;
The one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

The light of the righteous rejoices,
But the lamp of the wicked goes out.

Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles,
But the one who gathers by labor increases it.

The one who despises the word will be in debt to it,
But the one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.

Desire realized is sweet to the soul,
But it is an abomination to fools to turn away from evil.

Abundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor,
But it is swept away by injustice.

The wise woman builds her house,
But the foolish tears it down with her own hands.

Fools mock at sin,
But among the upright there is good will.

The evil will bow down before the good,
And the wicked at the gates of the righteous.

Wisdom rests in the heart of one who has understanding,
But in the hearts of fools it is made known.

A soothing tongue is a tree of life,
But perversion in it crushes the spirit.

Better is a little with the fear of the Lord
Than great treasure and turmoil with it.

The Lord will tear down the house of the proud,
But He will establish the boundary of the widow.

The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer,
But the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord,
He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

It is an abomination for kings to commit wicked acts,
For a throne is established on righteousness.

The fury of a king is like messengers of death,
But a wise man will appease it.

How much better it is to get wisdom than gold!
And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver.

It is better to be humble in spirit with the lowly
Than to divide the spoil with the proud.

Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it,
But the discipline of fools is folly.

A gray head is a crown of glory;
It is found in the way of righteousness.

Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it
Than a house full of feasting with strife.

He who mocks the poor taunts his Maker;
He who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished.

The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
So abandon the quarrel before it breaks out.

A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.

It is also not good to fine the righteous,
Nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.

The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
The righteous runs into it and is safe.

He who gives an answer before he hears,
It is folly and shame to him.

The spirit of a man can endure his sickness,
But as for a broken spirit who can bear it?

Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.

Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge,
And he who hurries his footsteps errs.

A man’s discretion makes him slow to anger,
And it is his glory to overlook a transgression.

A man of great anger will bear the penalty,
For if you rescue him, you will only have to do it again.

What is desirable in a man is his kindness,
And it is better to be a poor man than a liar.

The sluggard buries his hand in the dish,
But will not even bring it back to his mouth.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler,
And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.

A plan in the heart of a man is like deep water,
But a man of understanding draws it out.

It is by his deeds that a lad distinguishes himself
If his conduct is pure and right.

He who curses his father or his mother,
His lamp will go out in time of darkness.

An inheritance gained hurriedly at the beginning
Will not be blessed in the end.