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…who abandons the partner of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God.

None who go to her return or negotiate the paths of life.

So you will follow in the ways of the good, and keep to the paths of the righteous.

So you will follow in the ways of the good, and keep to the paths of the righteous.

Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.

Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your crops;

My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke;

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

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

My son, do not lose sight of this: Preserve sound judgment and discernment.

Do not envy a violent man or choose any of his ways;

The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.

The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.

The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.

When I was a son to my father, tender and the only child of my mother,

…he taught me and said, “Let your heart lay hold of my words; keep my commands and you will live.

She will set a garland of grace on your head; she will present you with a crown of beauty.”

She will set a garland of grace on your head; she will present you with a crown of beauty.”

Listen, my son, and receive my words, and the years of your life will be many.

I will guide you in the way of wisdom; I will lead you on straight paths.

Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.

Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.

For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; they are deprived of slumber until they make someone fall.

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

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

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday.

The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday.

But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.

Do not lose sight of them; keep them within your heart.

Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow springs of life.

Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil,

She does not consider the path of life; she does not know that her ways are unstable.

So now, my sons, listen to me, and do not turn aside from the words of my mouth.

Keep your path far from her; do not go near the door of her house,

…lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich the house of a foreigner.

At the end of your life you will groan when your flesh and your body are spent,

I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my mentors.

I am on the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.”

I am on the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.”

Why should your springs flow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares?

May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth:

Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, or embrace the bosom of a stranger?

For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and the LORD examines all his paths.

The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.

The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.

He dies for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Keep my commandments and live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.

Tie them to your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.

For at the window of my house I looked through the lattice.

…at twilight, as the day was fading into the dark of the night.

Then a woman came out to meet him, with the attire of a harlot and cunning of heart.

Then a woman came out to meet him, with the attire of a harlot and cunning of heart.

Come, let us take our fill of love till morning. Let us delight in loving caresses!

He took with him a bag of money and will not return till the moon is full.”

Now, my sons, listen to me, and attend to the words of my mouth.

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

“To you, O men, I call out, and my cry is to the sons of men.

Listen, for I speak of noble things, and the opening of my lips will reveal right.

Listen, for I speak of noble things, and the opening of my lips will reveal right.

All the words of my mouth are righteous; none are crooked or perverse.

Receive my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold.

I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

The LORD created me as His first course, before His works of old.

…before He made the land or fields, or any of the dust of the earth.

…before He made the land or fields, or any of the dust of the earth.

I was there when He established the heavens, when He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

…when He established the clouds above, when the fountains of the deep gushed forth,

…when He set a boundary for the sea, so that the waters would not surpass His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth.

I was rejoicing in His whole world, delighting together in the sons of men.

Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.

For whoever finds me finds life and obtains the favor of the LORD.

She has sent out her maidservants; she calls out from the heights of the city.

Leave your folly behind, and you will live; walk in the way of understanding.”

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

She sits at the door of her house, on a seat in the heights of the city,

She sits at the door of her house, on a seat in the heights of the city,

But they do not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son grief to his mother.

The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but He denies the craving of the wicked.

Blessings are on the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

Blessings are on the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.

The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.