1 When you sit to dine with a ruler,

note well what is before you,

2 and put a knife to your throat

if you are given to gluttony.

3 Do not crave his delicacies,

for that food is deceptive.

4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich;

do not trust your own cleverness.

5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone,

for they will surely sprout wings

and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

6 Do not eat the food of a begrudging host,

do not crave his delicacies;

7 for he is the kind of person

who is always thinking about the cost.

“Eat and drink,” he says to you,

but his heart is not with you.

8 You will vomit up the little you have eaten

and will have wasted your compliments.

1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

observe carefully what is before you,

2 and put a knife to your throat

if you are given to appetite.

3 Do not desire his delicacies,

for they are deceptive food.

4 Do not toil to acquire wealth;

be discerning enough to desist.

5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone,

for suddenly it sprouts wings,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

6 Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy;

do not desire his delicacies,

7 for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.

“Eat and drink!” he says to you,

but his heart is not with you.

8 You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,

and waste your pleasant words.

1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler,

Consider diligently what is before thee:

2 And put a knife to thy throat,

If thou be a man given to appetite.

3 Be not desirous of his dainties:

For they are deceitful meat.

4 Labour not to be rich:

Cease from thine own wisdom.

5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not?

For riches certainly make themselves wings;

They fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

6 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye,

Neither desire thou his dainty meats:

7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:

Eat and drink, saith he to thee;

But his heart is not with thee.

8 The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up,

And lose thy sweet words.

1 While dining with a ruler,

pay attention to what is put before you.

2 If you are a big eater,

put a knife to your throat;

3 don’t desire all the delicacies,

for he might be trying to trick you.

4 Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich.

Be wise enough to know when to quit.

5 In the blink of an eye wealth disappears,

for it will sprout wings

and fly away like an eagle.

6 Don’t eat with people who are stingy;

don’t desire their delicacies.

7 They are always thinking about how much it costs.

“Eat and drink,” they say, but they don’t mean it.

8 You will throw up what little you’ve eaten,

and your compliments will be wasted.

1 If you sit down to eat with a ruler,

notice the food that is in front of you.

2 Control yourself

if you have a big appetite.

3 Don’t be greedy for his fine foods,

because that food might be a trick.

4 Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich;

be wise enough to control yourself.

5 Wealth can vanish in the wink of an eye.

It can seem to grow wings

and fly away like an eagle.

6 Don’t eat the food of selfish people;

don’t be greedy for their fine foods.

7 Selfish people are always worrying

about how much the food costs.

They tell you, “Eat and drink,”

but they don’t really mean it.

8 You will throw up the little you have eaten,

and you will have wasted your kind words.

1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler,

Consider diligently him that is before thee;

2 And put a knife to thy throat,

If thou be a man given to appetite.

3 Be not desirous of his dainties;

Seeing they are deceitful food.

4 Weary not thyself to be rich;

Cease from thine own wisdom.

5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not?

For riches certainly make themselves wings,

Like an eagle that flieth toward heaven.

6 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye,

Neither desire thou his dainties:

7 For as he thinketh within himself, so is he:

Eat and drink, saith he to thee;

But his heart is not with thee.

8 The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up,

And lose thy sweet words.

1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider well who is before thee; 2 and put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. 3 Be not desirous of his dainties; for they are deceitful food.

4 Weary not thyself to become rich; cease from thine own intelligence: 5 wilt thou set thine eyes upon it, it is gone; for indeed it maketh itself wings and it flieth away as an eagle towards the heavens.

6 Eat thou not the food of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainties. 7 For as he thinketh in his soul, so is he. Eat and drink! will he say unto thee; but his heart is not with thee. 8 Thy morsel which thou hast eaten must thou vomit up, and thou wilt have wasted thy sweet words.

1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler, 

pay close attention to what is in front of you, 

2 and put a knife to your throat if you have a big appetite. 

3 Do not crave his delicacies, 

because this is food that deceives you. 

4 Do not wear yourself out getting rich. 

Be smart enough to stop. 

5 Will you catch only a fleeting glimpse of wealth before it is gone? 

It makes wings for itself like an eagle flying into the sky. 

6 Do not eat the food of one who is stingy, 

and do not crave his delicacies. 

7 As he calculates the cost to himself, this is what he does: 

He tells you, “Eat and drink,” 

but he doesn’t really mean it. 

8 You will vomit the little bit you have eaten 

and spoil your pleasant conversation. 

1 When you sit down to dine with a ruler,

consider carefully what is before you,

2 and put a knife to your throat

if you have a big appetite;

3 don’t desire his choice food,

for that food is deceptive.

4 Don’t wear yourself out to get rich;

stop giving your attention to it.

5 As soon as your eyes fly to it, it disappears,

for it makes wings for itself

and flies like an eagle to the sky.

6 Don’t eat a stingy person’s bread,

and don’t desire his choice food,

7 for it’s like someone calculating inwardly.

“Eat and drink,” he says to you,

but his heart is not with you.

8 You will vomit the little you’ve eaten

and waste your pleasant words.

1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

observe carefully what is before you,

2 and put a knife to your throat

if you have a big appetite.

3 Do not desire the ruler’s delicacies,

for they are deceptive food.

4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich;

be wise enough to desist.

5 When your eyes light upon it, it is gone;

for suddenly it takes wings to itself,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

6 Do not eat the bread of the stingy;

do not desire their delicacies;

7 for like a hair in the throat, so are they.

“Eat and drink!” they say to you;

but they do not mean it.

8 You will vomit up the little you have eaten,

and you will waste your pleasant words.

1 When you sit to eat with a ruler,

you shall surely observe what is before you,

2 and you shall put a knife to your throat

if you have a big appetite.

3 Do not desire his delicacies,

for it is food of deception.

4 Do not tire in order to become rich;

out of your understanding, may you desist.

5 Your eyes will alight on it, but there is nothing to it,

for suddenly it will make for itself wings

like an eagle and it will be exhausted in the heavens.

6 Do not eat the bread of the stingy,

and do not desire his delicacies.

7 For, like hair in his throat, so it is.

“Eat and drink!” he will say to you,

but his heart will not be with you.

8 Your morsel you have eaten, you will vomit it up,

and you will waste your pleasant words.

1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

look carefully at what’s in front of you.

2 Put a knife to your throat

if you like to eat too much.

3 Don’t long for his fancy food.

It can fool you.

4 Don’t wear yourself out to get rich.

Be wise enough to say no.

5 When you take even a quick look at riches, they are gone.

They grow wings and fly away into the sky like an eagle.

6 Don’t eat the food of anyone who won’t share it.

Don’t long for his fancy food.

7 He is the kind of person

who is always thinking about how much it costs.

“Eat and drink,” he says to you.

But he doesn’t mean it.

8 You will throw up what little you have eaten.

You will have wasted your words of praise.

1 When you sit down to dine with a ruler,

Consider carefully what is before you,

2 And put a knife to your throat

If you are a man of great appetite.

3 Do not desire his delicacies,

For it is deceptive food.

4 Do not weary yourself to gain wealth,

Cease from your consideration of it.

5 When you set your eyes on it, it is gone.

For wealth certainly makes itself wings

Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

6 Do not eat the bread of a selfish man,

Or desire his delicacies;

7 For as he thinks within himself, so he is.

He says to you, “Eat and drink!”

But his heart is not with you.

8 You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten,

And waste your compliments.