31 *The words of king aLemuel, bthe prophecy that his mother taught him.

2  What, my cson? and what, dthe cson of my womb?

And what, ethe cson of my vows?

3  fGive not thy strength unto women,

Nor thy ways gto that which destroyeth kings.

4  hIt is not for kings, O aLemuel, it is not for kings ito drink wine;

Nor for kprinces strong drink:

5  Lest they drink, and forget the law,

And †pervert the judgment †of any of the afflicted.

6  lGive strong drink unto him that is mready to perish,

And wine unto those that be †of heavy hearts.

7  Let him drink, and forget his poverty,

And remember his misery no more.

8  nOpen thy mouth for the dumb

In the cause of all †such as are appointed to destruction.

9  Open thy mouth, ojudge righteously,

And npplead the cause of the qpoor and needy.

10  rWho can find sa virtuous woman?

For ther price is far above urubies.

11  The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her,

So that he shall have no need of spoil.

12  She will do him good and not evil

All the days of her life.

13  She xseeketh wool, and flax,

And worketh willingly with her hands.

14  She is like the merchants’ ships;

She bringeth her food from afar.

15  yShe riseth also while it is yet night,

And zgiveth meat to her household,

And aa portion to her maidens.

16  bShe considereth a field, and †buyeth it:

With the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.

17  cShe girdeth her loins with qstrength,

And strengtheneth her arms.

18  †She perceiveth that her merchandise is good:

Her dcandle goeth not out by night.

19  She layeth her hands to the spindle,

And her hands hold the edistaff.

20  †She fstretcheth out her hand to the gpoor;

Yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the gneedy.

21  She is not afraid of the snow for her household:

For all her household are clothed with ||hscarlet.

22  She maketh herself icoverings of tapestry;

Her clothing is ksilk and lpurple.

23  mHer husband is known nin the gates,

nWhen he sitteth among the elders of the land.

24  She maketh ofine linen, and selleth it;

And delivereth girdles unto the pmerchant.

25  qStrength and honour are her clothing;

And rshe shall rejoice in time to come.

26  She openeth her mouth with wisdom;

And in her tongue is the law of kindness.

27  She looketh well to the ways of her household,

And eateth not the bread of idleness.

28  Her children arise up, and call her blessed;

Her husband also, and he praiseth her.

29  Many daughters ||have done tvirtuously,

But thou excellest them all.

30  uFavour is deceitful, and beauty is vain:

But a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.

31  Give her of the fruit of her hands;

And let her own works praise her in the gates.

6 My son, if thou abe surety for thy friend,

If thou hast astricken thy hand with a stranger,

2  Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth,

Thou art btaken with the words of thy mouth.

3  Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself,

When thou art come into the hand of thy friend;

Go, chumble thyself, ||and make sure thy friend.

4  dGive not sleep to thine eyes,

dNor slumber to thine eyelids.

5  Deliver thyself as a eroe from the hand of the hunter,

And fas a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6  gGo to the hant, thou isluggard;

Consider her ways, and kbe wise:

7  lWhich having no mguide, noverseer, or ruler,

8  hProvideth her meat in the summer,

And ogathereth her food in the harvest.

9  How long wilt thou sleep, O isluggard?

When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

10  pYet a little dsleep, a little dslumber,

A little folding of the hands to sleep:

11  qSo shall rthy poverty come as one that travelleth,

And thy want as an armed man.

12  rrA naughty person, a wicked man,

Walketh with a sfroward mouth.

13  He twinketh with his eyes,

He speaketh with his feet,

He teacheth with his fingers;

14  uFrowardness is in his heart,

xHe deviseth mischief continually;

He †soweth discord.

15  Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly;

ySuddenly shall he be broken zwithout remedy.

16  These asix things doth the Lord hate:

Yea, aseven are an abomination †unto him:

17  †A proud look, ba lying tongue,

And cehands that shed innocent blood,

18  dAn heart that deviseth ewicked imaginations,

efFeet that be swift in running to mischief,

19  A false witness gthat speaketh lies,

And he that hsoweth discord among brethren.

20  iMy son, keep thy father’s commandment,

And iforsake not the law of thy mother:

21  kBind them continually upon thine heart,

And ltie them about thy mneck.

22  nWhen thou goest, it shall lead thee;

nWhen thou sleepest, it oshall keep thee;

And when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.

23  For the commandment is pa ||lamp; and the law is plight;

And ppreproofs of instruction are the way of life:

24  To keep thee from the evil woman,

From qthe flattery ||of the tongue of a rstrange woman.

25  sLust not after her beauty in thine heart;

Neither let her take thee with ther eyelids.

26  For uby means of a whorish woman a man is brought to xa piece of bread:

And †the adulteress will yhunt for zthe precious life.

27  Can a man atake bfire in chis bosom,

And his clothes not be burned?

28  Can one dgo upon hot coals,

And his feet not be dburned?

29  So he that goeth in to his neighbour’s wife;

Whosoever toucheth her shall not be ddinnocent.

30  Men do not despise a thief, if he steal

eTo satisfy his eesoul when he is hungry;

31  But if he fbe found, fhe shall restore gsevenfold;

He shall give all the substance of his house.

32  But whoso committeth adultery with a woman hlacketh †understanding:

He that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.

33  A wound and dishonour shall he get;

And his reproach shall not be wiped away.

34  For ijealousy is the rage of a man:

Therefore he will not spare kin the day of vengeance.

35  †He will not regard any ransom;

Neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

7 aMy son, keep my words,

And alay up my commandments with thee.

2  bKeep my commandments, and blive;

And my law as cthe apple of thine eye.

3  dBind them upon thy fingers,

dWrite them upon the table of thine heart.

4  Say unto wisdom, Thou art emy sister;

And call understanding thy fkinswoman:

5  gThat they may keep thee from the strange woman,

gFrom the stranger which flattereth with her words.

6  For hat the window of my house

hI looked through my casement,

7  And beheld among the isimple ones,

I discerned among †the youths,

A young man kvoid of understanding,

8  Passing through the lstreet near mher corner;

And he went the way to her house,

9  In the ntwilight, †in the evening,

In the oblack and dark night:

10  And, behold, oothere met him a woman

With pthe attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.

11  (She is qloud and rstubborn;

sHer feet abide not in her house:

12  Now is she without, now in the streets,

And sslieth in wait at mevery corner.)

13  So she caught him, and kissed him,

And †with an impudent face said unto him,

14  †I have tpeace offerings with me;

This day have I upayed my vows.

15  Therefore came I forth to meet thee,

xDiligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.

16  I have decked my bed with ycoverings of tapestry,

With carved works, with zfine linen of Egypt.

17  I have aperfumed my bed

With bmyrrh, baloes, and ccinnamon.

18  Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning:

Let us solace ourselves with loves.

19  For the dgoodman is not at home,

He is gone a long journey:

20  He hath taken a ebag of money †with him,

And will come home at ||the day appointed.

21  With her much ffair speech she caused him to yield,

With gthe flattering of her lips she forced him.

22  He goeth after her †straightway,

As an ox goeth to the slaughter,

Or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;

23  Till a dart strike through his liver;

hAs a bird hasteth to the snare,

And knoweth not that it is for his life.

24  ikHearken unto me now therefore, O ye children,

And kattend to the words of