Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words,

Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead.

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

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil;

but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword.

Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.

She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.

Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house,

lest you lose your honor to others and your dignity to one who is cruel,

lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich the house of another.

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

Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man`s wife? Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?

The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them; the cords of their sins hold them fast.

For lack of discipline they will die, led astray by their own great folly.

keeping you from your neighbor`s wife, from the smooth talk of a wayward woman.

Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes.

For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread, but another man`s wife preys on your very life.

Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned?

Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched?

So is he who sleeps with another man`s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished.

But a man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself.

Blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away.

They will keep you from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words.

At the window of my house I looked down through the lattice.

He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house

at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in.

Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.

(She is unruly and defiant, her feet never stay at home;

now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.)

She took hold of him and kissed him and with a brazen face she said:

“Today I fulfilled my vows, and I have food from my fellowship offering at home.

So I came out to meet you; I looked for you and have found you!

I have covered my bed with colored linens from Egypt.

I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.

Come, let`s drink deeply of love till morning; let`s enjoy ourselves with love!

My husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey.

He took his purse filled with money and will not be home till full moon.”

With persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk.

All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose

till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his life.

Do not let your heart turn to her ways or stray into her paths.

Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng.

Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death.

“Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!”

But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.

The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.

A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but fools detest turning from evil.

A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.

A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.

All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.

Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

The human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?

Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.

Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.

The mouth of an adulterous woman is a deep pit; a man who is under the Lord`s wrath falls into it.

When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you,

and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.

Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.

Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies;

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.

You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments.

Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat,

for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

for an adulterous woman is a deep pit, and a wayward wife is a narrow well.

Like a bandit she lies in wait and multiplies the unfaithful among men.

Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.

Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly!

In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.

Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things.

You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging.

“They hit me,” you will say, “but I`m not hurt! They beat me, but I don`t feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?”

If you find honey, eat just enough— too much of it, and you will vomit.

It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable to search out matters that are too deep.

Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control.

One who is full loathes honey from the comb, but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.

Death and Destruction are never satisfied, and neither are human eyes.

“The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!` they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!`:

the grave, the barren womb, land, which is never satisfied with water, and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!`

“This is the way of an adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I`ve done nothing wrong.`

Do not spend your strength on women, your vigor on those who ruin kings.

It is not for kings, Lemuel— it is not for kings to drink wine, not for rulers to crave beer,

Let beer be for those who are perishing, wine for those who are in anguish!

Let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more.