Proverbs 5:1-11 in English

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom; Incline thine ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest preserve discretion, And that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; Her steps take hold on Sheol;

⁶ So that she findeth not the level path of life: Her ways are unstable, and she knoweth it not.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, hearken unto me, And depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, And come not nigh the door of her house;

⁹ Lest thou give thine honor unto others, And thy years unto the cruel;

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy strength, And thy labors be in the house of an alien,

¹¹ And thou mourn at thy latter end, When thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, and apply thine ear to my words;

² that thou mayest keep good understanding, and the discretion of my lips gives thee a charge. Give no heed to a worthless woman;

³ for honey drops from the lips of a harlot, who for a season pleases thy palate:

⁴ but afterwards thou wilt find her more bitter than gall, and sharper than a two-edged sword.

⁵ For the feet of folly lead those who deal with her down to the grave with death; and her steps are not established.

⁶ For she goes not upon the paths of life; but her ways are slippery, and not easily known.

⁷ Now then, my son, hear me, and make not my words of none effect.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her; draw not near to the doors of her house:

⁹ lest thou give away thy life to others, and thy substance to the merciless:

¹⁰ lest strangers be filled with thy strength, and thy labours come into the houses of strangers;

¹¹ and thou repent at last, when the flesh of thy body is consumed,

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

⁶ Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

⁷ Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹ And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

⁶ Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

⁷ Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹ And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, and apply your ear to my words;

² that you may keep good understanding, and the discretion of my lips gives you a charge. Give no heed to a worthless woman;

³ for honey drops from the lips of a harlot, who for a season pleases your palate:

⁴ but afterwards you will find her more bitter than gall, and sharper than a two-edged sword.

⁵ For the feet of folly lead those who deal with her down to the grave with death; and her steps are not established.

⁶ For she goes not upon the paths of life; but her ways are slippery, and not easily known.

⁷ Now then, my son, hear me, and make not my words of none effect.

⁸ Remove your way far from her; draw not near to the doors of her house:

⁹ lest you give away your life to others, and your substance to the merciless:

¹⁰ lest strangers be filled with your strength, and your labors come into the houses of strangers;

¹¹ And you repent at last, when the flesh of your body is consumed,

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom; incline thine ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest preserve discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But her latter end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on Sheol;

⁶ So that she findeth not the level path of life: her ways are unstable and she knoweth it not.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, hearken unto me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy strength; and thy labours be in the house of an alien;

¹¹ And thou mourn at thy latter end, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, listen carefully to some more wise things that I will tell you. Listen well to what I am going to teach you.

² If you do that, you will be able to choose wisely what to do, and you will know the right things to say MTY.

³ What an immoral woman says to you may be as sweet as honey, and sound smoother than olive oil feels on your skin,

⁴ but the result of being with her will be bitter like gall and injure you as badly, like being cut with a sharp two-edged sword.

⁵ If you go where she goes MTY, you will go down to where the dead people are. Her steps will lead you straight to the grave.

⁶ She is not concerned about the roads that lead to a long life. She walks down a crooked path, and she does not realize that she is on the wrong road.

⁷ So now, my sons, listen to me. ◄Never turn aside from/always remember► LIT what I am about to tell you.

⁸ Run away from immoral women! Do not go near the doors of their houses!

⁹ If you enter the home of one of them, you will lose your ◄self-respect/good reputation► and that woman's husband will not act mercifully toward you; he will kill you and take everything that you have acquired during your life!

¹⁰ Foreigners will take your money, and all the good things that you have worked for will ◄end up in their hands/become their possessions►.

¹¹ And when you are about to die, you will groan with severe pain because diseases that you have gotten from being immoral will be destroying your body.

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, and apply your ear to my words;

² that you may keep good understanding, and the discretion of my lips gives you a charge. Give no heed to a worthless woman;

³ for honey drops from the lips of a harlot, who for a season pleases your palate:

⁴ but afterwards you will find her more bitter than gall, and sharper than a two-edged sword.

⁵ For the feet of folly lead those who deal with her down to the grave with death; and her steps are not established.

⁶ For she goes not upon the paths of life; but her ways are slippery, and not easily known.

⁷ Now then, my son, hear me, and make not my words of none effect.

⁸ Remove your way far from her; draw not near to the doors of her house:

⁹ lest you give away your life to others, and your substance to the merciless:

¹⁰ lest strangers be filled with your strength, and your labours come into the houses of strangers;

¹¹ And you repent at last, when the flesh of your body is consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honour to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labours enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, give attention to my wisdom; let your ear be turned to my teaching:

² So that you may be ruled by a wise purpose, and your lips may keep knowledge.

³ For honey is dropping from the lips of the strange woman, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, and sharp as a two-edged sword;

⁵ Her feet go down to death, and her steps to the underworld;

⁶ She never keeps her mind on the road of life; her ways are uncertain, she has no knowledge.

⁷ Give ear to me then, my sons, and do not put away my words from you.

⁸ Go far away from her, do not come near the door of her house;

⁹ For fear that you may give your honour to others, and your wealth to strange men:

¹⁰ And strange men may be full of your wealth, and the fruit of your work go to the house of others;

¹¹ And you will be full of grief at the end of your life, when your flesh and your body are wasted;

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom, incline thine ear to my understanding;

² that thou mayest keep reflection, and that thy lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of the strange woman drop honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

⁴ but her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on Sheol.

⁶ Lest she should ponder the path of life, her ways wander, she knoweth not whither.

⁷ And now, children, hearken unto me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel;

¹⁰ lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, and the fruits of thy toil come into the house of a stranger;

¹¹ and thou mourn in thine end, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed;

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, and incline thy ear to my prudence.

² That thou mayst keep thoughts, and thy lips may preserve instruction. Mind not the deceit of a woman.

³ For the lips of a harlot are like a honeycomb dropping, and her throat is smoother than oil.

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, and sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down into death, and her steps go in as far as hell.

⁶ They walk not by the path of life, her steps are wandering, and unaccountable.

⁷ Now therefore, my son, hear me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the doors of her house.

⁹ Give not thy honour to strangers, and thy years to the cruel.

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy strength, and thy labours be in another man’s house,

¹¹ And thou mourn it the last, when thou shalt have spent thy flesh and thy body, and say:

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom, listen carefully as I explain what makes sense,

² so you can make good decisions and protect knowledge with your lips.

³ For the lips of an immoral woman may taste as sweet as honey, the kisses of her mouth may be as smooth as oil,

⁴ but in the end what you get from her is the bitterness of wormwood and the sharp pain of being cut with a two-edged sword.

⁵ She leads you down to death; she takes you down to the grave.

⁶ She doesn't follow the path that leads to life—she wanders away and doesn't even know she's lost.

⁷ Now, my son, listen to me; don't reject what I have taught you.

⁸ Stay far away from her! Don't go near the door of her house!

⁹ Otherwise you'll surrender your honor to others, and your character to cruel people.

¹⁰ Strangers will spend your wealth; everything you've worked for will go to someone else.

¹¹ When you come to the end of your life you'll moan in pain as disease destroys your body.

¹ My sonne, hearken vnto my wisedome, and incline thine eare vnto my knowledge.

² That thou maiest regarde counsell, and thy lippes obserue knowledge.

³ For the lippes of a strange woman drop as an honie combe, and her mouth is more soft then oyle.

⁴ But the end of her is bitter as wormewood, and sharpe as a two edged sworde.

⁵ Her feete goe downe to death, and her steps take holde on hell.

⁶ She weigheth not the way of life: her paths are moueable: thou canst not knowe them.

⁷ Heare yee me nowe therefore, O children, and depart not from the wordes of my mouth.

⁸ Keepe thy way farre from her, and come not neere the doore of her house,

⁹ Least thou giue thine honor vnto others, and thy yeeres to the cruell:

¹⁰ Least the stranger should be silled with thy strength, and thy labours bee in the house of a stranger,

¹¹ And thou mourne at thine end, (when thou hast consumed thy flesh and thy bodie)

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom; incline thine ear to my understanding;

² That thou mayest preserve discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on the nether-world;

⁶ Lest she should walk the even path of life, her ways wander, but she knoweth it not.

⁷ Now therefore, O ye children, hearken unto me, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house;

⁹ Lest thou give thy vigour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel;

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy strength, and thy labours be in the house of an alien;

¹¹ And thou moan, when thine end cometh, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom, And bow thine ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest regard discretion, And that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop as a honeycomb, And her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a twoedged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; Her steps take hold on hell.

⁶ Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, Her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

⁷ Hear me now therefore, O ye children, And depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, And come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thine honour unto others, And thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; And thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹ And thou mourn at the last, When thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom; to my understanding incline thou thy ear:

² That thou mayest observe discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For as of fine honey drop the lips of an adulterous woman, and smoother than oil is her palate;

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, it is sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death, her steps take firm hold on the nether world:

⁶ So that she cannot balance the path of life; her tracks are unsteady, and she knoweth it not.

⁷ And now, O ye children, hearken unto me, and depart not from the sayings of my mouth.

⁸ Remove far from her thy way, and come not nigh to the door of her house;

⁹ That thou mayest not give up unto others thy vigor, and thy years unto the cruel;

¹⁰ That strangers may not satisfy themselves with thy strength, and with thy exertions, in the house of an alien:

¹¹ While thou moanest at thy end, when thy flesh and thy body are coming to their end,

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, And apply thine ear to my words;

² That thou mayest keep good understanding, And the discretion of my lips gives thee a charge. Give no heed to a worthless woman;

³ For honey drops from the lips of a harlot, Who for a season pleases thy palate:

⁴ But afterward thou wilt find her more bitter than gall, And sharper than a two-edged sword.

⁵ For the feet of folly lead Those who deal with her down to the grave with death; And her steps are not established.

⁶ For she goes not upon the paths of life; But her ways are slippery, and not easily known.

⁷ Now then, my son, hear me, And make not my words of none effect.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her; Draw not near to the doors of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give away thy life to others, And thy substance to the merciless:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy strength, And thy labors come into the houses of strangers;

¹¹ And thou repent at last, When the flesh of thy body is consumed,

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom. And bow thine ear to my understanding;

² That thou mayest keep discretion, And that thy lips may preserve knowledge!

³ Truly, the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And her mouth is smoother than oil;

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; Her steps lay hold of the under-world.

⁶ That she may not ponder the way of life, Her paths waver when she heedeth it not.

⁷ Hear me now, therefore, O children! And turn not away from the words of my mouth!

⁸ Remove thy way far from her. And come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thy bloom to others, And thy years to a cruel one;

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth, And thine earnings be in the house of an alien;

¹¹ And lest thou mourn in thy latter end. When thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding:

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ But in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol ·Place of the dead·.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she does not know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, sh'ma ·hear obey· me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom; incline your ears to my understanding,

² so you may learn about discretion and your lips may protect knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip with honey and her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, cutting like a sharp sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps go all the way to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the path of life. Her footsteps wander; she does not know where she is going.

⁷ Now, my sons, listen to me; do not turn away from listening to the words of my mouth.

⁸ Keep your path far away from her and do not come near the door of her house.

⁹ In that way you will not give away your honor to others or years of your life to a cruel person;

¹⁰ strangers will not feast on your wealth; what you have worked for will not go into the house of strangers.

¹¹ At the end of your life you will groan when your flesh and your body waste away.

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honour to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labours enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, attend to my wisdom, and bow thy ear to my understanding:

² That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop as a honey-comb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴ But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

⁶ Lest thou shouldst ponder the path of life, her ways are movable, that thou canst not know them .

⁷ Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹ Lest thou give thy honor to others, and thy years to the cruel:

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labors be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹ And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, pay attention to my wisdom. Turn your ear to my understanding,

² that you may maintain discretion, that your lips may preserve knowledge.

³ For the lips of an adulteress drip honey. Her mouth is smoother than oil,

⁴ but in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵ Her feet go down to death. Her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life. Her ways are crooked, and she doesn’t know it.

⁷ Now therefore, my sons, listen to me. Don’t depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Remove your way far from her. Don’t come near the door of her house,

⁹ lest you give your honour to others, and your years to the cruel one;

¹⁰ lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labours enrich another man’s house.

¹¹ You will groan at your latter end, when your flesh and your body are consumed,

¹ My son, perceive thou my wisdom, and bow down thine ear to my prudence;

² that thou keep thy thoughts, and thy lips keep teaching.

³ Give thou not attention to the falseness of a woman; for the lips of an whore be an honeycomb dropping, and her throat is clearer than oil;

⁴ but the last things of her be bitter as wormwood, and her tongue is sharp as a sword carving, or cutting, on each side.

⁵ Her feet go down into death; and her steps pierce to hells or to hell.

⁶ Those or they go not by the path of life; her steps be uncertain, and may not be sought out.

⁷ Now therefore, my son, hear thou me, and go thou not away from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Make far thy way from her, and nigh thou not to the doors of her house.

⁹ Give thou not thine honour to aliens, and thy years to the cruel;

¹⁰ lest peradventure strangers be filled with thy strengths, and lest thy travails be in an alien’s house;

¹¹ and thou bewail in the last days, when thou hast wasted thy flesh, and thy body;

¹ My son, perceive thou my wisdom, and bow down thine ear to my prudence; (My son, pay attention to my wisdom, and listen to my understanding of things;)

² (so) that thou keep thy thoughts (proper), and thy lips keep teaching (or and thy lips speak knowingly).

³ Give thou not attention to the falseness of a woman; for the lips of an whore be an honeycomb dropping (or for a whore’s lipsbe like a dripping honeycomb), and her throat is clearer than oil;

⁴ but the last things of her be (as) bitter as wormwood, and her tongue is (as) sharp as a sword carving, (or cutting), on each side.

⁵ Her feet go down into death; and her steps pierce to hells. (Her feet go downward unto death; and her steps shall lead thee unto Sheol, or the land of the dead, or and her steps shall lead thee to hell.)

⁶ Those go not by the path of life; her steps be uncertain, and may not be sought out. (They do not go on the path of life; her steps be uncertain, and should not be followed.)

⁷ Now therefore, my son, hear thou me, (or And so now, my son, listen to me), and go thou not away from the words of my mouth.

⁸ Make far thy way from her (or Make thy way far away from her), and nigh thou not to the doors of her house.

⁹ Give thou not thine honour to aliens (or Give thou not thy honour to strangers), and thy years to the cruel;

¹⁰ lest peradventure strangers be filled with thy strengths, and lest (the rewards of) thy travails be in an alien’s house; (lest perhaps strangers take all thy wealth, and the rewards of all thy efforts be in someone else’s house;)

¹¹ and thou bewail in the last days, when thou hast wasted thy flesh, and thy body;

¹ My son! to my wisdom give attention, To mine understanding incline thine ear,

² To observe thoughtfulness, And knowledge do thy lips keep.

³ For the lips of a strange woman drop honey, And smoother than oil is her mouth,

⁴ And her latter end is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a sword with mouths.

⁵ Her feet are going down to death, Sheol do her steps take hold of.

⁶ The path of life — lest thou ponder, Moved have her paths — thou knowest not.

⁷ And now, ye sons, hearken to me, And turn not from sayings of my mouth.

⁸ Keep far from off her thy way, And come not near unto the opening of her house,

⁹ Lest thou give to others thy honour, And thy years to the fierce,

¹⁰ Lest strangers be filled with thy power, And thy labours in the house of a stranger,

¹¹ And thou hast howled in thy latter end, In the consumption of thy flesh and thy food,