Proverbs 6
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Financial Entanglements
6 My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor[a]
or entered into an agreement with[b] a stranger,[c](A)
2 you have been trapped by the words of your lips[d]—
ensnared by the words of your mouth.
3 Do this, then, my son, and free yourself,
for you have put yourself in your neighbor’s power:
Go, humble yourself, and plead with your neighbor.
4 Don’t give sleep to your eyes
or slumber to your eyelids.(B)
5 Escape like a gazelle from a hunter,[e]
like a bird from a fowler’s trap.[f](C)
Laziness
6 Go to the ant,(D) you slacker!(E)
Observe its ways and become wise.
7 Without leader, administrator, or ruler,
8 it prepares its provisions in summer;
it gathers its food during harvest.(F)
9 How long will you stay in bed, you slacker?
When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the arms to rest,(G)
11 and your poverty will come like a robber,
your need, like a bandit.(H)
The Malicious Man
12 A worthless person,(I) a wicked man
goes around speaking dishonestly,(J)
13 winking(K) his eyes, signaling with his feet,
and gesturing with his fingers.
14 He always plots evil(L) with perversity in his heart—
he stirs up trouble.(M)
15 Therefore calamity will strike him suddenly;
he will be shattered instantly—beyond recovery.(N)
What the Lord Hates
16 The Lord hates six things;
in fact, seven are detestable to Him:
17 arrogant eyes,(O) a lying tongue,(P)
hands that shed innocent blood,(Q)
18 a heart that plots wicked schemes,(R)
feet eager to run to evil,(S)
19 a lying witness who gives false testimony,(T)
and one who stirs up trouble among brothers.(U)
Warning against Adultery
20 My son, keep your father’s command,
and don’t reject your mother’s teaching.(V)
21 Always bind them to your heart;
tie them around your neck.(W)
22 When you walk here and there, they will guide you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
when you wake up, they will talk to you.
23 For a command is a lamp, teaching is a light,(X)
and corrective discipline is the way to life.(Y)
24 They will protect you from an evil woman,[g]
from the flattering[h] tongue of a stranger.(Z)
25 Don’t lust in your heart for her beauty(AA)
or let her captivate you with her eyelashes.(AB)
26 For a prostitute’s fee is only a loaf of bread,[i]
but an adulteress[j] goes after a precious life.(AC)
27 Can a man embrace fire[k]
and his clothes not be burned?
28 Can a man walk on burning coals
without scorching his feet?
29 So it is with the one who sleeps with
another man’s wife;
no one who touches her will go unpunished.(AD)
30 People don’t despise the thief if he steals
to satisfy himself when he is hungry.(AE)
31 Still, if caught, he must pay seven times as much;(AF)
he must give up all the wealth in his house.
32 The one who commits adultery[l] lacks sense;
whoever does so destroys himself.(AG)
33 He will get a beating[m] and dishonor,
and his disgrace will never be removed.
34 For jealousy enrages a husband,(AH)
and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
35 He will not be appeased by anything
or be persuaded by lavish gifts.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 6:1 Or friend
- Proverbs 6:1 Lit or shaken hands for or with
- Proverbs 6:1 The Hb word for stranger can refer to a foreigner, an Israelite outside one’s family, or simply to another person.
- Proverbs 6:2 Lit mouth
- Proverbs 6:5 Lit hand
- Proverbs 6:5 Lit hand
- Proverbs 6:24 LXX reads from a married woman
- Proverbs 6:24 Lit smooth
- Proverbs 6:26 Or On account of a prostitute, [one is left with] only a loaf of bread
- Proverbs 6:26 Lit but a wife of a man
- Proverbs 6:27 Lit man take fire to his bosom
- Proverbs 6:32 Lit commits adultery with a woman
- Proverbs 6:33 Or plague
Proverbs 6
Common English Bible
Wise advice
6 My son, if you guarantee a loan for your neighbor
or shake hands in agreement with a stranger,
2 you will be trapped by your words;
you will be caught by your words.
3 Do this, my son, to get out of it,
for you have come under the control of your neighbor.
So go, humble yourself,[a] and pester your neighbor.
4 Don’t give sleep to your eyes
or slumber to your eyelids.
5 Get yourself free like a gazelle from a hunter,
like a bird from the hand of a fowler.
6 Go to the ant, you lazy person;
observe its ways and grow wise.
7 The ant has no commander, officer, or ruler.
8 Even so, it gets its food in summer;
gathers its provisions at harvest.
9 How long, lazy person, will you lie down?
When will you rise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the arms to lie down—
11 and poverty will come on you like a prowler,
destitution like a warrior.
12 Worthless people and guilty people
go around with crooked talk.
13 They wink their eyes, gesture with their feet,
and point with their fingers.
14 Their hearts are corrupt and determined to do evil;
they create controversies all the time.
15 Therefore, sudden disaster will come upon them;
they will be quickly broken beyond healing.
16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven things detestable to him:
17 snobbish eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that spill innocent blood,
18 a heart set on wicked plans,
feet that run quickly to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes lies,
and one who causes conflicts among relatives.
Danger of adultery
20 My son, keep your father’s command;
don’t abandon your mother’s instruction.
21 Bind them on your heart for all time;
fasten them around your neck.
22 When you walk around, they will lead you;
when you lie down, they will protect you;
when you awake, they will occupy your attention.
23 The commandment is a lamp and instruction a light;
corrective teaching is the path of life.
24 They guard you from the evil woman,
from the flattering tongue of the foreign woman.
25 Don’t desire her beauty in secret;
don’t let her take you in with her eyelashes,
26 for a prostitute costs a loaf of bread,[b]
but a married woman hunts for a man’s very life.
27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap
and his clothes not get burned?
28 If a man walks on hot coals,
don’t his feet get burned?
29 So is the man who approaches his neighbor’s wife;
anyone who touches her will be punished.
30 People don’t despise a thief if he steals
to fill his starving stomach.
31 But if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold;
he must give all the riches of his house.
32 He who commits adultery is senseless.
Doing so, he destroys himself.
33 He is wounded and disgraced.
His shame will never be wiped away.
34 Jealousy makes a man rage;
he’ll show no mercy on his day of revenge.
35 He won’t accept compensation;
he’ll refuse even a large bribe.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 6:3 Heb uncertain
- Proverbs 6:26 Heb uncertain
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Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible