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Proverbs 23
King James Version
Proverbs 23
King James Version
23 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.
9 Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.
10 Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:
11 For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee.
12 Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.
13 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.
15 My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.
16 Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.
17 Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.
18 For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.
20 Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:
21 For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.
22 Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old.
23 Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.
24 The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.
25 Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.
26 My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.
27 For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.
28 She also lieth in wait as for a prey, and increaseth the transgressors among men.
29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
35 They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.
Proverbes 23
La Bible du Semeur
Proverbes 23
La Bible du Semeur
23 Si tu es à table avec un dirigeant,
considère bien qui tu as devant toi[a] !
2 Réfrène ton appétit si tu es un glouton,
3 ne te laisse pas tenter par ses bons plats,
car il se pourrait que ces mets soient décevants.
4 Ne t’épuise pas pour t’enrichir,
refuse même d’y penser[b] !
5 A peine as-tu fixé tes regards sur la fortune
que, déjà, elle s’est évanouie,
car elle se fait des ailes et s’envole comme l’aigle en plein ciel.
6 Ne te laisse pas inviter par quelqu’un qui te regarde d’un mauvais œil,
et ne convoite pas ses bons plats,
7 car, au fond de lui, il est calculateur.
« Mange et bois », te dira-t-il,
mais son cœur n’est pas avec toi.
8 Le morceau que tu as mangé, tu devras le rendre,
et c’est en pure perte que tu auras tenu des propos aimables.
9 Ne parle pas à un insensé,
il mépriserait le bon sens de tes paroles.
10 Ne déplace pas les anciennes bornes
et n’empiète pas sur les champs des orphelins[c],
11 car ils ont un puissant protecteur
qui défendrait leur cause contre toi.
12 Ouvre ton cœur à l’instruction,
et tes oreilles à l’enseignement porteur de connaissance.
13 N’hésite pas à corriger le jeune enfant ;
si tu lui donnes des coups de bâton, il n’en mourra pas.
14 Bien plutôt, par des coups de bâton,
tu le sauveras du séjour des morts.
15 Mon fils, si tu acquiers de la sagesse, mon cœur à moi aussi s’en réjouira.
16 Quand tu parleras avec droiture, du fond de mon être, j’exulterai.
17 N’envie pas le sort de ceux qui font le mal
mais en tout temps, crains l’Eternel.
18 Car il y aura un avenir pour toi
et ton espérance ne sera pas déçue.
19 Ecoute-moi bien, mon fils, et deviens sage,
sois maître de la direction que tu prends.
20 N’imite pas les ivrognes,
ni ceux qui se gavent de viande,
21 car l’ivrogne et le gourmand tombent dans la misère,
et ceux qui somnolent seront bientôt vêtus de haillons.
22 Ecoute ton père, qui t’a donné la vie,
et ne méprise pas ta mère devenue âgée.
23 Acquiers la vérité, la sagesse, l’instruction et le discernement,
et ne t’en dessaisis pas.
24 Le père d’un juste est au comble de la joie,
qui a donné la vie à un fils sage s’en réjouit.
25 Puissent ton père et ta mère se réjouir à ton sujet !
Donne cette joie à celle qui t’a mis au monde.
La femme immorale
26 Mon fils, fais-moi confiance
et apprécie la conduite que tu me vois tenir[d],
27 car la prostituée est une fosse profonde,
et la femme immorale un puits étroit[e].
28 Comme un brigand, elle se tient aux aguets
et elle amène bien des hommes à être infidèles.
L’ivrogne
29 Pour qui les : « Hélas, malheur à moi ! » ?
Pour qui les querelles ? Pour qui les plaintes ?
Pour qui les plaies inutiles ?
Pour qui les yeux rouges ?
30 Pour ceux qui s’attardent à boire du vin,
pour ceux qui sont en quête de vin parfumé[f].
31 Ne couve pas de tes regards le vin vermeil
quand il brille de son éclat dans la coupe :
il descend si aisément,
32 mais finit par mordre comme un serpent
et te piquer comme une vipère.
33 Tes yeux verront alors des choses étranges
et tu laisseras échapper des paroles incohérentes,
34 tu auras l’impression d’être couché en pleine mer,
ballotté comme un matelot en haut d’un mât.
35 « On me frappe, diras-tu, mais je n’ai pas mal,
on m’a roué de coups, je n’ai rien senti.
Quand me réveillerai-je ? Il faudra que je trouve encore quelque chose à boire. »
Footnotes
- 23.1 Autre traduction : ce que tu as devant toi.
- 23.4 Autre traduction : aie l’intelligence de t’arrêter.
- 23.10 Pour les v. 10-11, voir Dt 19.14 ; Pr 15.25 ; 22.28.
- 23.26 Selon le texte hébreu traditionnel. En suivant une ancienne tradition de scribes qui préconise l’inversion de deux lettres et les versions anciennes, on obtient le sens : et observe ma conduite.
- 23.27 Voir 5.5.
- 23.30 Voir 9.2 et note.
Proverbs 23
New International Version
Proverbs 23
New International Version
Saying 7
23 When you sit to dine with a ruler,
note well what[a] is before you,
2 and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to gluttony.
3 Do not crave his delicacies,(A)
for that food is deceptive.
Saying 8
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,(B)
for they will surely sprout wings
and fly off to the sky like an eagle.(C)
Saying 9
6 Do not eat the food of a begrudging host,
do not crave his delicacies;(D)
7 for he is the kind of person
who is always thinking about the cost.[b]
“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.
Saying 10
9 Do not speak to fools,
for they will scorn your prudent words.(E)
Saying 11
10 Do not move an ancient boundary stone(F)
or encroach on the fields of the fatherless,
11 for their Defender(G) is strong;(H)
he will take up their case against you.(I)
Saying 12
12 Apply your heart to instruction(J)
and your ears to words of knowledge.
Saying 13
13 Do not withhold discipline from a child;
if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.
14 Punish them with the rod
and save them from death.(K)
Saying 14
15 My son, if your heart is wise,
then my heart will be glad indeed;
16 my inmost being will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right.(L)
Saying 15
17 Do not let your heart envy(M) sinners,
but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord.
18 There is surely a future hope for you,
and your hope will not be cut off.(N)
Saying 16
19 Listen, my son,(O) and be wise,
and set your heart on the right path:
20 Do not join those who drink too much wine(P)
or gorge themselves on meat,
21 for drunkards and gluttons become poor,(Q)
and drowsiness clothes them in rags.
Saying 17
22 Listen to your father, who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.(R)
23 Buy the truth and do not sell it—
wisdom, instruction and insight as well.(S)
24 The father of a righteous child has great joy;
a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.(T)
25 May your father and mother rejoice;
may she who gave you birth be joyful!(U)
Saying 18
26 My son,(V) give me your heart
and let your eyes delight in my ways,(W)
27 for an adulterous woman is a deep pit,(X)
and a wayward wife is a narrow well.
28 Like a bandit she lies in wait(Y)
and multiplies the unfaithful among men.
Saying 19
29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
Who has strife? Who has complaints?
Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?
30 Those who linger over wine,(Z)
who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.
31 Do not gaze at wine when it is red,
when it sparkles in the cup,
when it goes down smoothly!
32 In the end it bites like a snake
and poisons like a viper.
33 Your eyes will see strange sights,
and your mind will imagine confusing things.
34 You will be like one sleeping on the high seas,
lying on top of the rigging.
35 “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?”(AA)
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:1 Or who
- Proverbs 23:7 Or for as he thinks within himself, / so he is; or for as he puts on a feast, / so he is
La Bible du Semeur (BDS)
La Bible Du Semeur (The Bible of the Sower) Copyright © 1992, 1999 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.