Proverbs 23
New King James Version
Listen to Your Father
23 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
Consider carefully what is before you;
2 And put a knife to your throat
If you are a man given to appetite.
3 Do not desire his delicacies,
For they are deceptive food.
4 (A)Do not overwork to be rich;
(B)Because of your own understanding, cease!
5 [a]Will you set your eyes on that which is not?
For riches certainly make themselves wings;
They fly away like an eagle toward heaven.
6 Do not eat the bread of (C)a[b] miser,
Nor desire his delicacies;
7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.
“Eat and drink!” (D)he says to you,
But his heart is not with you.
8 The morsel you have eaten, you will vomit up,
And waste your pleasant words.
9 (E)Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
For he will despise the wisdom of your words.
10 Do not remove the ancient [c]landmark,
Nor enter the fields of the fatherless;
11 (F)For their Redeemer is mighty;
He will plead their cause against you.
12 Apply your heart to instruction,
And your ears to words of knowledge.
13 (G)Do not withhold correction from a child,
For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.
14 You shall beat him with a rod,
And deliver his soul from [d]hell.
15 My son, if your heart is wise,
My heart will rejoice—indeed, I myself;
16 Yes, my [e]inmost being will rejoice
When your lips speak right things.
17 (H)Do not let your heart envy sinners,
But (I)be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day;
18 (J)For surely there is a [f]hereafter,
And your hope will not be cut off.
19 Hear, my son, and be wise;
And guide your heart in the way.
20 (K)Do not mix with winebibbers,
Or with gluttonous eaters of meat;
21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.
22 (L)Listen to your father who begot you,
And do not despise your mother when she is old.
23 (M)Buy the truth, and do not sell it,
Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.
24 (N)The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,
And he who begets a wise child will delight in him.
25 Let your father and your mother be glad,
And let her who bore you rejoice.
26 My son, give me your heart,
And let your eyes observe my ways.
27 (O)For a harlot is a deep pit,
And a seductress is a narrow well.
28 (P)She also lies in wait as for a victim,
And increases the unfaithful among men.
29 (Q)Who has woe?
Who has sorrow?
Who has contentions?
Who has complaints?
Who has wounds without cause?
Who (R)has redness of eyes?
30 (S)Those who linger long at the wine,
Those who go in search of (T)mixed wine.
31 Do not look on the wine when it is red,
When it sparkles in the cup,
When it [g]swirls around smoothly;
32 At the last it bites like a serpent,
And stings like a viper.
33 Your eyes will see strange things,
And your heart will utter perverse things.
34 Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the [h]midst of the sea,
Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:
35 “They(U) have struck me, but I was not hurt;
They have beaten me, but I did not feel it.
When shall (V)I awake, that I may seek another drink?”
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:5 Lit. Will you cause your eyes to fly upon it and it is not?
- Proverbs 23:6 Lit. one who has an evil eye
- Proverbs 23:10 boundary
- Proverbs 23:14 Or Sheol
- Proverbs 23:16 Lit. kidneys
- Proverbs 23:18 Future, lit. latter end
- Proverbs 23:31 goes around
- Proverbs 23:34 Lit. heart
Proverbs 23
English Standard Version
23 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
observe carefully what[a] is before you,
2 and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to appetite.
3 (A)Do not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.
4 (B)Do not toil to acquire wealth;
(C)be discerning enough to desist.
5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone,
(D)for suddenly it sprouts wings,
flying like an eagle toward heaven.
6 (E)Do not eat the bread of a man who is (F)stingy;[b]
(G)do not desire his delicacies,
7 for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.[c]
“Eat and drink!” he says to you,
but his (H)heart is not with you.
8 You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,
and waste your pleasant words.
9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
for he will despise the good sense of your words.
10 (I)Do not move an ancient landmark
or enter the fields of the fatherless,
11 for their (J)Redeemer is strong;
he will (K)plead their cause against you.
12 Apply your heart to instruction
and your ear to words of knowledge.
13 Do not withhold (L)discipline from a child;
(M)if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.
14 If you strike him with the rod,
you will (N)save his soul from Sheol.
15 (O)My son, if your heart is wise,
my heart too will be glad.
16 My (P)inmost being[d] will exult
when your lips speak (Q)what is right.
17 Let not your heart (R)envy sinners,
but continue in (S)the fear of the Lord all the day.
18 Surely (T)there is a future,
and your (U)hope will not be cut off.
19 Hear, my son, and (V)be wise,
and (W)direct your heart in the way.
20 Be not among (X)drunkards[e]
or among (Y)gluttonous eaters of meat,
21 for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
and (Z)slumber will clothe them with rags.
22 (AA)Listen to your father who gave you life,
(AB)and do not despise your mother when she is old.
23 (AC)Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
24 (AD)The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.
25 (AE)Let your father and mother be glad;
let (AF)her who bore you rejoice.
26 My son, give me your heart,
and let your eyes observe[f] my ways.
27 For a prostitute is (AG)a deep pit;
(AH)an adulteress[g] is a narrow (AI)well.
28 (AJ)She lies in wait like a robber
and increases the traitors among mankind.
29 (AK)Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
Who has strife? Who has complaining?
Who has (AL)wounds without cause?
Who has (AM)redness of eyes?
30 Those who (AN)tarry long over wine;
those who go to try (AO)mixed wine.
31 Do not look at wine when it is red,
when it sparkles in the cup
and goes down smoothly.
32 In the end it (AP)bites like a serpent
and stings like an adder.
33 Your eyes will see strange things,
and your heart utter (AQ)perverse things.
34 You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,
like one who lies on the top of a mast.[h]
35 “They (AR)struck me,” you will say,[i] “but I was not hurt;
they beat me, but I did not feel it.
When shall I awake?
I (AS)must have another drink.”
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:1 Or who
- Proverbs 23:6 Hebrew whose eye is evil
- Proverbs 23:7 Or for as he calculates in his soul, so is he
- Proverbs 23:16 Hebrew My kidneys
- Proverbs 23:20 Hebrew those who drink too much wine
- Proverbs 23:26 Or delight in
- Proverbs 23:27 Hebrew a foreign woman
- Proverbs 23:34 Or of the rigging
- Proverbs 23:35 Hebrew lacks you will say
Ordspråksboken 23
Svenska Folkbibeln
23 När du sitter till bords med en furste,
besinna då vem du har framför dig.
2 Sätt kniven mot din strupe
om du är alltför hungrig.
3 Var ej lysten efter hans läckerheter,
det kan vara bedräglig kost.
4 Slit inte ut dig för att bli rik,
var klok nog att avstå från det.
5 Far inte med blicken efter det som ingenting är,
ty det gör sig vingar
och flyger som örnen mot himlen.
6 Ät inte den missunnsammes[a] bröd
var ej lysten efter hans läckerheter,
7 för han handlar efter sina själviska beräkningar.
"Ät och drick" säger han till dig,
men menar det ej.
8 Den bit du ätit måste du spy ut,
och dina vackra ord är förspillda.
9 Tala inte för en dåres öron,
han föraktar dina kloka ord.
10 Flytta inte en gammal gränssten
och gör inte intrång på de faderlösas åkrar.
11 Ty deras återlösare är stark.
Han skall föra deras talan mot dig.
12 Öppna ditt hjärta för tillrättavisning
och dina öron för kunskapens ord.
13 Låt inte pojken vara utan fostran,
slår du honom med riset skall han inte dö.
14 När du slår honom med riset
räddar du hans själ från dödsriket.
15 Min son, om ditt hjärta blir vist
gläder sig också mitt hjärta.
16 Mitt innersta fröjdar sig
när dina läppar talar det rätta.
17 Låt inte ditt hjärta avundas syndare,
utan sträva alltid efter Herrens fruktan.
18 Förvisso har du då en framtid,
och ditt hopp skall ej bli om intet.
19 Hör, min son, och bli vis
och låt ditt hjärta gå rätta vägar.
20 Umgås inte med drinkare
eller med dem som frossar i mat.
21 Ty drinkare och frossare blir fattiga,
och sömnaktighet ger trasiga kläder.
22 Lyssna till din far som har fött dig
och förakta inte din mor när hon blir gammal.
23 Förvärva sanning och sälj den inte,
förvärva vishet, fostran och insikt.
24 Jubel fyller den rättfärdiges far,
en vis son skänker glädje.
25 Låt din far och mor vara glada,
må hon som fött dig kunna fröjda sig.
26 Min son, ge mig ditt hjärta
och låt mina vägar behaga dig.
27 Ty skökan är en djup grop,
den okända kvinnan en trång brunn.
28 Ja, som en rövare ligger hon på lur,
hon förökar de trolösas skara bland människorna.
29 Vem ropar "ack", vem ropar "ve"?
Vem vållar kiv, vem klagar?
Vem har sår utan orsak?
Vem har dimmiga ögon?
30 De som stannar länge vid vinet,
de som går för att pröva kryddat vin.
31 Se inte på vinet att det är så rött,
att det ger sådan glans i bägaren
och rinner ner så lätt.
32 Till slut biter det som en orm,
och stinger som en giftorm.
33 Dina ögon får då se konstiga syner,
och ditt hjärta talar galenskaper.
34 Du blir lik en som ligger mitt ute på havet
eller svävar i toppen av en mast.
35 "De slår mig, men det gör inte ont,
de ger mig stryk, men jag känner inget.
När skall jag vakna,
så att jag kan få tag i mer?"
Footnotes
- Ordspråksboken 23:6 den missunnsamme Ordagrant: "den som har ett ont öga".
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
1996, 1998 by Stiftelsen Svenska Folkbibeln