Old/New Testament
Eighth Address to a Son:
Wisdom Avoids Entanglements
6 My son, if you have guaranteed your neighbor’s debts,
if you have shaken hands for a stranger,
2 you are trapped by the promises from your mouth;
you are captured by the promises from your mouth.
3 Because you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands,
go, humble yourself, and plead with your neighbor.
4 Do not allow your eyes to sleep,
or your eyelids to slumber.
5 Save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of a hunter,
or like a bird from the hand of a trapper.
Wisdom Warns Against Laziness
6 Go to the ant, you slacker![a]
Observe its ways and become wise.
7 Although it has no overseer, officer, or ruler,
8 it stores its food in summer.
It gathers its provisions at harvest time.
9 How long will you lie there, you slacker?
When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of your hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come on you like a prowler,
and scarcity will come on you like a warrior.
Dishonesty Leads to Disaster
12 A worthless, wicked scoundrel,
who goes around with a corrupt mouth,
13 who winks with his eye, signals with his foot,
and gestures with his fingers,
14 who plots evil with a deceitful heart—
he always spreads conflict.
15 Therefore his disaster will come upon him suddenly.
All at once he will be broken, and there will be no remedy.
Things That Are Disgusting to the Lord
16 These are six things the Lord hates,
seven things that really disgust him:
17 arrogant eyes, a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that run quickly to do evil,
19 a false witness who breathes lies,
and a person who spreads conflict between brothers.
Ninth Address to a Son:
Avoid Sexual Immorality
20 My son, keep your father’s commands,
and do not forsake your mother’s teachings.
21 Fasten them permanently to your heart,
and tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk around, they will lead you.
When you lie down, they will stand guard over you.
When you wake up, they will converse with you,
23 because a command is a lamp, teaching is a light,
and the warnings given by discipline are a road to life.
24 They guard you from an evil woman,
from the smooth tongue of a woman who is not your wife.
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart.
Do not let her captivate you with her eyes.
26 A prostitute costs you a loaf of bread,
but a married woman stalks your precious life.
27 Can a man place fire on his lap
without burning his clothes?
28 Can a man walk on hot coals
without scorching his feet?
29 So it is with the man who goes to his neighbor’s wife.
No one who touches her will be forgiven.
30 No one despises a thief when he steals
to satisfy his hunger when he is starving,
31 but when he is caught, he will have to repay seven times as much.
He will have to give up all the wealth of his house.
32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks sense.
He who does it destroys himself.
33 He will find disease and dishonor,
and his disgrace will never be wiped out,
34 because jealousy ignites a husband’s anger,
and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
35 He will not accept any amount as a payment.
He will not relent, even if you increase your offer.
Tenth Address to a Son:
Wisdom Protects You From Adultery and Death
7 My son, guard what I say.
Keep my commands with you.
2 Obey my commands so that you may live.
Protect my teachings like the pupil of your eye.
3 Tie them to your fingers.
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Say to Wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call Understanding your relative.[b]
5 She will keep you safe from an immoral woman,
from an unfaithful woman and her seductive words.
Wisdom’s Warning
6 At a window of my house, I looked out through the lattice.
7 I was watching the gullible[c] people.
Among the young men I noticed a youth without sense.
8 He was crossing the street near her corner,
strolling along the road to her house,
9 in the twilight, in the evening of the day,
when the darkness of the night was coming.[d]
10 Suddenly a woman meets him.
She is dressed like a prostitute with a scheming heart!
11 She is loud and rebellious.
Her feet will not stay home.
12 One moment she is in the street.
The next moment she is in the public square.
She is on the prowl near every corner.
13 She grabs him and kisses him.
With a brazen face she says,
14 “I have food from fellowship offerings.
Today I fulfilled my vows.
15 That is why I came out to meet you.
I came eagerly to seek you,
and now I have found you!
16 I have covered my couch with a bedspread,
with colored cloth made of Egyptian yarn.
17 I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love[e] until morning.
Let’s enjoy making love.
19 Look, my husband isn’t home.
He has gone on a long trip.
20 He took a bag of silver with him.
He will not come home till the next full moon.”
21 She deceives him with enticing words.
With smooth lips she seduces him.
22 He follows right after her,
like a steer going to slaughter,
like a deer prancing into a noose,[f]
23 until an arrow pierces its liver,
like a bird darting into a trap.
He does not realize this will cost him his life.
24 Now, you sons, listen to me.
Pay attention to the words from my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart turn in her direction.
Do not wander on her pathways,
26 because she has brought down many victims.
Those she has killed are countless.
27 Her house is on the road to the grave.[g]
It goes down to the chambers of death.
2 That is why I made up my mind that I would not make another sad visit to you. 2 For if I make you sad, then who is there to make me glad, other than those I made sad? 3 I am writing[a] for this very purpose: That when I arrive, I will not be made sad by those who should make me glad. I am confident about all of you—that what gives me joy is what gives joy to all of you. 4 In fact, out of much trouble and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears. My goal was not to make you sad, but that you would know how very much I love you.
Forgive and Comfort the Repentant Sinner
5 Now if anyone has caused sorrow, he has not done it to me, but to all of you to some extent (not to overstate it). 6 This punishment inflicted on such a person by the majority is enough, 7 so that instead you should rather forgive and comfort him, or else such a person could be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 For that reason, I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 In fact, this was also the purpose of my writing: I wanted to know the result of your being tested, that is, if you are obedient in all things.
10 If you forgive anyone anything, I do too. To be sure, if I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven it in the presence of Christ for your sake, 11 so that Satan would not take advantage of us. We are certainly not unaware of his schemes.
The Fragrance of Christ
12 When I came to Troas to proclaim the gospel of Christ and a door was opened for me by the Lord, 13 I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them and went on to Macedonia.
14 But thanks be to God, who always causes us to triumph in Christ and reveals the fragrance of his knowledge through us in every place. 15 Yes, we are the fragrance of Christ for God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. 16 To some we are the odor of death that is a prelude to death, to the others the fragrance of life that is a prelude to life. And who is qualified for these things? 17 To be sure, we are not like many who peddle the word of God for profit. Instead, in Christ we speak with sincerity in the sight of God, as men from God.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.