New American Standard Bible 1995 | International Standard Version |
1My son, give attention to my wisdom, Incline your ear to my understanding; | 1My son, pay attention to my wisdom, and listen closely to my insight, |
2That you may observe discretion And your lips may reserve knowledge. | 2so you may carefully practice discretion and your lips preserve knowledge. |
3For the lips of an adulteress drip honey And smoother than oil is her speech; | 3For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil. |
4But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword. | 4But in the end she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a double-edged sword. |
5Her feet go down to death, Her steps take hold of Sheol. | 5Her feet go down to death; her steps lead to Sheol. |
6She does not ponder the path of life; Her ways are unstable, she does not know it. | 6You aren't thinking about where her life is headed; her steps wander, but you do not realize it. |
7Now then, my sons, listen to me And do not depart from the words of my mouth. | 7Now, children, listen to me. Don't turn away from what I am saying. |
8Keep your way far from her And do not go near the door of her house, | 8Keep far away from her, and don't go near the entrance to her house, |
9Or you will give your vigor to others And your years to the cruel one; | 9so that you don't give your honor to others, and waste your best years; |
10And strangers will be filled with your strength And your hard-earned goods will go to the house of an alien; | 10so that strangers don't enrich themselves at your expense, and your work won't end up the possession of foreigners. |
11And you groan at your final end, When your flesh and your body are consumed; | 11You will cry out in anguish when your end comes, when your flesh and body are consumed, |
12And you say, "How I have hated instruction! And my heart spurned reproof! | 12and you will say, "How I hated instruction, and my heart rejected correction! |
13"I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to my instructors! | 13I did not obey my teachers and did not listen to my instructors. |
14"I was almost in utter ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation." | 14Now I am at the point of utter disaster in the assembly and in the congregation." |
15Drink water from your own cistern And fresh water from your own well. | 15Drink water from your own cistern, and fresh water from your own well. |
16Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? | 16Should your springs flow outside, or streams of water in the street? |
17Let them be yours alone And not for strangers with you. | 17They should be for you alone and not for strangers who are with you. |
18Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth. | 18Let your fountain be blessed and enjoy the wife of your youth. |
19As a loving hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; Be exhilarated always with her love. | 19Like a loving deer, a beautiful doe, let her breasts satisfy you all the time. Be constantly intoxicated by her love. |
20For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress And embrace the bosom of a foreigner? | 20Why should you be intoxicated by an adulteress, my son, and embrace the bosom of a foreign woman? |
21For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, And He watches all his paths. | 21Indeed, what a man does is always in the LORD's presence, and he weighs all his paths. |
22His own iniquities will capture the wicked, And he will be held with the cords of his sin. | 22The wicked person's iniquities will capture him, and he will be held with the cords of his sin. |
23He will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray. | 23He will die for lack of discipline, and he goes astray because of his great folly. |
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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