New American Standard Bible 1995

New Living Translation

1When you sit down to dine with a ruler, Consider carefully what is before you,

1While dining with a ruler, pay attention to what is put before you.

2And put a knife to your throat If you are a man of great appetite.

2If you are a big eater, put a knife to your throat;

3Do not desire his delicacies, For it is deceptive food.

3don’t desire all the delicacies, for he might be trying to trick you.

4Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, Cease from your consideration of it.

4Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit.

5When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

5In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle.

6Do not eat the bread of a selfish man, Or desire his delicacies;

6Don’t eat with people who are stingy; don’t desire their delicacies.

7For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, "Eat and drink!" But his heart is not with you.

7They are always thinking about how much it costs. “Eat and drink,” they say, but they don’t mean it.

8You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten, And waste your compliments.

8You will throw up what little you’ve eaten, and your compliments will be wasted.

9Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, For he will despise the wisdom of your words.

9Don’t waste your breath on fools, for they will despise the wisest advice.

10Do not move the ancient boundary Or go into the fields of the fatherless,

10Don’t cheat your neighbor by moving the ancient boundary markers; don’t take the land of defenseless orphans.

11For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their case against you.

11For their Redeemer is strong; he himself will bring their charges against you.

12Apply your heart to discipline And your ears to words of knowledge.

12Commit yourself to instruction; listen carefully to words of knowledge.

13Do not hold back discipline from the child, Although you strike him with the rod, he will not die.

13Don’t fail to discipline your children. The rod of punishment won’t kill them.

14You shall strike him with the rod And rescue his soul from Sheol.

14Physical discipline may well save them from death.

15My son, if your heart is wise, My own heart also will be glad;

15My child, if your heart is wise, my own heart will rejoice!

16And my inmost being will rejoice When your lips speak what is right.

16Everything in me will celebrate when you speak what is right.

17Do not let your heart envy sinners, But live in the fear of the LORD always.

17Don’t envy sinners, but always continue to fear the LORD.

18Surely there is a future, And your hope will not be cut off.

18You will be rewarded for this; your hope will not be disappointed.

19Listen, my son, and be wise, And direct your heart in the way.

19My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.

20Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat;

20Do not carouse with drunkards or feast with gluttons,

21For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe one with rags.

21for they are on their way to poverty, and too much sleep clothes them in rags.

22Listen to your father who begot you, And do not despise your mother when she is old.

22Listen to your father, who gave you life, and don’t despise your mother when she is old.

23Buy truth, and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.

23Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment.

24The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, And he who sires a wise son will be glad in him.

24The father of godly children has cause for joy. What a pleasure to have children who are wise.

25Let your father and your mother be glad, And let her rejoice who gave birth to you.

25So give your father and mother joy! May she who gave you birth be happy.

26Give me your heart, my son, And let your eyes delight in my ways.

26O my son, give me your heart. May your eyes take delight in following my ways.

27For a harlot is a deep pit And an adulterous woman is a narrow well.

27A prostitute is a dangerous trap; a promiscuous woman is as dangerous as falling into a narrow well.

28Surely she lurks as a robber, And increases the faithless among men.

28She hides and waits like a robber, eager to make more men unfaithful.

29Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes?

29Who has anguish? Who has sorrow? Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining? Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

30Those who linger long over wine, Those who go to taste mixed wine.

30It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new drinks.

31Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it goes down smoothly;

31Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is, how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down.

32At the last it bites like a serpent And stings like a viper.

32For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake; it stings like a viper.

33Your eyes will see strange things And your mind will utter perverse things.

33You will see hallucinations, and you will say crazy things.

34And you will be like one who lies down in the middle of the sea, Or like one who lies down on the top of a mast.

34You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea, clinging to a swaying mast.

35"They struck me, but I did not become ill; They beat me, but I did not know it. When shall I awake? I will seek another drink."

35And you will say, “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it. I didn’t even know it when they beat me up. When will I wake up so I can look for another drink?”

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

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.