1 Υἱέ, φύλασσε ἐμοὺς λόγους,
τὰς δὲ ἐμὰς ἐντολὰς κρύψον παρὰ σεαυτῷ·
1a υἱέ, τίμα τὸν κύριον, καὶ ἰσχύσεις,
πλὴν δὲ αὐτοῦ μὴ φοβοῦ ἄλλον.
2 φύλαξον ἐμὰς ἐντολάς, καὶ βιώσεις,
τοὺς δὲ ἐμοὺς λόγους ὥσπερ κόρας ὀμμάτων·
3 περίθου δὲ αὐτοὺς σοῖς δακτύλοις,
ἐπίγραψον δὲ ἐπὶ τὸ πλάτος τῆς καρδίας σου.
4 εἶπον τὴν σοφίαν σὴν ἀδελφὴν εἶναι,
τὴν δὲ φρόνησιν γνώριμον περιποίησαι σεαυτῷ,
5 ἵνα σε τηρήσῃ ἀπὸ γυναικὸς ἀλλοτρίας καὶ πονηρᾶς,
ἐάν σε λόγοις τοῖς πρὸς χάριν ἐμβάληται.
6 ἀπὸ γὰρ θυρίδος ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτῆς εἰς τὰς πλατείας παρακύπτουσα,
7 ὃν ἂν ἴδῃ τῶν ἀφρόνων τέκνων νεανίαν ἐνδεῆ φρενῶν
8 παραπορευόμενον παρὰ γωνίαν ἐν διόδοις οἴκων αὐτῆς
9 καὶ λαλοῦντα ἐν σκότει ἑσπερινῷ,
ἡνίκα ἂν ἡσυχία νυκτερινὴ ᾖ καὶ γνοφώδης,
10 ἡ δὲ γυνὴ συναντᾷ αὐτῷ, εἶδος ἔχουσα πορνικόν,
ἣ ποιεῖ νέων ἐξίπτασθαι καρδίας.
11 ἀνεπτερωμένη δέ ἐστιν καὶ ἄσωτος,
ἐν οἴκῳ δὲ οὐχ ἡσυχάζουσιν οἱ πόδες αὐτῆς·
12 χρόνον γάρ τινα ἔξω ῥέμβεται,
χρόνον δὲ ἐν πλατείαις παρὰ πᾶσαν γωνίαν ἐνεδρεύει.
13 εἶτα ἐπιλαβομένη ἐφίλησεν αὐτόν,
ἀναιδεῖ δὲ προσώπῳ προσεῖπεν αὐτῷ
14 Θυσία εἰρηνική μοί ἐστιν,
σήμερον ἀποδίδωμι τὰς εὐχάς μου·
15 ἕνεκα τούτου ἐξῆλθον εἰς συνάντησίν σοι,
ποθοῦσα τὸ σὸν πρόσωπον εὕρηκά σε·
16 κειρίαις τέτακα τὴν κλίνην μου,
ἀμφιτάποις δὲ ἔστρωκα τοῖς ἀπ᾽ Αἰγύπτου·
17 διέρραγκα τὴν κοίτην μου κρόκῳ,
τὸν δὲ οἶκόν μου κινναμώμῳ·
18 ἐλθὲ καὶ ἀπολαύσωμεν φιλίας ἕως ὄρθρου,
δεῦρο καὶ ἐγκυλισθῶμεν ἔρωτι·
19 οὐ γὰρ πάρεστιν ὁ ἀνήρ μου ἐν οἴκῳ,
πεπόρευται δὲ ὁδὸν μακρὰν
20 ἔνδεσμον ἀργυρίου λαβὼν ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ,
δι᾽ ἡμερῶν πολλῶν ἐπανήξει εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ.
21 ἀπεπλάνησεν δὲ αὐτὸν πολλῇ ὁμιλίᾳ
βρόχοις τε τοῖς ἀπὸ χειλέων ἐξώκειλεν αὐτόν.
22 ὁ δὲ ἐπηκολούθησεν αὐτῇ κεπφωθείς,
ὥσπερ δὲ βοῦς ἐπὶ σφαγὴν ἄγεται
καὶ ὥσπερ κύων ἐπὶ δεσμοὺς
23 ἢ ὡς ἔλαφος τοξεύματι πεπληγὼς εἰς τὸ ἧπαρ,
σπεύδει δὲ ὥσπερ ὄρνεον εἰς παγίδα
οὐκ εἰδὼς ὅτι περὶ ψυχῆς τρέχει.
24 νῦν οὖν, υἱέ, ἄκουέ μου
καὶ πρόσεχε ῥήμασιν στόματός μου·
25 μὴ ἐκκλινάτω εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτῆς ἡ καρδία σου·
26 πολλοὺς γὰρ τρώσασα καταβέβληκεν,
καὶ ἀναρίθμητοί εἰσιν οὓς πεφόνευκεν·
27 ὁδοὶ ᾅδου ὁ οἶκος αὐτῆς
κατάγουσαι εἰς τὰ ταμιεῖα τοῦ θανάτου.
1 My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. 2 Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye. 3 Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart. 4 Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman: 5 That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.
6 ¶ For at the window of my house I looked through my casement, 7 And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding, 8 Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house, 9 In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night: 10 And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart. 11 (She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house: 12 Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.) 13 So she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him, 14 I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows. 15 Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. 16 I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works , with fine linen of Egypt. 17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. 18 Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves. 19 For the goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey: 20 He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed. 21 With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him. 22 He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks; 23 Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.
24 ¶ Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth. 25 Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths. 26 For she hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been slain by her. 27 Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.