1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
observe carefully what1Or who is before you,
2 and put a knife to your throat
if you are given to appetite.
3 cver. 6 Do not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.
4 dch. 15:27; 28:20; Matt. 6:19; 1 Tim. 6:9, 10; Heb. 13:5 Do not toil to acquire wealth;
e[ch. 3:5, 7; 26:12; Isa. 5:21; Rom. 12:16] be discerning enough to desist.
5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone,
fch. 27:24 for suddenly it sprouts wings,
flying like an eagle toward heaven.
6 g[Ps. 141:4] Do not eat the bread of a man who ishch. 28:22; Deut. 15:9 stingy;
iver. 3 do not desire his delicacies,
7 for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.1Or for as he calculates in his soul, so is he
“Eat and drink! ” he says to you,
but hisj[Ps. 12:2] 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 kSee ch. 22:28 Do not move an ancient landmark
or enter the fields of the fatherless,
11 for theirl[Ex. 6:6]; See Job 19:25 Redeemer is strong;
he willmSee ch. 22:23 plead their cause against you.
12 Apply your heart to instruction
and your ear to words of knowledge.
13 Do not withholdnSee ch. 13:24 discipline from a child;
o[ch. 19:18] if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.
14 If you strike him with the rod,
you willp[1 Cor. 5:5] save his soul from Sheol.
15 qver. 24, 25; See ch. 29:3 My son, if your heart is wise,
my heart too will be glad.
16 MyrPs. 7:9; 73:21 inmost being will exult
when your lips speaks[ch. 8:6] what is right.
17 Let not your hearttSee Ps. 37:1 envy sinners,
but continue inu[ch. 28:14] the fear of the Lord all the day.
18 Surelyvch. 24:14, 20 there is a future,
and yourwPs. 9:18 hope will not be cut off.
19 Hear, my son, andxch. 6:6 be wise,
andy[ch. 9:6] direct your heart in the way.
20 Be not amongz[ver. 29, 30; Isa. 5:11, 22; Matt. 24:49; Luke 21:34; Rom. 13:13; Eph. 5:18] drunkards
or amongach. 28:7 gluttonous eaters of meat,
21 for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
andb[ch. 6:10, 11] slumber will clothe them with rags.
22 cSee ch. 1:8 Listen to your father who gave you life,
d[ch. 30:17] and do not despise your mother when she is old.
23 e[ch. 4:5, 7; 18:15; Matt. 13:44] Buy truth, and do not sell it;
buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.
24 fver. 15; See ch. 29:3 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.
25 f[See ver. 24 above] Let your father and mother be glad;
letgch. 17:25 her who bore you rejoice.
26 My son, give me your heart,
and let your eyes observe1Or delight in my ways.
27 For a prostitute ish[ch. 22:14] a deep pit;
iSee ch. 2:16 an adulteress is a narrowjPs. 55:23 well.
28 kch. 7:12; [Eccles. 7:26] She lies in wait like a robber
and increases the traitors among mankind.
29 l[ver. 20, 21] Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
Who has strife? Who has complaining?
Who hasm[ver. 35] wounds without cause?
Who hasnGen. 49:12 redness of eyes?
30 Those whooIsa. 5:11 tarry long over wine;
those who go to trypch. 9:2, 5; Ps. 75:8; Isa. 5:22; 65:11 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 itqJob 20:16 bites like a serpent
and stings like an adder.
33 Your eyes will see strange things,
and your heart utterrSee ch. 2:12 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.1Or of the rigging
35 “TheysJer. 5:3; [ver. 29] struck me, ” you will say, “but I was not hurt;
they beat me, but I did not feel it.
When shall I awake?
ItIsa. 56:12 must have another drink. ”