Proverbs 23 Cross References - Leeser

¹ When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee: ² For thou puttest a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man of a craving desire. ³ Do not long for his savory meats; they are deceitful food. ⁴ Fatigue thyself not to become rich; because thou hast understanding, forbear. ⁵ When thou lettest merely thy eyes fly over it, it is no more: for it will ever make itself wings: like an eagle will it fly toward heaven. ⁶ Eat not the bread of a man with an evil eye, and do not long for his savory meats; ⁷ For as though there were a division in his soul, so doth he act: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee. ⁸ Thy morsel which thou hast eaten must thou spit out, and thou hast wasted thy pleasant words. ⁹ Speak not before the ears of a fool; for he will despise the intelligence of thy words. ¹⁰ Remove not the ancient landmark, and into the fields of the fatherless must thou not enter; ¹¹ For their redeemer is strong; he will indeed plead their cause with thee. ¹² Apply thy heart unto instruction, and thy ears to the sayings of knowledge. ¹³ Withhold not from a lad correction; for if thou beat him with the rod, he will not die. ¹⁴ Thou wilt indeed beat him with the rod; but thou wilt deliver his soul from perdition. ¹⁵ My son, If thy heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. ¹⁶ And my reins shall exult when thy lips speak what is equitable. ¹⁷ Let not thy heart be envious against sinners; but remain in the fear of the lord all the time. ¹⁸ For surely there is a future, and thy hope will not be cut off. ¹⁹ Hear thou, my son, and become wise, and guide thy heart on the right way. ²⁰ Be not among those that drink wine immoderately, among those that over-indulge in eating flesh: ²¹ For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty; and drowsiness clotheth a man in rags. ²² Hearken unto thy father that hath begotten thee, and despise not thy mother although she be old. ²³ Buy the truth and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. ²⁴ The father of the righteous will be greatly glad, and he that begetteth a wise child will have joy through him. ²⁵ Let then thy father and thy mother rejoice, and let her that hath born thee be glad. ²⁶ Give, my son, thy heart unto me, and let thy eyes watch my ways. ²⁷ For a harlot is a deep ditch, and a strange woman is a narrow well. ²⁸ She also lieth in wait like a robber, and she increaseth the treacherous among men. ²⁹ Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath quarrels? who hath complaints? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? ³⁰ They that tarry late over the wine: they that come to seek for mixed drink. ³¹ Do not look on the wine when it looketh red, when it giveth its color in the cup, when it glideth down so readily. ³² At the last it will bite like a serpent, and like a basilisk will it sting. ³³ Thy eyes will see strange forms, and thy heart will speak perverse things. ³⁴ And thou wilt be like one that lieth down in the heart of the sea, or as he that lieth on the top of a mast. ³⁵ “They smote me, but I suffered no pain; they struck me hard, but I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will continue to seek it again.”

³² And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves; and for the Egyptians, who did eat with him, by themselves; because the Egyptians may not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. ³³ And they sat before him, the first-born according to his prior birth, and the youngest according to his youth; and the men marveled one at the other. ³⁴ And he sent portions unto them from before him; but Benjamin’s portion exceeded the portions of all of them fivefold. And they drank, and were merry with him.

⁴ Permit not my heart to incline after any evil thing, to practise deeds in wickedness with men that are doers of wrong: and let me not eat of their dainties.

⁶ Eat not the bread of a man with an evil eye, and do not long for his savory meats;

⁸ But Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not defile himself with the food of the king, nor with the wine which he drank: and therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not need to defile himself.

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all thy heart: and upon thy own understanding do not rely.

⁷ Be not wise in thy own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.

²⁷ He that is greedy after gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts will live.

¹² When thou seest a man wise in his own eyes, then is there more hope for a fool than for him.

²⁰ A faithful man will abound with blessings; but he that maketh haste to be rich will not go unpunished.

²¹ Woe unto those that are wise in their own eyes, and intelligent in their own esteem!

³⁶ And Jacob their father said unto them, Me ye have bereaved of my children: Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone, and Benjamin ye will take away; all these things are against me.

¹⁴ That a messenger came unto Job, and said, The oxen were ploughing, and the she-asses were feeding beside them: ¹⁵ When the Sabeans made an incursion, and took them away, and the young men they slew with the edge of the sword; and I am escaped, none but myself alone, to tell it unto thee. ¹⁶ This one was yet speaking, when another came, and said, A fire of God fell from heaven, and burnt among the sheep and the young men, and consumed them; and I am escaped, none but myself alone, to tell it unto thee. ¹⁷ This one was yet speaking, when another came, and said, The Chaldeans posted themselves in three divisions, and made an inroad against the camels, and took them away, and the young men they slew with the edge of the sword; and I am escaped, none but myself alone, to tell it unto thee.

^{6 (39:7)} As nothing but a shadowy image doth man walk about, yea, for vanity only do all make a noise: he heapeth up his gains, and knoweth not who shall gather them.

³⁶ Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to desire for gain. ³⁷ Turn away my eyes from beholding vanity: on thy way do thou give me life.

²⁴ For property endureth not for ever, nor doth the crown remain for all generations.

² Vanity of vanities, saith Koheleth, vanity of vanities: all is vanity.

^{13 (5:12)} There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches reserved for their owner to his own hurt. ^{14 (5:13)} And these riches are lost through an unfortunate event; and he begetteth a son, and hath not the least in his hand:

⁸ Vanity of vanities, saith Koheleth: all is vanity.—

² Wherefore will ye spend money for what is not bread? and your labor for what satisfieth not? hearken then unto me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

¹⁷ But thy eyes and thy heart are directed on nothing but upon thy own gain, and upon innocent blood to shed it, and upon oppression, and upon extortion, to practise them.

⁹ Beware that there be not a wicked thought in thy heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thy eye be thus evil against thy needy brother, so that thou wouldst give him nought; and if he cry concerning thee unto the Lord, it will be sin in thee:

⁵⁶ The woman, the most tender among thee, and the most delicate, who hath never adventured to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness,—her eye shall look enviously toward the husband of her bosom, and toward her son, and toward her daughter,

⁹ A man of a benevolent eye will indeed be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.

³ Do not long for his savory meats; they are deceitful food.

²² He that is eager for wealth is a man of an evil eye, and he knoweth not that want will come upon him.

⁸ But Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not defile himself with the food of the king, nor with the wine which he drank: and therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not need to defile himself. ⁹ And God gave Daniel kindness and mercy before the chief of the eunuchs. ¹⁰ And the chief of the eunuchs said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath ordered your food and your drink; for why should he see your face sadder looking than that of the lads who are of your age? and ye would thus endanger my head with the king.

¹⁵ And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thy heart is not with me? these three times hast thou deceived me, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.

²⁶ And Abshalom said, If not, let, I pray thee, Amnon my brother go with us. And the king said to him, Why should he go with thee? ²⁷ But Abshalom urged him greatly, and he sent with him Amnon and all the sons of the king. ²⁸ Now Abshalom commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye, I pray you, when Annon’s heart is merry with wine, and I say unto you, Smite Amnon: then kill him, fear not; behold, it is I who command it you; be firm and show yourselves men of valor.

^{2 (12:3)} Deceptively do they speak every one with his neighbor, with flattering lips, with a double heart do they speak.

^{21 (55:22)} The creamy words of his mouth are smooth, yet there is war in his heart; his words are softer than oil, yet are they drawn swords.

²² The longing of a man is to exercise his kindness; and a poor man is better than a liar.

²⁷ And as for both these kings, their heart is bent on mischief, and at one table will they speak lies; but it shall not prosper; for the end is yet for the time appointed.

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: wisdom and instruction fools alone despise.

⁷ He that correcteth a scorner acquireth for himself abuse; and he that reproveth the wicked getteth himself a blemish. ⁸ Do not correct a scorner, lest he hate thee: reprove a wise man, and he will love thee.

⁴ Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest thou also become equal unto him. ⁵ Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.

²¹ But they remained silent, and answered him not a word; for it was the king’s command, saying, Ye shall not answer him.

¹⁴ Thou shalt not remove the landmark of thy neighbor, which they of old time have set, in thy inheritance which thou shalt inherit, in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it.

¹⁷ Cursed be he that removeth the landmark of his neighbor; and all the people shall say, Amen.

²⁷ Yea, ye would cast any thing upon the fatherless, and ye would dig a pit against your friend.

⁹ Widows hast thou sent away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.

² The wicked remove landmarks: they rob flocks, and feed them. ³ They drive away the ass of the fatherless, they take in pledge the widow’s ox.

⁹ The others pluck from the breast the fatherless, and the garment of the poor they take in pledge.

²¹ If I have swung my hand against the fatherless, because I saw in the gate those that would help me: ²² Then may my shoulder fall from my shoulder-blade, and my arm be broken from the channel-bone; ²³ For dreaded by me was the calamitous punishment of God, and against his highness I can accomplish nothing.

⁶ The widow and the stranger they slay, and the fatherless they murder.

²⁸ Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have established.

⁵ For if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your deeds; if ye thoroughly execute justice between a man and his neighbor;

³ Thus hath said the Lord, Execute ye justice and righteousness, and deliver him that is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor; and the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow shall ye not oppress, and do them no violence, and shed no innocent blood in this place.

¹⁰ And defraud not the widow, or the fatherless, the stranger, or the poor; and imagine not evil in your heart one against the other.

⁵ And I will come near unto you to hold judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against those that swear falsely, and against those that withhold the wages of the hired laborer, oppress the widow, and the fatherless, and that do injustice to the stranger, and fear me not, saith the Lord of hosts.

^{22 (22:21)} Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. ^{23 (22:22)} If thou afflict him in any wise; for if he cry at all unto me, I will surely hear his cry: ^{24 (22:23)} My wrath shall wax hot, and I will slay you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

¹⁹ Cursed be he that perverteth the cause of the stranger, of the fatherless, and of the widow; and all the people shall say, Amen.

²⁵ And well I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he will remain as the last after the creatures of the dust are passed away;

^{5 (12:6)} Because of the oppression of the poor, because of the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord: I will grant safety to him for whom the other layeth a snare.

²³ For the Lord will plead their cause, and despoil the life of those that despoil them.

³³ Thus hath said the Lord of hosts, The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together: and all that took them captive hold them fast; they refuse to dismiss them. ³⁴ Their Redeemer is strong; The Lord of hosts is his name: he will surely contend in their cause, in order that he may give rest to the land, and make the inhabitants of Babylon tremble.

³⁶ Therefore thus hath said the Lord, Behold, I will contend in thy cause, and execute vengeance for thee; and I will dry up her sea, and cause her springs to fail.

² To let thy ear listen unto wisdom: if thou wouldst incline thy heart to understanding. ³ For if thou wilt call after intelligence; if after understanding thou wilt lift up thy voice; ⁴ If thou wilt seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures: ⁵ Then wilt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and the knowledge of God wilt thou find. ⁶ For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

¹ My son, attend unto my wisdom; to my understanding incline thou thy ear: ² That thou mayest observe discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

¹⁷ Incline thy ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thy heart unto my knowledge.

¹⁹ Hear thou, my son, and become wise, and guide thy heart on the right way.

³¹ And then they come unto thee as the people come, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but do not execute them; for as merry songs they carry them in their mouth, while their heart goeth after their unlawful gains.

²⁴ He that withholdeth his rod hateth his son; but he that loveth him chastiseth him betimes.

¹⁸ Chastise thy son, for there is hope; and let not thy soul spare him for his crying.

¹⁵ The rod and reproof impart wisdom; but a lad abandoned to himself bringeth shame on his mother.

¹⁷ Correct thy son, and he will procure thee rest: yea, he will give delight unto thy soul.

¹⁵ When folly is bound fast to the heart of a lad, the rod of correction must remove it far from him.

¹⁰ My son, if sinners wish to entice thee, consent thou not.

¹ My son, if thou wouldst but accept my words, and treasure up my commandments with thee;

¹ Hear, ye children, the correction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

¹ The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son causeth his father to rejoice; but a foolish son is the grief of his mother.

²⁰ A wise son causeth his father to rejoice; but a foolish man despiseth his mother.

²⁴ The father of the righteous will be greatly glad, and he that begetteth a wise child will have joy through him. ²⁵ Let then thy father and thy mother rejoice, and let her that hath born thee be glad.

³ The man that loveth wisdom causeth his father to rejoice; but he that keepeth company with harlots wasteth his wealth.

⁴¹ And I will be glad over them to do them good; and I will plant them in this land in truth, with all my heart and with all my soul.

¹⁷ The Lord thy God is in the midst of thee, the mighty one who will save; he will be glad over thee with rejoicing; he will be silent in his love, he will exult over thee with song.

⁶ Hear! for of noble things will I speak; and the opening of my lips shall be of what is equitable.

¹ Of David. Do not fret thyself because of the evil-doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. ² For like the grass they shall soon be mowed down, and like the green herb shall they wither. ³ Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed thyself with truthfulness.

³ For I was envious at the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. ⁴ For there are no deadly fetters for them, but their strength is firm. ⁵ They share not in the trouble of mortals, and with men are they not afflicted. ⁶ Therefore is pride their neck-chain: violence envelopeth them as a garment. ⁷ Their eyes start out from fatness: they have exceeded their heart’s imaginings.

¹⁰ The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord; a good understanding have all that fulfill his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.

³¹ Envy not the man of violence, and choose none of his ways.

¹⁶ Better is little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure and confusion therewith.

¹ Be thou not envious of bad men, and do not long to be with them.

¹⁴ Happy is the man that always dreadeth to do evil; but he that hardeneth his heart will fall into unhappiness.

^{7 (5:6)} For in the multitude of dreams and vanities there are also many words; but rather fear thou God.

¹³ The end of the matter is, let us hear the whole: Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴ For every deed will God bring into the judgment concerning every thing that hath been hidden, whether it be good, or whether it be bad.

^{18 (9:19)} For not everlastingly shall the needy be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.

³⁷ Observe the perfect man, and behold the upright; for there is a happy future for the man of peace.

¹⁴ So obtain the knowledge of wisdom for thy soul: when thou hast found her, then shall there be a happy future, and thy hope shall not be cut off.

²⁰ For there will be no happy future for the bad man: the lamp of the wicked will be quenched.

¹¹ For I alone know the thoughts that I entertain respecting you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a happy future and hope.

¹⁰ Hear, O my son, and accept my sayings: and they will increase unto thee the years of life. ¹¹ In the way of wisdom have I instructed thee: I have led thee in the tracks of uprightness. ¹² When thou walkest, thy step shall not be narrowed; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. ¹³ Lay fast hold of correction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life. ¹⁴ Enter not into the path of the wicked, and step not on the way of the bad. ¹⁵ Avoid it, pass not through by it, turn off from it, and pass away. ¹⁶ For they sleep not, except they have done evil, and their sleep is robbed away, unless they cause some to stumble. ¹⁷ For they eat the bread of wickedness; and the wine of violence do they drink. ¹⁸ But the path of the righteous is as the early morning light, that shineth more and more brightly until the height of noonday. ¹⁹ The way of the wicked is like darkness: they know not against what they stumble. ²⁰ My son, attend to my words, unto my sayings incline thy ear. ²¹ Let them not slip away from thy eyes: guard them in the midst of thy heart. ²² For they are life unto every one of those that find them, and to all his body a healing. ²³ Above all that is to be guarded, keep thy heart, for out of it are the issues of life.

⁶ Go to the ant, thou sluggard; look on her ways, and become wise.

⁶ Forsake simplicity, and live; and go onward on the way of understanding.

¹² Apply thy heart unto instruction, and thy ears to the sayings of knowledge.

²⁶ Give, my son, thy heart unto me, and let thy eyes watch my ways.

¹ Wine is a mocker, strong drink is noisy; and whosoever indulgeth therein will never be wise.

²⁹ Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath quarrels? who hath complaints? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? ³⁰ They that tarry late over the wine: they that come to seek for mixed drink. ³¹ Do not look on the wine when it looketh red, when it giveth its color in the cup, when it glideth down so readily. ³² At the last it will bite like a serpent, and like a basilisk will it sting. ³³ Thy eyes will see strange forms, and thy heart will speak perverse things. ³⁴ And thou wilt be like one that lieth down in the heart of the sea, or as he that lieth on the top of a mast. ³⁵ “They smote me, but I suffered no pain; they struck me hard, but I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will continue to seek it again.”

⁷ Whoso keepeth the law is an intelligent son; but he that is a companion of gluttons bringeth dishonor on his father.

⁶ Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those who have an embittered soul. ⁷ Let such a one drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his trouble no more.

¹¹ Woe unto those that rise up early in the morning, that they may run after strong drink; that continue until late in the twilight, till wine inflame them!

²² Woe unto those that are heroes to drink wine, and men of might to mingle strong drink;

¹³ And behold there are gladness and joy, slaying of oxen, and killing of sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: “Let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we must die.”

²⁰ And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not hearken to our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard.

⁹ How long, O sluggard, wilt thou lie down? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? ¹⁰ “A little more sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands in lying down;” ¹¹ But then will thy poverty come like a rover, and thy want as a man armed with a shield.

¹⁵ Slothfulness casteth man into a deep sleep; and an indolent soul will suffer hunger.

¹⁷ He that loveth pleasure will be a man of want: he that loveth wine and oil will not become rich.

³⁰ By the field of a slothful man I once passed along, and by the vineyard of a man void of sense: ³¹ And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, nettles had covered its surface, and its stone-wall was broken down. ³² And when I had indeed beheld this I took it to my heart: I saw it, and received a warning. ³³ “A little more sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands in lying down;” ³⁴ But then will thy poverty come like a rover; and thy wants as a man armed with a shield.

¹ Woe to the crown of pride, of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious ornament, which is on the eminence of the fat valley of those who are struck down by wine! ² Behold, it cometh mighty and strong from the Lord, as a tempest of hail, a storm of destruction; as a tempest of mighty overflowing waters, will he cast it down to the earth with force. ³ Under feet shall be trodden the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim:

⁵ Wake up, ye drunkards, and weep; and wail, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the sweet new wine, that it is taken away from your mouth.

³ Ye shall fear, every man, his mother and his father, and my sabbaths shall ye keep: I am the Lord your God.

¹⁸ If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, who hearkeneth not to the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and they chastise him, and he will not hearken unto them: ¹⁹ Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; ²⁰ And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not hearken to our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. ²¹ And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die; and thou shalt put away the evil from the midst of thee; and all Israel shall hear, and be afraid.

¹⁶ Cursed be he that holdeth in light esteem his father or his mother; and all the people shall say, Amen.

⁸ Hear, my son, the instruction of thy father, and cast not off the teaching of thy mother;

²⁰ Keep, O my son, the commandment of thy father, and reject not the teaching of thy mother:

¹¹ There is a generation that curseth its father, and doth not bless its mother.

¹⁷ The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, this shall the ravens of the valley pick out; and the young eagles shall eat it.

¹² But wisdom—where shall she he found? and where is the place of understanding? ¹³ Man knoweth not her value: and she is not to be found in the land of the living. ¹⁴ The deep saith, Not in me is she: and the sea saith, She is not with me. ¹⁵ No fine gold can be given in lieu of her, and silver cannot be weighed out as her price. ¹⁶ She cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. ¹⁷ She cannot be estimated after gold and glass; and not in exchange for her can vessels of refined gold be taken. ¹⁸ Coral and crystal will not be thought of; and the value of wisdom is above pearls. ¹⁹ She cannot be estimated after the topaz of Ethiopia, nor can she be valued with pure gold.

⁷² Better is unto me the law of thy mouth than thousands of gold and silver.

¹²⁷ Therefore do I love thy commandments more than gold, and more than fine gold.

² To let thy ear listen unto wisdom: if thou wouldst incline thy heart to understanding. ³ For if thou wilt call after intelligence; if after understanding thou wilt lift up thy voice; ⁴ If thou wilt seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures:

⁵ Acquire wisdom, acquire understanding: forget not, and depart not from the sayings of my mouth. ⁶ Forsake her not, and she will watch over thee: love her, and she will keep thee. ⁷ The beginning of wisdom is, Acquire wisdom: and with all thy acquisition acquire understanding.

¹⁶ How much better is it to obtain wisdom than gold! and to obtain understanding is preferable to silver!

¹⁶ Wherefore is the purchase-money in the hand of a fool to acquire wisdom, seeing he hath no sense?

¹⁵ The heart of the man of understanding will obtain knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.

¹ Ho, every one of ye that thirsteth, come ye to the water, and he too that hath no money: come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy without money and without price wine and milk.

⁴⁸ And also thus hath the king said, Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who hath given me this day one who sitteth on my throne, while my eyes see it.

¹ And when the days of David drew near that he should die, he charged Solomon his son, saying, ² I am going the way of all the earth; but be thou strong, and become a man; ³ And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, and his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses; in order that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself;

⁹ But now leave him not unpunished; for thou art a wise man; know then what thou oughtest to do unto him, and bring thou down his hoary head with blood to the grave.

¹⁵ My son, If thy heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. ¹⁶ And my reins shall exult when thy lips speak what is equitable.

¹⁹ And who knoweth, whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have full sway over all my toil wherein I have toiled, and wherein I have shown myself wise under the sun. Also this is vanity.

⁹ And Ja’bez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Ja’bez, saying, Because I bore him in pain. ¹⁰ And Ja’bez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed, and enlarge my boundary, and that thy hand might be with me, and that thou wouldst act for me against the evil, that it may not give me pain! And God granted him what he had asked for.

²⁵ A foolish son is a vexation to his father, and bitterness to her that hath born him.

⁵ And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

⁴³ Whoever is wise, let him observe these things, and let all understand the kindness of the Lord.

² Happy are they who keep his testimonies, that seek him with all their heart.

⁹ BETH. Wherewithal shall a youth keep his way pure? by guarding it according to thy word. ¹⁰ With all my heart have I sought thee: oh let me not wander astray from thy commandments. ¹¹ In my heart have I treasured up thy saying, in order that I may not sin against thee.

¹ My son, forget not my teaching, and let thy heart keep my commandments;

⁴ And he instructed me, and said unto me, Let thy heart grasp firmly my words: observe my commandments and live.

²³ Above all that is to be guarded, keep thy heart, for out of it are the issues of life.

²⁵ Let thy eyes look right forward, and let thy eyelids see straight out before thee. ²⁶ Balance well the track of thy foot, and let all thy ways be firmly right. ²⁷ Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.

^{9 (14:10)} Who is wise, that he may understand these things? intelligent, that he may know them? for righteous are the ways of the Lord; and the just shall walk in them; but the transgressors will stumble through them.

¹⁴ A deep pit is the mouth of adulterous women: he that hath obtained the indignation of the Lord will fall thereinto.

¹ And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit incest with the daughters of Moab.

⁴ And it came to pass after this, that he loved a woman in the valley of Shorek, whose name was Delilah. ⁵ And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her, Persuade him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail over him, that we may bind him to subdue him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver. ⁶ And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou canst be bound to subdue thee. ⁷ And Samson said unto her, If they bind me with seven moist cords which have not yet been dried, then shall I become weak, and be like any other of mankind. ⁸ And the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven moist cords which had not yet been dried, and she bound him with them. ⁹ And she had men lying in wait, sitting near her in the chamber. And she said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he tore the cords, as a thread of tow is torn when it toucheth the fire; and his strength was not perceived. ¹⁰ And Delilah said unto Samson, Behold, thou hast deceived me, and told me lies; now do tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou canst be bound. ¹¹ And he said unto her, If they bind me fast with new ropes that have never been used in work, then shall I become weak, and be like any other of mankind. ¹² And Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And the liers in wait were sitting in the chamber. But he tore them from off his arms like a thread. ¹³ And Delilah said unto Samson, Hitherto thou hast deceived me, and told me lies; do tell me wherewith thou canst be bound. And he said unto her, If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web. ¹⁴ And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awakened out of his sleep, and tore away the pin of the loom, with the web. ¹⁵ And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thy heart is not with me? these three times hast thou deceived me, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth. ¹⁶ And it came to pass, when she worried him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul became impatient to die; ¹⁷ And he told her all his heart, and said unto her, A razor hath not passed over my head; for a Nazarite of God have I been from my mother’s womb; if I were shaved, my strength would depart from me, and I should become weak, and be like all other men. ¹⁸ And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once; for he hath told me all his heart. Then came the lords of the Philistines up unto her, and brought the money in their hand. ¹⁹ And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called a man, and caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to subdue him, and his strength departed from him. ²⁰ And she said, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and thought, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself free. But he knew not that the Lord had departed from him. ²¹ And the Philistines seized him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gazzah, and bound him with fetters of copper; and he had to grind in the prison-house. ²² But the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off.

¹⁶ To deliver thee from the adulteress, from the alien woman that useth flattering speeches; ¹⁷ That forsaketh the friend of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. ¹⁸ For she sinketh unto death—her house, and unto the departed lead her tracks. ¹⁹ All that come unto her return not again, and they will not reach the paths of life.

¹² At one time she is in the street, at another in the open places, and near every corner doth she lurk,)

²² He followed after her suddenly, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, and as in fetters to his correction, the fool: ²³ Till an arrow cleaveth through his liver; as a bird hasteneth into the snare, and knoweth not that it is done to take his life. ²⁴ And now, O children, hearken unto me, and listen to the sayings of my mouth. ²⁵ Let not thy heart turn aside to her ways, do not go astray on her paths. ²⁶ For many deadly wounded hath she caused to fall: yea, very numerous are all those slain by her. ²⁷ The ways to the nether world is her house leading down to the chambers of death.

¹⁸ But he knoweth not that the departed are there; that in the depths of the nether world are her guests.

²⁶ And I find as more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are bonds: he that is deemed good before God will escape from her; but the sinner will be caught by her.

² Lift up thy eyes unto the mountain-tops, and see where thou hast not been lain with. On public roads hast thou sat for them, as the Arab in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy incests and with thy wickedness.

¹¹ Lewdness and wine and new wine take away the heart.

¹² His eyes shall be red from wine, and his teeth white from milk.

³⁶ And Abigayil came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal’s heart was merry within him, and he was exceedingly drunken; wherefore she told him not a word, either little or great, until the morning-light. ³⁷ But it happened in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things; and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.

²⁸ Now Abshalom commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye, I pray you, when Annon’s heart is merry with wine, and I say unto you, Smite Amnon: then kill him, fear not; behold, it is I who command it you; be firm and show yourselves men of valor.

¹⁶ And they went out at midday; while Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him. ¹⁷ And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out at first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying, Some men are come out of Samaria. ¹⁸ And he said, If they be come out for peace, catch them alive; and if they be come out for war, alive must ye catch them. ¹⁹ So these, the young men of the princes of the provinces, came out of the city, with the army which followed them. ²⁰ And they slew every one his man; and the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen. ²¹ And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and inflicted on the Syrians a great defeat. ²² And the prophet approached unto the king of Israel, and said unto him, Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou hast to do; for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.

²¹ For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty; and drowsiness clotheth a man in rags.

⁷ But these also are now stumbling through wine, and reeling through strong drink: priest and prophet are stumbling through strong drink, they are overpowered with wine, they reel through strong drink; they stumble in divine vision, they are unsteady in giving judgment. ⁸ For all tables are full of vomit of filthiness, there is no place clean.

¹⁰ For they, like thorns interwoven, and as men made drunken in their drinking bout, shall be entirely consumed as dry stubble.

²¹ And he drank of the wine, and became drunken; and he uncovered himself within his tent.

^{8 (75:9)} For there is a cup in the hand of the Lord, and the wine foameth, it is full of mixture: and he poureth out of the same; but its lees they drain, they drink—all the wicked of the earth.

² She hath killed her cattle; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also set in order her table.

⁶ That drink out of wine-bowls, and anoint themselves with the costliest of ointments; but who feel no pain for the wound of Joseph.

² And it happened at evening-tide, that David arose from off his couch, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and he saw from the roof a woman bathing herself; and the woman was of a very beautiful appearance.

¹ Therefore do thou but hear, O Job, my speeches, and give ear to all my words.

³⁷ Turn away my eyes from beholding vanity: on thy way do thou give me life.

²⁵ Covet not her beauty in thy heart, and let her not conquer thee with her eyelids.

⁵ And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth my hand over Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from the midst of them. ⁶ And Moses and Aaron did so; as the Lord commanded them, so did they.

¹² And they cast down every man his staff, and they became serpents; but Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staves.

¹⁶ The poison of asps will he have to suck; the viper’s tongue will slay him.

¹¹ While thou moanest at thy end, when thy flesh and thy body are coming to their end,

⁸ He that diggeth a pit will fall into it; and him who breaketh down a fence—a serpent will bite him.

³ Under feet shall be trodden the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim:

⁵ Basilisk’s eggs do they hatch, and spider’s webs do they weave: he that eateth of their eggs must die, and if one be crushed, a viper will break forth.

³¹ The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so; but what will ye do in the end thereof?

¹⁷ For, behold, I will send out against you serpents, basilisks, for which there is no charm, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord.

¹⁹ As if a man were to flee from a lion, and a bear should meet him; and he enter into the house, and lean his hand against the wall, and a serpent should bite him.

³ And though they were to hide themselves on the top of Carmel, thence would I search and take them out; and though they were to conceal themselves from before my eyes in the bottom of the sea, thence would I command the serpent, that he should bite them;

³² Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³³ And they made their father drink wine that night; and the first-born went in, and lay with her father, and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁴ And it came to pass on the morrow, that the first-born said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father; let us make him drink wine this night also, and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³⁵ And they made their father drink wine that night also; and the younger arose, and lay with him, and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁶ And both the daughters of Lot became with child by their father. ³⁷ And the first-born bore a son, and called his name Moab; the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. ³⁸ And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Ben-ammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

^{12 (69:13)} Those that sit in the gate talk against me; and about me make songs the drinkers of strong drink.

¹² To deliver thee from the way of the bad, from the man that speaketh perverse things;

⁵ Lest either might drink, and forget what is written in the law, and pervert the cause of all the afflicted.

⁴ They drank wine, and praised their gods of gold, and of silver, of copper, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

⁵ On the day of our king’s entering on his rule the princes are made sick with the fumes of wine: the king joineth his hand with scorners.

⁸ And with the breath of thy nostrils the waters were heaped up together, the floods stood upright as a wall; congealed were the depths in the heart of the sea.

³³ And blessed be thy intelligence, and blessed be thou, who hast prevented me this day from coming unto blood-guiltiness, and from helping myself with my own hand. ³⁴ But truly, as the Lord the God of Israel liveth, who hath withdrawn me from injuring thee, except thou hadst hastened and come to meet me, surely there would not have been left unto Nabal by the morning-light so much as a dog. ³⁵ And David took out of her hand that which she had brought him; and unto her he said, Go up in peace to thy house: see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have respected thy presence. ³⁶ And Abigayil came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal’s heart was merry within him, and he was exceedingly drunken; wherefore she told him not a word, either little or great, until the morning-light. ³⁷ But it happened in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things; and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. ³⁸ And it came to pass in about ten days thereafter, that the Lord struck Nabal, and he died.

¹⁶ And he brought him down; and behold, they were scattered over the face of all the country, eating and drinking, and dancing for joy, because of all the great spoil which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. ¹⁷ And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day; and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon camels, and fled.

⁹ And there conspired against him his servant Zimri, captain of half the chariots, as he was in Thirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was set over the house in Thirzah.

^{19 (29:18)} And it might come to pass, when he heareth the words of this denunciation, that he would bless himself in his heart, saying, There will be peace unto me, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart; in order that the indulgence of the passions may appease the thirst for them:

¹¹ As a dog returneth to his vomit, so doth a fool repeat to act in his folly.

²² Though thou shouldst pound the fool in a mortar, in the midst of grains of wheat with a pestle: still would his folly not depart from him.

¹² Come ye, I will fetch wine, and let us swallow abundantly of strong drink; and like this day shall it be tomorrow, excellent and in very great abundance.

³ O Lord, are not thy eyes directed to the truth? thou didst strike them, but they felt it not; thou didst make an end of them, yet they refused to accept correction: they made their faces harder than a rock, they refused to return.

^{18 (31:17)} I have indeed heard Ephraim bemoaning himself, “Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as an untamed calf; cause me to return, and I will return; for thou art the Lord my God.