Proverbiorum 6
1 Fili mi, si spoponderis pro amico tuo, defixisti apud extraneum manum tuam,
[My] son, if thou become surety for thy friend, thou shalt deliver thine hand to an enemy.
2 illaqueatus es verbis oris tui, et captus propriis sermonibus.
For a man's own lips become a strong snare to him, and he is caught with the lips of his own mouth.
3 Fac ergo quod dico fili mi, et temetipsum libera: quia incidisti in manum proximi tui. Discurre, festina, suscita amicum tuum:
[My] son, do what I command thee, and deliver thyself; for on thy friend's account thou art come into the power of evil [men]: faint not, but stir up even thy friend for whom thou art become surety.
4 ne dederis somnum oculis tuis, nec dormitent palpebrae tuae.
Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber with thine eyelids;
5 Eruere quasi damula de manu, et quasi avis de manu aucupis.
that thou mayest deliver thyself as a doe out of the toils, and as a bird out of a snare.
6 Vade ad formicam o piger, et considera vias eius, et disce sapientiam:
Go to the ant, O sluggard; and see, and emulate his ways, and become wiser than he.
7 quae cum non habeat ducem, nec praeceptorem, nec principem,
For whereas he has no husbandry, nor any one to compel him, and is under no master,
8 parat in aestate cibum sibi, et congregat in messe quod comedat.
he prepares food for himself in the summer, and lays by abundant store in harvest. Or go to the bee, and learn how diligent she is, and how earnestly she is engaged in her work; whose labours kings and private men use for health, and she is desired and respected by all: though weak in body, she is advanced by honouring wisdom.
9 Usquequo piger dormies? quando consurges e somno tuo?
How long wilt thou lie, O sluggard? and when wilt thou awake out of sleep?
10 Paululum dormies, paululum dormitabis, paululum conseres manus ut dormias:
Thou sleepest a little, and thou restest a little, and thou slumberest a short [time], and thou foldest thine arms over thy breast a little.
11 et veniet tibi quasi viator, egestas, et pauperies quasi vir armatus. Si vero impiger fueris, veniet ut fons messis tua, et egestas longe fugiet a te.
Then poverty comes upon thee as an evil traveller, and want as a swift courier: but if thou be diligent, thine harvest shall arrive as a fountain, and poverty shall flee away as a bad courier.
12 Homo apostata, vir inutilis, graditur ore perverso,
A foolish man and a transgressor goes in ways that are not good.
13 annuit oculis, terit pede, digito loquitur,
And the same winks with the eye, and makes a sign with his foot, and teaches with the beckonings of his fingers.
14 pravo corde machinatur malum, et omni tempore iurgia seminat.
[His] perverse heart devises evils: at all times such a one causes troubles to a city.
15 huic extemplo veniet perditio sua, et subito conteretur, nec habebit ultra medicinam.
Therefore his destruction shall come suddenly; overthrow and irretrievable ruin.
16 Sex sunt, quae odit Dominus, et septimum detestatur anima eius:
For he rejoices in all things which God hates, and he is ruined by reason of impurity of soul.
17 Oculos sublimes, linguam mendacem, manus effundentes innoxium sanguinem,
The eye of the haughty, a tongue unjust, hands shedding the blood of the just;
18 cor machinans cogitationes pessimas, pedes veloces ad currendum in malum,
and a heart devising evil thoughts, and feet hastening to do evil, —[are hateful to God].
19 proferentem mendacia testem fallacem, et eum, qui seminat inter fratres discordias.
An unjust witness kindles falsehoods, and brings on quarrels between brethren.
20 Conserva fili mi praecepta patris tui, et ne dimittas legem matris tuae.
[My] son, keep the laws of thy father, and reject not the ordinances of thy mother:
21 Liga ea in corde tuo iugiter, et circumda gutturi tuo.
but bind them upon thy soul continually, and hang them as a chain about thy neck.
22 Cum ambulaveris, gradiantur tecum: cum dormieris, custodiant te, et evigilans loquere cum eis.
Whensoever thou walkest, lead this along and let it be with thee; that it may talk with thee when thou wakest.
23 quia mandatum lucerna est, et lex lux, et via vitae increpatio disciplinae:
For the commandment of the law is a lamp and a light; a way of life; reproof also and correction:
24 ut custodiant te a muliere mala, et a blanda lingua extraneae.
to keep thee continually from a married woman, and from the calumny of a strange tongue.
25 Non concupiscat pulchritudinem eius cor tuum, nec capiaris nutibus illius:
Let not the desire of beauty overcome thee, neither be thou caught by thine eyes, neither be captivated with her eyelids.
26 pretium enim scorti vix est unius panis: mulier autem viri pretiosam animam capit.
For the value of a harlot is as much as of one loaf; and a woman hunts for the precious souls of men.
27 Numquid potest homo abscondere ignem in sinu suo, ut vestimenta illius non ardeant?
Shall any one bind fire in his bosom, and not burn his garments?
28 aut ambulare super prunas, ut non comburantur plantae eius?
or will any one walk on coals of fire, and not burn his feet?
29 sic qui ingreditur ad mulierem proximi sui, non erit mundus cum tetigerit eam.
So is he that goes in to a married woman; he shall not be held guiltless, neither any one that touches her.
30 Non grandis est culpa, cum quis furatus fuerit: ut esurientem impleat animam:
It is not to be wondered at if one should be taken stealing, for he steals that when hungry he may satisfy his soul:
31 deprehensus tamen reddet septuplum, et omnem substantiam domus suae tradet.
but if he should be taken, he shall repay sevenfold, and shall deliver himself by giving all his goods.
32 Qui autem adulter est, propter cordis inopiam perdet animam suam:
But the adulterer through want of sense procures destruction to his soul.
33 turpitudinem et ignominiam congregat sibi, et opprobrium illius non delebitur.
He endures both pain and disgrace, and his reproach shall never be wiped off.
34 quia zelus et furor viri non parcet in die vindictae,
For the soul of her husband is full of jealousy: he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35 nec acquiescet cuiusquam precibus, nec suscipiet pro redemptione dona plurima.
He will not forego [his] enmity for any ransom: neither will he be reconciled for many gifts.
