Proverbs 6

Practical Warnings

1 Son, if you signed yourself up for somebody else’s debt, shook hands and guaranteed it.

2 You trapped by your own words, snared by your own mouth.

3 So here is the move, son: free yourself. Go humble yourself, beg your neighbor to let you loose.

4 Do not sleep, do not rest your eyes.

5 Free yourself like a gazelle from the hunter, like a bird from the fowler’s trap.

6 Go peep the ant, lazy dude; watch and get wise.

7 She got no boss, no manager, no ruler.

8 But she stacks food in summer, saves up during harvest.

9 How long are you going to lay there, lazy one, When are you going to get up,

10 A little sleep, a little nap, a little folding hands to rest.

11 And poverty going to rush on you like a stick-up, scarcity like an armed man.

12 A worthless man, a crooked dude, runs his mouth with twisted lies.

13 He winks his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his fingers.

14 He plots dirt in his heart, always starting drama.

15 So disaster is going to hit him suddenly; in a blink he is going to be smashed, no fixing him.

There Are Six Things the Lord Hates

16 There six things the Lord hates, seven He cannot stand:

17 Arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that spill innocent blood,

18 A heart plotting wicked moves, feet quick to run to evil,

19 A false witness spitting lies, and one who stirs beef between brothers.

Warning Against Adultery

20 Son, guard your father’s commands, do not ditch your mama’s teaching.

21 Tie them always on your heart, wrap them around your neck.

22 When you walk, they guide you; when you lay down, they watch you; when you wake up, they talk with you.

23 Because the command is a lamp, teaching is light, correction and discipline are the way of life.

24 They keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of a temptress.

25 Do not lust for her beauty in your heart, do not get trapped by her eyes.

26 For a prostitute can cost a man a loaf of bread, but an adulteress hunts for your very life.

27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes getting burned,

28 Can he walk on hot coals without scorching his feet,

29 That is what it is like with the one who sleeps with another man’s wife, he will not go unpunished.

30 People do not despise a thief if he steals to fill his hungry belly.

31 But when he gets caught, he must pay back sevenfold, give up all the goods in his house.

32 But the man who commits adultery got no sense; he destroying his own soul.

33 He will catch wounds and dishonor, his shame will never be erased.

34 Because jealousy makes a man rage, and he will not spare when it is payback time.

35 He will take no bribes, no amount of gifts can calm him down.