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Proverbs 6
Revised Standard Version
Proverbs 6
Revised Standard Version
Practical Admonitions
6 My son, if you have become surety for your neighbor,
have given your pledge for a stranger;
2 if you are snared in the utterance of your lips,[a]
caught in the words of your mouth;
3 then do this, my son, and save yourself,
for you have come into your neighbor’s power:
go, hasten,[b] and importune your neighbor.
4 Give your eyes no sleep
and your eyelids no slumber;
5 save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter,[c]
like a bird from the hand of the fowler.
6 Go to the ant, O sluggard;
consider her ways, and be wise.
7 Without having any chief,
officer or ruler,
8 she prepares her food in summer,
and gathers her sustenance in harvest.
9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come upon you like a vagabond,
and want like an armed man.
12 A worthless person, a wicked man,
goes about with crooked speech,
13 winks with his eyes, scrapes[d] with his feet,
points with his finger,
14 with perverted heart devises evil,
continually sowing discord;
15 therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;
in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.
16 There are six things which the Lord hates,
seven which are an abomination to him:
17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and a man who sows discord among brothers.
20 My son, keep your father’s commandment,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching.
21 Bind them upon your heart always;
tie them about your neck.
22 When you walk, they[e] will lead you;
when you lie down, they[f] will watch over you;
and when you awake, they[g] will talk with you.
23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,
24 to preserve you from the evil woman,
from the smooth tongue of the adventuress.
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;
26 for a harlot may be hired for a loaf of bread,[h]
but an adulteress[i] stalks a man’s very life.
27 Can a man carry fire in his bosom
and his clothes not be burned?
28 Or can one walk upon hot coals
and his feet not be scorched?
29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
none who touches her will go unpunished.
30 Do not men despise[j] a thief if he steals
to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry?
31 And if he is caught, he will pay sevenfold;
he will give all the goods of his house.
32 He who commits adultery has no sense;
he who does it destroys himself.
33 Wounds and dishonor will he get,
and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy makes a man furious,
and he will not spare when he takes revenge.
35 He will accept no compensation,
nor be appeased though you multiply gifts.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 6:2 Cn Compare Gk Syr: Heb the words of your mouth
- Proverbs 6:3 Or humble yourself
- Proverbs 6:5 Cn: Heb hand
- Proverbs 6:13 Or taps
- Proverbs 6:22 Heb it
- Proverbs 6:22 Heb it
- Proverbs 6:22 Heb it
- Proverbs 6:26 Cn Compare Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb for because of a harlot to a piece of bread
- Proverbs 6:26 Heb a man’s wife
- Proverbs 6:30 Or Men do not despise
Proverbs 6
New International Version
Proverbs 6
New International Version
Warnings Against Folly
6 My son,(A) if you have put up security(B) for your neighbor,(C)
if you have shaken hands in pledge(D) for a stranger,
2 you have been trapped by what you said,
ensnared by the words of your mouth.
3 So do this, my son, to free yourself,
since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands:
Go—to the point of exhaustion—[a]
and give your neighbor no rest!
4 Allow no sleep to your eyes,
no slumber to your eyelids.(E)
5 Free yourself, like a gazelle(F) from the hand of the hunter,(G)
like a bird from the snare of the fowler.(H)
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard;(I)
consider its ways and be wise!
7 It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
8 yet it stores its provisions in summer(J)
and gathers its food at harvest.(K)
9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard?(L)
When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest(M)—
11 and poverty(N) will come on you like a thief
and scarcity like an armed man.
12 A troublemaker and a villain,
who goes about with a corrupt mouth,
13 who winks maliciously with his eye,(O)
signals with his feet
and motions with his fingers,(P)
14 who plots evil(Q) with deceit in his heart—
he always stirs up conflict.(R)
15 Therefore disaster will overtake him in an instant;(S)
he will suddenly(T) be destroyed—without remedy.(U)
16 There are six things the Lord hates,(V)
seven that are detestable to him:
17 haughty eyes,(W)
a lying tongue,(X)
hands that shed innocent blood,(Y)
18 a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil,(Z)
19 a false witness(AA) who pours out lies(AB)
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.(AC)
Warning Against Adultery
20 My son,(AD) keep your father’s command
and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(AE)
21 Bind them always on your heart;
fasten them around your neck.(AF)
22 When you walk, they will guide you;
when you sleep, they will watch over you;
when you awake, they will speak to you.
23 For this command is a lamp,
this teaching is a light,(AG)
and correction and instruction
are the way to life,(AH)
24 keeping you from your neighbor’s wife,
from the smooth talk of a wayward woman.(AI)
25 Do not lust in your heart after her beauty
or let her captivate you with her eyes.
26 For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread,
but another man’s wife preys on your very life.(AJ)
27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap
without his clothes being burned?
28 Can a man walk on hot coals
without his feet being scorched?
29 So is he who sleeps(AK) with another man’s wife;(AL)
no one who touches her will go unpunished.
30 People do not despise a thief if he steals
to satisfy his hunger when he is starving.
31 Yet if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold,(AM)
though it costs him all the wealth of his house.
32 But a man who commits adultery(AN) has no sense;(AO)
whoever does so destroys himself.
33 Blows and disgrace are his lot,
and his shame will never(AP) be wiped away.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 6:3 Or Go and humble yourself,
Revised Standard Version (RSV)
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.