잠언 23

¹When you are seated at a ruler’s table, \q take careful note of what is in front of you, ²and if you have a big appetite, \q hold a knife to your own throat. ³Do not long for the ruler’s fine dishes, \q for that food is deceptive. ⁴Do not wear yourself out to get rich; \q have the sense to stop. ⁵Cast a glance at wealth, and it is gone; \q it grows wings \q and flies off to the sky like an eagle.

⁶Do not eat at the table of a stingy host, \q and do not long for their fine food, ⁷Such people are always counting the cost. \q “Eat and drink!” they say to you, \q but their heart is not with you.^{a 8}You will throw up the little you have eaten \q and squander your gracious words. ⁹Do not talk to a fool, \q who will only scorn your wise words. ¹⁰Do not shift an ancient boundary marker \q or encroach on the fields of orphans, ¹¹for their Defender is strong, \q and he will argue their cause against you. ¹²Set your mind on instruction \q and your ears on words of knowledge. ¹³Do not hold back correction from a child; \q if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.^{b 14}Punish them with the rod yourself, \q and you will save their life from Sheol. ¹⁵My son, if you have a wise heart, \q then I myself will be glad at heart. ¹⁶I will be glad to the depths of my being \q when I hear you speak what is right. ¹⁷Do not let your heart envy sinners; \q instead, live in the fear of the LORD all day long. ¹⁸Surely there is a future for you, \q and your hope will not be cut off. ¹⁹Listen, my son, and become wise; \q set your heart straight on the way. ²⁰Do not keep company with heavy drinkers of wine \q or with those who stuff themselves with meat, ²¹For drunkards and gluttons will end up poor, \q and their drowsiness will dress them in rags. ²²Listen to the father who gave you life, \q and do not look down on your mother when she is old. ²³Buy the truth and never sell it; \q get wisdom, discipline, and understanding. ²⁴The father of a righteous son will be full of joy; \q a man who has a wise son will delight in him. ²⁵Let your father and mother be glad; \q let her who gave birth to you rejoice. ²⁶Give me your heart, my son, \q and let your eyes watch my ways.^{c 27}A prostitute is a deep pit; \q a foreign woman is a narrow well. ²⁸She lies in wait like a robber \q and makes many men unfaithful. ²⁹Who has trouble? Who has misery? Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining? \q Who has bruises for no reason? \q Who has bloodshot eyes? ³⁰Those who stay up late over wine, \q who go looking for spiced drinks. ³¹Do not gaze at the red wine \q as it gleams in the cup \q and slides down so easily.^{d 32}But at the last it bites like a snake \q and strikes like a viper. ³³Your eyes will see strange sights, \q and your mind will say confused and twisted things. ³⁴You will be like someone sleeping in the middle of the sea, \q like someone lying at the top of a ship’s mast. ³⁵“They hit me,” you will say, “but I was not hurt; \q they beat me, but I did not feel it. \q When will I wake up? \q I will go and look for another drink.”