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¹ My sonne, if thou be surety for thy neighbour, and hast striken hands with the stranger,² Thou art snared with the wordes of thy mouth: thou art euen taken with the woordes of thine owne mouth.³ Doe this nowe, my sonne, and deliuer thy selfe: seeing thou art come into the hande of thy neighbour, goe, and humble thy selfe, and sollicite thy friends.⁴ Giue no sleepe to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.⁵ Deliuer thy selfe as a doe from the hande of the hunter, and as a birde from the hande of the fouler.

⁶ Goe to the pismire, O sluggarde: beholde her waies, and be wise.⁷ For shee hauing no guide, gouernour, nor ruler,⁸ Prepareth her meat in the sommer, & gathereth her foode in haruest.⁹ Howe long wilt thou sleepe, O sluggarde? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleepe?¹⁰ Yet a litle sleepe, a litle slumber, a litle folding of the hands to sleepe.¹¹ Therefore thy pouertie commeth as one that trauaileth by the way, and thy necessitie like an armed man.

¹² The vnthriftie man and the wicked man walketh with a froward mouth.¹³ He maketh a signe with his eyes: he signifieth with his feete: he instructeth wt his fingers.¹⁴ Lewde things are in his heart: he imagineth euill at all times, and raiseth vp contentions.¹⁵ Therefore shall his destruction come speedily: hee shall be destroyed suddenly without recouerie.¹⁶ These sixe things doeth the Lorde hate: yea, his soule abhorreth seuen:¹⁷ The hautie eyes, a lying tongue, and the hands that shed innocent blood,¹⁸ An heart that imagineth wicked enterprises, feete that be swift in running to mischiefe,¹⁹ A false witnesse that speaketh lyes, and him that rayseth vp contentions among brethren.

²⁰ My sonne, keepe thy fathers commandement, and forsake not thy mothers instruction.²¹ Binde them alway vpon thine heart, and tye them about thy necke.²² It shall leade thee, when thou walkest: it shall watch for thee, when thou sleepest, and when thou wakest, it shall talke with thee.²³ For the commandement is a lanterne, and instruction a light: and corrections for instruction are the way of life,²⁴ To keepe thee from the wicked woman, & from ye flatterie of ye tongue of a strange woman.²⁵ Desire not her beautie in thine heart, neither let her take thee with her eye lids.²⁶ For because of the whorish woman a man is brought to a morsell of bread, and a woman wil hunt for the precious life of a man.²⁷ Can a man take fire in his bosome, and his clothes not be burnt?²⁸ Or can a man go vpon coales, and his feete not be burnt?²⁹ So he that goeth in to his neighbours wife, shall not be innocent, whosoeuer toucheth her.³⁰ Men do not despise a thiefe, when he stealeth, to satisfie his soule, because he is hungrie.³¹ But if he be founde, he shall restore seuen folde, or he shall giue all the substance of his house.³² But he that committeth adulterie with a woman, he is destitute of vnderstanding: he that doeth it, destroyeth his owne soule.³³ He shall finde a wounde and dishonour, and his reproch shall neuer be put away.³⁴ For ielousie is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.³⁵ He cannot beare the sight of any raunsome: neither will he consent, though thou augment the giftes.