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¹ Wysdome hath buylded herself an house, and hewen out seuen pilers:² she hath slaughted, poured out hir wyne, and prepared hir table.³ She hath sent forth hir maydens to crie vpo the hyest place of the cite:⁴ Who so is ignoraut, let him come hither. And to the vn wise she sayde:⁵ O come on youre waye, eate my bred, and drynke my wyne, which I haue poured out for you.⁶ Forsake ignorauce, and ye shal lyue: and se that ye go in the waye of vnderstondinge.⁷ Who so reproueth a scornefull personne, getteth him self dishonoure: and he that rebuketh the vngodly, stayneth himself.⁸ Reproue not a scorner, lest he owe the euell wil: but rebuke a wyse man, and he wil loue the.⁹ Geue a discrete man but an occasion, & he wilbe the wyser: teach a rightuous man, and he wil increase.¹⁰ The feare of the LORDE is the begynnynge of wysdome, & the knowlege of holy thinges is vnderstondinge.¹¹ For thorow me yi dayes shalbe prolonged, and the yeares of thy life shal be many.¹² Yf thou be wyse, yi wysdome shal do yi selfe good: but yf thou thynkest scorne therof, it shalbe thine owne harme.

¹³ A foolish restlesse woman, full of wordes, and soch one as hath no knowlege,¹⁴ sytteth in the dores of hir house vpo a stole aboue in the cite,¹⁵ to call soch as go by and walke straight in their wayes.¹⁶ Who so is ignoraunt (sayeth she) let him come hither, and to the vnwyse she sayeth:¹⁷ stollen waters are swete, & the bred that is preuely eaten, hath a good taist.¹⁸ But they cosider not that death is there, and that hir gestes go downe to hell.