1Be not jealous over the wife of thy bosom,
And teach her not an evil lesson against thyself.

2Give not thy soul unto a woman,
That she should set her foot upon thy strength.

3Go not to meet a woman that playeth the harlot,
Lest haply thou fall into her snares.

4Use not the company of a woman that is a singer,
Lest haply thou be caught by her attempts.

5Gaze not on a maid, lest haply thou be trapped in her penalties.

6Give not thy soul unto harlots,
That thou lose not thine inheritance.

7Look not round about thee in the streets of the city,
Neither wander thou in the solitary places thereof.

8Turn away thine eye from a comely woman,
And gaze not on another’s beauty:
By the beauty of a woman many have been led astray;
And herewith love is kindled as a fire.

9Sit not at all with a woman that hath a husband; ⁴⁴
And revel not with her at the wine;
Lest haply thy soul turn aside unto her,
And with thy spirit thou slide into destruction.

10Forsake not an old friend;
For the new is not comparable to him:
As new wine, so is a new friend;
If it become old, thou shalt drink it with gladness.

11Envy not the glory of a sinner;
For thou knowest not what shall be his overthrow.

12Delight not in the delights of the ungodly:
Remember they shall not go unpunished unto ⁴⁵the grave.

13Keep thee far from the man that hath ⁴⁶power to kill,
And thou shalt have no suspicion of the fear of death:
And if thou come unto him, commit no fault,
Lest he take away thy life:
Know surely that thou goest about in the midst of snares,
And walkest upon the battlements of a city.

14As well as thou canst, guess at thy neighbours;
And take counsel with the wise.

15Let thy converse be with men of understanding;
And let all thy discourse be in the law of the Most High.

16Let just men be the companions of thy board;
And let thy glorying be in the fear of the Lord.

17For the hand of the artificers a work shall be commended:
And he that ruleth the people shall be counted wise for his speech.

18A man full of tongue is dangerous in his city;
And he that is headlong in his speech shall be hated.