Pro 23 | ASV | e4.org | When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Consider diligently him that is before thee;

‏ Proverbs 23

1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Consider diligently ^▼▼1 him that is before thee; ^{▼▼1) Or what} 2 ^▼▼1 And put a knife to thy throat, If thou be a man given to appetite. ^{▼▼1) Or For thou wilt put} 3 Be not desirous of his dainties; Seeing they are deceitful food.

4 Weary not thyself to be rich; Cease ^▼▼1 from thine own wisdom. ^{▼▼1) Or by reason of thine own understanding} 5 ^▼▼1 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings, Like an eagle that flieth toward heaven. ^{▼▼1) Or Wilt thou set thine eyes upon it? it is gone: Heb Shall thine eyes fly upon it, and it is not?}

6 Eat thou not the bread of him that hath an evil eye, Neither desire thou his dainties: 7 For ^▼▼1 as he thinketh within himself, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; But his heart is not with thee. ^{▼▼1) Or as one that reckoneth} 8 The morsel which thou hast eaten shalt thou vomit up, And lose thy sweet words.

9 Speak not in the hearing of a fool; For he will despise the wisdom of thy words.

10 Remove not the ancient landmark; And enter not into the fields of the fatherless: 11 For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their cause against thee.

12 Apply thy heart unto ^▼▼1 instruction, And thine ears to the words of knowledge. ^{▼▼1) Or correction} 13 Withhold not correction from the child; For ^▼▼1 if thou beat him with the rod, he will not die. ^{▼▼1) Or though} 14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, And shalt deliver his soul from Sheol. 15 My son, if thy heart be wise, My heart will be glad, even mine: 16 Yea, my ^▼▼1 heart will rejoice, When thy lips speak right things. ^{▼▼1) Heb reins}

17 Let not thy heart envy sinners; But be thou in the fear of Jehovah all the day long: 18 For surely there is a ^▼▼1 reward; And thy hope shall not be cut off. ^{▼▼1) Or sequel ; Or future ; Heb latter end}

19 Hear thou, my son, and be wise, And guide thy heart in the way. 20 Be not among winebibbers, Among gluttonous eaters of flesh: 21 For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags. 22 Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, And despise not thy mother when she is old. 23 Buy the truth, and sell it not; Yea , wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. 24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; And he that begetteth a wise child will have joy of him. 25 Let thy father and thy mother be glad, And let her that bare thee rejoice. 26 My son, give me thy heart; And let thine eyes ^▼▼1 delight in my ways. ^{▼▼1) Another reading is observe} 27 For a harlot is a deep ditch; And a foreign woman is a narrow pit. 28 Yea, she lieth in wait ^▼▼1 as a robber, And increaseth the treacherous among men. ^{▼▼1) Or as for a prey}

29 Who hath ^▼▼1 woe? who hath ^▼▼2 sorrow? who hath contentions? Who hath complaining? who hath wounds without cause? Who hath ^▼▼3 redness of eyes? ^{▼▼1) Heb Oh! 2) Heb Alas! 3) Or darkness} 30 They that tarry long at the wine; They that go to ^▼▼1 seek out mixed wine. ^{▼▼1) Or try} 31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, When it sparkleth in the cup, When it ^▼▼1 goeth down smoothly: ^{▼▼1) Or moveth itself aright} 32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, And stingeth like an adder. 33 Thine eyes shall behold ^▼▼1 strange things, And thy heart shall utter perverse things. ^{▼▼1) Or strange women} 34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, Or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. 35 They have stricken me, shalt thou say , and I was not hurt; They have beaten me, and I felt it not: When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.