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1.
My son, pay attention to my wisdom, listen well to my words of insight,
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2.
that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge.
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3.
For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil;
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4.
but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword.
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5.
Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.
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6.
She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths are crooked, but she knows it not.
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7.
Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what I say.
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8.
Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house,
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9.
lest you give your best strength to others and your years to one who is cruel,
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10.
lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich another man's house.
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11.
At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent.
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12.
You will say, "How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned correction!
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13.
I would not obey my teachers or listen to my instructors.
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14.
I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly."
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15.
Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well.
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16.
Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares?
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17.
Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers.
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18.
May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.
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19.
A loving doe, a graceful deer--may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by her love.
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20.
Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another man's wife?
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21.
For a man's ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all his paths.
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22.
The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast.
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23.
He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.
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