Proverbs Chapter 7
King James Version (KJV)
Other Translations
asv (asv) - eBible.org engASV USFM
1
Devise not evil against thy neighbor,
2
Seeing he dwelleth securely by thee.
3
Strive not with a man without cause,
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If he have done thee no harm.
5
Envy thou not the man of violence,
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And choose none of his ways.
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For the perverse is an abomination to Jehovah;
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But his friendship is with the upright.
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The curse of Jehovah is in the house of the wicked;
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But he blesseth the habitation of the righteous.
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Surely he scoffeth at the scoffers;
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But he giveth grace unto the lowly.
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The wise shall inherit glory;
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But shame shall be the promotion of fools.
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Hear,
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my sons, the instruction of a father,
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And attend to know understanding:
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For I give you good doctrine;
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Forsake ye not my law.
20
For I was a son unto my father,
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Tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.
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And he taught me, and said unto me:
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Let thy heart retain my words;
24
Keep my commandments, and live;
25
Get wisdom, get understanding;
26
Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth;
27
Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee;
darby (darby) - eBible.org Darby 1890 plaintext
1
My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee.
2
Keep my commandments, and live; and my teaching, as the apple of thine eye.
3
Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the tablet of thy heart.
4
Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister, and call intelligence [thy] kinswoman:
5
that they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger who flattereth with her words.
6
For at the window of my house, I looked forth through my lattice,
7
and I beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the sons, a young man void of understanding,
8
passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,
9
in the twilight, in the evening of the day, in the blackness of night and the darkness.
10
And behold, there met him a woman in the attire of a harlot, and subtle of heart.
11
She is clamorous and unmanageable; her feet abide not in her house:
12
now without, now in the broadways, — and she lieth in wait at every corner.
13
And she caught him and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him,
14
I have peace-offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows:
15
therefore came I forth to meet thee, to seek earnestly thy face, and I have found thee.
16
I have decked my bed with tapestry coverlets of variegated linen from Egypt;
17
I have perfumed my couch with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18
Come, let us revel in love until the morning, let us delight ourselves with loves.
19
For the husband is not at home, he is gone a long journey;
20
he hath taken the money-bag with him, he will come home on the day of the full moon.
21
With her much enticement she beguiled him; with the smoothness of her lips she constrained him.
22
He went after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, and as stocks [serve] for the correction of the fool;
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till an arrow strike through his liver: as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for its life.
24
And now, ye sons, hearken unto me, and attend to the words of my mouth.
25
Let not thy heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths:
26
for she hath cast down many wounded, and all slain by her were strong.
27
Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chambers of death.
lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM
1
[My] son, keep my words, and hide with thee my commandments.
2
keep my commandments, and thou shalt live; and [keep] my words as the pupils of [thine] eyes.
3
And bind them on thy fingers, and write [them] on the table of thine heart.
4
Say that wisdom is thy sister, and gain prudence as an acquaintance for thyself;
5
that she may keep thee from the strange and wicked woman, if she should assail thee with flattering words.
6
For she looks from a window out of her house into the streets, at one whom she may see of the senseless ones, a young man void of understanding,
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passing by the corner in the passages near her house,
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and speaking, in the dark of the evening,
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when there happens [to be] the stillness of night and of darkness:
10
and the woman meets him having the appearance of a harlot, that causes the hearts of young men to flutter.
11
And she is fickle, and debauched, and her feet abide not at home.
12
For at one time she wanders without, and at [another] time she lies in wait in the streets, at every corner.
13
Then she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said to him,
14
I have a peace-offering; to-day I pay my vows:
15
therefore I came forth to meet thee, desiring thy face; [and] I have found thee.
16
I have spread my bed with sheets, and I have covered it with double tapestry from Egypt.
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I have sprinkled my couch with saffron, and my house with cinnamon.
18
Come, and let us enjoy love until the morning; come, and let us embrace in love.
19
For my husband is not at home, but is gone on a long journey,
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having taken in his hand a bundle of money: after many days he will return to his house.
21
So with much converse she prevailed on him to go astray, and with the snares of her lips she forced him from [the right path].
22
And he followed her, being gently led on, and [that] as an ox is led to the slaughter, and as a dog to bonds, or as a hart shot in the liver with an arrow:
23
and he hastens as a bird into a snare, not knowing that he is running for [his] life.
24
Now then, [my] son, hearken to me, and attend to the words of my mouth.
25
Let not thine heart turn aside to her ways:
26
for she has wounded and cast down many, and those whom she has slain are innumerable.
27
Her house is the way of hell, leading down to the chambers of death.
vul1914 (vul1914) - Vulgate 1914 UTF-8 (sacredbible.org)
1
Fili mi, custodi sermones meos, et præcepta mea reconde tibi. Fili
2
serva mandata mea, et vives: et legem meam quasi pupillam oculi tui:
3
liga eam in digitis tuis, scribe illam in tabulis cordis tui.
4
Dic sapientiæ, soror mea es: et prudentiam voca amicam tuam,
5
ut custodiant te a muliere extranea, et ab aliena, quæ verba sua dulcia facit.
6
De fenestra enim domus meæ per cancellos prospexi,
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et video parvulos, considero vecordem iuvenem,
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qui transit per plateam iuxta angulum, et prope viam domus illius, graditur
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in obscuro, advesperascente die, in noctis tenebris, et caligine.
10
Et ecce occurrit illi mulier ornatu meretricio, præparata ad capiendas animas: garrula, et vaga,
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quietis impatiens, nec valens in domo consistere pedibus suis,
12
nunc foris, nunc in plateis, nunc iuxta angulos insidians.
13
Apprehensumque deosculatur iuvenem, et procaci vultu blanditur, dicens:
14
Victimas pro salute vovi, hodie reddidi vota mea.
15
idcirco egressa sum in occursum tuum, desiderans te videre, et reperi.
16
Intexui funibus lectulum meum, stravi tapetibus pictis ex Ægypto.
17
aspersi cubile meum myrrha, et aloe, et cinnamomo.
18
Veni, inebriemur uberibus, et fruamur cupitis amplexibus, donec illucescat dies.
19
non est enim vir in domo sua, abiit via longissima.
20
sacculum pecuniæ secum tulit: in die plenæ lunæ reversurus est in domum suam.
21
Irretivit eum multis sermonibus, et blanditiis labiorum protraxit illum.
22
Statim eam sequitur quasi bos ductus ad victimam, et quasi agnus lasciviens, et ignorans quod ad vincula stultus trahatur,
23
donec transfigat sagitta iecur eius: velut si avis festinet ad laqueum, et nescit quod de periculo animæ illius agitur.
24
Nunc ergo fili mi, audi me, et attende verbis oris mei.
25
Ne abstrahatur in viis illius mens tua: neque decipiaris semitis eius.
26
multos enim vulneratos deiecit, et fortissimi quique interfecti sunt ab ea.
27
Viæ inferi domus eius, penetrantes in interiora mortis.
web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV
1
My son, keep my words. Lay up my commandments within you.
2
Keep my commandments and live! Guard my teaching as the apple of your eye.
3
Bind them on your fingers. Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4
Tell wisdom, “You are my sister.” Call understanding your relative,
5
that they may keep you from the strange woman, from the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6
For at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice.
7
I saw among the simple ones. I discerned among the youths a young man void of understanding,
8
passing through the street near her corner, he went the way to her house,
9
in the twilight, in the evening of the day, in the middle of the night and in the darkness.
10
Behold, there a woman met him with the attire of a prostitute, and with crafty intent.
11
She is loud and defiant. Her feet don’t stay in her house.
12
Now she is in the streets, now in the squares, and lurking at every corner.
13
So she caught him, and kissed him. With an impudent face she said to him:
14
“Sacrifices of peace offerings are with me. Today I have paid my vows.
15
Therefore I came out to meet you, to diligently seek your face, and I have found you.
16
I have spread my couch with carpets of tapestry, with striped cloths of the yarn of Egypt.
17
I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18
Come, let’s take our fill of loving until the morning. Let’s solace ourselves with loving.
19
For my husband isn’t at home. He has gone on a long journey.
20
He has taken a bag of money with him. He will come home at the full moon.”
21
With persuasive words, she led him astray. With the flattering of her lips, she seduced him.
22
He followed her immediately, as an ox goes to the slaughter, as a fool stepping into a noose.
23
Until an arrow strikes through his liver, as a bird hurries to the snare, and doesn’t know that it will cost his life.
24
Now therefore, sons, listen to me. Pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25
Don’t let your heart turn to her ways. Don’t go astray in her paths,
26
for she has thrown down many wounded. Yes, all her slain are a mighty army.
27
Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the rooms of death.
ylt (ylt) - Bible.com YLT98 plain UTF-8
1
My son! keep my sayings, And my commands lay up with thee.
2
Keep my commands, and live, And my law as the pupil of thine eye.
3
Bind them on thy fingers, Write them on the tablet of thy heart.
4
Say to wisdom, `My sister Thou <FI>art<Fi> .' And cry to understanding, `Kinswoman!'
5
To preserve thee from a strange woman, From a stranger who hath made smooth her sayings.
6
For, at a window of my house, Through my casement I have looked out,
7
And I do see among the simple ones, I discern among the sons, A young man lacking understanding,
8
Passing on in the street, near her corner, And the way <FI>to<Fi> her house he doth step,
9
In the twilight--in the evening of day, In the darkness of night and blackness.
10
And, lo, a woman to meet him--(A harlot's dress, and watchful of heart,
11
Noisy she <FI>is<Fi> , and stubborn, In her house her feet rest not.
12
Now in an out-place, now in broad places, And near every corner she lieth in wait) --
13
And she laid hold on him, and kissed him, She hath hardened her face, and saith to him,
14
`Sacrifices of peace-offerings <FI>are<Fi> by me, To-day I have completed my vows.
15
Therefore I have come forth to meet thee, To seek earnestly thy face, and I find thee.
16
<FI> With<Fi> ornamental coverings I decked my couch, Carved works--cotton of Egypt.
17
I sprinkled my bed--myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18
Come, we are filled <FI>with<Fi> loves till the morning, We delight ourselves in loves.
19
For the man is not in his house, He hath gone on a long journey.
20
A bag of money he hath taken in his hand, At the day of the new moon he cometh to his house.'
21
She turneth him aside with the abundance of her speech, With the flattery of her lips she forceth him.
22
He is going after her straightway, As an ox unto the slaughter he cometh, And as a fetter unto the chastisement of a fool,
23
Till an arrow doth split his liver, As a bird hath hastened unto a snare, And hath not known that it <FI>is<Fi> for its life.
24
And now, ye sons, hearken to me, And give attention to sayings of my mouth.
25
Let not thy heart turn unto her ways, Do not wander in her paths,
26
For many <FI>are<Fi> the wounded she caused to fall, And mighty <FI>are<Fi> all her slain ones.
27
The ways of Sheol--her house, Going down unto inner chambers of death!
Explanations by Age Level
Explain Like I'm 5
A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!
Explain Like I'm 10
Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.
Explain Like I'm 15
Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).