(3) For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is
smoother than oil;
(4) but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged
sword.
(5) Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the
grave.
(6) She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths are
crooked, but she knows it not.
(7) Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what
I say.
(8) Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her
house,
(9) lest you give your best strength to others and your years to
one who is cruel,
(10) lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich
another man's house.
(11) At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and
body are spent.
(12) You will say, “How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned
correction!
(13) I would not obey my teachers or listen to my instructors.
(14) I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the
whole assembly.”
(15) Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your
own well.
(16) Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of
water in the public squares?
(17) Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers.
(18) May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the
wife of your youth.
(19) A loving doe, a graceful deer-may her breasts satisfy you
always, may you ever be captivated by her love.
(20) Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress? Why embrace the
bosom of another man's wife?