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NASB Bible

Proverbs 23

On Life and Conduct

1

When you sit down to dine with a ruler, Consider carefully  1what is before you,

2

And put a knife to your throat If you are a  aman of great appetite.

3

Do not  adesire his delicacies, For it is deceptive food.

4

 aDo not weary yourself to gain wealth,  bCease from your  1consideration of it.

5

 1When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For  awealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.

6

 aDo not eat the bread of  1a  bselfish man, Or desire his delicacies;

7

For as he  1thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, "Eat and drink!" But  ahis heart is not with you.

8

You will  avomit up  1the morsel you have eaten, And waste your  2compliments.

9

 aDo not speak in the  1hearing of a fool, For he will  bdespise the wisdom of your words.

10

Do not move the ancient boundary Or  ago into the fields of the fatherless,

11

For their  aRedeemer is strong;  bHe will plead their case against you.

12

Apply your heart to discipline And your ears to words of knowledge.

13

 aDo not hold back discipline from the child, Although you  1strike him with the rod, he will not die.

14

You shall  1strike him with the rod And  arescue his soul from Sheol.

15

My son, if your heart is  awise, My own heart also will be glad;

16

And my  1inmost being will rejoice When your lips speak  awhat is right.

17

 aDo not let your heart envy sinners, But live in the  1 bfear of the LORD  2always.

18

Surely there is a  1 afuture, And your  bhope will not be cut off.

19

Listen, my son, and  abe wise, And  bdirect your heart in the way.

20

Do not be with  aheavy drinkers of wine, Or with  bgluttonous eaters of meat;

21

For the  aheavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, And  bdrowsiness will clothe one with rags.

22

 aListen to your father who begot you, And  bdo not despise your mother when she is old.

23

 aBuy truth, and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.

24

The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, And  ahe who sires a wise son will be glad in him.

25

Let your  afather and your mother be glad, And let her rejoice who gave birth to you.

26

 aGive me your heart, my son, And let your eyes  1 bdelight in my ways.

27

For a harlot is a  adeep pit And an  1 badulterous woman is a narrow well.

28

Surely she  alurks as a robber, And increases the  1faithless among men.

29

Who has  awoe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes?

30

Those who  alinger long over wine, Those who go to  1taste  bmixed wine.

31

Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it  1sparkles in the cup, When it  agoes down smoothly;

32

At the last it  abites like a serpent And stings like a  bviper.

33

Your eyes will see strange things And your  1mind will  autter perverse things.

34

And you will be like one who lies down in the  1middle of the sea, Or like one who lies down on the top of a  2mast.

35

"They  astruck me, but I did not become  1ill; They beat me, but I did not know it. When shall I awake? I will  bseek  2another drink."



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by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved.
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(Produced: Sat Dec 22 11:23:35 2007)

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