Proverbs 6

NASB — New American Standard Bible (NASB)

MSG — The Message Bible (MSG)

Verse 1

My son, if you have become surety for your neighbor,
Have ^[a]given a pledge for a stranger,

^1-5Dear friend, if you’ve gone into hock with your neighbor
    or locked yourself into a deal with a stranger,
If you’ve impulsively promised the shirt off your back
    and now find yourself shivering out in the cold,
Friend, don’t waste a minute, get yourself out of that mess.
    You’re in that man’s clutches!
    Go, put on a long face; act desperate.
Don’t procrastinate—
    there’s no time to lose.
Run like a deer from the hunter,
    fly like a bird from the trapper!

A Lesson from the Ant

Verse 2

If you have been snared with the words of your mouth,
Have been caught with the words of your mouth,

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Verse 3

Do this then, my son, and deliver yourself;
Since you have come into the ^[b]hand of your neighbor,
Go, humble yourself, and importune your neighbor.

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Verse 4

Give no sleep to your eyes,
Nor slumber to your eyelids;

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Verse 5

Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the hunter’s hand
And like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

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Verse 6

Go to the ant, O sluggard,
Observe her ways and be wise,

You lazy fool, look at an ant.
    Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two.
Nobody has to tell it what to do.
    All summer it stores up food;
    at harvest it stockpiles provisions.
So how long are you going to laze around doing nothing?
    How long before you get out of bed?
A nap here, a nap there, a day off here, a day off there,
    sit back, take it easy—do you know what comes next?
Just this: You can look forward to a dirt-poor life,
    poverty your permanent houseguest!

Always Cooking Up Something Nasty

Verse 7

Which, having no chief,
Officer or ruler,

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Verse 8

Prepares her food in the summer
And gathers her provision in the harvest.

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Verse 9

How long will you lie down, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?

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Verse 10

“A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to ^[c]rest”—

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Verse 11

Your poverty will come in like a ^[d]vagabond
And your need like ^[e]an armed man.

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Verse 12

A worthless person, a wicked man,
Is the one who walks with a perverse mouth,

Riffraff and rascals
    talk out of both sides of their mouths.
They wink at each other, they shuffle their feet,
    they cross their fingers behind their backs.
Their perverse minds are always cooking up something nasty,
    always stirring up trouble.
Catastrophe is just around the corner for them,
    a total smashup, their lives ruined beyond repair.

Seven Things God Hates

Verse 13

Who winks with his eyes, who ^[f]signals with his feet,
Who ^[g]points with his fingers;

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Verse 14

Who with perversity in his heart continually devises evil,
Who ^[h]spreads strife.

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Verse 15

Therefore his calamity will come suddenly;
Instantly he will be broken and there will be no healing.

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Verse 16

There are six things which the Lord hates,
Yes, seven which are an abomination ^[i]to Him:

Here are six things God hates,
and one more that he loathes with a passion:

eyes that are arrogant,
a tongue that lies,
hands that murder the innocent,
a heart that hatches evil plots,
feet that race down a wicked track,
a mouth that lies under oath,
a troublemaker in the family.

Warning on Adultery

Verse 17

Haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
And hands that shed innocent blood,

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Verse 18

A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that run rapidly to evil,

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Verse 19

A false witness who utters lies,
And one who ^[j]spreads strife among brothers.

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Verse 20

My son, observe the commandment of your father
And do not forsake the ^[k]teaching of your mother;

Good friend, follow your father’s good advice;
    don’t wander off from your mother’s teachings.
Wrap yourself in them from head to foot;
    wear them like a scarf around your neck.
Wherever you walk, they’ll guide you;
    whenever you rest, they’ll guard you;
    when you wake up, they’ll tell you what’s next.
For sound advice is a beacon,
    good teaching is a light,
    moral discipline is a life path.

Verse 21

Bind them continually on your heart;
Tie them around your neck.

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Verse 22

When you walk about, ^[l]they will guide you;
When you sleep, ^[m]they will watch over you;
And when you awake, ^[n]they will talk to you.

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Verse 23

For the commandment is a lamp and the ^[o]teaching is light;
And reproofs for discipline are the way of life

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Verse 24

To keep you from the evil woman,
From the smooth tongue of the ^[p]adulteress.

They’ll protect you from wanton women,
    from the seductive talk of some temptress.
Don’t lustfully fantasize on her beauty,
    nor be taken in by her bedroom eyes.
You can buy an hour with a whore for a loaf of bread,
    but a wanton woman may well eat you alive.
Can you build a fire in your lap
    and not burn your pants?
Can you walk barefoot on hot coals
    and not get blisters?
It’s the same when you have sex with your neighbor’s wife:
    Touch her and you’ll pay for it. No excuses.
Hunger is no excuse
    for a thief to steal;
When he’s caught he has to pay it back,
    even if he has to put his whole house in hock.
Adultery is a brainless act,
    soul-destroying, self-destructive;
Expect a bloody nose, a black eye,
    and a reputation ruined for good.
For jealousy detonates rage in a cheated husband;
    wild for revenge, he won’t make allowances.
Nothing you say or pay will make it all right;
    neither bribes nor reason will satisfy him.

Verse 25

Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
Nor let her capture you with her eyelids.

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Verse 26

For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread,
And ^[q]an adulteress hunts for the precious life.

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Verse 27

Can a man ^[r]take fire in his bosom
And his clothes not be burned?

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Verse 28

Or can a man walk on hot coals
And his feet not be scorched?

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Verse 29

So is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her will not ^[s]go unpunished.

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Verse 30

^[t]Men do not despise a thief if he steals
To satisfy ^[u]himself when he is hungry;

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Verse 31

But when he is found, he must repay sevenfold;
He must give all the ^[v]substance of his house.

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Verse 32

The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking ^[w]sense;
He who would destroy ^[x]himself does it.

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Verse 33

Wounds and disgrace he will find,
And his reproach will not be blotted out.

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Verse 34

For jealousy ^[y]enrages a man,
And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

— not in MSG

Verse 35

He will not ^[z]accept any ransom,
Nor will he be ^[aa]satisfied though you give many ^[ab]gifts.

— not in MSG