Proverbs 7:6-23
Contemporary English Version
6 From the window of my house,
I once happened to see
7 some foolish young men.
8 It was late in the evening,
sometime after dark.
9 One of these young men
turned the corner
and was walking by the house
of an unfaithful wife.
10 She was dressed fancy
like a woman of the street
with only one thing in mind.
11 She was one of those women
who are loud and restless
and never stay at home,
12 who walk street after street,
waiting to trap a man.
13 She grabbed him and kissed him,
and with no sense of shame,
she said:
14 “I had to offer a sacrifice,
and there is enough meat
left over for a feast.
15 So I came looking for you,
and here you are!
16 The sheets on my bed
are bright-colored cloth
from Egypt.
17 And I have covered it
with perfume made of myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.
18 “Let's go there
and make love all night.
19 My husband is traveling,
and he's far away.
20 He took a lot of money along,
and he won't be back home
before the middle
of the month.”
21 And so, she tricked him
with all of her sweet talk
and her flattery.
22 At once he followed her
like an ox on the way
to be slaughtered,
or like a fool on the way
to be punished[a]
23 and killed with arrows.
He was no more than a bird
rushing into a trap,
without knowing
it would cost him his life.
Footnotes
- 7.22 a fool … punished: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Proverbs 7:6-23
New International Version
6 At the window of my house
I looked down through the lattice.
7 I saw among the simple,
I noticed among the young men,
a youth who had no sense.(A)
8 He was going down the street near her corner,
walking along in the direction of her house
9 at twilight,(B) as the day was fading,
as the dark of night set in.
10 Then out came a woman to meet him,
dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
11 (She is unruly(C) and defiant,
her feet never stay at home;
12 now in the street, now in the squares,
at every corner she lurks.)(D)
13 She took hold of him(E) and kissed him
and with a brazen face she said:(F)
14 “Today I fulfilled my vows,
and I have food from my fellowship offering(G) at home.
15 So I came out to meet you;
I looked for you and have found you!
16 I have covered my bed
with colored linens from Egypt.
17 I have perfumed my bed(H)
with myrrh,(I) aloes and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning;
let’s enjoy ourselves with love!(J)
19 My husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey.
20 He took his purse filled with money
and will not be home till full moon.”
21 With persuasive words she led him astray;
she seduced him with her smooth talk.(K)
22 All at once he followed her
like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer[a] stepping into a noose[b](L)
23 till an arrow pierces(M) his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
little knowing it will cost him his life.(N)
Footnotes
- Proverbs 7:22 Syriac (see also Septuagint); Hebrew fool
- Proverbs 7:22 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.