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1My child, keep my words[#tn Heb “my son.”]
and treasure up my commands in your own keeping.
2Keep my commands so that you may live,[#tc Before v. 2 the LXX inserts: “My son, fear the Lord and you will be strong, and besides him, fear no other.” Although this addition has the precedent of 3:7 and 9 and harmonizes with 14:26, it does not fit here; the advice is to listen to the teacher.; #tn The construction of an imperative with the vav (ו) of sequence after another imperative denotes a logical sequence of purpose or result: “that you may live,” or “and you will live.”]
and obey my instruction as your most prized possession.
3Bind them on your forearm;[#tn Heb “fingers” (so KJV and many other English versions). In light of Deut 6:8, “fingers” appears to be a metonymy for the lower part of the arm.]
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”[#sn The metaphor is meant to signify that the disciple will be closely related to and familiar with wisdom and understanding, as close as to a sibling. Wisdom will be personified in the next two chapters, and so referring to it as a sister in this chapter certainly prepares for that personification.]
and call understanding a close relative,
5so that they may keep you from the adulterous woman,[#tn The infinitive construct with the preposition shows the purpose of associating closely with wisdom: Wisdom will obviate temptations, the greatest being the sexual urge.; #tn Heb “strange” (so KJV, ASV).]
from the loose woman who flatters you with her words.
6For at the window of my house
through my window lattice I looked out
7and I saw among the naive –
I discerned among the youths –
a young man who lacked wisdom.
8He was passing by the street near her corner,
making his way along the road to her house
9in the twilight, the evening,[#tn Heb “in the evening of the day.”]
in the dark of the night.
10Suddenly a woman came out to meet him![#tn The particle וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh) introduces a dramatic sense of the immediate to the narrative; it has a deictic force, “and look! – there was a woman,” or “all of a sudden this woman….”]
She was dressed like a prostitute and with secret intent.
11(She is loud and rebellious,
she does not remain at home –
12at one time outside, at another in the wide plazas,[#tn The repetition of the noun “time, step,” usually translated “now, this time,” signifies here “at one time…at another time” (BDB 822 s.v. פַּעַם 3.e).]
and by every corner she lies in wait.)
13So she grabbed him and kissed him,
and with a bold expression she said to him,
14“I have fresh meat at home;[#tn Heb “with me.”; #tn Heb “I have peace offerings.” The peace offerings refer to the meat left over from the votive offering made at the sanctuary (e.g., Lev 7:11-21). Apparently the sacrificial worship meant as little to this woman spiritually as does Christmas to modern hypocrites who follow in her pattern. By expressing that she has peace offerings, she could be saying nothing more than that she has fresh meat for a meal at home, or that she was ceremonially clean, perhaps after her period. At any rate, it is all probably a ruse for winning a customer.]
today I have fulfilled my vows!
15That is why I came out to meet you,
to look for you, and I found you!
16I have spread my bed with elegant coverings,[#tn Heb “with spreads.” The sentence begins with the cognate accusative: “with spreads I have spread my bed.” The construction enhances the idea – she has covered her bed.]
with richly colored fabric from Egypt.
17I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18Come, let’s drink deeply of lovemaking until morning,[#tn The form נִרְוֶה (nirveh) is the plural cohortative; following the imperative “come” the form expresses the hortatory “let’s.” The verb means “to be saturated; to drink one’s fill,” and can at times mean “to be intoxicated with.”; #tn Heb “loves.” The word דּוֹד (dod) means physical love or lovemaking. It is found frequently in the Song of Solomon for the loved one, the beloved. Here the form (literally, “loves”) is used in reference to multiple acts of sexual intercourse, as the phrase “until morning” suggests.]
let’s delight ourselves with sexual intercourse.
19For my husband is not at home;[#tn Heb “the man.” The LXX interpreted it as “my husband,” taking the article to be used as a possessive. Many English versions do the same.; #tn Heb “in his house.”]
he has gone on a journey of some distance.
20He has taken a bag of money with him;[#tn Heb “in his hand.”]
he will not return until the end of the month.”
21She persuaded him with persuasive words;[#tn Heb “she turned him aside.” This expression means that she persuaded him. This section now begins the description of the capitulation, for the flattering speech is finished.; #sn The term לֶקַח (leqakh) was used earlier in Proverbs for wise instruction; now it is used ironically for enticement to sin (see D. W. Thomas, “Textual and Philological Notes on Some Passages in the Book of Proverbs,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 280-92).]
with her smooth talk she compelled him.
22Suddenly he went after her[#tn The participle with “suddenly” gives a more vivid picture, almost as if to say “there he goes.”]
like an ox that goes to the slaughter,
like a stag prancing into a trapper’s snare
23till an arrow pierces his liver –[#sn The figure of an arrow piercing the liver (an implied comparison) may refer to the pangs of a guilty conscience that the guilty must reap along with the spiritual and physical ruin that follows (see on these expressions H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament).]
like a bird hurrying into a trap,
and he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24So now, sons, listen to me,[#tn The literal translation “sons” works well here in view of the warning. Cf. KJV, NAB, NRSV “children.”]
and pay attention to the words I speak.
25Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways –
do not wander into her pathways;
26for she has brought down many fatally wounded,[#tn Heb “she has caused to fall.”]
and all those she has slain are many.
27Her house is the way to the grave,[#tn The noun “Sheol” in parallelism to “the chambers of death” probably means the grave. The noun is a genitive of location, indicating the goal of the road(s). Her house is not the grave; it is, however, the sure way to it. sn Her house is the way to the grave. The young man’s life is not destroyed in one instant; it is taken from him gradually as he enters into a course of life that will leave him as another victim of the wages of sin. The point of the warning is to prevent such a course from starting. Sin can certainly be forgiven, but the more involvement in this matter the greater the alienation from the healthy community.]
going down to the chambers of death.