‘Hear my words, my son Nadan, and come to my understanding.’ 1. ‘When you hear a word, let it die in your heart, and do not reveal it to anyone, lest it become a hot coal in your mouth and burn you, and you brand yourself with disgrace and complain angrily against God.’ 2. ‘My son, do not reveal all that you have seen, and do not tell all that you have heard.’ 3. ‘My son, do not loosen a bond that is sealed, nor seal one that is loosened.’ 4. ‘My son, words that are not yours should not come from your lips.’ 5. ‘My son, do not desire beauty, for beauty decays and fades, but a good name remains and endures.’ 6. ‘My son, do not be lured by a licentious woman’s words, for from her words come rebellion and the poison of death, and you will be ensnared in a net and caught in a snare.’ 7. ‘My son, when you look at a woman who is adorned and anointed with ointments, who is enriched and seduced in her soul—do not desire her in your heart. For if you give yourself to her, you will find nothing more or better in her, and you will receive punishment for a sin, and you will anger God.’ ‘... not as the almond tree, but as the mulberry tree... ’. 8. ‘My son, cast down your eyes, and lower your voice, and do not be dissipated. 9. Do not raise your voice in pride, for if a house were built by a loud voice, donkeys would build two houses in one day; and if the plough were driven by sheer force, the share would never be loosed from a camel's armpit.’ 10. ‘My son, pour out your wine on the graves of the righteous, rather than drink it with the wicked.’

11. ‘My son, pass over the threshold of the wise man and go out of the house of the rich.’ 12. ‘My son, do not reveal a secret to foolish [men], for they cannot keep it.’ 13. ‘My son, cling to the wise, that you may become wise like them, and do not cling to the foolish, that you may not learn their ways.’ 14. ‘My son, if you are about to acquire a friend, acquire him with a trial. Do not praise anyone before you have tested him. Test, and then acquire!’ 15. ‘My son, with the wise you will not defile your words, and with the defiled and foolish you will not become wise.’ 16. ‘My son, associate yourself with the wise, in order to become wise like them; but you shall not associate yourself with a fool, that you may not become like them in their doings.’ 17. ‘My son, while you have shoes on your feet, tread down the thistles and thorns, and make a path for them—for your sons and grandsons.’ 18. ‘My son, while the wind is blowing and the sea is calm from storms, set your ship straight in the harbour, before the sea is troubled and the waves rise and sink.’ 19. ‘My son, the rich man has eaten a serpent, and the people say: "He ate it as medicine," but [when] the poor eat it, they say he ate it out of hunger: for the just and the righteous can be strengthened.’ 20. ‘My son, do not envy your enemy's happiness, nor rejoice in his misfortune.’ 21. ‘My son, do not speak to a noisy woman, and do not go near one who has a loud voice.’ 22. ‘A beautiful woman is like a golden earring in the ear of a sow: taste and words stink.’

23. ‘My son, if your enemy meets you with evil, meet him with good and speak to him with wisdom.’ 24. ‘My son, when the wise falls and is made weak, it is easy for the physician to heal him; but when the fool falls, there is no medicine for his wounds.’ 25. ‘My son, do not withhold your son from stripes. For the chastisement of a boy is like dung to the land, like a bridle to a donkey, and like a bolt to a door.’ 26. ‘My son, chastise your son, and be at rest; and subdue his loins while he is still a boy, lest he gain strength and rebel against you, and torture you, and make you ashamed of his crimes, and bow your head in gatherings.’ 27. ‘My son, the words of liars and fools are like sparrows flying in the air, and he who lacks understanding eats them, and he who has no wisdom is persuaded by their words.’ 28. ‘My son, do not bring upon yourself the curses of your mother and your father, lest you should not rejoice in the blessings of your children. For he who curses his father and mother shall die and anger God; but he who honours his father and mother, his life on earth shall be multiplied, and his years shall be filled with excellence and honour.’ 29. ‘My son, do not say, "My lord was a fool, and I am wise," while others do not praise you.’ 30. ‘My son, do not reveal your words before your lord, lest you be despised by his slaves.’ 31. ‘My son, do not revile God on the day of your calamities, lest He hear your words and become angry with you.’ 32. ‘My son, do not love your slave more than your fellow man, for you do not know which of them you will need in the end.’ 33. ‘My son, the slave who leaves his first masters and goes after others is useless.’

34. ‘My son, a sheep of many walks will become the prey of the wolves.’ 35. ‘My son, judge righteously so that you may lead your old age in honour.’ 36. ‘My son, sweeten your tongue and amend your eloquence, for the tail of a dog has given him bread, and his mouth has brought him blows.’ 37. ‘My son, let not your neighbour tread on your foot, lest he also tread on your throat.’ 38. ‘My son, strike the [wise] man with words of wisdom, and it may be in his heart like a fever in [summer].’ 39. ‘My son, know that if you smite the fool with many blows, he will not become wise.’ 40. ‘Do not teach corrupt men words of wisdom, [because] they will cast them out like a spirit.’ 41. ‘My son, if you send a wise man on a way, do not multiply the instructions; but if you send a fool, go after him yourself.’ 42. ‘My son, teach him knowledge and discipline, and teach him order, and then you may leave your goods and possessions in his hands.’ 43. ‘My son, withdraw from a wedding at first, and do not remain to be anointed with pleasant ointments, lest there be bruises on your head.’ 44. ‘My son, for what trouble, and for what woe, and for what bruising, and contention, and strife? It is for those who tarry and multiply the drinking of wine, and for those who seek where to drink.’ 45. ‘My son, I have borne iron and rolled stones, but they were not heavier on me than a man who settles in his father-in-law's house.’ 46. ‘My son, teach hunger and thirst to your son, that he may govern his house as his eye sees.’ 47. ‘My son, it is better for a man to be blind in his eyes than to be blind in his heart; for the blind of the eyes quickly turn and walk, but the blind of the heart forsake the right way and go astray.’

48. ‘My son, it is better to have a friend who is near than a brother who is far away.’ 49. ‘Better is a leg in your hand than a goose in someone else's pot; and better is a sheep that is at hand than an ox that is far away; and better is a sparrow in your hand than a thousand sparrows on the wing; and better is poverty that gathers than wealth that is scattered; and better is a living fox than a dead lion.’ 50. ‘My son, keep a word in your heart and it will be well with you. Reveal not a secret of your friend, for when you have exchanged your word, you have lost your friend, and he who reveals a secret is a fool.’ 51. ‘Look, do not let a word go out of your mouth until you have taken counsel in your heart, for it is better for a man to stumble with his foot than to stumble with his tongue.’ 52. ‘My son, when you hear a word from a person, bury it in the ground so that no one will discover it; for as much as it comes out, bury it.’ 53. ‘My son, do not remain among those who are satisfied, for from laughter comes strife, and from strife comes battle, and from battle comes murder.’ 54. ‘Do not contend with those who are stronger than you; put aside the word and cut out the evil; conquer the evil with a good [manner] and obtain a humble heart, patience, endurance, and good will, and the end of this life and rest will be yours.’ 55. ‘My son, honour everyone who is older than you, and stand before him; and if he does not reward you, God will reward you.’ 56. ‘My son, keep your tongue from lying and your hand from stealing, and you will be called wise.’ 57. ‘My son, do not act as an intermediary in a woman's marriage, for if it goes well for her, she will not remember you, and if it goes badly for her, she will curse you...’

58. ‘My son, strike with every stone the one who left the house of his first masters and followed you, because he did not remain with you.’ 59. ‘My son, let the wise man strike you with many blows, and do not let the fool soothe you with sweet perfume.’ -- -- Shameful words that Ahiqar the Wise said to his sister's son Nadan after his betrayal, when he was delivered into the hands of Ahiqar. When Ahiqar returned from Pharaoh, Sennacherib came out and asked him what he wanted... He said: "Command that they give me my son Nadan." And so they brought him to his house; and he bound him with an iron clamp, tied their hands with rings, placed an iron collar around his neck, and struck him on the shoulders. He put him at the doorway of the court... and he commanded his boy to write down on a tablet all that he said to Nadan. 60. ‘My son, he who does not listen with his ears will be made to listen with the back of his neck.’ 61. ‘You should know, my son, that even if the tail of a swine were to grow to seven ells, it would never take the place of a horse; and even if its hair became as soft as fine linen, it would never ride on the backs of free men."’ 62. ‘My son, you have been to me like a lion that came upon a donkey at dawn. The lion said to him: "Welcome, my lord Cyrus." The donkey replied: "That welcome should go to the man who tied me up last night but did not bind my loins, and so I had to see your face."’ 63. ‘You were to me like a snare set on a dunghill, and a sparrow came and found it and said: "What are you doing here?" The snare said: "I am praying to God." The sparrow said: "What is that in your mouth?" The snare said: "Bread for the poor and the hungry." The fig-pecker approached’

‘and the snare caught him by the neck. And the fig-pecker said to him: "If this is your bread, may the God to whom you pray never hear your prayer."’ 64. ‘My son, you have been to me like a weevil in a grain of wheat, which consumes much but is worth nothing.’ 65. ‘My son, you have been to me like a hen that could not save herself from death, yet overpowered many with her pleasant voice.’ 66. ‘My son, you have been to me like a dog that was cold and came into the kitchen to get warm, and once it was warm, it began to bark at them.’ 67. ‘My son, you have been to me like someone who puts his hand on his friend's mouth and his friend's finger on his eye.’ 68. ‘My son, the dog that does not eat from its prey will become the portion of the wolves.’ 69. ‘My son, the hand that is not industrious will be torn away.’ 70. ‘My son, the eye that cannot see will be plucked out by the raven.’ 71. ‘My son, you have been to me like the tree that said to its woodcutter: "Unless you have something of me in your hands, you cannot draw out my strength."’ 72. ‘My son, the old age of an eagle is better than the youth of a vulture.’ 73. ‘My son, they said to the wolf: "Go away from the sheep." He replied: "Their dust is good for my eyes." Again they brought him into the school and said to him: "Aleph, Beth," and he said to them: "Kid, Lamb."’ 74. ‘My son, they put the head of the donkey on the table, and it rolled off and fell into the dust. They say he was angry with himself because he would receive no honour."’ 75. ‘My son, you have confirmed this proverb which says: "Call the one you have begotten your son, and the one you have raised your slave."’

End