בְּנִי שְׁמֹר אֲמָרָי וּמִצְוֹתַי תִּצְפֹּן אִתָּךְ

Once again, my son, keep my sayings, and store my commandments with you.

שְׁמֹר מִצְוֹתַי וחְיֵה וְתוֹרָתִי כְּאִישׁוֹן עֵינֶיךָ

Observe my commandments and thereby you will live, and preserve my teaching, just as the apple of your eye, the pupil, is guarded constantly and reflexively by the eyelids, which protect this most sensitive and vulnerable of organs.

קָשְׁרֵם עַל־אֶצְבְּעֹתֶיךָ כָּתְבֵם עַל־לוּחַ לִבֶּךָ

Bind them, my statements, on your fingers, just as one ties an ornament, seal, or sign as a reminder on his finger; inscribe them on the tablet of your heart.

אֱמֹר לַחָכְמָה אֲחֹתִי אָתְּ וּמֹדָע לַבִּינָה תִקְרָא

Say to wisdom: You are my sister; establish brotherly relations of friendship, affection, and love with wisdom. And call understanding an intimate friend.

לִשְׁמָרְךָ מֵאִשָּׁה זָרָה מִנָּכְרִיָּה אֲמָרֶיהָ הֶחֱלִיקָה

The chapter summarizes the main idea, which was also discussed earlier, and which appears again below: All of these admonitions are stated in order to protect you from a strange woman, from a foreign woman who smooths her sayings.

כִּי בְּחַלּוֹן בֵּיתִי בְּעַד אֶשְׁנַבִּי נִשְׁקָפְתִּי

The youth’s problem, on both the literal and the metaphorical levels, is vividly described by the father-instructor as he reflects upon the young man who is attracted by the seductive married woman, unaware of the harm he is doing to himself: For from the window of my house, through my lattice, I looked;

וָאֵרֶא בַפְּתָאיִם אָבִינָה בַבָּנִים נַעַר חֲסַר־לֵב

and I saw among the naïve, and I discerned among the youths, a lad lacking heart, one who was not particularly perceptive,

עֹבֵר בַּשּׁוּק אֵצֶל פִּנָּהּ וְדֶרֶךְ בֵּיתָהּ יִצְעָד

who passes in the street near her corner, where the strange woman sits, and on the way to her house he treads.

בְּנֶשֶׁף בְּעֶרֶב יוֹם בְּאִישׁוֹן לַיְלָה וַאֲפֵלָה

This all happened in the twilight, in the evening of the day, in the dead of night and blackness, at a time when a young man departs from his friends and goes on his way or returns home.

וְהִנֵּה אִשָּׁה לִקְרָאתוֹ שִׁית זוֹנָה וּנְצֻרַת לֵב

And behold, a woman appears and is there to meet him with the attire and manner of a harlot, and she is set of heart. She harbors no doubts or pangs of conscience; she knows what she wants and is determined to entrap the young man.

הֹמִיָּה הִיא וְסֹרָרֶת בְּבֵיתָהּ לֹא־יִשְׁכְּנוּ רַגְלֶיהָ

She is turbulent and rebellious; her feet do not dwell in her house, as she is constantly venturing outside.

פַּעַם בַּחוּץ פַּעַם בָּרְחֹבוֹת וְאֵצֶל כָּל־פִּנָּה תֶאֱרֹב

Sometimes she is walking in the street, sometimes in the public squares; she lurks at every corner, seeking adventure everywhere.

וְהֶחֱזִיקָה בּוֹ וְנָשְׁקָה לּוֹ הֵעֵזָה פָנֶיהָ וַתֹּאמַר לוֹ׃

When she saw a victim approaching, she seized him, the naïve youth, and kissed him; she was brazen and shamelessly said to him:

זִבְחֵי שְׁלָמִים עָלָי הַיּוֹם שִׁלַּמְתִּי נְדָרָי

Peace offerings were incumbent upon me, as I had vowed to bring them; today I paid my vows. By this statement she is hinting to him that her house is full of good food, and also that she hopes to receive an abundance of blessing.

עַל־כֵּן יָצָאתִי לִקְרָאתֶךָ לְשַׁחֵר פָּנֶיךָ וָאֶמְצָאֶךָּ

Therefore, I came out to meet you, to seek your face, and I have indeed found you.

מַרְבַדִּים רָבַדְתִּי עַרְשִׂי חֲטֻבוֹת אֵטוּן מִצְרָיִם

I have adorned my bed with coverlets, and the blankets are fitted and made of fine and elegant Egyptian linen.

נַפְתִּי מִשְׁכָּבִי מֹר אֲהָלִים וְקִנָּמוֹן

I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

לְכָה נִרְוֶה דֹדִים עַד־הַבֹּקֶר נִתְעַלְּסָה בָּאֳהָבִים

The verse cites the woman’s offer, which is an audacious, simple, and unambiguous invitation: Come, let us sate ourselves with love until the morning. Spend the night with me; let us delight ourselves in lovemaking.

כִּי אֵין הָאִישׁ בְּבֵיתוֹ הָלַךְ בְּדֶרֶךְ מֵרָחוֹק

For if you are afraid of being discovered by my husband, the man is not in his home; he has gone on a distant journey.

צְרוֹר־הַכֶּסֶף לָקַח בְּיָדוֹ לְיוֹם הַכֶּסֶא יָבֹא בֵיתוֹ

He took the purse of silver with him and has gone off on a business trip; only at the appointed time he will come back to his home. In the meantime, you and I will be undisturbed.

הִטַּתּוּ בְּרֹב לִקְחָהּ בְּחֵלֶק שְׂפָתֶיהָ תַּדִּיחֶנּוּ

She swayed him, the youth, with the abundance of her eloquence; with the smoothness of her lips, her smooth talk, she leads him astray. She tells him how good things will be for him and that everything is ready, arranged, and safe.

הוֹלֵךְ אַחֲרֶיהָ פִּתְאֹם כְּשׁוֹר אֶל־טֶבַח יָבֹא וּכְעֶכֶס אֶל־מוּסַר אֱוִיל

He follows her unconsciously, unawares, seduced, like an ox comes to the slaughter, or like a snake that slithers confidently to administer the admonishment of an unsuspecting fool by biting him,

עַד יְפַלַּח חֵץ כְּבֵדוֹ כְּמַהֵר צִפּוֹר אֶל־פָּח וְלֹא־יָדַע כִּי־בְנַפְשׁוֹ הוּא

until an arrow splits his liver; the young simpleton rushes like the hastening of a bird to the snare, not knowing that it, this deed, is at the cost of his life.

וְעַתָּה בָנִים שִׁמְעוּ־לִי וְהַקְשִׁיבוּ לְאִמְרֵי־פִי

Now, sons, heed me, and listen to the sayings of my mouth.

אַל־יֵשְׂטְ אֶל־דְּרָכֶיהָ לִבֶּךָ אַל־תֵּתַע בִּנְתִיבוֹתֶיהָ

Each and every one of you, let your heart not turn aside to her, this woman’s, ways; do not wander onto her paths, the direction she proposes.

כִּי־רַבִּים חֲלָלִים הִפִּילָה וַעֲצֻמִים כָּל־הֲרֻגֶיהָ

Indeed, you are neither the first nor the last, for many slain has she felled, and considerable are all her killed. She does not cease killing men through one method or another. She seduces them and then casts them aside.

דַּרְכֵי שְׁאוֹל בֵּיתָהּ יֹרְדוֹת אֶל־חַדְרֵי־מָוֶת

The paths to the grave are to her house, descending to the chambers of death. The seductions of the impressive, well-dressed woman promising love are perhaps very powerful. However, they will ultimately lead to destruction, to pain and suffering, to heartache and pangs of conscience, and to losses, punishment, and vengeance. As mentioned above, just as this advice is helpful when it comes to avoiding a seductive adulteress, it is equally vital when it comes to harmful wisdom. Wisdom based on heresy is still wisdom. It is attractive and seductive, just like the wisdom of Torah. However, in reality it creates a counterculture, and “her feet go down to death” (5:5).