¹ Whanne thou sittist, to ete with the prince, perseyue thou diligentli what thingis ben set bifore thi face,

² and sette thou a withholding in thi throte. If netheles thou hast power on thi soule,

³ desire thou not of his metis, in whom is the breed of `a leesing.

⁴ Nyle thou trauele to be maad riche, but sette thou mesure to thi prudence.

⁵ Reise not thin iyen to richessis, whiche thou maist not haue; for tho schulen make to hem silf pennes, as of an egle, and tho schulen flee in to heuene.

⁶ Ete thou not with an enuyouse man, and desire thou not hise metis;

⁷ for at the licnesse of a fals dyuynour and of a coniectere, he gessith that, that he knowith not. He schal seie to thee, Ete thou and drinke; and his soule is not with thee.

⁸ Thou schalt brake out the metis, whiche thou hast ete; and thou schalt leese thi faire wordis.

⁹ Speke thou not in the eeris of vnwise men; for thei schulen dispise the teching of thi speche.

¹⁰ Touche thou not the termes of litle children; and entre thou not in to the feeld of fadirles and modirles children.

¹¹ For the neiybore of hem is strong, and he schal deme her cause ayens thee.

¹² Thin herte entre to techyng, and thin eeris `be redi to the wordis of kunnyng.

¹³ Nile thou withdrawe chastisyng fro a child; for thouy thou smyte hym with a yerde, he schal not die.

¹⁴ Thou schalt smyte hym with a yerde, and thou schalt delyuere his soule fro helle.

¹⁵ Mi sone, if thi soule is wijs, myn herte schal haue ioye with thee;

¹⁶ and my reynes schulen make ful out ioye, whanne thi lippis speken riytful thing.

¹⁷ Thin herte sue not synneris; but be thou in the drede of the Lord al dai.

¹⁸ For thou schalt haue hope at the laste, and thin abidyng schal not be don awei.

¹⁹ Mi sone, here thou, and be thou wijs, and dresse thi soule in the weie.

²⁰ Nyle thou be in the feestis of drinkeris, nether in the ofte etyngis of hem, that bryngen togidere fleischis to ete.

²¹ For men yyuynge tent to drinkis, and yyuyng mussels togidere, schulen be waastid, and napping schal be clothid with clothis.

²² Here thi fadir, that gendride thee; and dispise not thi modir, whanne sche is eld.

²³ Bie thou treuthe, and nyle thou sille wisdom, and doctryn, and vndurstonding.

²⁴ The fadir of a iust man ioieth ful out with ioie; he that gendride a wijs man, schal be glad in hym.

²⁵ Thi fadir and thi modir haue ioye, and he that gendride thee, make ful out ioye.

²⁶ My sone, yyue thin herte to me, and thin iyen kepe my weyes.

²⁷ For an hoore is a deep diche, and an alien womman is a streit pit.

²⁸ Sche settith aspie in the weie, as a theef; and sche schal sle hem, whiche sche schal se vnwar.

²⁹ To whom is wo? to whos fadir is wo? to whom ben chidingis? to whom ben dichis? to whom ben woundis with out cause? to whom is puttyng out of iyen?

³⁰ Whether not to hem, that dwellen in wyn, and studien to drynke al of cuppis?

³¹ Biholde thou not wyn, whanne it sparclith, whanne the colour therof schyneth in a ver.

³² It entrith swetli, but at the laste it schal bite as an eddre doith, and as a cocatrice it schal schede abrood venyms.

³³ Thin iyen schulen se straunge wymmen, and thi herte schal speke weiwerd thingis.

³⁴ And thou schalt be as a man slepinge in the myddis of the see, and as a gouernour aslepid, whanne the steere is lost.

³⁵ And thou schalt seie, Thei beeten me, but Y hadde not sorewe; thei drowen me, and Y feelide not; whanne schal Y wake out, and Y schal fynde wynes eft?