Great(i)
1 When thou syttest at the table to eate wt a Lorde, ordre thy selfe manerly wt the thynges
2 that are set before the. Measure thyne appetite:
3 & yf thou wylt rule thyne awne selfe, be not ouer gredy of hys meate, for meate begyleth & disceaueth.
4 Take not ouer greate trauayle & labour to be riche, beware of soch a purpose.
5 Why wilt thou set thyne eye vpon the thynge, which sodenly vanisheth awaye? For riches make them selues winges, & take theyr flyght lyke an Aegle in to that ayre.
6 Eate not thou with the ennyous, & desyre not his meat,
7 for he doth as a man that pescribeth a mesure to the in his herte. He sayth vnto the: eate & dryncke, where as his herte is not wt the.
8 Yee, the morsels that thou hast eaten shalt thou perbrake & lese those swete wordes.
9 Tell nothinge in to the eares of a foole, for he wyll despyse the wysdome of thy wordes.
10 Remoue not the olde lande marke, & come not within the felde of the fatherlesse:
11 For he that delyuereth them, is mightie, euen he shall defende theyr cause against the.
12 Applye thyne herte vnto correccion, & thyne eare to the wordes of knowledge.
13 Witholde not correcion from the childe, for yf thou beatest him wt the rodd, he shall not dye therof.
14 Yf thou smyte him wt the rodde, thou shalt deliuer his soule from hell.
15 My sonne, yf thy herte receaue wysdome, my herte also shall reioyce:
16 yee, my reynes shalbe very glad: yf thy lippes speke the thinge that is ryght.
17 Let not thyne herte be gelous to folowe synners, but kepe the styll in the feare of the Lord all the daye longe:
18 for the ende is not yet come, & thy pacient abydynge shall not be in vayne.
19 My sonne, geue eare & be wyse, and set strayte thynehert in the waye of the Lord.
20 Kepe no company wt wyne bybbers & ryotous eaters of flesh:
21 for soch as be dronckardes & ryotous shall come to pouerte, & he that is geuen to moch slepe, shall go wt a ragged coate.
22 Geue eare vnto thy father that begat the, & despyse not thy mother when she is olde.
23 Labour for to get the trueth: sell yt not awaye, & so do by wysdome, nourtour & vnderstandyng:
24 for a ryghteous father is maruelous glad of a wyse sonne, and he that begettith a wyse chylde shall haue gret pleasure of him.
25 Do so that thy father & mother may be glad of the, & that she that bare the may reioyse.
26 My sonne, geue me thyne herte, & lett thyne eyes haue pleasure in my wayes.
27 For an whore is a depe graue, and an harlot is a narow pytt.
28 She lurketh lyke a thefe, and bringeth vnto her such men as be full of vyce.
29 Who hath wo? Who hath sorow? Who hath strife? Who hath brauling? & who hath woundes without cause Or who hath reed eyes?
30 Euen they that be euer at the wyne, & seke excesse.
31 Loke not thou vpon the wyne, how redd it is, & what a colour it geueth in the glasse.
32 It goeth downe softly, but at the last it byteth lyke a serpent, & styngeth as an Adder.
33 So shall thine eyes loke vnto straunge wemen, & thyne herte shall muse vpon frowarde thynges.
34 Yee, thou shalt be as though thou layest in the myddest of the see, or sleptest vpon the toppe of the mast of a shippe.
35 They wouded me (shalt thou saye) but it hath not hurte me: they haue all to broken me, but I felt it not. Whan I am well wakened, I will go to the drincke againe.