Jenjedzo ngekwe phombgwekadzi
1 Nkololo wangu, londolodza matama angu,
kakale utjengete milayo yangu,
2 londolodza milayo yangu utjile
ubhate zwidiyo zwangu ne ludo gugo gose,
3 uzwisungilile mu zwinyala zwizo,
uzwikwale mu moyo uwo.
4 Uti ku butjenjedu, “U hazwadzi yangu,”
udane hwisiso nzwalani wepa moyo,
5 kuti ubakililike mu bamba,
fukula inoleba matama anosodzoloka.
6 Ngoti ndakashozhela
nge fesitere le ng'umba yangu,
7 ngono ndakabona pakati kwe basakatjenjela,
abona we tjilengwe pakati kwe bazhuzha,
8 e nyenyeledza ali mu zila epinda pa ndzibo uwe
etola zila inoyenda ku ng'umba ye fukula
9 kuli madekwana kwatjibhata,
mu zhalima le busiku.
10 Ipapo tjinyolotjo nkadzi kanshanganidza,
akaambala se fukula, wakatjenjelela ntome.
11 Nkadzi iwoyu unolebanya,
unotjutjula aatogala pasi,
12 unobe mu dzizila kabe mu matengeselo,
unolalila mu ndzibo mmwe ne mwe.
13 Unontshakatila e mputa,
unolebeleka akasima moyo eti kunli,
14 “Ndakadusa tjipo tje mbakisano
ngono nasi ndalipa zwandakagadzabwe,
15 ndizo ngwenu ndazha kukushanganidza,
ndakushaka ngono ndakuwana.
16 Ndawala bulawo gwangu ne matyila mabuya,
ana mibala yakanaka e jila le Egipiti,
17 ndafafayidza bulawo gwangu nge mafuta anonuhwilila,
e mira, gonde ne sinamoni.
18 Buya, tishathisane nge ludo kuswikila mangwanana,
ngatizwishathise nge ludo.
19 Ngobe nlume wangu aapo mu nzi,
wakatola gwendo bulefu,
20 wakayenda ne hwomo ye mari,
unowobuya tjose mwedzi uli ntjena”
21 Nge ndebo iye yakanaka unonkwekweredza,
ne matama awe anosodzoloka wakambhata.
22 Tjinyolotjo nzhuzha unonsala shule,
se ng'ombe ikwebegwa kunobulawa,
kene se phuka yabhatshigwa,
23 kuswikila thumo liipubula mabula,
se nyuni iwila mu dati,
aatoziba kuti unowolipa ne butjilo gugwe.
24 Ndizo ngwenu, imwi bakololo, mundibhulutane,
kakale muteedze kwazo matama e nlomo wangu.
25 Musi letje mimoyo yenyu ikapambukila ku zila dzidze,
musitongo lashikila mu zijana dzidze,
26 ngobe banjinji baakaliga, baakabulaya abana mbalo.
27 Ng'umba iye i zila inoyenda ka Satani,
idelukila ku ng'umba dze lufu.
The Foolishness of Unfaithfulness
1 My son, pay close attention
and don't forget
what I tell you to do.
2 Obey me, and you will live!
Let my instructions be
your greatest treasure.
3 Keep them at your fingertips
and write them
in your mind.
4 Let wisdom be your sister
and make common sense
your closest friend.
5 They will protect you
from the flattering words
of someone else's wife.
6 From the window of my house,
I once happened to see
7 some foolish young men.
8 It was late in the evening,
sometime after dark.
9 One of these young men
turned the corner
and was walking by the house
of an unfaithful wife.
10 She was dressed fancy
like a woman of the street
with only one thing in mind.
11 She was one of those women
who are loud and restless
and never stay at home,
12 who walk street after street,
waiting to trap a man.
13 She grabbed him and kissed him,
and with no sense of shame,
she said:
14 “I had to offer a sacrifice,
and there is enough meat
left over for a feast.
15 So I came looking for you,
and here you are!
16 The sheets on my bed
are bright-colored cloth
from Egypt.
17 And I have covered it
with perfume made of myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.
18 “Let's go there
and make love all night.
19 My husband is traveling,
and he's far away.
20 He took a lot of money along,
and he won't be back home
before the middle
of the month.”
21 And so, she tricked him
with all of her sweet talk
and her flattery.
22 At once he followed her
like an ox on the way
to be slaughtered,
or like a fool on the way
to be punished
23 and killed with arrows.
He was no more than a bird
rushing into a trap,
without knowing
it would cost him his life.
24 My son, pay close attention
to what I have said.
25 Don't even think about
that kind of woman
or let yourself be misled
by someone like her.
26 Such a woman has caused
the downfall and destruction
of a lot of men.
27 Her house is a one-way street
leading straight down
to the world of the dead.