¹My son, keep my words. Lay up my commandments within you.

¹Mwanakomana wangu, chengeta mashoko angu, Viga mirairo yangu kwauri.

²Keep my commandments and live! Guard my teaching as the apple of your eye.

²Chengeta mirairo yangu, urarame; Nomurau wangu semboni yeziso rako.

³Bind them on your fingers. Write them on the tablet of your heart.

³Uzvisungire pamweya wako; Uzvinyore pabwendefa romoyo wako.

⁴Tell wisdom, “You are my sister.” Call understanding your relative,

⁴Uti kuuchenjeri, Ndiwe hanzvadzi yangu; Utumidze njere shamwari yako;

⁵that they may keep you from the strange woman, from the foreigner who flatters with her words.

⁵Kuti zvikuchengete pamukadzi wokumwe, Pamutorwa anobata kumeso namashoko ake.

⁶For at the window of my house, I looked out through my lattice.

⁶nekuti ndakatarira pahwindo reimba yangu, Pahutanda bwehwindo rangu;

⁷I saw among the simple ones. I discerned among the youths a young man void of understanding,

⁷Ndikatarira pakati pavasina mano, Ndikaona pakati pamajaya. Rimwe jaya rakashaiwa njere;

⁸passing through the street near her corner, he went the way to her house,

⁸Richipfuura nenzira yomumusha pedo nekona yeimba yomukadzi

⁹in the twilight, in the evening of the day, in the middle of the night and in the darkness.

⁹Nenguva yorubvunzavaeni, nenguva yamadeko ezuva, Pakati pousiku kwasviba.

¹⁰Behold, there a woman met him with the attire of a prostitute, and with crafty intent.

¹⁰Zvino tarira, mukadzi akasangana naye, Akanga akafuka sechifeve, anokunyengedzera pamoyo.

¹¹She is loud and defiant. Her feet don’t stay in her house.

¹¹Anopupira, achiita sezvaanoda; Tsoka dzake hadzigari mumba make;

¹²Now she is in the streets, now in the squares, and lurking at every corner.

¹²Imwe nguva ari munzira dzomumusha, imwe nguva pamatare; Anorindira pamakona ose.

¹³So she caught him, and kissed him. With an impudent face she said to him:

¹³Zvino iye akamubata, akamutsvoda; Akataura naye nechiso chisina kunyara, akati kwaari,

¹⁴“Sacrifices of peace offerings are with me. This day I have paid my vows.

¹⁴Ndaifanira kuuya nezvibayiro zvezvipiriso zvokuyananisa, Nhasi ndaripa mhiko dzangu.

¹⁵Therefore I came out to meet you, to diligently seek your face, and I have found you.

¹⁵Saka ndabuda kuzokuchingamidza, Nditsvake chiso chako zvikuru, zvino ndakuwana.

¹⁶I have spread my couch with carpets of tapestry, with striped cloths of the yarn of Egypt.

¹⁶Ndakawarira machira anohukomba pamubhedha wangu, Nemicheka ina mavara inobva Egipita.

¹⁷Ndakasasa zvinonhuhwira pamubhedha wangu, Mura, negavakava, nekinamoni.

¹⁸Come, let’s take our fill of loving until the morning. Let’s solace ourselves with loving.

¹⁸Uya tigute nokudana kusvikira mangwanani; Ngatizvifadze nokudana kukuru.

¹⁹For my husband isn’t at home. He has gone on a long journey.

¹⁹nekuti murume haapo pamusha; Akafamba rwendo rukuru;

²⁰He has taken a bag of money with him. He will come home at the full moon.”

²⁰Akaenda nehombodo ine mari; Achadzoka pajenaguru.

²¹With persuasive words, she led him astray. With the flattering of her lips, she seduced him.

²¹Nokutaura kwake kunokwezva anomutsausa, Anomugombedzera nokubata kumeso kwemiromo yake.

²²He followed her immediately, as an ox goes to the slaughter, as a fool stepping into a noose.

²²Anomutevera pakarepo, Senzombe inoenda kwainondobayiwa, Kana sebenzi rakasungwa rinoenda kundorangwa;

²³Until an arrow strikes through his liver, as a bird hurries to the snare, and doesn’t know that it will cost his life.

²³Kusvikira museve wabaya chiropa chake; Seshiri inokurumidzira kurugombe, Asingazivi kuti zvinovinga upenyu hwake.

²⁴Now therefore, sons, listen to me. Pay attention to the words of my mouth.

²⁴Zvino vanakomana vangu, nditeererei, Inzwai mashoko omuromo wangu.

²⁵Don’t let your heart turn to her ways. Don’t go astray in her paths,

²⁵moyo wako ngaurege kutsaukira kunzira dzake; Usafamba-famba mumakwara ake.

²⁶for she has thrown down many wounded. Yes, all her slain are a mighty army.

²⁶nekuti akawisira pasi vazhinji vakakuvadzwa; Zvirokwazvo, vakaurawa naye vazhinji kwazvo.

²⁷Her house is the way to Sheol Sheol is the place of the dead. , going down to the rooms of death.

²⁷Imba yake inzira dzinoenda Sheori, Dzinoburukira kudzimba dzorufu.