14
There are those whose teeth are swords, whose teeth are knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, the needy from among men.
15
The leech has two daughters; "Give, give," they cry. Three things are never satisfied; four never say, "Enough":
16
Sheol, the barren womb, the earth ever thirsty for water, and the fire which never says, "Enough."
17
The eye that mocks a father and scorns to obey a mother will be picked out by the ravens of the valley and eaten by the vultures.
18
Three things are too wonderful for me; four I do not understand:
19
the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a serpent on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a maiden.
20
This is the way of an adulteress: she eats, and wipes her mouth, and says, "I have done no wrong."
21
Under three things the earth trembles; under four it cannot bear up:
22
a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is filled with food;
23
an unloved woman when she gets a husband, and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.
24
Four things on earth are small, but they are exceedingly wise: