17 “Don’t make fun of your father.Don’t refuse to obey your mother.If you do, your eye will be pecked out by the birds of the valley.You will be eaten by hawks.
18 “There are three things that are too hard for me.There are really four that I don’t understand:
19 the way an eagle flies in the sky,the way a snake slides over a rock,the way a ship sails on the seaand the way a man acts with a girl.
20 “This is the way a woman who takes part in adultery acts:She sins and doesn’t care.She says, ‘I haven’t done anything wrong.’
21 “There are three things that make the earth tremble.There are really four that it cannot stand:
22 a servant who becomes a king,a foolish person who has plenty to eat,
23 a hateful woman who gets marriedand a maid who replaces her mistress.