14 There is a generation whose teeth are swords, And whose jaw-teeth are knives, To devour the poor from off the earth, And the needy from among men.
15 The leech has two daughters: “Give! Give!” Three are not satisfied, Four that never say, “Enough”:
16 The grave, and the barren womb, Soil not satisfied with water, And fire which never says, “Enough.”
17 An eye that mocks his father, And scorns to obey his mother – Ravens of the wadi dig it out, And young eagles eat it!
18 Three matters are too marvellous for me, And four which I do not understand:
19 The way of an eagle in the heavens, The way of a snake on a rock, The way of a ship in the heart of the sea, And the way of a man with a girl.
20 This is the way of an adulterous woman: She shall eat and wipe her mouth, and say, “I have not done wickedness.”