# Proverbs 23.33 **Book:** [Proverbs](/codex/proverbs/) · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT ## Immediate context (±2 verses) **ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/)) > 31. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, When it sparkleth in the cup, When it goeth down smoothly: 32. At the last it biteth like a serpent, And stingeth like an adder. > > **33. Thine eyes shall behold strange things, And thy heart shall utter perverse things.** > > 34. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, Or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. 35. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not hurt; They have beaten me, and I felt it not: When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again. (Proverbs 23:31-35, ASV) **WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/)) > 31. Don’t look at the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly. 32. In the end, it bites like a snake, and poisons like a viper. > > **33. Your eyes will see strange things, and your mind will imagine confusing things.** > > 34. Yes, you will be as he who lies down in the middle of the sea, or as he who lies on top of the rigging: 35. “They hit me, and I was not hurt! They beat me, and I don’t feel it! When will I wake up? I can do it again. I can find another.” (Proverbs 23:31-35, WEB) **KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/)) > 31. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. 32. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. an: or, a cockatrice > > **33. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.** > > 34. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. the midst: Heb. the heart of the sea 35. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again. I felt: Heb. I knew it not (Proverbs 23:31-35, KJV) **YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/)) > 31. See not wine when it showeth itself red, When it giveth in the cup its colour, It goeth up and down through the upright. 32. Its latter end, as a serpent it biteth, And as a basilisk it stingeth. > > **33. Thine eyes see strange women, And thy heart speaketh perverse things.** > > 34. And thou hast been as one lying down in the heart of the sea, And as one lying down on the top of a mast. 35. 'They smote me, I have not been sick, They beat me, I have not known. When I awake, I seek it yet again!' (Proverbs 23:31-35, YLT) ## Setting - **Speaker:** Solomon (principal); Agur; Lemuel; wise men - **Audience:** young Israelite men in the wisdom tradition - **Location:** Israel, Solomonic court - **Time period:** principal composition c. 970-930 BC (Solomon); compilation c. 700 BC (Hezekiah) ## Theological reading ## Key words - [H3820 - lev](/codex/h3820-lev/), *lev* (Strong's H3820). Also appears in: [Genesis 6.5](/codex/genesis-6-5/), [Genesis 6](/codex/genesis-6/), [Genesis 18.1-15](/codex/genesis-18-1-15/). ## Why these four translations ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance. The four: - **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition. - **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English. - **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base. - **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff. See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses. ## Quoted in **Concepts:** - [Spirit of Perversion](/codex/spirit-of-perversion/)