My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, [if] thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger,
Proverbs 6:1
In this verse, the second “if” is italicised, meaning it’s not part of the original text.
So the verse actually says: My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger,
The act of “being surety” turns your friend into a stranger.
The person who was your intimate companion is turned into an estranged, foreign, enemy.
All because you decided to guarantee a loan or take on a debt for your friend.
Don’t do it, if you want to protect your friendship.
Or do it, but brace yourself for the dystopian sci-fi horror that you will unleash in your relationship.
A friend is someone who loves you enough to tell you the truth…even if that truth is: our friendship is too important to trade it for a loan.