أَمْثَالٌ 27
| لَا تَفْتَخِرْ بِٱلْغَدِ لِأَنَّكَ لَا تَعْلَمُ مَاذَا يَلِدُهُ يَوْمٌ. | ١ 1 |
Do not boast about [what you will do] tomorrow, because you do not know what will happen [PRS] on any day.
| لِيَمْدَحْكَ ٱلْغَرِيبُ لَا فَمُكَ، ٱلْأَجْنَبِيُّ لَا شَفَتَاكَ. | ٢ 2 |
Do not praise yourself [MTY, PRS]; allow others to praise you. If someone else praises you, that is okay.
| اَلْحَجَرُ ثَقِيلٌ وَٱلرَّمْلُ ثَقِيلٌ، وَغَضَبُ ٱلْجَاهِلِ أَثْقَلُ مِنْهُمَا كِلَيْهِمَا. | ٣ 3 |
[It causes pain to our bodies to carry heavy] stones or [a pail full of] sand, but doing something stupid/foolish [can cause] great [pain to other people’s spirits.]
| اَلْغَضَبُ قَسَاوَةٌ وَٱلسَّخَطُ جُرَافٌ، وَمَنْ يَقِفُ قُدَّامَ ٱلْحَسَدِ؟ | ٤ 4 |
It is cruel to be angry [with others], and our being angry sometimes destroys [others], but being jealous of someone is [RHQ] often more cruel than that.
| اَلتَّوْبِيخُ ٱلظَّاهِرُ خَيْرٌ مِنَ ٱلْحُبِّ ٱلْمُسْتَتِرِ. | ٥ 5 |
It is better to correct someone openly than to show that you l don’t love that person [by not correcting him].
| أَمِينَةٌ هِيَ جُرُوحُ ٱلْمُحِبِّ، وَغَاشَّةٌ هِيَ قُبْلَاتُ ٱلْعَدُوِّ. | ٦ 6 |
If a friend criticizes you, [he is a good friend and] you can trust him; but if one of your enemies kisses you, he is [probably wanting to] deceive you.
| اَلنَّفْسُ ٱلشَّبْعَانَةُ تَدُوسُ ٱلْعَسَلَ، وَلِلنَّفْسِ ٱلْجَائِعَةِ كُلُّ مُرٍّ حُلْوٌ. | ٧ 7 |
When someone’s stomach is full, he does not want to eat honey; but when someone is [very] hungry, he thinks that [even] bitter things taste sweet.
| مِثْلُ ٱلْعُصْفُورِ ٱلتَّائِهِ مِنْ عُشِّهِ، هَكَذَا ٱلرَّجُلُ ٱلتَّائِهُ مِنْ مَكَانِهِ. | ٨ 8 |
Anyone who wanders [far] from his home/family is like [SIM] a bird that is far from its nest.
| اَلدُّهْنُ وَٱلْبَخُورُ يُفَرِّحَانِ ٱلْقَلْبَ، وَحَلَاوَةُ ٱلصَّدِيقِ مِنْ مَشُورَةِ ٱلنَّفْسِ. | ٩ 9 |
[Putting olive] oil and perfume on a person’s skin causes him to feel good, but having a friend [who gives] good advice [is even better].
| لَا تَتْرُكْ صَدِيقَكَ وَصَدِيقَ أَبِيكَ، وَلَا تَدْخُلْ بَيْتَ أَخِيكَ فِي يَوْمِ بَلِيَّتِكَ. ٱلْجَارُ ٱلْقَرِيبُ خَيْرٌ مِنَ ٱلْأَخِ ٱلْبَعِيدِ. | ١٠ 10 |
Do not neglect your friends or your parents’ friends; and at a time when you are experiencing a disaster, do not go to a relative [who lives far away to request his help]; someone who lives near you can help you more than relatives who live far away.
| يَا ٱبْنِي، كُنْ حَكِيمًا وَفَرِّحْ قَلْبِي، فَأُجِيبَ مَنْ يُعَيِّرُنِي كَلِمَةً. | ١١ 11 |
My child/son, cause me to be happy by becoming wise, in order that I will [know how to] reply to those who would criticize me [about your behavior].
| ٱلذَّكِيُّ يُبْصِرُ ٱلشَّرَّ فَيَتَوَارَى. ٱلْأَغْبِيَاءُ يَعْبُرُونَ فَيُعَاقَبُونَ. | ١٢ 12 |
Those who have good sense will realize that there is something dangerous ahead, and they will hide; those who do not have good sense [just] keep going, and later they will suffer because of [doing] that.
| خُذْ ثَوْبَهُ لِأَنَّهُ ضَمِنَ غَرِيبًا، وَلِأَجْلِ ٱلْأَجَانِبِ ٱرْتَهِنَ مِنْهُ. | ١٣ 13 |
[You deserve to] have your property taken from you if you [foolishly] promise to a stranger (OR, a strange woman) that you will pay what she owes if she is unable to pay it [DOU].
| مَنْ يُبَارِكُ قَرِيبَهُ بِصَوْتٍ عَالٍ فِي ٱلصَّبَاحِ بَاكِرًا، يُحْسَبُ لَهُ لَعْنًا. | ١٤ 14 |
If you rise early in the morning and call out a greeting to your neighbor [while he is still sleeping], he will consider it to be a curse, [not a blessing].
| اَلْوَكْفُ ٱلْمُتَتَابِعُ فِي يَوْمٍ مُمْطِرٍ، وَٱلْمَرْأَةُ ٱلْمُخَاصِمَةُ سِيَّانِ، | ١٥ 15 |
[Having] a wife that is [constantly] nagging is as [bad as listening] to rain continually dripping on a rainy day.
| مَنْ يُخَبِّئُهَا يُخَبِّئُ ٱلرِّيحَ وَيَمِينُهُ تَقْبِضُ عَلَى زَيْتٍ! | ١٦ 16 |
[Trying] to restrain/stop her [from doing that] is as [difficult] [SIM] [as trying] to stop the wind or [trying] to hold oil in your hand.
| ٱلْحَدِيدُ بِٱلْحَدِيدِ يُحَدَّدُ، وَٱلْإِنْسَانُ يُحَدِّدُ وَجْهَ صَاحِبِهِ. | ١٧ 17 |
[We can use one] iron tool to sharpen [another] iron [tool]; similarly [SIM], [when one person shares] what he is thinking, it can help other people [to think more clearly].
| مَنْ يَحْمِي تِينَةً يَأْكُلُ ثَمَرَتَهَا، وَحَافِظُ سَيِّدِهِ يُكْرَمُ. | ١٨ 18 |
Those who take care of fig trees will have figs to eat; [similarly], servants who protect their master will be honored [by him].
| كَمَا فِي ٱلْمَاءِ ٱلْوَجْهُ لِلْوَجْهِ، كَذَلِكَ قَلْبُ ٱلْإِنْسَانِ لِلْإِنْسَانِ. | ١٩ 19 |
[When a person looks] in the water, he sees his own face; similarly [SIM], [when we look at] a person’s behavior, we know what he is thinking.
| اَلْهَاوِيَةُ وَٱلْهَلَاكُ لَا يَشْبَعَانِ، وَكَذَا عَيْنَا ٱلْإِنْسَانِ لَا تَشْبَعَانِ. (Sheol h7585) | ٢٠ 20 |
[It is as though] the place where the dead people are is always wanting more people to [die and] come there; and humans [SYN] are always wanting to acquire more things, [too]. (Sheol h7585)
| اَلْبُوطَةُ لِلْفِضَّةِ وَٱلْكُورُ لِلذَّهَبِ، كَذَا ٱلْإِنْسَانُ لِفَمِ مَادِحِهِ. | ٢١ 21 |
[Workers put] silver and gold in a very hot furnace [to burn out what is impure], and [SIM] people learn [what we are really like when they see how we react when people] praise us.
| إِنْ دَقَقْتَ ٱلْأَحْمَقَ فِي هَاوُنٍ بَيْنَ ٱلسَّمِيذِ بِمِدَقٍّ، لَا تَبْرَحُ عَنْهُ حَمَاقَتُهُ. | ٢٢ 22 |
Even if you beat/crush a fool severely [like] [MET] you pulverize grain with a pestle, you [probably] will not be able to cause him to stop (being foolish/doing foolish things).
| مَعْرِفَةً ٱعْرِفْ حَالَ غَنَمِكَ، وَٱجْعَلْ قَلْبَكَ إِلَى قُطْعَانِكَ، | ٢٣ 23 |
Take good care of your flocks of sheep and herds of cattle,
| لِأَنَّ ٱلْغِنَى لَيْسَ بِدَائِمٍ، وَلَا ٱلتَّاجُ لِدَوْرٍ فَدَوْرٍ. | ٢٤ 24 |
because the money [that you acquired from selling animals previously] will not (last/stay with you) forever; similarly [SIM], governments [MTY] certainly do not [RHQ] last forever.
| فَنِيَ ٱلْحَشِيشُ وَظَهَرَ ٱلْعُشْبُ وَٱجْتَمَعَ نَبَاتُ ٱلْجِبَالِ. | ٢٥ 25 |
After you cut the hay [DOU] and [store it to feed the animals in the winter while] a new crop of hay is growing,
| ٱلْحُمْلَانُ لِلِبَاسِكَ، وَثَمَنُ حَقْلٍ أَعْتِدَةٌ. | ٢٦ 26 |
you will be able to [shear the sheep and] make clothes from the wool, and you will get money from selling [some of] the goats to buy [more] land,
| وَكِفَايَةٌ مِنْ لَبَنِ ٱلْمَعْزِ لِطَعَامِكَ، لِقُوتِ بَيْتِكَ وَمَعِيشَةِ فَتَيَاتِكَ. | ٢٧ 27 |
and you will get enough milk from the [other] goats for you and your family and your female servants.
