Proverbs 24
1 Be not thou envious against evil men, nor desire to be with them.
Don't be jealous of evil people; don't long to spend time with them,
2 For their heart meditates oppression, and their lips talk of mischief.
for they think up cruel plans and discuss how to cause trouble.
3 Through wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established,
A house is built by wisdom; its foundation is made secure through understanding.
4 and by knowledge the chambers are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.
Its rooms are filled by knowledge with all kinds of valuable and beautiful objects.
5 A wise man is strong, yea, a man of knowledge increases might.
If you have wisdom, you are strong; if you have knowledge, your power increases,
6 For by wise guidance thou shall make thy war, and in the multitude of counselors there is safety.
for with wise guidance you can go to war; you will be victorious by having many good advisors.
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool. He opens not his mouth in the gate.
Wisdom goes over the heads of stupid people; they have nothing to contribute when important matters are discussed.
8 He who devises to do evil, men shall call him a mischief-maker.
Anyone who plans to do evil will be seen as a troublemaker.
9 The thought of folly is sin. And the scoffer is an abomination to men.
Plans thought up by stupid people are sinful. Everyone hates those who are scornful of others.
10 If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.
If you give up in times of trouble, it shows how weak you are.
11 Deliver those who are carried away to death, and hold thou back those who are ready to be slain.
Rescue those who are being led away to be executed; save those who are stumbling on their way to be slaughtered.
12 If thou say, Behold, we did not know this, Does not he who weighs the hearts consider it? And he who keeps thy soul, does he not know it? And shall not he render to every man according to his work?
If you say, “Look, we didn't know anything about this,” don't you think the God who judges your motives will see what's happening? He who watches over you knows, and he will pay people back for what they've done.
13 My son, eat thou honey, for it is good, and the droppings of the honeycomb, which are sweet to thy taste,
My son, eating honey is good for you; the honeycomb tastes sweet.
14 so the knowledge of wisdom is to thy soul. If thou have found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy hope shall not be cut off.
In the same way, you should know that wisdom is good for you; if you find it, there will be a future for you, and your hope will not be crushed.
15 Lay not in wait, O wicked man, against the habitation of the righteous. Do not destroy his resting place.
Don't be like a criminal waiting to ambush the home of good people; don't attack the place where they live.
16 For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises up again, but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.
Those who do right may fall down seven times, and still get up again; but the wicked are brought down by disaster.
17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falls, and let not thy heart be glad when he is overthrown,
Don't celebrate when your enemies fall; don't be glad when they trip up,
18 lest Jehovah see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
otherwise when the Lord sees it, he'll be unhappy with you and won't punish your enemies as he planned.
19 Fret not thyself because of evildoers, nor be thou envious at the wicked.
Don't get all upset over the wicked, or be jealous of those who do wrong,
20 For there shall be no reward to the evil man. The lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
for evil people have no future—the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.
21 My son, fear thou Jehovah and the king, and do not associate with those who are given to change.
My son, honor the Lord and the king, and don't join those who are rebellious,
22 For their calamity shall rise suddenly, and the destruction from them both, who knows it?
for disaster will suddenly fall on them. Who knows how the Lord and king will punish them?
23 These also are from the wise: To have respect of persons in judgment is not good.
These are more sayings of the wise: Showing favoritism when passing judgment is wrong.
24 He who says to a wicked man, Thou are righteous, peoples shall curse him, nations shall abhor him.
Those who tell the guilty, “You're innocent,” will be cursed by the people and hated by the nation,
25 But to those who rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them.
while those who convict the guilty will be appreciated, and will receive a rich blessing.
26 He who gives a right answer kisses the lips.
An honest answer is a kiss on the lips.
27 Prepare thy work outside, and make it ready for thee in the field, and afterwards build thy house.
Do the work you need to do outside first, then prepare and sow your fields, and only after that start building your house.
28 Be not a witness against thy neighbor without cause, and deceive not with thy lips.
Don't testify against your neighbors without having a good reason, and don't tell lies.
29 Say not, I will do so to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work.
Don't say to yourself, “I'm going to do to him what he did to me! I'll pay him back for what he's done!”
30 I went by the field of the sluggard, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding.
I walked past the field of a lazy man, past a vineyard of someone with no sense.
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns. The face of it was covered with nettles, and the stone wall of it was broken down.
It was all overgrown with thorns, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall had fallen down.
32 Then I beheld, and considered well. I saw, and received instruction:
As I looked I thought about it, and what I saw taught me a lesson:
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep,
You may say, “Please, just a little more sleep, a little longer snooze, a little more folding of the arms to rest”—
34 so thy poverty shall come as a robber, and thy want as an armed man.
and poverty will attack you like a robber, destitution like an armed warrior.
