Proverbs 27
1 Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what the future day may bring.
Don’t boast about tomorrow; for you don’t know what a day may bring.
2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth: an outsider, and not your own lips.
Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.
3 A stone is weighty, and sand is burdensome; but the wrath of the foolish is heavier than both.
A stone is heavy, and sand is a burden; but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.
4 Anger holds no mercy, nor does fury when it erupts. And who can bear the assault of one who has been provoked?
Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?
5 An open rebuke is better than hidden love.
Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
6 The wounds of a loved one are better than the deceitful kisses of a hateful one.
The wounds of a friend are faithful, although the kisses of an enemy are profuse.
7 A sated soul will trample the honeycomb. And a hungry soul will accept even bitter in place of sweet.
A full soul loathes a honeycomb; but to a hungry soul, every bitter thing is sweet.
8 Just like a bird migrating from her nest, so also is a man who abandons his place.
As a bird that wanders from her nest, so is a man who wanders from his home.
9 Ointment and various perfumes delight the heart. And the good advice of a friend is sweet to the soul.
Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart; so does earnest counsel from a man’s friend.
10 Do not dismiss your friend or your father’s friend. And do not enter your brother’s house in the day of your affliction. A close neighbor is better than a distant brother.
Don’t forsake your friend and your father’s friend. Don’t go to your brother’s house in the day of your disaster. A neighbour who is near is better than a distant brother.
11 My son, study wisdom, and rejoice my heart, so that you may be able to respond to the one who reproaches.
Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart, then I can answer my tormentor.
12 The discerning man, seeing evil, hides himself. The little ones, continuing on, sustain losses.
A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge; but the simple pass on, and suffer for it.
13 Take away the garment of him who has vouched for an outsider. And take a pledge from him on behalf of foreigners.
Take his garment when he puts up collateral for a stranger. Hold it for a wayward woman!
14 Whoever blesses his neighbor with a grand voice, rising in the night, shall be like one who curses.
He who blesses his neighbour with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse by him.
15 A roof leaking on a cold day, and an argumentative woman, are comparable.
A continual dropping on a rainy day and a contentious wife are alike:
16 He who would restrain her, he is like one who would grasp the wind, or who would gather together oil with his right hand.
restraining her is like restraining the wind, or like grasping oil in his right hand.
17 Iron sharpens iron, and a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.
Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens his friend’s countenance.
18 Whoever maintains the fig tree shall eat its fruit. And whoever is the keeper of his master shall be glorified.
Whoever tends the fig tree shall eat its fruit. He who looks after his master shall be honoured.
19 In the manner of faces looking into shining water, so are the hearts of men made manifest to the prudent.
Like water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man.
Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied; and a man’s eyes are never satisfied. (Sheol h7585)
21 In the manner of silver being tested in the refinery, and gold in the furnace, so also is a man tested by the mouth of one who praises. The heart of the iniquitous inquires after evils, but the heart of the righteous inquires after knowledge.
The crucible is for silver, and the furnace for gold; but man is refined by his praise.
22 Even if you were to crush the foolish with a mortar, as when a pestle strikes over pearled barley, his foolishness would not be taken from him.
Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with grain, yet his foolishness will not be removed from him.
23 Be diligent to know the countenance of your cattle, and consider your own flocks,
Know well the state of your flocks, and pay attention to your herds,
24 for you will not always hold this power. But a crown shall be awarded from generation to generation.
for riches are not forever, nor does the crown endure to all generations.
25 The meadows are open, and the green plants have appeared, and the hay has been collected from the mountains.
The hay is removed, and the new growth appears, the grasses of the hills are gathered in.
26 Lambs are for your clothing, and goats are for the price of a field.
The lambs are for your clothing, and the goats are the price of a field.
27 Let the milk of goats be sufficient for your food, and for the necessities of your household, and for the provisions of your handmaids.
There will be plenty of goats’ milk for your food, for your family’s food, and for the nourishment of your servant girls.
