Proverbs 27
1 Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
Do not boast about [what you will do] tomorrow, because you do not know what will happen [PRS] on any day.
2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.
Do not praise yourself [MTY, PRS]; allow others to praise you. If someone else praises you, that is okay.
3 A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; but a fool's wrath is heavier than them both.
[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.]
4 Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?
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.
5 Open rebuke is better than secret love.
It is better to correct someone openly than to show that you l don’t love that person [by not correcting him].
6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
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.
7 The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.
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.
8 As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is a man that wandereth from his place.
Anyone who wanders [far] from his home/family is like [SIM] a bird that is far from its nest.
9 Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.
[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].
10 Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother's house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.
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.
11 My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, that I may answer him that reproacheth me.
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].
12 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and are punished.
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.
13 Take his garment that is surety for a stranger, and take a pledge of him for a strange woman.
[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].
14 He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.
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].
15 A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.
[Having] a wife that is [constantly] nagging is as [bad as listening] to rain continually dripping on a rainy day.
16 Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.
[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.
17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
[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].
18 Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof: so he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.
Those who take care of fig trees will have figs to eat; [similarly], servants who protect their master will be honored [by him].
19 As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man.
[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.
[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)
21 As the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a man to his praise.
[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.
22 Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.
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).
23 Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.
Take good care of your flocks of sheep and herds of cattle,
24 For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?
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.
25 The hay appeareth, and the tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered.
After you cut the hay [DOU] and [store it to feed the animals in the winter while] a new crop of hay is growing,
26 The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.
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,
27 And thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for the maintenance for thy maidens.
and you will get enough milk from the [other] goats for you and your family and your female servants.
