Proverbs 24
1 Be thou not envious of bad men, and do not long to be with them.
Do not be envious of evil men, And do not desire to be with them.
2 For their heart meditateth destruction, and of mischief do their lips speak.
For their heart meditates [on] destruction, And their lips speak perverseness.
3 Through wisdom is a house built; and through understanding is it firmly established;
A house is built by wisdom, And it establishes itself by understanding.
4 And through knowledge are chambers filled with all manner of precious and pleasant wealth.
And the inner parts are filled by knowledge, [With] all precious and pleasant wealth.
5 A wise man is [always] in power; and a man of knowledge fortifieth [his] strength.
The wise [is] mighty in strength, And a man of knowledge is strengthening power,
6 For by wise counsel canst thou conduct thy war; and there is help in a multitude of counsellors.
For you make war for yourself by plans, And deliverance [is] in a multitude of counselors.
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool: in the gate can he not open his mouth.
Wisdom [is] high for a fool, he does not open his mouth in the gate.
8 Him that deviseth to do evil, men call a master of wicked devices.
Whoever is devising to do evil, They call him a master of wicked thoughts.
9 The counsel of folly is sin; and an abomination to men is the scorner.
The thought of folly [is] sin, And a scorner [is] an abomination to man.
10 If thou despond on the day of distress, thy strength is small.
You have showed yourself weak in a day of adversity, Your power is restricted,
11 Deliver those that are taken unto death, and those that are moved away to the slaughter hold back.
If [from] delivering those taken to death, And you take back those slipping to the slaughter.
12 If thou shouldst say, Behold, we know not this man: lo, he that weigheth hearts will truly regard it, and he that keepeth thy soul will surely know it; and he will give a recompense to man according to his doing.
When you say, “Behold, we did not know this.” Is the Ponderer of hearts not He who understands? And the Keeper of your soul He who knows? And He has rendered to man according to his work.
13 Eat honey, my son, because it is good; and the fine honey, which is sweet to thy palate:
My son, eat honey that [is] good, And the honeycomb [is] sweet to your palate.
14 So obtain the knowledge of wisdom for thy soul: when thou hast found her, then shall there be a [happy] future, and thy hope shall not be cut off.
So [is] the knowledge of wisdom to your soul, If you have found that there is a posterity And your hope is not cut off.
15 Lie not in wait, O wicked man! against the dwelling of the righteous; waste not his resting-place;
Do not lay wait, O wicked one, At the habitation of the righteous. Do not spoil his resting place.
16 For though the righteous were to fall seven times, he will rise up again; but the wicked shall stumble into misfortune.
For the righteous fall and rise seven [times], And the wicked stumble in evil.
17 At the fall of thy enemy do not rejoice; and at his stumbling let not thy heart be glad:
Do not rejoice in the falling of your enemy, And do not let your heart be joyful in his stumbling,
18 Lest the Lord see it and it be displeasing in his eyes, and he turn away from him his wrath.
Lest YHWH see, and [it be] evil in His eyes, And He has turned His anger from off him.
19 Fret not thyself because of evil-doers, neither be thou envious of the wicked;
Do not fret yourself at evildoers, do not be envious at the wicked,
20 For there will be no [happy] future for the bad man: the lamp of the wicked will be quenched.
For there is not a posterity to the evil, The lamp of the wicked is extinguished.
21 My son, fear the Lord and the king: with those that are desirous to change do not mingle thyself;
Fear YHWH, my son, and the king, Do not mix yourself up with changers,
22 For suddenly will their calamity arise; and who knoweth the ruin of both of them!
For their calamity rises suddenly, And the ruin of them both—who knows!
23 These things also are for the wise. To have respect of persons in judgment is not good.
These are also for the wise: [It] is not good to discern faces in judgment.
24 Him that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous, will the people denounce, him will nations hold accursed;
Whoever is saying to the wicked, “You [are] righteous,” Peoples execrate him—nations abhor him.
25 But to those that punish delight shall be given, and upon them shall come the blessing of the good.
And it is pleasant to those reproving, And a good blessing comes on them.
26 Men will kiss the lips of him that giveth a proper answer.
He who is returning straightforward words kisses lips.
27 Prepare without thy work, and make it fit in the field for thyself: and afterward build thy house.
Prepare your work in an out-place, And make it ready in the field—go afterward, Then you have built your house.
28 Be not without cause a witness against thy neighbor; for wouldst thou beguile with thy lips?
Do not be a witness against your neighbor for nothing, Or you have enticed with your lips.
29 Say not, As he hath done to me so will I do to him: I will recompense every man according to his doing.
Do not say, “As he did to me, so I do to him, I render to each according to his work.”
30 By the field of a slothful man I once passed along, and by the vineyard of a man void of sense:
I passed by near the field of a slothful man, And near the vineyard of a man lacking heart.
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, nettles had covered its surface, and its stone-wall was broken down.
And behold, it has gone up—all of it—thorns! Nettles have covered its face, And its stone wall has been broken down.
32 And when I had indeed beheld [this] I took it to my heart: I saw it, and received a warning.
And I see—I set my heart, I have seen—I have received instruction,
33 “A little [more] sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands in lying down;”
A little sleep—a little slumber—A little folding of the hands to lie down.
34 But then will thy poverty come like a rover; and thy wants as a man armed with a shield.
And your poverty has come [as] a traveler, And your want as an armed man!
