Proverbs 24
1 Be not thou envious of wicked men, And desire not to be with them!
Seek not to be like evil men, neither desire to be with them:
2 For their heart studieth destruction, And their lips speak mischief.
Because their mind studieth robberies, and their lips speak deceits.
3 Through wisdom is a house builded, And by understanding is it established;
By wisdom the house shall be built, and by prudence it shall be strengthened.
4 Yea, by knowledge are the chambers filled With all precious and goodly substance.
By instruction the storerooms shall be filled with all precious and most beautiful wealth.
5 The wise man is strong; Yea, the man of understanding establisheth his strength.
A wise man is strong: and a knowing man, stout and valiant.
6 For by wise counsel shalt thou make war, And by the multitude of counsellors cometh success.
Because war is managed by due ordering: and there shall be safety where there are many counsels.
7 Wisdom is too high for the fool; He openeth not his mouth at the gate.
Wisdom is too high for a fool, in the gate he shall not open his mouth.
8 He that deviseth to do evil Shall be called mischief-master.
He that deviseth to do evils, shall be called a fool.
9 The purpose of folly is sin; And a scoffer is an abomination to men.
The thought of a fool is sin: and the detracter is the abomination of men.
10 If thy spirit faint in the day of adversity, Faint will be thy strength.
If thou lose hope being weary in the day of distress, thy strength shall be diminished.
11 Deliver thou those who are dragged to death, And those who totter to the slaughter, —O keep them back!
Deliver them that are led to death: and those that are drawn to death forbear not to deliver.
12 If thou sayst, “Behold, we knew it not!” Doth not he that weigheth the heart observe it? Yea, he that keepeth thy soul knoweth it. And he will render to every man according to his works.
If thou say: I have not strength enough: he that seeth into the heart, he understandeth, and nothing deceiveth the keeper of thy soul, and he shall render to a man according to his works.
13 Eat honey, my son, for it is good, And the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste;
Fat honey, my son, because it is good, and the honeycomb most sweet to thy throat:
14 So learn thou wisdom for thy soul! When thou hast found it, there shall be a reward, And thy expectation shall not be cut off.
So also is the doctrine of wisdom to thy soul: which when thou hast found, thou shalt have hope in the end, and thy hope shall not perish.
15 Plot not, O wicked man! against the habitation of the righteous; Spoil not his resting-place!
Lie not in wait, nor seek after wickedness in the house of the just, nor spoil his rest.
16 For though the righteous fall seven times, yet shall he rise up again; But the wicked shall fall into mischief.
For a just mall shall fall seven times and shall rise again: but the wicked shall fall down into evil.
17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, And let not thy heart be glad when he stumbleth;
When thy enemy shall fall, be not glad, and in his ruin let not thy heart rejoice:
18 Lest the LORD see, and it displease him, And he turn away his anger from him.
Lest the Lord see, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
19 Fret not thyself on account of evil men, Neither be thou envious of the wicked;
Contend not with the wicked, nor seek to be like the ungodly:
20 For there shall be no posterity to the evil man; The lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
For evil men have no hope of things to come, and the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
21 My son, fear thou the LORD and the king; And mingle not with them that are given to change!
My son, fear the Lord and the king: and have nothing to do with detracters.
22 For their calamity shall rise up suddenly, And their ruin, coming from them both, in a moment.
For their destruction shall rise suddenly: and who knoweth the ruin of both?
23 These also are words of the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment.
These things also to the wise: It is not good to have respect to persons in judgment.
24 He that saith to the wicked, “Thou art righteous,” Him shall the people curse; Nations shall abhor him.
They that say to the wicked man: Thou art just: shall be cursed by the people, and the tribes shall abhor them.
25 But it shall be well with them that punish him, And the blessing of prosperity shall come upon them.
They that rebuke him, shall be praised: and a blessing shall come upon them.
26 He that giveth a right answer Kisseth the lips.
He shall kiss the lips, who answereth right words.
27 Arrange thy work without, And prepare it in thy field: Afterwards thou mayst build thy house.
Prepare thy work without, and diligently till thy ground: that afterward thou mayst build thy house.
28 Be not a witness without cause against thy neighbor, And deceive not with thy lips.
Be not witness without cause against thy neighbour: and deceive not any man with thy lips.
29 Say not, “As he hath done to me, So will I do to him; I will render to the man according to his doings.”
Say not: I will do to him as he hath done to me: I will render to every one according to his work.
30 I passed by the field of the slothful, And by the vineyard of the man void of understanding,
I passed by the field of the slothful man, and by the vineyard of the foolish man:
31 And, lo! it was all overgrown with thorns, And the face thereof was covered with nettles, And the stone wall thereof was broken down.
And behold it was all filled with nettles, and thorns had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well; I looked upon it. and received instruction.
Which when I had seen, I laid it up in my heart, and by the example I received instruction.
33 “A little sleep, a little slumber! A little folding of the hands to rest!”
Thou wilt sleep a little, said I, thou wilt slumber a little, thou wilt fold thy hands a little to rest:
34 So shall poverty come upon thee like a highwayman; Yea, want like an armed man.
And poverty shall come to thee as a runner, and beggary as an armed man.
