Proverbs 20
1 Drinking a lot of wine or [other] strong drinks causes people to start fighting; it is foolish to become drunk/intoxicated.
Mvinyo ni mdhihaki na kileo ni mgomvi; yeyote apotoshwaye navyo hana hekima.
2 Being afraid of a king when he is angry is like [SIM] being afraid of a lion when it growls/roars; if you cause the king to become angry, he may execute you.
Ghadhabu ya mfalme ni kama ngurumo ya simba; yeye amkasirishaye hupoteza uhai wake.
3 [People] respect those who stay away from disputes/arguments; foolish people [love to] quarrel.
Ni kwa heshima ya mtu kujitenga ugomvi, bali kila mpumbavu ni mwepesi kugombana.
4 [If] a lazy man does not plow [his fields at the right/proper time], he will look for [crops] at harvest [time], but there will be nothing there.
Mvivu halimi kwa majira; kwa hiyo wakati wa mavuno hutazama lakini hapati chochote.
5 [Just] as it is difficult to bring up water from a deep well, it is difficult to know what people are thinking, but someone who has good sense/insight will be able to find out what people are thinking.
Makusudi ya moyo wa mwanadamu ni maji yenye kina, lakini mtu mwenye ufahamu huyachota.
6 Many people proclaim that they can be trusted [to do what they say that they will do], but it is very difficult to find [RHQ] someone who can really be trusted.
Watu wengi hujidai kuwa na upendo usiokoma, bali mtu mwaminifu ni nani awezaye kumpata?
7 If parents conduct their lives as they should, [God] blesses their children (OR, their children are very happy/fortunate).
Mtu mwenye haki huishi maisha yasiyo na lawama, wamebarikiwa watoto wake baada yake.
8 A king who sits on his throne to judge people can [easily] [MTY] find out what things that people have done are good and what things are evil.
Wakati mfalme aketipo katika kiti chake cha enzi kuhukumu, hupepeta ubaya wote kwa macho yake.
9 There is no one [RHQ] who can truthfully say, “I do not know of any wrong things that I have done; I have (gotten rid of all my sinful behavior/quit doing what is sinful).”
Ni nani awezaye kusema, “Nimeuweka moyo wangu safi; mimi ni safi na sina dhambi?”
10 Yahweh detests people who use weights that are not right and measures that are not correct.
Mawe ya kupimia yaliyo tofauti na vipimo tofauti, Bwana huchukia vyote viwili.
11 Even children show by what they do whether they are good or not; they show whether (what they do/their behavior) is honest and right [or not].
Hata mtoto hujulikana kwa matendo yake, kama tabia yake ni safi na adili.
12 Two of the things that Yahweh has created [for us] are ears to hear things and eyes to see things.
Masikio yasikiayo na macho yaonayo, Bwana ndiye alivifanya vyote viwili.
13 If you want to sleep [all the time], you will become poor; if you stay awake [and work], you will have plenty of food.
Usiupende usingizi la sivyo utakuwa maskini, uwe macho nawe utakuwa na chakula cha akiba.
14 People [look at things that they are about] to buy, [and in order to get it for a lower price sometimes they] say, “(It is no good/It is poor quality),” but [after they buy it], they go and boast [about having bought it for a cheap price].
“Haifai, haifai!” asema mnunuzi, kisha huondoka akijisifia ununuzi wake.
15 Gold and precious stones are [valuable], but wise words [MTY] are more valuable.
Dhahabu kunayo, na marijani kwa wingi, lakini midomo inenayo maarifa ni kito cha thamani kilicho adimu.
16 If you foolishly promise to a stranger that you will pay what he owes if he is unable to pay it [DOU], [you deserve to] have someone take your coat from you.
Chukua vazi la yule awekaye dhamana kwa ajili ya mgeni; lishikilie iwe dhamana kama anafanya hivyo kwa ajili ya mwanamke mpotovu.
17 People [may] think that food that they acquire by doing what is dishonest will taste very good, but later [they will not enjoy what they have done any more than they would enjoy] eating gravel/sand.
Chakula kilichopatikana kwa hila ni kitamu kwa mwanadamu, bali huishia na kinywa kilichojaa changarawe.
18 When people give you good advice, [if you do what they suggest], your plans will succeed; so be sure to get good advice from wise people before you start fighting a war.
Fanya mipango kwa kutafuta mashauri, ukipigana vita, tafuta maelekezo.
19 Those who go around telling gossip are [always] telling secrets to [others]; so stay away from people who foolishly talk [too much].
Maneno ya kusengenya husababisha kutokuaminika, kwa hiyo mwepuke mtu anayezungumza kupita kiasi.
20 If someone curses his father or his mother, his life will be ended, [just] like a lamp is extinguished.
Ikiwa mtu atamlaani baba yake au mama yake, taa yake itazimwa katika giza nene.
21 If you very quickly take the property that your parents promise will be yours after they die, you will not receive any good/blessing from it.
Urithi upatikanao haraka mwanzoni, hautabarikiwa mwishoni.
22 Do not say, “I will do evil to those who do evil to me;” wait for Yahweh [to do something about it], and he will (help you/[do what is right]).
Usiseme, “Nitakulipiza kwa ajili ya kosa hili!” Mngojee Bwana, naye atakuokoa.
23 Yahweh detests [those who use] dishonest scales and weights that are not accurate/correct.
Bwana anachukia sana mawe ya kupimia ya udanganyifu, nazo mizani zisizo halali hazimpendezi.
24 Yahweh is the one who has decided what will happen to us, so (how can we (understand/know) what will happen before it happens?/we humans certainly cannot (understand/know) what will happen before it happens.) [RHQ]
Hatua za mtu huongozwa na Bwana. Anawezaje basi mtu yeyote kuelewa njia yake mwenyewe?
25 You should think carefully before you solemnly promise to dedicate something to God, because later you might be sorry you have promised to do it.
Ni mtego kwa mtu kuweka wakfu kitu kwa haraka na baada ya kitambo kidogo kufikiria tena nadhiri zake.
26 Wise kings find out [MET] which people have done what is wrong, and they punish them very severely [IDM].
Mfalme mwenye hekima hupepeta waovu, hulipitisha gurudumu la kupuria juu yao.
27 Our consciences are [like] lamps that Yahweh [has given to us to enable us to know what we are thinking] [MET]; they reveal what is hidden deep in our (minds/inner beings).
Taa ya Bwana huchunguza roho ya mwanadamu, huchunguza utu wake wa ndani.
28 Kings will continue to rule as long as they faithfully love their people and are loyal to them and as long as they rule righteously/fairly.
Upendo na uaminifu humweka mfalme salama, kwa njia ya upendo, kiti chake cha enzi huwa salama.
29 We honor/admire young people because they are strong, but we respect [MTY] old people more because they are wise.
Utukufu wa vijana ni nguvu zao, mvi ni fahari ya uzee.
30 When we are beaten or whipped, it [can] cause us to quit doing what is evil in our lives; when someone wounds us [by punishing us], it [can] cause our behavior to become good.
Mapigo na majeraha huusafisha ubaya, nayo michapo hutakasa utu wa ndani.
