Proverbs 22
1 A name is chosen rather than much wealth, Than silver and than gold — good grace.
Betere is a good name, than many richessis; for good grace is aboue siluer and gold.
2 Rich and poor have met together, The Maker of them all [is] Jehovah.
A riche man and a pore man metten hem silf; the Lord is worchere of euer eithir.
3 The prudent hath seen the evil, and is hidden, And the simple have passed on, and are punished.
A felle man seeth yuel, and hidith him silf; and an innocent man passid, and he was turmentid bi harm.
4 The end of humility [is] the fear of Jehovah, Riches, and honour, and life.
The ende of temperaunce is the drede of the Lord; richessis, and glorye, and lijf.
5 Thorns — snares [are] in the way of the perverse, Whoso is keeping his soul is far from them.
Armuris and swerdis ben in the weie of a weiward man; but the kepere of his soule goith awey fer fro tho.
6 Give instruction to a youth about his way, Even when he is old he turneth not from it.
It is a prouerbe, A yong wexynge man bisidis his weie, and whanne he hath wexe elde, he schal not go awei fro it.
7 The rich over the poor ruleth, And a servant [is] the borrower to the lender.
A riche man comaundith to pore men; and he that takith borewyng, is the seruaunt of the leenere.
8 Whoso is sowing perverseness reapeth sorrow, And the rod of his anger weareth out.
He that sowith wickidnes, schal repe yuels; and the yerde of his yre schal be endid.
9 The good of eye — he is blessed, For he hath given of his bread to the poor.
He that is redi to merci, schal be blessid; for of his looues he yaf to a pore man. He that yyueth yiftis, schal gete victorie and onour; forsothe he takith awei the soule of the takeris.
10 Cast out a scorner — and contention goeth out, And strife and shame cease.
Caste thou out a scornere, and strijf schal go out with hym; and causis and dispisyngis schulen ceesse.
11 Whoso is loving cleanness of heart, Grace [are] his lips, a king [is] his friend.
He that loueth the clennesse of herte, schal haue the kyng a freend, for the grace of hise lippis.
12 The eyes of Jehovah have kept knowledge, And He overthroweth the words of the treacherous.
The iyen of the Lord kepen kunnyng; and the wordis of a wickid man ben disseyued.
13 The slothful hath said, 'A lion [is] without, In the midst of the broad places I am slain.'
A slow man schal seie, A lioun is withoutforth; Y schal be slayn in the myddis of the stretis.
14 A deep pit [is] the mouth of strange women, The abhorred of Jehovah falleth there.
The mouth of an alien womman is a deep diche; he to whom the Lord is wrooth, schal falle in to it.
15 Folly is bound up in the heart of a youth, The rod of chastisement putteth it far from him.
Foli is boundun togidere in the herte of a child; and a yerde of chastisyng schal dryue it awey.
16 He is oppressing the poor to multiply to him, He is giving to the rich — only to want.
He that falsli chalengith a pore man, to encreesse hise owne richessis, schal yyue to a richere man, and schal be nedi.
17 Incline thine ear, and hear words of the wise, And thy heart set to my knowledge,
My sone, bowe doun thin eere, and here thou the wordis of wise men; but sette thou the herte to my techyng.
18 For they are pleasant when thou dost keep them in thy heart, They are prepared together for thy lips.
That schal be fair to thee, whanne thou hast kept it in thin herte, and it schal flowe ayen in thi lippis.
19 That thy trust may be in Jehovah, I caused thee to know to-day, even thou.
That thi trist be in the Lord; wherfor and Y haue schewid it to thee to dai.
20 Have I not written to thee three times With counsels and knowledge?
Lo! Y haue discryued it in thre maneres, in thouytis and kunnyng,
21 To cause thee to know the certainty of sayings of truth, To return sayings of truth to those sending thee.
that Y schulde schewe to thee the sadnesse and spechis of trewthe; to answere of these thingis to hem, that senten thee.
22 Rob not the poor because he [is] poor, And bruise not the afflicted in the gate.
Do thou not violence to a pore man, for he is pore; nethir defoule thou a nedi man in the yate.
23 For Jehovah pleadeth their cause, And hath spoiled the soul of their spoilers.
For the Lord schal deme his cause, and he schal turmente hem, that turmentiden his soule.
24 Shew not thyself friendly with an angry man, And with a man of fury go not in,
Nyle thou be freend to a wrathful man, nether go thou with a wood man;
25 Lest thou learn his paths, And have received a snare to thy soul.
lest perauenture thou lerne hise weies, and take sclaundir to thi soule.
26 Be not thou among those striking hands, Among sureties [for] burdens.
Nyle thou be with hem that oblischen her hondis, and that proferen hem silf borewis for dettis; for if he hath not wherof he schal restore,
27 If thou hast nothing to pay, Why doth he take thy bed from under thee?
what of cause is, that thou take awei hilyng fro thi bed?
28 Remove not a border of olden times, That thy fathers have made.
Go thou not ouer the elde markis, whiche thi faders han set.
29 Hast thou seen a man speedy in his business? Before kings he doth station himself, He stations not himself before obscure men!
Thou hast seyn a man smert in his werk; he schal stonde bifore kyngis, and he schal not be bifor vnnoble men.
