Pwovèb 27
1 Pa vin ògeye sou bagay demen, paske ou pa konnen kisa yon jou ka pote.
Do not boast about [what you will do] tomorrow, because you do not know what will happen [PRS] on any day.
2 Kite yon lòt moun ba ou lwanj, e pa fè ak pwòp bouch ou. Kite l fèt pa yon ou pa konnen, e pa de pwòp lèv ou.
Do not praise yourself [MTY, PRS]; allow others to praise you. If someone else praises you, that is okay.
3 Yon gwo wòch lou ak sab gen pwa; men moun ensanse k ap anmède a pi lou pase yo tou de.
[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 Fachez rèd fè move. Kòlè se yon inondasyon. Men se kilès ki ka kanpe devan jalouzi.
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 Repwòch ki klè pi bon pase lanmou ki kache.
It is better to correct someone openly than to show that you l don’t love that person [by not correcting him].
6 Fidèl se blese a yon zanmi; men twonpri se bo a yon ènmi.
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 Moun vant plen rayi siwo myèl; men pou sila ki grangou, nenpòt bagay anmè vin dous.
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 Tankou yon zwazo ki egare nich li, se konsa yon nonm ki mache lwen kay li.
Anyone who wanders [far] from his home/family is like [SIM] a bird that is far from its nest.
9 Lwil ak pafen fè kè kontan; se konsa konsèy a yon nonm dous pou zanmi li.
[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 Pa abandone pwòp zanmi ou, ni zanmi a papa ou. Pa ale lakay frè ou nan jou malè ou. Pi bon se yon vwazen toupre pase yon frè ki byen lwen.
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 Sèvi ak sajès, fis mwen, e fè kè m kontan pou m kab reponn sila ki repwoche mwen an.
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 Yon nonm ki saj wè mal e li kache kò l; men sila ki fou a avanse pou peye pri a.
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 Pran vètman li lè l sèvi garanti pou yon enkoni, e pou yon fanm adiltè, kenbe mesye a menm kon garanti a.
[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 Sila ki beni zanmi li ak gwo vwa bonè maten an, sa va rekonèt kon madichon pou li.
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 Dlo k ap degoute san rete nan jou gwo lapli avèk fanm k ap fè kont san rete sòti menm jan:
[Having] a wife that is [constantly] nagging is as [bad as listening] to rain continually dripping on a rainy day.
16 Sila ki ta anpeche fanm sa a, vle anpeche van, oswa sezi lwil ak men dwat li.
[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 Se fè ki file fè; se konsa yon nonm file zanmi l.
[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 Sila ki pran swen pye fig la va manje fwi li, e sila ki pran swen mèt li a va jwenn lonè.
Those who take care of fig trees will have figs to eat; [similarly], servants who protect their master will be honored [by him].
19 Tankou nan dlo, figi reflete figi, konsa kè a yon nonm reflete lentansyon l.
[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 Po fonn nan se pou ajan, e founo se pou lò; konsa, yon nom rafine pa lwanj ke l resevwa.
[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 Malgre ou ta foule yon moun fou ak pilon jiskaske li fè poud, tankou sereyal byen kraze a, foli li p ap sòti sou li.
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 Konnen byen kondisyon a bann ou yo, e okipe twoupo ou yo;
Take good care of your flocks of sheep and herds of cattle,
24 paske richès pa la pou tout tan, ni yon kouwòn pa rete pandan tout jenerasyon.
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 Zèb yo vin disparèt, e sa ki nèf la vin pouse, e zèb mòn yo fin ranmase.
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 Jenn mouton yo va sèvi kon vètman ou, e kabrit yo va mennen pri a yon chan.
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 Lèt kabrit ap kont pou manje ou, pou manje tout lakay ou, ak soutyen pou tout sèvant lakay ou yo.
and you will get enough milk from the [other] goats for you and your family and your female servants.
