Ecclesiastes 10
1 Muscae morientes perdunt suavitatem unguenti. Pretiosior est sapientia et gloria, parva et ad tempus stultitia.
Dead flies can make perfumed oil smell bad. Likewise a little foolishness outweighs great wisdom and honor.
2 Cor sapientis in dextera eius, et cor stulti in sinistra illius.
The mind of the wise person chooses the right side, but the mind of the fool goes left!
3 Sed et in via stultus ambulans, cum ipse insipiens sit, omnes stultos aestimat.
Just the way that fools walk down the road shows they have no sense, making clear to everyone their stupidity.
4 Si spiritus potestatem habentis ascenderit super te, locum tuum ne demiseris: quia curatio faciet cessare peccata maxima.
If your superior gets angry with you, don't give up and leave. If you stay calm even bad mistakes can be resolved.
5 Est malum quod vidi sub sole, quasi per errorem egrediens a facie principis:
I also realized there's another evil here on earth: rulers make a big mistake
6 positum stultum in dignitate sublimi, et divites sedere deorsum.
when they put fools in high positions, while those who are richly qualified are put in low positions.
7 Vidi servos in equis: et principes ambulantes super terram quasi servos.
I've seen slaves riding on horseback, while princes walk on the ground like slaves.
8 Qui fodit foveam, incidet in eam: et qui dissipat sepem, mordebit eum coluber.
If you dig a pit, you could fall in. If you knock down a wall, you could be bitten by a snake.
9 Qui transfert lapides, affligetur in eis: et qui scindit ligna, vulnerabitur ab eis.
If you quarry stone, you could be injured. If you split logs, you could be hurt.
10 Si retusum fuerit ferrum, et hoc non ut prius, sed hebetatum fuerit, multo labore exacuetur, et post industriam sequetur sapientia.
If your ax is blunt and you don't sharpen it, you have to use a lot more force. Conclusion: being wise brings good results.
11 Si mordeat serpens in silentio, nihil eo minus habet qui occulte detrahit.
If the snake bites the snake charmer before it's charmed, there's no benefit to the snake charmer!
12 Verba oris sapientis gratia: et labia insipientis praecipitabunt eum:
Wise words are beneficial, but fools destroy themselves by what they say.
13 Initium verborum eius stultitia, et novissimum oris illius error pessimus.
Fools begin by saying foolish things, and end up talking evil nonsense.
14 Stultus verba multiplicat. Ignorat homo quid ante se fuerit: et quid post se futurum sit, quis ei poterit indicare?
Fools talk on and on, however no one knows what's going to happen, so who can say what the future holds?
15 Labor stultorum affliget eos, qui nesciunt in urbem pergere.
Work makes fools so worn out they can't achieve anything.
16 Vae tibi terra, cuius rex puer est, et cuius principes mane comedunt.
You're in trouble if the king of your country is young, and if your leaders are busy feasting from early morning.
17 Beata terra, cuius rex nobilis est, et cuius principes vescuntur in tempore suo ad reficiendum, et non ad luxuriam.
You're fortunate if your king comes from a noble family, and your leaders feast at the proper time to give themselves energy, and not to get drunk.
18 In pigritiis humiliabitur contignatio, et in infirmitate manuum perstillabit domus.
Lazy people let their roofs collapse; idle people don't repair their leaky houses.
19 In risum faciunt panem, et vinum ut epulentur viventes: et pecuniae obediunt omnia.
A good meal brings pleasure; wine makes life pleasant; money provides for all needs.
20 In cogitatione tua regi ne detrahas, et in secreto cubiculi tui ne maledixeris diviti: quia et aves caeli portabunt vocem tuam, et qui habet pennas annunciabit sententiam.
Don't talk badly about the king, not even in your thoughts. Don't talk badly about leaders, even in the privacy of your bedroom. A bird may hear what you say and fly away to tell them.
