Pregovori 2
1 Moj sin, če boš sprejel moje besede in moje zapovedi skril s seboj,
Oh, my son, that thou wouldst receive my words, And treasure up my precepts within thee;
2 tako da boš svoje uho nagnil k modrosti in svoje srce usmeril k razumevanju;
That thou wouldst apply thine ear to wisdom, And incline thy heart to understanding!
3 da, če kličeš za spoznanjem in svoj glas dvigaš za razumevanjem,
For if thou wilt call aloud to knowledge, And lift up thy voice to understanding, —
4 če jo iščeš kakor srebro in preiskuješ za njo kakor za skritimi zakladi,
If thou wilt seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures,
5 potem boš razumel Gospodov strah in našel spoznanje Boga.
Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God.
6 Kajti Gospod daje modrost. Iz njegovih ust prihajata spoznanje in razumevanje.
For the LORD giveth wisdom; From his mouth proceed knowledge and understanding:
7 Zdravo modrost shranjuje za pravičnega, on je majhen ščit tem, ki hodijo pošteno.
He layeth up safety for the righteous; He is a shield to them that walk uprightly:
8 Čuva steze sodbe in varuje pot svojih svetih.
He guardeth the paths of equity, And defendeth the way of his servants.
9 Potem boš razumel pravičnost, sodbo in nepristranskost, da, vsako dobro stezo.
Then shalt thou understand righteousness and equity And uprightness, yea, every good path.
10 Kadar v tvoje srce vstopa modrost in je spoznanje prijetno tvoji duši,
When wisdom entereth into thy heart, And knowledge is pleasant to thy soul,
11 te bo varovala preudarnost, razumevanje te bo ohranilo,
Discretion will guard thee, Understanding will preserve thee.
12 da te osvobodi pred potjo zlega človeka. Pred človekom, ki govori kljubovalne stvari,
It will deliver thee from the way of the wicked, From the men who speak perverse things;
13 ki zapušča steze poštenosti, da hodi po poteh teme,
Who forsake the paths of uprightness, To walk in the ways of darkness;
14 ki se veseli, da počne zlo in se razveseljuje v kljubovalnosti zlobnih,
Who rejoice in doing evil, And delight in the perverseness of the wicked;
15 katerega poti so sprijene, oni pa kljubujejo na svojih stezah.
Whose paths are crooked, And who are froward in their ways.
16 Da te osvobodi pred tujo žensko, celó pred tujko, ki laska s svojimi besedami,
It will deliver thee from the wife of another, From the stranger, who useth smooth words;
17 ki se odpoveduje vodniku svoje mladosti in pozablja zavezo svojega Boga.
Who forsaketh the friend of her youth, And forgetteth the covenant of her God.
18 Kajti njena hiša se nagiba k smrti in njene steze k mrtvim.
For her house sinketh down to Death, And her paths to the shades of the dead:
19 Nihče, ki gre k njej, se ne vrne ponovno niti se ne oprime stezá življenja.
None that go to her return again; They will not attain the paths of life.
20 Da boš lahko hodil po poti dobrih ljudi in se držal stezá pravičnih.
Therefore walk thou in the way of good men, And keep the paths of the righteous:
21 Kajti iskreni bodo prebivali v deželi in popolni bodo preostali v njej.
For the upright shall dwell in the land, And the righteous shall remain in it;
22 Toda zlobni bodo iztrebljeni z zemlje in prestopniki bodo izkoreninjeni iz nje.
But the wicked shall be cut off from the land, And transgressors shall be rooted out of it.
