Mmebusɛm 20
1 Nsa yɛ ɔfɛwdifo na nsaden yɛ ɔtɔkwapɛfo; na obiara a nsa bɛma wafom kwan no nyɛ onyansafo.
Drinking a lot of wine or [other] strong drinks causes people to start fighting; it is foolish to become drunk/intoxicated.
2 Ɔhene abufuwhyew te sɛ gyata mmubomu; na nea ɔhyɛ no abufuw no de nkwa twa so.
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.
3 Ɛyɛ onipa anuonyam sɛ ɔbɛkwati akasakasa, nanso ogyimifo biara pɛ ntɔkwaw.
[People] respect those who stay away from disputes/arguments; foolish people [love to] quarrel.
4 Onihawfo mfuntum nʼasase wɔ ne bere mu; enti edu twabere a onya hwee.
[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.
5 Onipa koma botae yɛ asubun, nanso nea ɔwɔ nhumu no twetwe ma epue.
[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.
6 Nnipa dodow no ara ka se wɔwɔ ɔdɔ a ɛnsa da, na hena na obetumi ahu ɔnokwafo?
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.
7 Ɔtreneeni bu ɔbra kronkron; nhyira nka ne mma a wɔba wɔ nʼakyi.
If parents conduct their lives as they should, [God] blesses their children (OR, their children are very happy/fortunate).
8 Sɛ ɔhene tena nʼahengua so bu atɛn a, ɔde nʼani huhuw bɔne nyinaa so gu.
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.
9 Hena na obetumi aka se, “Mapra me koma mu; meyɛ kronkron na minni bɔne?”
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).”
10 Nkaribo ne susudua a ɛnyɛ papa no, Awurade kyi nʼabien no nyinaa.
Yahweh detests people who use weights that are not right and measures that are not correct.
11 Mpo wɔnam abofra nketewa nneyɛe so hu wɔn, saa ara na ne suban yɛ kronkron ne papa no.
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].
12 Aso a wɔde te asɛm ne ani a wɔde hu ade, Awurade na wayɛ nʼabien no nyinaa.
Two of the things that Yahweh has created [for us] are ears to hear things and eyes to see things.
13 Mma nna nyɛ wo dɛ, na woanni hia; nna, na wubenya aduan ama abu so.
If you want to sleep [all the time], you will become poor; if you stay awake [and work], you will have plenty of food.
14 Adetɔni ka se, “Enye, enye!” nanso sɛ ɔkɔ a ɔde nea watɔ no hoahoa ne ho.
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].
15 Sika kɔkɔɔ wɔ hɔ, na nhene pa nso abu so, na ano a ɛka nimdeɛ nsɛm yɛ ɔbohemaa a ɛho yɛ na.
Gold and precious stones are [valuable], but wise words [MTY] are more valuable.
16 Fa obi a odi ɔhɔho akagyinamu atade; sɛ ɔregyina ɔbea huhufo akyi a, fa si awowa.
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.
17 Aduan a wonya no ɔkwan bɔne so no yɛ onipa anom dɛ, nanso akyiri no, ɛdan mmosea wɔ nʼanom.
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.
18 Pɛ afotu yɛ wo nhyehyɛe; sɛ wutu ɔsa a, nya ho akwankyerɛ.
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.
19 Osekuni da kokoamsɛm adi; enti twe wo ho fi onipa a ɔkasa bebree ho.
Those who go around telling gossip are [always] telling secrets to [others]; so stay away from people who foolishly talk [too much].
20 Sɛ obi dome nʼagya anaasɛ ne na a, wobedum ne kanea wɔ sum kabii mu.
If someone curses his father or his mother, his life will be ended, [just] like a lamp is extinguished.
21 Agyapade a wɔpere ho nya no, renyɛ nhyira akyiri no.
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.
22 Nka se, “Metua wo saa bɔne yi so ka!” Twɛn Awurade, na obegye wo.
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]).
23 Awurade kyi nkaribo a ɛnyɛ papa, na asisi nsania nso nsɔ nʼani.
Yahweh detests [those who use] dishonest scales and weights that are not accurate/correct.
24 Awurade na ɔkyerɛ onipa anammɔntu. Na ɛbɛyɛ dɛn na obi bɛte nʼankasa akwan ase?
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]
25 Obi pɛ ntɛm hyɛ bɔ, ansa na wadwene ho a, osum ne ho afiri.
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.
26 Ɔhene nyansafo hu amumɔyɛfo; na ɔde awiyam afiri hankare fa wɔn so.
Wise kings find out [MET] which people have done what is wrong, and they punish them very severely [IDM].
27 Awurade kanea hwehwɛ onipa honhom mu, ɛhwehwɛ ne mu baabiara.
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).
28 Ɔdɔ ne nokwaredi bɔ ɔhene ho ban; nʼadɔe ma nʼahengua tim.
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.
29 Mmerante anuonyam ne wɔn ahoɔden, tidwen nso ne mmasiriwa anuonyam.
We honor/admire young people because they are strong, but we respect [MTY] old people more because they are wise.
30 Ɔhwe ne apirakuru hohoro amumɔyɛ, mmaatwa tew koma mu.
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.
