20 If you drink too much wine or strong drink,
you do stupid things and you fight.
It is not wise to become drunk.
2 When the king is angry, he is as dangerous as a lion that roars.
If you make him angry, you will lose your life.
3 If you keep away from arguments, you will receive honour.
Only fools love to quarrel.
4 A lazy farmer does not plough his fields in winter.
As a result, he has nothing to eat when harvest time arrives.
5 A person's thoughts are like deep waters.
But a wise person can bring them into the open.
6 Many people say that you can trust them.
But it is difficult to find a truly faithful person.
7 Righteous people live in an honest way.
Their children will also be happy.
8 When a king sits on his throne as judge,
he sees what is evil and he removes it.
9 Nobody can say, ‘My thoughts are completely pure.
There is no sin in me.’
10 If people use false weights and measures,
the Lord hates anything like that.
11 Even children show what they are like by the things that they do.
You can see if they are honest and good.
12 The Lord has made us with ears to hear with and eyes to see with.
They are both his gift to us.
13 If you love to sleep too much, you will become poor.
Keep awake so that you have food on the table!
14 When somebody is buying something, he says, ‘It is worth nothing!’
But later he boasts about the cheap price!
15 Words that help you to learn things are very valuable.
They are more valuable than gold or jewels.
16 If someone promises to pay the debts of a stranger,
take his coat as a guarantee that he will pay.
17 If you cheat someone to get food to eat,
it may seem good when you taste it.
But soon it will be like sand in your mouth.
18 Things will go well if you receive good advice.
If you want to fight a war, ask wise people to be your advisors.
19 Keep away from people who talk too much.
They will tell everybody about your secrets.
20 If you insult your parents, your life will quickly finish,
like a lamp that suddenly goes out
and leaves you in complete darkness.
21 If you receive riches too early in life,
it will do you no good in the end.
22 Do not say, ‘I will pay you back for the evil thing you did to me.’
Trust the Lord to make it right for you.
23 The Lord hates traders who use false weights.
He hates scales that do not weigh things properly.
24 The Lord chooses the way that we take through life.
We cannot understand what will happen to us.
25 Do not be too quick to promise to give something to God.
If you want to change your mind, you have made a trap for yourself.
26 A wise king can pick out wicked people,
and he will punish them as they deserve.
27 The Lord makes our human spirit like his lamp inside us.
It shows us what we are really like.
28 A king should rule with faithful love and truth.
If he is honest and fair, he will continue to rule.
29 Young men boast about their strength.
Old men are proud of their beautiful grey hair.
30 Painful punishment stops you from doing evil things.
It makes you change to a better way of life.
20 Wine and beer make people lose control; they get loud and stumble around. And that is foolish.
2 An angry king is like a roaring lion. If you make him angry, you could lose your life.
3 People who refuse to argue deserve respect. Any fool can start an argument.
4 Some people are too lazy to plant seeds. So at harvest time, they look for food and find nothing.
5 Getting information from someone can be like getting water from a deep well. If you are smart, you will draw it out.
6 You might call many people your “friends,” but it is hard to find someone who can really be trusted.
7 When people live good, honest lives, their children are blessed.
8 When the king sits and judges people, he must look carefully to separate the evil from the good.
9 Can anyone say their heart is pure? Who can say, “I am free from sin”?
10 The Lord hates for people to use the wrong weights and measures to cheat others.
11 Even children show what they are like by the things they do. You can see if their actions are pure and right.
12 It was the Lord who gave us eyes for seeing and ears for hearing.
13 If you love to sleep, you will become poor. Use your time working and you will have plenty to eat.
14 When buying something, people always say, “It’s no good. It costs too much.” Then they go away and tell others what a good deal they got.
15 The right knowledge can bring you gold, pearls, and other expensive things.
16 If someone promises to pay the debt of a stranger, get a coat or something from him to keep until the debt is paid.
17 It may seem to be a good thing to get something by cheating, but in the end, it will be worth nothing.
18 Get good advice when you make your plans. Before you start a war, find good advisors.
19 You cannot trust someone who would talk about things told in private. So don’t be friends with someone who talks too much.
20 Those who would curse their father or mother are like a lamp that goes out on the darkest night.
21 If your wealth was easy to get, it will not be worth much to you. [ a ]
22 Don’t ever say, “I’ll pay them back for what they did to me!” Wait for the Lord . He will make things right.
23 The Lord hates for people to use the wrong weights to cheat others. It is wrong to use scales that are not accurate.
24 The Lord guides our steps, and we never know where he will lead us. [ b ]
25 Think carefully before you promise to give something to God. Later, you might wish you had not made that promise.
26 Like a farmer who separates wheat from the chaff, a wise king will decide who is wrong and crush them.
27 Your spirit is like a lamp to the Lord . He is able to see into your deepest parts. [ c ]
28 A king who is loyal and true will keep his power. Loyalty will keep his kingdom strong.
29 We admire a young man for his strength, but we respect an old man for his gray hair.
30 A beating can remove evil and make you completely clean. [ d ]
20 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
2 The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul.
3 It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling.
4 The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.
5 Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out.
6 Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?
7 The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.
8 A king that sitteth in the throne of judgment scattereth away all evil with his eyes.
9 Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?
10 Divers weights, and divers measures, both of them are alike abomination to the Lord .
11 Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.
12 The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the Lord hath made even both of them.
13 Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.
14 It is naught, it is naught, saith the buyer: but when he is gone his way, then he boasteth.
15 There is gold, and a multitude of rubies: but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.
16 Take his garment that is surety for a stranger: and take a pledge of him for a strange woman.
17 Bread of deceit is sweet to a man; but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel.
18 Every purpose is established by counsel: and with good advice make war.
19 He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips.
20 Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.
21 An inheritance may be gotten hastily at the beginning; but the end thereof shall not be blessed.
22 Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the Lord , and he shall save thee.
23 Divers weights are an abomination unto the Lord ; and a false balance is not good.
24 Man's goings are of the Lord ; how can a man then understand his own way?
25 It is a snare to the man who devoureth that which is holy, and after vows to make enquiry.
26 A wise king scattereth the wicked, and bringeth the wheel over them.
27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord , searching all the inward parts of the belly.
28 Mercy and truth preserve the king: and his throne is upholden by mercy.
29 The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the grey head.
30 The blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil: so do stripes the inward parts of the belly.
20 ( A ) Wine is a mocker, ( B ) intoxicating drink a brawler,
And whoever [ a ] is intoxicated by it is not wise.
2 The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion;
One who provokes him to anger [ b ] ( C ) forfeits his own life.
3 ( D ) Avoiding strife is an honor for a person,
But any fool will [ c ] quarrel.
4 The [ d ] ( E ) lazy one does not plow after the autumn,
So he [ e ] begs during the harvest and has nothing.
5 A plan in the heart of a person is like deep water,
But a person of understanding draws it out.
6 Many a person ( F ) proclaims his own loyalty,
But who can find a ( G ) trustworthy person?
7 A righteous person who ( H ) walks in his integrity—
( I ) How blessed are his sons after him.
8 ( J ) A king who sits on the throne of justice
[ f ] Disperses all evil with his eyes.
9 ( K ) Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart,
I am pure from my sin”?
10 [ g ] ( L ) Differing weights and differing measures,
Both of them are abominable to the Lord .
11 It is by his deeds that a boy [ h ] ( M ) distinguishes himself,
If his conduct is pure and right.
12 The hearing ( N ) ear and the seeing eye,
The Lord has made both of them.
13 ( O ) Do not love sleep, or you will become poor;
Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with [ i ] food.
14 “Bad, bad,” says the buyer,
But when he goes his way, then he boasts.
15 There is gold, and an abundance of [ j ] jewels;
But lips of knowledge are a more precious thing.
16 Take his garment when he becomes guarantor for a stranger;
And for foreigners, seize a pledge from him.
17 ( P ) Bread obtained by a lie is sweet to a person,
But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.
18 Prepare ( Q ) plans by consultation,
And ( R ) make war by wise guidance.
19 One who ( S ) goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets;
Therefore do not associate with [ k ] ( T ) a gossip.
20 He who ( U ) curses his father or his mother,
His ( V ) lamp will go out in time of darkness.
21 An inheritance gained in a hurry at the beginning
Will not be blessed in the end.
22 ( W ) Do not say, “I will repay evil”;
( X ) Wait for the Lord , and He will save you.
23 [ l ] ( Y ) Differing weights are an abomination to the Lord ,
And a [ m ] ( Z ) false scale is not good.
24 ( AA ) A man’s steps are ordained by the Lord ;
How then can a person understand his way?
25 It is a trap for a person to say carelessly, “It is holy!”
And ( AB ) after the vows to make inquiry.
26 A ( AC ) wise king scatters the wicked,
And [ n ] drives a ( AD ) threshing wheel over them.
27 The [ o ] ( AE ) spirit of a person is the lamp of the Lord ,
Searching all the [ p ] innermost parts of his being.
28 [ q ] Loyalty and ( AF ) truth watch over the king,
And he upholds his throne by [ r ] loyalty.
29 The glory of young men is their strength,
And the [ s ] ( AG ) honor of old men is their gray hair.
30 ( AH ) Bruising wounds clean away evil,
And blows cleanse the [ t ] innermost parts.
20 Wine ( A ) is a mocker ( B ) and beer a brawler;
whoever is led astray ( C ) by them is not wise. ( D )
2 A king’s wrath strikes terror like the roar of a lion; ( E )
those who anger him forfeit their lives. ( F )
5 The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, ( K )
but one who has insight draws them out.
6 Many claim to have unfailing love,
but a faithful person who can find? ( L )
10 Differing weights and differing measures—
the Lord detests them both. ( S )
11 Even small children are known by their actions,
so is their conduct really pure ( T ) and upright?
12 Ears that hear and eyes that see—
the Lord has made them both. ( U )
13 Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; ( V )
stay awake and you will have food to spare.
14 “It’s no good, it’s no good!” says the buyer—
then goes off and boasts about the purchase.
15 Gold there is, and rubies in abundance,
but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.
16 Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;
hold it in pledge ( W ) if it is done for an outsider. ( X )
18 Plans are established by seeking advice;
so if you wage war, obtain guidance. ( AA )
19 A gossip betrays a confidence; ( AB )
so avoid anyone who talks too much.
20 If someone curses their father or mother, ( AC )
their lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness. ( AD )
21 An inheritance claimed too soon
will not be blessed at the end.
22 Do not say, “I’ll pay you back for this wrong!” ( AE )
Wait for the Lord , and he will avenge you. ( AF )
23 The Lord detests differing weights,
and dishonest scales do not please him. ( AG )
24 A person’s steps are directed ( AH ) by the Lord . ( AI )
How then can anyone understand their own way? ( AJ )
25 It is a trap to dedicate something rashly
and only later to consider one’s vows. ( AK )
26 A wise king winnows out the wicked;
he drives the threshing wheel over them. ( AL )
27 The human spirit is [ a ] the lamp of the Lord ( AM )
that sheds light on one’s inmost being. ( AN )
29 The glory of young men is their strength,
gray hair the splendor of the old. ( AQ )
