Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler;
And whosoever {Or, reeleth}erreth thereby is not wise.
The terror of a king is as the roaring of a lion:
He that {Or, angereth himself against him}provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own {Hebrew: soul.}life.
It is an honor for a man to {Or, cease}keep aloof from strife;
But every fool will be quarrelling.
The sluggard will not plow by reason of the winter;
{Or, Therefore when he seeketh in harvest, there shall be nothing}Therefore he shall beg in harvest, and have nothing.
Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water;
But a man of understanding will draw it out.
Most men will proclaim every one his own kindness;
But a faithful man who can find?
A righteous man that walketh in his integrity,
Blessed are his children after him.
A king that sitteth on the throne of judgment
{Or, Winnoweth}Scattereth away all evil with his eyes.
Who can say, I have made my heart clean,
I am pure from my sin?
{Hebrew: A stone and a stone, an ephah and an ephah.}Diverse weights, and diverse measures,
Both of them alike are an abomination to Jehovah.
Even a child maketh himself known by his doings,
Whether his work be pure, and whether it be right.
The hearing ear, and the seeing eye,
Jehovah hath made even both of them.
Love not sleep, let thou come to poverty;
Open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.
It is bad, it is bad, saith the buyer;
But when he is gone his way, then he boasteth.
There is gold, and abundance of rubies;
But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.
Take his garment that is surety for a stranger;
And {Or, take a pledge of him}hold him in pledge that is surety for {Another reading is, a foreign woman.}foreigners.
Bread of falsehood is sweet to a man;
But afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel.
Every purpose is established by counsel;
And by wise guidance make thou war.
He that goeth about as a tale-bearer revealeth secrets;
Therefore company not with him that openeth wide his lips.
Whoso curseth his father or his mother,
His lamp shall be put out in blackness of darkness.
An inheritance may be gotten hastily at the beginning;
But the end thereof shall not be blessed.
Say not thou, I will recompense evil:
Wait for Jehovah, and he will save thee.
Diverse weights are an abomination to Jehovah;
And {Hebrew: a balance of deceit.}a false balance is not good.
A man's goings are of Jehovah;
How then can man understand his way?
It is a snare to a man {Or, rashly to utter holy words Or, to devour that which is holy}rashly to say, It is holy,
And after vows to make inquiry.
A wise king winnoweth the wicked,
And bringeth the threshing- wheel over them.
The spirit of man is the lamp of Jehovah,
Searching all his innermost parts.
Kindness and truth preserve the king;
And {Or, he upholdeth his throne}his throne is upholden by kindness.
The glory of young men is their strength;
And the beauty of old men is the hoary head.
Stripes that wound cleanse away evil;
And strokes reach the innermost parts.
Querverweise zu Sprüche 20,21 Spr 20,21
Weary not thyself to be rich;Cease {Or, by reason of thine own understanding}from thine own wisdom.
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children;And the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the righteous.
A faithful man shall abound with blessings;But he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be unpunished.
He that augmenteth his substance by interest and increase,Gathereth it for him that hath pity on the poor.
He that hath an evil eye hasteth after riches,And knoweth not that want shall come upon him.
Though he heap up silver as the dust,And prepare raiment as the clay;
But they that are minded to be rich fall into a temptation and a snare and many foolish and hurtful lusts, such as drown men in destruction and perdition.
He may prepare it, but the just shall put it on,And the innocent shall divide the silver.
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting {Or, riddle}proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and that ladeth himself with pledges!
I will cause it to go forth, saith Jehovah of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name; and it shall abide in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.
If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith Jehovah of hosts, then will I send the curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings; yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart.