Be not thou envious against evil men;
Neither desire to be with them:
For their heart studieth oppression,
And their lips talk of mischief.
Through wisdom is a house builded;
And by understanding it is established;
And by knowledge are the chambers filled
With all precious and pleasant riches.
A wise man {Hebrew: is in strength.}is strong;
Yea, a man of knowledge {Hebrew: strengtheneth might.}increaseth might.
For by wise guidance thou shalt make thy war;
And in the multitude of counsellors there is {Or, victory}safety.
Wisdom is too high for a fool:
He openeth not his mouth in the gate.
He that deviseth to do evil,
Men shall call him a mischief-maker.
The thought of foolishness is sin;
And the scoffer is an abomination to men.
If thou faint in the day of adversity,
Thy strength is small.
Deliver them that are carried away unto death,
And those that are {Hebrew: tottering to the slaughter.}ready to be slain {Or, forbear thou not to deliver}see that thou hold back.
If thou sayest, Behold, we knew not {Or, this man}this;
Doth not he that weigheth the hearts consider it?
And he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it?
And shall not he render to every man according to his work?
My son, eat thou honey, for it is good;
And the droppings of the honeycomb, which are sweet to thy taste:
So shalt thou know wisdom to be unto thy soul;
If thou hast found it, then shall there be a reward,
And thy hope shall not be cut off.
Lay not wait, {Or, as a wicked man}O wicked man, against the {Or, pasture}habitation of the righteous;
Destroy not his {Or, fold}resting-place:
For a righteous man falleth seven times, and riseth up again;
But the wicked are overthrown by calamity.
Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth,
And let not thy heart be glad when he is overthrown;
Lest Jehovah see it, and it displease him,
And he turn away his wrath from him.
Fret not thyself because of evil-doers;
Neither be thou envious at the wicked:
For there shall be no reward to the evil man;
The lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
My son, fear thou Jehovah and the king;
And company not with them that are given to change:
For their calamity shall rise suddenly;
And the destruction {Or, of their years}from them both, who knoweth it?
These also are sayings of the wise.
To have respect of persons in judgment is not good.
He that saith unto the wicked,
Thou art righteous,
Peoples shall curse him, nations shall abhor him;
But to them that rebuke him shall be delight,
And a good blessing shall come upon them.
He {Or, kisseth with the lips}kisseth the lips
Who giveth a right answer.
Prepare thy work without,
And make it ready for thee in the field;
And afterwards build thy house.
Be not a witness against thy neighbor without cause;
{Hebrew: And wouldest thou deceive with thy lips?}And deceive not with thy lips.
Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me;
I will render to the man according to his work.
I went by the field of the sluggard,
And by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns,
The face thereof was covered with {Or, wild vetches}nettles,
And the stone wall thereof was broken down.
Then I beheld, and considered well;
I saw, and received instruction:
Yet a little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to sleep;
So shall thy poverty come as a robber,
And thy want as an armed man.
Querverweise zu Sprüche 24,24 Spr 24,24
He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the righteous,Both of them alike are an abomination to Jehovah.
He that withholdeth grain, the people shall curse him;But blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it.
Thou shalt not wrest the justice due to thy poor in his cause.
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack;But he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
Slander not a servant unto his master,Lest he curse thee, and thou be held guilty.
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
And they shall go forth, and look upon the dead bodies of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.
that justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
They have healed also the {Or, breach}hurt of {Another reading is, the daughter of my people, as in chapter 8:11, 21}my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall possess them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
And they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
Because with lies ye have grieved the heart of the righteous, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, {Or, by promising him life}and be saved alive: