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 24,29 Spr 24,29
Say not thou, I will recompense evil:Wait for Jehovah, and he will save thee.
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what then is this that thou hast done unto us? And he said unto them, As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.
If {Hebrew: he that hateth thee}thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat;And if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:
And Absalom spake unto Amnon neither good nor bad; for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.
And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheep-shearers in Baal-hazor, which is beside Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king's sons.
And Absalom came to the king, and said, Behold now, thy servant hath sheep-shearers; let the king, I pray thee, and his servants go with thy servant.
And the king said to Absalom, Nay, my son, let us not all go, lest we be burdensome unto thee. And he pressed him: howbeit he would not go, but blessed him.
Then said Absalom, If not, I pray thee, let my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said unto him, Why should he go with thee?
But Absalom pressed him, and he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him.
And Absalom commanded his servants, saying, Mark ye now, when Amnon's heart is merry with wine; and when I say unto you, Smite Amnon, then kill him; fear not; have not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant.
For thou wilt heap coals of fire upon his head,And Jehovah will reward thee.
but I say unto you, Resist not {Or, evil}him that is evil: but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
And if any man would go to law with thee, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.
And whosoever shall {Greek: impress.}compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.
Ye have heard that it was said, {Leviticus 19:18}Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy:
but I say unto you, Love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you;
Render to no man evil for evil. Take thought for things honorable in the sight of all men.
If it be possible, as much as in you lieth, be at peace with all men.
Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto {Or, wrath}the wrath of God: for it is written, {Deuteronomy 32:35}Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord.
But {(Proverbs 25:21 f.)}if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
See that none render unto any one evil for evil; but always follow after that which is good, one toward another, and toward all.