These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.
It is the glory of God to conceal a thing;
But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.
As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth,
So the heart of kings is unsearchable.
Take away the dross from the silver,
And there cometh forth a vessel for the refiner:
Take away the wicked from before the king,
And his throne shall be established in righteousness.
{Hebrew: Glorify not thyself.}Put not thyself forward in the presence of the king,
And stand not in the place of great men:
For better is it that it be said unto thee, Come up hither,
Than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the prince,
Whom thine eyes have seen.
Go not forth hastily to strive,
{Or, Lest it be said in the end thereof, What will thou do? When &c.}Lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof,
When thy neighbor hath put thee to shame.
Debate thy cause with thy neighbor himself,
{Or, But}And disclose not the secret of another;
Lest he that heareth it revile thee,
And thine infamy turn not away.
A word {Or, in due season}fitly spoken
Is like apples of gold in network of silver.
As {Or, a nose-ring}an ear-ring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold,
So is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.
As the cold of snow in the time of harvest,
So is a faithful messenger to them that send him;
For he refresheth the soul of his masters.
As clouds and wind without rain,
So is he that boasteth himself {Hebrew: in a gift of falsehood.}of his gifts falsely.
By long forbearing is a {Or, judge}ruler persuaded,
And a soft tongue breaketh the bone.
Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee,
Lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.
Let thy foot be seldom in thy neighbor's house,
Lest he be {Hebrew: full of thee.}weary of thee, and hate thee.
A man that beareth false witness against his neighbor
Is a maul, and a sword, and a sharp arrow.
Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble
Is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint.
As one that taketh off a garment in cold weather, and as vinegar upon soda,
So is he that singeth songs to a heavy heart.
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:
For thou wilt heap coals of fire upon his head,
And Jehovah will reward thee.
The north wind bringeth forth rain:
So doth a backbiting tongue an angry countenance.
It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop,
Than with a contentious woman in a wide house.
As cold waters to a {Or, weary}thirsty soul,
So is good news from a far country.
As a {Hebrew: trampled.}troubled fountain, and a corrupted spring,
So is a righteous man that {Or, is moved }giveth way before the wicked.
It is not good to eat much honey:
{Or, But for men to search out their own glory is glory The Hebrew text is obscure.}So for men to search out their own glory is grievous.
{Or, He that hath no rule over his spirit}He whose spirit is without restraint
Is like a city that is broken down and without walls.
Querverweise zu Sprüche 25,6 Spr 25,6
It is not good to eat much honey: {Or, But for men to search out their own glory is glory The Hebrew text is obscure.}So for men to search out their own glory is grievous.
Better it is to be of a lowly spirit with the {Or, meek}poor,Than to divide the spoil with the proud.
Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth;A stranger, and not thine own lips.
And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And {Or, on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all &c.?}for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for thee, and for all thy father's house?
And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the {Hebrew: tribes.}tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou to me after this manner?
And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the guest-chamber, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, who were about thirty persons.
And Samuel said, {Or, Though thou be little….art thou not head of the tribes of Israel?}Though thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel? And Jehovah anointed thee king over Israel;
And David said unto Saul, Who am I, and {Or, who are my kinsfolk}what is my life, or my father's family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?
But it came to pass at the time when Merab, Saul's daughter, should have been given to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Meholathite to wife.
And Michal, Saul's daughter, loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son-in-law a second time.
And Saul commanded his servants, saying, Commune with David secretly, and say, Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king's son-in-law.
And Saul's servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to be the king's son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?
Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, I took thee from the {Or, pasture}sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be {Or, leader}prince over my people, over Israel;
and I have been with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth.
And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as at the first,
and as from the day that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel; and I {Or, have caused}will cause thee to rest from all thine enemies. Moreover Jehovah telleth thee that Jehovah will make thee a house.
When thy days are fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, that shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
I will be his father, and he shall be my son: if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men;
but my lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
And thy house and thy kingdom shall be made sure for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
A Song of Ascents; of David.Jehovah, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty;Neither do I {Hebrew: walk.}exercise myself in great matters,Or in things too wonderful for me.
Then said I, Ah, Lord Jehovah! behold, I know not how to speak; for I am a child.
But Jehovah said unto me, Say not, I am a child; for {Or, on whatsoever errand}to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go, and whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak.
Be not afraid because of them; for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith Jehovah.
Then Jehovah put forth his hand, and touched my mouth; and Jehovah said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth:
see, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.
Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thou away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:
but prophesy not again any more at Beth-el; for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a royal house.
Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I {Or, am}was no prophet, neither {Or, am}was I {Or, one of the sons of the prophets See 1 Kings 20:35.}a prophet's son; but I {Or, am}was a herdsman, and a dresser of sycomore-trees:
and Jehovah took me from following the flock, and Jehovah said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.