24
Do Not Envy
Saying 20
1 Do not envy wicked men
or desire their company;
2 for their hearts devise violence,
and their lips declare trouble.
Saying 21
3 By wisdom a house is built
and by understanding it is established;
4 through knowledge its rooms are filled
with every precious and beautiful treasure.
Saying 22
5 A wise man is strong,* LXX The wise are mightier than the strong
and a man of knowledge enhances his strength.
6 Only with sound guidance should you wage war,
and victory lies in a multitude of counselors.
Saying 23
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool;
he does not open his mouth in the meeting place.
Saying 24
8 He who plots evil
will be called a schemer.
9 A foolish scheme is sin,
and a mocker is detestable to men.
Saying 25
10 If you faint in the day of distress,
how small is your strength!
11 Rescue those being led away to death,
and restrain those stumbling toward the slaughter.
12 If you say, “Behold, we did not know about this,”
does not He who weighs hearts consider it?
Does not the One who guards your life know?
Will He not repay a man according to his deeds?
Saying 26
13 Eat honey, my son, for it is good,
and the honeycomb is sweet to your taste.
14 Know therefore that wisdom is sweet to your soul.
If you find it, there is a future for you,
and your hope will never be cut off.
Saying 27
15 Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, near the dwelling of the righteous;
do not destroy his resting place.
16 For though a righteous man may fall seven times, he still gets up;
but the wicked stumble in bad times.
Saying 28
17 Do not gloat when your enemy falls,
and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,
18 or the LORD will see and disapprove,
and turn His wrath away from him.
Saying 29
19 Do not fret over evildoers,
and do not be envious of the wicked.
20 For the evil man has no future;
the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.
Saying 30
21 My son, fear the LORD and the king,
and do not associate with the rebellious.
22 For they will bring sudden destruction.
Who knows what ruin they can bring?
Further Sayings of the Wise
23 These also are sayings of the wise:
To show partiality in judgment
is not good.
24 Whoever tells the guilty, “You are innocent”—
peoples will curse him, and nations will denounce him;
25 but it will go well with those who convict the guilty,
and rich blessing will come upon them.
26 An honest answer given
is like a kiss on the lips.
27 Complete your outdoor work and prepare your field;
after that, you may build your house.
28 Do not testify against your neighbor without cause,
and do not deceive with your lips.
29 Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me;
I will repay the man according to his work.”
30 I went past the field of a slacker
and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment.
31 Thorns had grown up everywhere,
thistles had covered the ground,
and the stone wall was broken down.
32 I observed and took it to heart;
I looked and received instruction:
33 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
34 and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and need like a bandit.