Wine Is a Scoffer
1Wine is a scoffer, strong drink a brawler; whoever staggers under it is not wise. 2A king’s terror is the growl of a lion; whoever provokes him forfeits his life. 3It is an honor for a man to keep clear of a quarrel, but every senseless one breaks out fighting. 4The sluggard will not plow in autumn; at harvest he begs, and there is nothing. 5Counsel in a man’s heart is deep water, but a man of understanding draws it up. 6Many a man proclaims his own kindness, but a faithful man—who can find one? 7The righteous walks in his integrity; happy are his children after him. 8A king seated on the throne of judgment winnows out all evil with his eyes. 9Who can say, “I have kept my heart clean; I am pure of my sin”? 10Two kinds of weight, two kinds of measure—both alike are an abomination to Yahweh. 11Even a boy makes himself known by what he does, whether his conduct is pure and right.
The Eye and the Ear
12The ear that hears and the eye that sees—Yahweh made them both. 13Do not love sleep, or you will come to poverty; open your eyes and have bread to spare. 14“Bad, bad,” says the buyer—then he walks away and boasts. 15There is gold, and corals in plenty, but lips of knowledge are a rare jewel. 16Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger, and hold it in pledge for a foreign woman. 17Bread got by fraud is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth is full of gravel. 18Plans are made firm by counsel; wage war with guidance. 19A gossip goes about uncovering secrets; have nothing to do with a man whose lips are loose. 20Whoever curses his father or his mother—his lamp will go out in the depth of darkness. 21An inheritance grabbed at the start will not be blessed at the end. 22Do not say, “I will pay back the evil.” Wait for Yahweh, and he will save you. 23Two kinds of weight are an abomination to Yahweh, and dishonest scales are not good.
A Man’s Steps
24A man’s steps come from Yahweh—how then can anyone understand his own way? 25It is a snare to declare something holy on impulse and only afterward weigh the vow. 26A wise king winnows out the wicked and drives the threshing wheel over them. 27The breath of a man is the lamp of Yahweh, searching all the inner chambers of the belly. 28Kindness and faithfulness guard a king; by kindness he holds up his throne. 29The glory of young men is their strength, and the splendor of the old is gray hair. 30Bruising blows scour away evil, and beatings reach the inner chambers of the belly.
