Proverbs 23:17-23
Expanded Bible
17 Don’t let your heart envy sinners [Ps. 73],
but always ·respect [fear; 1:7] the Lord.
18 Then you will have a future,
and your ·wishes [hopes] will ·come true [L not be cut off].
19 Listen, my child, and be wise.
Keep your ·mind on what is right [L heart straight on the path].
20 Don’t ·drink too much [get drunk on] wine
or ·eat too much food [L stuff yourself with meat].
21 Those who ·drink [get drunk] and ·eat too much [stuff themselves] ·become poor [lose possessions].
They ·sleep too much [or are in a stupor] and end up wearing rags.
22 Listen to your father, who ·gave you life [begot you],
and do not ·forget [despise] your mother when she is old.
23 ·Learn [L Buy; Acquire] the truth and never ·reject [L sell] it.
·Get [Buy; Acquire] wisdom, ·self-control [instruction; discipline], and understanding.
Proverbs 23:17-23
Amplified Bible
17
Do not let your heart envy sinners [who live godless lives and have no hope of salvation],
But [continue to] live in the [reverent, worshipful] fear of the Lord day by day.
18
Surely there is a future [and a reward],
And your hope and expectation will not be cut off.
19
Listen, my son, and be wise,
And direct your heart in the way [of the Lord].
20
Do not associate with heavy drinkers of wine,
Or with gluttonous eaters of meat,(A)
21
For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty,
And the drowsiness [of overindulgence] will clothe one with rags.
22
Listen to your father, who sired you,
And do not despise your mother when she is old.
23
[a]Buy truth, and do not sell it;
Get wisdom and instruction and understanding.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:23 The ancient rabbis routinely assumed “truth” to refer to the Torah (Law), and they interpreted the first part of this command to mean that a student should pay a teacher to teach him the Torah if he can find no one to teach him for free. As for the second part, they said that if the student had to pay to learn, he should not view this as grounds to charge for teaching others, but should teach the Torah for free.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
