箴言 11
Chinese New Version (Simplified)
行事完全为 神喜悦
11 诡诈的天平是耶和华所厌恶的，
准确的法码是他所喜悦的。
2 傲慢来，羞辱也来；
谦卑的人却有智慧。
3 正直人的纯正必引导他们自己，
奸诈人的奸恶却毁灭自己。
4 在 神发怒的日子，财物毫无益处；
唯有公义能救人脱离死亡。
5 完全人的公义，必使自己的路平坦正直，
但恶人必因自己的邪恶跌倒。
6 正直人的公义必拯救自己，
但奸诈人必陷溺于自己的恶欲中。
7 恶人一死，他的希望就幻灭；
有能力的人的盼望也消灭了。
8 义人得蒙拯救脱离患难，
恶人却来代替他。
9 不敬虔的人用口败坏邻舍，
义人却因知识免受其害。
10 义人亨通，全城欢乐；
恶人灭亡，大家欢呼。
11 因正直人的祝福，城的地位就提高；
因恶人的口，城就倾覆。
12 藐视邻舍的，真是无知；
聪明人却缄默不言。
13 到处搬弄是非的，泄露秘密，
心里诚实的，遮隐事情。
14 没有智谋，国家败落；
谋士众多，就能得胜。
15 为外人作保证人的，必受亏损；
厌恶替人击掌担保的，却得着安稳。
16 贤德的妇女得着尊荣，
强暴的男子只得着财富。
17 仁慈的人自己获益，
残忍的人自己受害。
18 恶人赚得的工价是虚假的，
播种公义的得着实在的赏赐。
19 恒心行义的必得生命；
追随邪恶的必致死亡。
20 欺诈的心是耶和华厌恶的；
行为完全是他所喜悦的。
21 恶人必不免受罚，
但义人的后裔必蒙解救。
22 妇女美丽而无见识，
就像金环带在猪鼻上一样。
23 义人的愿望，尽是美好，
恶人的希望，必招致忿怒。
24 有人慷慨好施，财富却更增添；
有人吝啬过度，反招致贫穷。
25 乐善好施的人，必得丰裕；
施惠于人的，自己也必蒙施惠。
26 屯积五谷的，必被人民咒诅；
出售粮食的，福祉必临到他的头上。
27 殷切求善的，必得到爱顾；
追求邪恶的，邪恶必临到他。
28 倚赖自己财富的，必然衰落；
义人却必繁茂，好象绿叶。
29 祸害自己家庭的，必承受清风；
愚妄人必作心思智慧的人的仆人。
30 义人所结的果子就是生命树；
智慧人必能得人。
31 义人在世上尚且受报应，
何况恶人和罪人呢？
Proverbs 11
New American Standard Bible
Contrast of the Upright and the Wicked
11 A (A)false balance is an abomination to the Lord,
But a (B)just weight is His delight.
2 When (C)pride comes, then comes dishonor;
But with the humble there is wisdom.
3 The (D)integrity of the upright will guide them,
But the (E)perversity of the treacherous will destroy them.
4 (F)Riches do not benefit on the day of wrath,
But (G)righteousness rescues from death.
5 The (H)righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way,
But (I)the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.
6 The righteousness of the upright will rescue them,
But the treacherous will (J)be caught by their own greed.
7 When a wicked person dies, his (K)expectation will perish,
And the (L)hope of strong people perishes.
8 The righteous is rescued from trouble,
But the wicked [a]takes his place.
9 With his (M)mouth the godless person destroys his neighbor,
But through knowledge the (N)righteous will be rescued.
10 When things (O)go well for the righteous, the city rejoices,
And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.
11 By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,
But by the mouth of the wicked, it is torn down.
12 One who despises his neighbor lacks [b]sense,
But a person of understanding keeps silent.
13 One (P)who goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets,
But one who is [c]trustworthy (Q)conceals a matter.
14 Where there is no (R)guidance the people fall,
But in an abundance of counselors there is [d]victory.
15 One who is a (S)guarantor for a stranger will certainly suffer for it,
But one who hates [e]being a guarantor is secure.
16 A (T)gracious woman attains honor,
And ruthless men attain riches.
17 A (U)merciful person does [f]himself good,
But the cruel person [g]does himself harm.
18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
But one who (V)sows righteousness gets a true reward.
19 One who is steadfast in (W)righteousness attains life,
But (X)one who pursues evil attains his own death.
20 The perverse in heart are an abomination to the Lord,
But the (Y)blameless in their [h]walk are His (Z)delight.
21 [i]Be assured, the evil person will not go unpunished,
But the [j]descendants of the righteous will be rescued.
22 As a (AA)ring of gold in a pig’s snout
So is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.
23 The desire of the righteous is only good,
But the (AB)expectation of the wicked is wrath.
24 There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,
And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in poverty.
25 A [k](AC)generous person will be [l]prosperous,
And one who (AD)gives others plenty of water will himself be given plenty.
26 One who withholds grain, the (AE)people will curse him,
But (AF)blessing will be on the head of him who (AG)sells it.
27 One who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
But (AH)one who seeks evil, evil will come to him.
28 One who (AI)trusts in his riches will fall,
But (AJ)the righteous will flourish like the green leaf.
29 One who (AK)troubles his own house will (AL)inherit wind,
And (AM)the foolish will be servant to the wise-hearted.
30 The fruit of the righteous is (AN)a tree of life,
And (AO)one who is wise [m]gains souls.
31 If (AP)the righteous will be repaid on the earth,
How much more the wicked and the sinner!
Footnotes
- Proverbs 11:8 Lit enters
- Proverbs 11:12 Lit heart
- Proverbs 11:13 Lit faithful of spirit
- Proverbs 11:14 Lit deliverance
- Proverbs 11:15 Lit those who strike hands
- Proverbs 11:17 Lit his soul
- Proverbs 11:17 Lit ruins his flesh
- Proverbs 11:20 Lit way
- Proverbs 11:21 Lit Hand to hand
- Proverbs 11:21 Lit seed
- Proverbs 11:25 Lit soul of blessing
- Proverbs 11:25 Lit made fat
- Proverbs 11:30 Lit takes
Proverbs 11
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 11
1 False scales are an abomination to the Lord,
but an honest weight, his delight.[a](A)
2 When pride comes, disgrace comes;
but with the humble is wisdom.[b]
3 The honesty of the upright guides them;
the faithless are ruined by their duplicity.
4 Wealth is useless on a day of wrath,[c](B)
but justice saves from death.
5 The justice of the honest makes their way straight,
but by their wickedness the wicked fall.[d](C)
6 The justice of the upright saves them,
but the faithless are caught in their own intrigue.
7 When a person dies, hope is destroyed;(D)
expectation pinned on wealth is destroyed.[e]
8 The just are rescued from a tight spot,
but the wicked fall into it instead.
9 By a word the impious ruin their neighbors,(E)
but through their knowledge the just are rescued.[f]
10 When the just prosper, the city rejoices;(F)
when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.
11 Through the blessing of the upright the city is exalted,
but through the mouth of the wicked it is overthrown.
12 Whoever reviles a neighbor lacks sense,
but the intelligent keep silent.
13 One who slanders reveals secrets,(G)
but a trustworthy person keeps a confidence.
14 For lack of guidance a people falls;
security lies in many counselors.(H)
15 Harm will come to anyone going surety for another,(I)
but whoever hates giving pledges is secure.[g]
16 A gracious woman gains esteem,
and ruthless men gain wealth.[h]
17 Kindly people benefit themselves,
but the merciless harm themselves.
18 The wicked make empty profits,
but those who sow justice have a sure reward.(J)
19 Justice leads toward life,
but pursuit of evil, toward death.
20 The crooked in heart are an abomination to the Lord,
but those who walk blamelessly are his delight.[i]
21 Be assured, the wicked shall not go unpunished,
but the offspring of the just shall escape.
22 Like a golden ring in a swine’s snout
is a beautiful woman without judgment.[j]
23 The desire of the just ends only in good;
the expectation of the wicked is wrath.
24 One person is lavish yet grows still richer;
another is too sparing, yet is the poorer.[k]
25 Whoever confers benefits will be amply enriched,
and whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
26 Whoever hoards grain, the people curse,
but blessings are on the head of one who distributes it!
27 Those who seek the good seek favor,
but those who pursue evil will have evil come upon them.[l]
28 Those who trust in their riches will fall,
but like green leaves the just will flourish.(K)
29 Those who trouble their household inherit the wind,
and fools become slaves to the wise of heart.
30 The fruit of justice is a tree of life,
and one who takes lives is a sage.[m]
31 If the just are recompensed on the earth,
how much more the wicked and the sinner
Footnotes
- 11:1 The word pair “abomination” and “delight” (= acceptable) to God is common in Proverbs. Originally the language of ritual, the words came to be applied to whatever pleases or displeases God (cf. also 11:20). False weights were a constant problem even though weights were standardized. Cf. 20:23; Hos 12:8; Am 8:5.
- 11:2 Disgrace is the very opposite of what the proud so ardently want. Those who do not demand their due receive wisdom.
- 11:4 Cf. note on 10:2. A day of wrath is an unforeseen disaster (even death). Only one’s relationship to God, which makes one righteous, is of any help on such a day.
- 11:5 In Hebrew as in English, “way” means the course of one’s life; similarly, “straight” and “crooked” are metaphors for morally straightforward and for bad, deviant, perverted.
- 11:7 An ancient scribe added “wicked” to person in colon A, for the statement that hope ends at death seemed to deny life after death. The saying, however, is not concerned with life after death but with the fact that in the face of death all hopes based on one’s own resources are vain. The aphorism is the climax of the preceding six verses; human resources cannot overcome mortality (cf. Ps 49:13).
- 11:9 What the wicked express harms others; what the righteous leave unsaid protects. Verses 9–14 are related in theme: the effect of good and bad people, especially their words, on their community.
- 11:15 Proverbs is opposed to providing surety for another’s loan (see note on 6:1–5) and expresses this view throughout the book.
- 11:16 Wealth and esteem are good things in Proverbs, but the means for acquiring them are flawed. As precious gifts, they must be granted, not taken. The esteem of others that depends on beauty is as fleeting as beauty itself (cf. 31:30) and the wealth acquired by aggressive behavior lasts only as long as one has physical strength.
- 11:20 The terminology of ritual (acceptable and unacceptable sacrifice, “abomination” and “delight”) is applied to human conduct as in v. 1. The whole of human life is under divine scrutiny, not just ritual.
- 11:22 Ear and nose rings were common jewelry for women. A humorous saying on the priority of wisdom over beauty in choosing a wife.
- 11:24 A paradox: spending leads to more wealth.
- 11:27 The saying is about seeking one thing and finding another. Striving for good leads to acceptance by God; seeking evil means only that trouble will come. The same Hebrew word means evil and trouble.
- 11:30 Most translations emend Hebrew “wise person” in colon B on the basis of the Greek and Syriac translations to “violence” (similar in spelling), because the verb “to take a life” is a Hebrew idiom for “to kill” (as also in English). The emendation is unnecessary, however, for the saying deliberately plays on the odd meaning: the one who takes lives is not the violent but the wise person, for the wise have a profound influence upon life. There is a similar wordplay in 29:10.
- 11:31 The saying is not about life after death; “on the earth” means life in the present world. The meaning is that divine judgment is exercised on all human action, even the best. The thought should strike terror into the hearts of habitual wrongdoers.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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