Proverbs 20

Wycliffe Bible

20 Wine is a lecherous thing, and drunkenness is full of noise; whoever delighteth in these, shall not be wise.

² As the roaring of a lion, so and the dread of a king (and so the king’s wrath); he that stirreth him to ire, sinneth against his (own) soul.

³ It is honour to a man that separateth himself from strivings; but fond men be meddled with despisings. (It is honourable for someone to separate himself from strife, or from arguments; but the foolish shall mix, or mingle, themselves in with arguments.)

⁴ A slow man would not ear for cold; therefore he shall beg in summer, and men shall not give to him. (A lazy person will not plow when it is cold; then at harvest time he shall beg, but others shall not give him anything.)

⁵ As deep water, so counsel is in the heart of a man; but a wise man shall draw it out. (Advice in a person’s heart can be like deep water/can be as deep as the water; but a wise person shall draw it out.)

⁶ Many men be called merciful; but who shall find a faithful man? (Many people be called, or be thought to be, merciful; but who shall truly find a faithful person?)

⁷ Forsooth a just man that goeth in his simpleness, shall leave blessed sons after him. (For a righteous person who goeth in his honesty, or in his integrity, shall leave blessed sons and daughters after him.)

⁸ A king that sitteth in the seat of doom, destroyeth all evil by his looking. (A king who sitteth on the seat of judgement, knoweth evil when he seeth it.)

⁹ Who may say, Mine heart is clean; I am clean of sin?

¹⁰ A weight, greater in buying, and a weight, less(er) in selling, a measure and a measure, ever either is abominable at God (these be abominable to God).

¹¹ A child is understood by his studies (Even a child is known by his deeds), if his works be rightful and clean.

¹² An ear hearing, and an eye seeing [The hearing ear, and the seeing eye], God made ever either (God made them both).

¹³ Do not thou love sleep, lest neediness oppress thee; open thine eyes, and be thou [ful]filled with loaves.

¹⁴ Each buyer saith, It is evil, it is evil; and when he hath gone away, then he shall have glory (but after he hath gone away, then he shall boast about it).

¹⁵ Gold, and the multitude of gems, and a precious vessel, be the lips of knowing (be the value of words of knowledge, or of wise words).

¹⁶ Take thou away the cloth of him that was (a) borrow of another man; and for strangers take thou away a wed from him. (Take thou the cloak of him who pledged for another person; and take thou a pledge from him for strangers.)

¹⁷ The bread of a leasing, that is, gotten by a leasing, is sweet to a man (Bread gotten by a lie, tasteth sweet to a person); and afterward his mouth shall be filled with reckoning [but afterward his mouth shall be filled with little pebble stones].

¹⁸ Thoughts be made strong by counsels; and battles shall be treated by governances. (Plans be made into successes by good advice; and battles be won by careful planning.)

¹⁹ Be thou not meddled with him that showeth privates, and goeth guilefully, and alargeth his lips. (Be thou not mixed in, or mingled, with him who telleth secrets, and goeth deceitfully, and flappeth his lips.)

²⁰ The light of him that curseth his father and mother, shall be quenched in the midst of darknesses.

²¹ Heritage to which men hasteth (to get) in the beginning, shall want blessing in the last time. (An inheritance which someone hasteneth to get early, shall lack blessing in the end.)

²² Say thou not, I shall yield evil for evil; abide thou the Lord, and he shall deliver thee. (Say thou not, I shall give back evil for evil; wait thou for the Lord, and he shall save thee/and he shall rescue thee.)

²³ Abomination with God is weight and weight; a guileful balance is not good. (An abomination with God is different weights; a deceitful scale is not good.)

²⁴ The steps of man be (ad)dressed of the Lord; who forsooth of men may understand his way? (The steps of a person be directed by the Lord; for who can understand his own way?)

²⁵ (A) Falling of man is to make (an) avow to (the) saints, and (then) afterward to withdraw the vows.

²⁶ A wise king scattereth wicked men; and boweth a bow of victory, that is, a stone bow, over them.

²⁷ The lantern of the Lord is the spirit of man, that seeketh out all the privates of the womb. (The spirit of people is the lantern of the Lord, and it seeketh out all our innermost secrets.)

²⁸ Mercy and truth keep a king; and his throne is made strong by meekness. (Fairness and faithfulness, or loyalty, keep a king safe and secure; and his throne is made strong by humility, or by righteousness.)

²⁹ The full out joying of young men is the strength of them; and the dignity of eld men is hoariness. (The rejoicing, or the glory, of young men is their strength; and the dignity of old men is their white, or gray, hair.)

³⁰ The wanness of (a) wound shall wipe away evils, and (so do) wounds in the privier things of the womb. (Sometimes a deep, blue wound shall set someone straight, and sometimes so do wounds in the secret, or the innermost, places of the heart.)