²⁷ Establish your work outside
And ^(A)make it ready for yourself in the field;
And afterwards, you shall build your house.

³⁰ I passed by the field of the sluggard
And by the vineyard of the man ^(A)lacking a heart of wisdom,
³¹ And behold, it was completely ^[a](B)overgrown with thistles;
^[b](C)Nettles have covered its surface,
And its stone ^(D)wall has been torn down.
³² And I beheld, I set my heart upon it;
I saw, I received discipline.
³³ “^(E)A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to rest,”
³⁴ Then your poverty will come as ^[c]a robber
And your want like ^[d]an armed man.

¹³ Like the cold of snow in the ^[a]time of harvest
Is a ^(A)faithful envoy to those who send him,
For he refreshes the soul of his masters.

¹³ The ^(A)sluggard says, “There is a fierce lion in the road!
A lion is ^[a]among the streets!”
¹⁴ As the door turns on its hinges,
So does the ^(B)sluggard on his bed.
¹⁵ The ^(C)sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
He is too weary to return it to his mouth.
¹⁶ The sluggard is ^(D)wiser in his own eyes
Than seven men who can respond with a discreet answer.

^23 (A)Know well the ^[a]condition of your flocks,
And pay attention to your herds;

^19 (A)He who cultivates his ground will be ^(B)satisfied with food,
But he who pursues empty things will be satisfied with poverty.

²⁴ Four things are small on the earth,
But they are exceedingly wise:
²⁵ The ^(A)ants are not a strong people,
But they prepare their food in the summer;
²⁶ The ^[a](B)shephanim are not a mighty people,
Yet they make their houses in the cliff;
²⁷ The locusts have no king,
Yet all of them go out in ^(C)rank;
²⁸ The lizard you may grasp with the hands,
Yet it is in kings’ palaces.