Go to the ant, you sluggard;(A)
    consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander,
    no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer(B)
    and gathers its food at harvest.(C)

How long will you lie there, you sluggard?(D)
    When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest(E)
11 and poverty(F) will come on you like a thief
    and scarcity like an armed man.

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The Folly of Laziness

Go to the ant, you lazy man!
    Observe its ways and become wise.
It has no commander,
    officer, or ruler,
but prepares its provisions in the summer
    and gathers its food in the harvest.
How long will you lie down, lazy man?
    When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and your poverty will come on you like a bandit
    and your desperation like an armed man.

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Lazy hands make for poverty,(A)
    but diligent hands bring wealth.(B)

He who gathers crops in summer is a prudent son,
    but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.(C)

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Lazy hands bring poverty,
    but hard-working hands lead to wealth.
Whoever harvests during summer acts wisely,
    but the son who sleeps during harvest is disgraceful.

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26 As vinegar to the teeth and smoke(A) to the eyes,
    so are sluggards to those who send them.(B)

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26 As vinegar is to the mouth[a] and smoke to the eyes,
    so is the lazy person to those who send him.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 10:26 Lit. teeth

11 Those who work their land will have abundant food,
    but those who chase fantasies have no sense.(A)

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11 Whoever tills his soil will have a lot to eat,
    but anyone who pursues fantasies lacks sense.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:11 Lit. heart

24 Diligent hands will rule,
    but laziness ends in forced labor.(A)

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24 The diligent will take control,
    but the lazy will be put to forced labor.

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27 The lazy do not roast[a] any game,
    but the diligent feed on the riches of the hunt.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:27 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.

27 The lazy person does not roast what he has hunted,
    but diligence is one’s most important possession.

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A sluggard’s appetite is never filled,(A)
    but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.

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The lazy person craves, yet receives nothing,
    but the desires of the diligent are satisfied.

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11 Dishonest money dwindles away,(A)
    but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.

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11 Wealth gained dishonestly dwindles away,
    but whoever works diligently increases his prosperity.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 13:11 The Heb. lacks his prosperity

23 All hard work brings a profit,
    but mere talk leads only to poverty.

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23 In hard work there is always profit,
    but too much chattering[a] leads to poverty.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 14:23 Lit. word of lips

19 The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns,(A)
    but the path of the upright is a highway.

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19 The lifestyle of the lazy is like a thorny hedge,
    but the path taken by the upright is an open highway.

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One who is slack in his work
    is brother to one who destroys.(A)

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Avoiding Fools and Their Foolishness

Whoever is lazy regarding his work
    is also a brother to the master of destruction.

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