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Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones.
    Learn from their ways and become wise!
Though they have no prince
    or governor or ruler to make them work,
they labor hard all summer,
    gathering food for the winter.
But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep?
    When will you wake up?
10 A little extra sleep, a little more slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest—
11 then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit;
    scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.

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Go to the (A)ant, you [a](B)lazy one,
Observe its ways and be wise,
Which, having (C)no chief,
Officer, or ruler,
Prepares its food (D)in the summer
And gathers its provision in the harvest.
How long will you lie down, you [b]lazy one?
When will you arise from your sleep?
10 (E)A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to [c]rest,”
11 (F)Then your poverty will come in like a [d]drifter,
And your need like [e]an armed man.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 6:6 Lit idle one
  2. Proverbs 6:9 Lit idle one
  3. Proverbs 6:10 Lit lie down
  4. Proverbs 6:11 Lit one who moves about
  5. Proverbs 6:11 Lit a man with a shield

Lazy people are soon poor;
    hard workers get rich.

A wise youth harvests in the summer,
    but one who sleeps during harvest is a disgrace.

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Poor is one who works with [a]a lazy hand,
But the (A)hand of the diligent makes rich.
He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely,
But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 10:4 Lit an idle hand

26 Lazy people irritate their employers,
    like vinegar to the teeth or smoke in the eyes.

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26 Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
So is the [a](A)lazy one to those who send him.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 10:26 Lit idle one

11 A hard worker has plenty of food,
    but a person who chases fantasies has no sense.

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11 One (A)who works his land will have plenty of bread,
But one who pursues worthless things lacks [a]sense.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:11 Lit heart

24 Work hard and become a leader;
    be lazy and become a slave.

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24 The hand of the diligent will rule,
But the [a]lazy hand will be (A)put to forced labor.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:24 Lit idle

27 Lazy people don’t even cook the game they catch,
    but the diligent make use of everything they find.

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27 [a]A lazy person does not [b]roast his prey,
But the (A)precious possession of a person is diligence.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:27 Lit An indolent
  2. Proverbs 12:27 Or catch

Lazy people want much but get little,
    but those who work hard will prosper.

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The soul of the [a]lazy one craves and gets nothing,
But the soul of the diligent is made [b]prosperous.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 13:4 Lit idle
  2. Proverbs 13:4 Lit fat

11 Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears;
    wealth from hard work grows over time.

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11 Wealth obtained from [a]nothing dwindles,
But one who gathers [b]by labor increases it.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 13:11 Prob. referring to fraud
  2. Proverbs 13:11 Lit by hand

23 Work brings profit,
    but mere talk leads to poverty!

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23 In all labor there is profit,
But [a]mere talk leads only to poverty.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 14:23 Lit word of lips

19 A lazy person’s way is blocked with briers,
    but the path of the upright is an open highway.

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19 The way of the [a]lazy one is like a hedge of thorns,
But the path of the upright is a highway.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 15:19 Lit idle

A lazy person is as bad as
    someone who destroys things.

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He also who is (A)lax in his work
(B)Is a brother to him who destroys.

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