²⁷ Prepare thy work outside, and make ready the field for thyself; and afterwards build thine house.

³⁰ I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

³¹ and lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.

³² Then I saw and considered it well; I looked upon it, and received instruction:

³³ Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep—

³⁴ so shall thy poverty come as one that wandereth, and thy want as an armed man.

² It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.

¹³ As the cold of snow at the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him, for he refresheth the soul of his masters.

¹³ The slothful man saith, “There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets!”

¹⁴ As the door turneth upon his hinges, so doth the slothful upon his bed.

¹⁵ The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth.

¹⁶ The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit than seven men that can render an answer.

²³ Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds,

¹⁹ He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread, but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough.

²⁴ There are four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:

²⁵ the ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer;

²⁶ the conies are but a feeble folk, yet they make their houses in the rocks;

²⁷ the locusts have no king, yet they go forth, all of them in ranks;

²⁸ the spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces.