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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Go to the ant, you lazybones;
    consider its ways and be wise.(A)
Without having any chief
    or officer or ruler,
it prepares its food in summer
    and gathers its sustenance in harvest.(B)
How long will you lie there, O lazybones?
    When will you rise from your sleep?(C)
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
    and want, like an armed warrior.(D)

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

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A slack hand causes poverty,
    but the hand of the diligent makes rich.(A)

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

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A child who gathers in summer is prudent,
    but a child who sleeps in harvest brings shame.(A)

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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 Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
    so are the lazy to their employers.(A)

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

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11 Those who till their land will have plenty of food,
    but those who follow worthless pursuits have no sense.(A)

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

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24 The hand of the diligent will rule,
    while 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 do not roast[a] their game,
    but the diligent obtain precious wealth.[b]

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Footnotes

  1. 12.27 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  2. 12.27 Meaning of Heb uncertain

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

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The appetite of the lazy craves and gets nothing,
    while the appetite of the diligent is richly supplied.(A)

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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 hastily gotten[a] will dwindle,
    but those who gather little by little will increase it.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 13.11 Gk Vg: Heb from vanity

Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty,
    but from the strength of an ox(A) come abundant harvests.

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Where there are no oxen, there is no grain;
    abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

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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 way of the lazy is overgrown with thorns,
    but the path of the upright is a level highway.(A)

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26 The appetite of laborers works for them;
    their hunger drives them on.

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26 The appetite of workers works for them;
    their hunger urges them on.

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