Beginning
24 Be not thou envious of anshei ra’ah, neither desire to be with them.
2 For their lev plotteth violence, and their sfatayim (lips) talk of amal (trouble).
3 Through chochmah is a bais built, and by tevunah (understanding) it is established.
4 And by da’as shall the chadarim (chambers, rooms) be filled with all precious and pleasant hon (riches, wealth).
5 A gever chacham is strong; indeed, an ish da’as (man of knowledge) increaseth ko’ach.
6 For by tachbulot (guidance) thou shalt wage thy milchamah (war), and in a multitude of yo’etz (counselors) there is teshu’ah (victory, safety).
7 Chochmah is too lofty for a fool; he openeth not his peh (mouth) at the sha’ar.
8 He that plotteth to do evil shall be called a ba’al mezimmot (master of schemes).
9 The scheme of folly is chattat (sin), and the scoffer is a to’evah to adam (man).
10 If thou faint in the yom tzarah, thy strength is small.
11 Save those who are drawn away toward mavet, and hold back those stumbling toward slaughter.
12 If thou sayest, See, we knew it not, doth not He that weigheth the levavot consider it? And He that is guard over thy nefesh, doth not He know it? And shall not He render to every adam according to his works?
13 Beni (my son), eat thou devash, because it is tov; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste;
14 So shall the knowledge of chochmah be unto thy nefesh; when thou hast found it, then there shall be an acharit (latter end, future), and thy tikvah (hope) shall not be cut off.
15 Lay not in wait, O rasha, against the naveh (dwelling) of the tzaddik; assault not his resting place;
16 For a tzaddik falleth sheva (seven times), and riseth up again, but the resha’im are overthrown in ra’ah.
17 Gloat not when thine oyev falleth, and let not thine lev rejoice when he stumbleth,
18 Lest Hashem see it, and it is rah in His eyes, and He turn away His wrath from him.
19 Fret not thyself because of ra’im, neither be thou envious of the resha’im,
20 For there shall be no acharit (latter end, future) to the rah; the ner (light) of the resha’im shall be put out.
21 Beni (my son), fear thou Hashem and the Melech, and do not associate with them that are otherwise disposed.
22 For their calamity shall arise suddenly; and who hath da’as of ruin those two [i.e., Hashem and the Melech] can bring?
23 These things also belong to chachamim: it is not tov to show partiality in mishpat.
24 He that saith unto the rashah, Thou are tzaddik, him shall the people curse, nations shall detest him;
25 But to them that rebuke the wicked, it is well, and birkat tov shall come upon them.
26 He that giveth an answer that is nakhon (right, correct), giveth a kiss on the sfatayim.
27 Set in order thy outside work, and make ready for thyself in the sadeh; then afterwards build thine bais.
28 Be not an ed (witness) against thy re’a without cause, and deceive not with thy sfatayim (lips).
29 Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me, I will render to the ish according to his work.
30 I went by the sadeh of the ish atzel (sluggard, lazy one), and went past the kerem (vineyard) of the adam chasar lev (the man void of lev [of understanding]),
31 And, hinei, it was all grown over with thorns, and charullim (nettles) had covered the surface thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well in my lev; I looked upon it, and received musar.
33 Yet a little shenot (slumber), a little sleep, a little folding of the yadayim to rest;
34 So shall thy poverty come like a prowler; and thy want like an ish mogen (armed warrior).
25 These are also mishlei Sh’lomo, which the anashim of Chizkiyah Melech Yehudah copied out:
2 It is the Kavod Elohim to conceal a thing, but the kavod melachim is to search out a matter.
3 The Shomayim for height, and Eretz for depth, so the lev melachim is unsearchable.
4 Take away the dross from the kesef, and there shall come forth a vessel for the tzoref (silversmith);
5 Take away the rasha from before Melech, and his kisse shall be established in tzedek.
6 Do not exalt thyself in the presence of Melech, and stand not in the makom (place) of gedolim;
7 For better it is that it be said unto thee, Come up here, than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the noble whom thine eynayim have seen.
8 Go not forth hastily to bring a lawsuit, lest thou know not what to do in the acharit thereof, when thy re’a hath put thee to shame.
9 Plead thy cause with thy re’a himself; and betray not a sod (confidence) to another,
10 Lest he that heareth it put thee to shame, and the evil report of thee never depart.
11 A word aptly spoken is like tapukhim (apples) of zahav in settings of kesef.
12 As a nezem (earring) of zahav, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a mochi’ach chacham (a wise reprover) upon an obedient ozen.
13 As the cold of sheleg (snow) in the yom katzir (day of harvest), so is a tzir ne’eman (faithful envoy) to them that send him; for he refresheth the nefesh of his adonim.
14 He who boasteth falsely of giving is like clouds and ruach (wind) without geshem (rain).
15 By forbearance is a katzin (ruler) persuaded, and a gentle lashon breaketh the bone.
16 Hast thou found devash? Eat only as much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it out.
17 Let thy regel (foot) seldom be in thy neighbor’s bais; lest he be weary of thee, and so hate thee.
18 An ish that beareth ed sheker (false witness) against his re’a is a club, and a cherev, and a sharp khetz (arrow).
19 Confidence in a boged in the yom tzarah is like a shen ra’ah (bad tooth), and a regel out of joint.
20 As he that taketh away a beged (garment) on a cold day, and as chometz (vinegar) upon lye, so is he that singeth shirim (songs) to a lev rah (heavy heart, i.e., depressed person).
21 If thine enemy be hungry, give him lechem to eat, and if he be thirsty, give him mayim to drink;
22 For so shalt thou heap hot coals upon his rosh, and Hashem shall reward thee.
23 The ruach tzafon (north wind) brings forth geshem; so doth a lashon seter (backbiting tongue) bring an angry countenance.
24 It is better to dwell in the corner of the gag (roof), than in a bais shared with a quarrelsome isha.
25 As cold mayim to a weary nefesh, so is good news from a far country.
26 A tzaddik who falters before the rasha is like a muddy spring, and a polluted makor (fountain).
27 It is not tov to eat much devash; so for men to seek their own kavod is not glory.
28 He that hath no rule over his own ruach is like an ir that is broken down, and without a chomah (wall).
26 As sheleg (snow) in kayitz (summer), and as matar (rain) at katzir (harvest), so kavod is not fitting for a kesil (fool).
2 As the tzippor in its fluttering, as the swallow in its flying, so the kelelah (curse) without cause shall not alight.
3 A shot (whip) for the sus, a bridle for the chamor, and a shevet for the back of kesilim.
4 Answer not a kesil (fool) according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.
5 Answer a kesil (fool) according to his folly, lest he be chacham in his own eyes.
6 He that sendeth a message by the yad of a kesil (fool) cutteth off the raglayim, and drinketh chamas.
7 The legs of the pisei’ach (lame man) hang limp; so is a mashal in the peh (mouth) of kesilim.
8 As he that bindeth an even (stone) in a sling, so is he that giveth kavod to a kesil (fool).
9 As a thornbush goeth up into the yad of a shikkor, so is a mashal in the peh (mouth) of kesilim.
10 Like an archer wounding all, so is he that hireth the kesil (fool), or hireth the passerby.
11 As a kelev returneth to his vomit, so a kesil (fool) returneth to his folly.
12 Seest thou an ish chacham in his own eyes? There is more tikvah (hope) for a kesil (fool) than for him.
13 The atzel (sluggard, lazy one) saith, There is a lion in the derech; an ari is in the rechovot.
14 As the delet (door) turneth upon its hinges, so doth the atzel (sluggard, lazy one) upon his mittah (bed).
15 The atzel (sluggard, lazy one) hideth his yad in his dish; it’s too tiring to bring it back to his peh (mouth) again.
16 The atzel (sluggard, lazy one) is chacham in his own eyes, more than seven that give an excellent answer.
17 He that passeth by, and meddleth in a quarrel that doth not belong to him, is like one that taketh a kelev by the oznayim.
18 As a mad man who shooteth firebrands, khitzim (arrows), and mavet,
19 So is the ish that deceiveth his re’a, and saith, Am I not just having a laugh?
20 Where no wood is, there the eish goeth out; so where there is no nirgan (gossip, slanderer, talebearer), the strife dieth down.
21 As charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to eish; so is a contentious ish to kindle strife.
22 The devarim of a nirgan (gossip, slanderer, talebearer) are like tasty morsels, and they go down into the innermost chambers of the beten.
23 Fervent sfatayim (lips) and a lev rah are like earthenware covered with silver dross.
24 He that hateth disguises it with his sfatayim (lips), and within harboreth mirmah (deceit);
25 When he speaketh fair, believe him not; for there are sheva to’avot in his lev.
26 Whose hatred is covered by guile, yet his wickedness shall be exposed before the whole kahal.
27 He who diggeth a shachat (pit) shall fall therein, and he that rolleth an even (stone), it will roll back upon him.
28 A lashon sheker hateth those that are crushed by it; and a flattering peh (mouth) worketh ruin.
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International