Proverbs 24
24
1 BE NOT envious of evil men, nor desire to be with them;
2 For their minds plot oppression and devise violence, and their lips talk of causing trouble and vexation.
3 Through skillful and godly Wisdom is a house (a life, a home, a family) built, and by understanding it is established [on a sound and good foundation],
4 And by knowledge shall its chambers [of every area] be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.
5 A wise man is strong and is better than a strong man, and a man of knowledge increases and strengthens his power; [Prov. 21:22; Eccl. 9:16.]
6 For by wise counsel you can wage your war, and in an abundance of counselors there is victory and safety.
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool; he opens not his mouth in the gate [where the city's rulers sit in judgment].
8 He who plans to do evil will be called a mischief-maker.
9 The plans of the foolish and the thought of foolishness are sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to men.
10 If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.
11 Deliver those who are drawn away to death, and those who totter to the slaughter, hold them back [from their doom].
12 If you [profess ignorance and] say, Behold, we did not know this, does not He Who weighs and ponders the heart perceive and consider it? And He Who guards your life, does not He know it? And shall not He render to [you and] every man according to his works?
13 My son, eat honey, because it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.
14 So shall you know skillful and godly Wisdom to be thus to your life; if you find it, then shall there be a future and a reward, and your hope and expectation shall not be cut off.
15 Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the [uncompromisingly] righteous (the upright, in right standing with God); destroy not his resting-place;
16 For a righteous man falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked are overthrown by calamity. [Job 5:19; Ps. 34:19; 37:24; Mic. 7:8.]
17 Rejoice not when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles or is overthrown,
18 Lest the Lord see it and it be evil in His eyes and displease Him, and He turn away His wrath from him [to expend it upon you, the worse offender].
19 Fret not because of evildoers, neither be envious of the wicked,
20 For there shall be no reward for the evil man; the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
21 My son, [reverently] fear the Lord and the king, and do not associate with those who are given to change [of allegiance, and are revolutionary],
22 For their calamity shall rise suddenly, and who knows the punishment and ruin which both [the Lord and the king] will bring upon [the rebellious]?
23 These also are sayings of the wise: To discriminate and show partiality, having respect of persons in judging, is not good.
24 He who says to the wicked, You are righteous and innocent–peoples will curse him, nations will defy and abhor him.
25 But to those [upright judges] who rebuke the wicked, it will go well with them and they will find delight, and a good blessing will be upon them.
26 He kisses the lips [and wins the hearts of men] who give a right answer.
27 [Put first things first.] Prepare your work outside and get it ready for yourself in the field; and afterward build your house and establish a home.
28 Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause, and deceive not with your lips. [Eph. 4:25.]
29 Say not, I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for his deed. [Prov. 20:22; Matt. 5:39, 44; Rom. 12:17, 19.]
30 I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
31 And, behold, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles were covering its face, and its stone wall was broken down.
32 Then I beheld and considered it well; I looked and received instruction.
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep–
34 So shall your poverty come as a robber, and your want as an armed man.
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Proverbs 24: AMPC
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1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
Proverbs 24
24
1Don't be jealous of evil people; don't long to spend time with them,
2for they think up cruel plans and discuss how to cause trouble.
3A house is built by wisdom; its foundation is made secure through understanding.
4Its rooms are filled by knowledge with all kinds of valuable and beautiful objects.
5If you have wisdom, you are strong; if you have knowledge, your power increases,
6for with wise guidance you can go to war; you will be victorious by having many good advisors.
7Wisdom goes over the heads of stupid people; they have nothing to contribute when important matters are discussed.#24:7. Literally, “he does not open his mouth in the gate.”
8Anyone who plans to do evil will be seen as a troublemaker.
9Plans thought up by stupid people are sinful. Everyone hates those who are scornful of others.
10If you give up in times of trouble, it shows how weak you are.
11Rescue those who are being led away to be executed; save those who are stumbling on their way to be slaughtered.
12If you say, “Look, we didn't know anything about this,” don't you think the God who judges your motives will see what's happening? He who watches over you knows, and he will pay people back for what they've done.
13My son, eating honey is good for you; the honeycomb tastes sweet.
14In the same way, you should know that wisdom is good for you; if you find it, there will be a future for you, and your hope will not be crushed.
15Don't be like a criminal waiting to ambush the home of good people; don't attack the place where they live.
16Those who do right may fall down seven times, and still get up again; but the wicked are brought down by disaster.
17Don't celebrate when your enemies fall; don't be glad when they trip up,
18otherwise when the Lord sees it, he'll be unhappy with you and won't punish your enemies as he planned.
19Don't get all upset over the wicked, or be jealous of those who do wrong,
20for evil people have no future—the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.
21My son, honor the Lord and the king, and don't join those who are rebellious,
22for disaster will suddenly fall on them. Who knows how the Lord and king#24:22. “The Lord and king”: literally “they both,” referring back to the previous verse. will punish them?
23These are more sayings of the wise: Showing favoritism when passing judgment is wrong.
24Those who tell the guilty, “You're innocent,” will be cursed by the people and hated by the nation,
25while those who convict the guilty will be appreciated, and will receive a rich blessing.
26An honest answer is a kiss on the lips.
27Do the work you need to do outside first, then prepare and sow your fields, and only after that start building your house.
28Don't testify against your neighbors without having a good reason, and don't tell lies.
29Don't say to yourself, “I'm going to do to him what he did to me! I'll pay him back for what he's done!”
30I walked past the field of a lazy man, past a vineyard of someone with no sense.
31It was all overgrown with thorns, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall had fallen down.
32As I looked I thought about it, and what I saw taught me a lesson:
33You may say,#24:33. “You may say”: implied. “Please, just a little more sleep, a little longer snooze, a little more folding of the arms to rest”—
34and poverty will attack you like a robber, destitution like an armed warrior.#24:34. Verses 33 and 34 are the same as 6:10-11.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com