Proverbs 24
1 Be not thou envious against evil men, neither desire to be with them.
Don't be jealous of evil people; don't long to spend time with them,
2 For their heart studieth destruction, and their lips talk of mischief.
for they think up cruel plans and discuss how to cause trouble.
3 Through wisdom is an house built; and by understanding it is established:
A house is built by wisdom; its foundation is made secure through understanding.
4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.
Its rooms are filled by knowledge with all kinds of valuable and beautiful objects.
5 A wise man is strong; and a man of knowledge increaseth strength.
If you have wisdom, you are strong; if you have knowledge, your power increases,
6 For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.
for with wise guidance you can go to war; you will be victorious by having many good advisors.
7 Wisdom is too high for a fool: he openeth not his mouth in the gate.
Wisdom goes over the heads of stupid people; they have nothing to contribute when important matters are discussed.
8 He that deviseth to do evil shall be called a mischievous person.
Anyone who plans to do evil will be seen as a troublemaker.
9 The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is an abomination to men.
Plans thought up by stupid people are sinful. Everyone hates those who are scornful of others.
10 If thou faintest in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.
If you give up in times of trouble, it shows how weak you are.
11 If thou refraineth to deliver them that are drawn to death, and those that are ready to be slain;
Rescue those who are being led away to be executed; save those who are stumbling on their way to be slaughtered.
12 If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that weigheth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?
If 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.
13 My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste:
My son, eating honey is good for you; the honeycomb tastes sweet.
14 So shall the knowledge of wisdom be to thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off.
In 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.
15 Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; destroy not his resting place:
Don't be like a criminal waiting to ambush the home of good people; don't attack the place where they live.
16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.
Those who do right may fall down seven times, and still get up again; but the wicked are brought down by disaster.
17 Rejoice not when thy enemy falleth, and let not thy heart be glad when he stumbleth:
Don't celebrate when your enemies fall; don't be glad when they trip up,
18 Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
otherwise when the Lord sees it, he'll be unhappy with you and won't punish your enemies as he planned.
19 Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked;
Don't get all upset over the wicked, or be jealous of those who do wrong,
20 For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
for evil people have no future—the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.
21 My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: and meddle not with them that are given to change:
My son, honor the Lord and the king, and don't join those who are rebellious,
22 For their calamity shall rise suddenly; and who knoweth the ruin of them both?
for disaster will suddenly fall on them. Who knows how the Lord and king will punish them?
23 These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment.
These are more sayings of the wise: Showing favoritism when passing judgment is wrong.
24 He that saith to the wicked, Thou art righteous; him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him:
Those who tell the guilty, “You're innocent,” will be cursed by the people and hated by the nation,
25 But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them.
while those who convict the guilty will be appreciated, and will receive a rich blessing.
26 Every man shall kiss his lips that giveth a right answer.
An honest answer is a kiss on the lips.
27 Prepare thy work outside, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thy house.
Do the work you need to do outside first, then prepare and sow your fields, and only after that start building your house.
28 Be not a witness against thy neighbour without cause; and deceive not with thy lips.
Don't testify against your neighbors without having a good reason, and don't tell lies.
29 Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me: I will render to the man according to his work.
Don'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!”
30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
I walked past the field of a lazy man, past a vineyard of someone with no sense.
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face of it, and its stone wall was broken down.
It was all overgrown with thorns, the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall had fallen down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
As I looked I thought about it, and what I saw taught me a lesson:
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
You may say, “Please, just a little more sleep, a little longer snooze, a little more folding of the arms to rest”—
34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
and poverty will attack you like a robber, destitution like an armed warrior.
