27 aBoast not thyself of †to morrow;

aFor thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

2  bLet another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth;

A stranger, and not thine own lips.

3  A stone is †heavy, and cthe sand weighty;

But a ccfool’s wrath is heavier than them both.

4  †Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous;

But who is able to stand before ||envy?

5  eOpen rebuke is better than secret love.

6  eFaithful are fthe wounds of a friend;

But the gkisses of an enemy are ||deceitful.

7  The full soul †loatheth han honeycomb;

But to the hungry soul ievery bitter thing is sweet.

8  jAs a bird that wandereth from her nest,

So is a man that wandereth from his place.

9  kOintment and perfume rejoice the heart:

So doth the sweetness of a man’s friend †by lhearty counsel.

10  Thine own friend, and mthy father’s friend, forsake not;

Neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity:

For nbetter is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.

11  oMy son, pbe wise, and make my heart glad,

That I may qanswer rhim that reproacheth me.

12  sA prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself;

But tthe simple pass on, and are punished.

13  uTake his garment that is surety for a stranger,

And take a pledge of him for a strange woman.

14  He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning,

It shall be counted a curse to him.

15  xA continual dropping in a very rainy day

And a contentious woman are alike.

16  Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind,

And the ointment of his right hand, which ybewrayeth itself.

17  Iron sharpeneth iron;

So a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

18  zWhoso akeepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof:

So he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.

19  As in water aaface answereth to face,

So the heart of man to man.

20  bHell and destruction care †never full;

So dthe eyes of man eare never satisfied.

21  fAs the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold;

gSo is a man hto his praise.

22  iThough thou shouldest bray a fool in a kmortar among lwheat with a pestle,

Yet will not his foolishness depart from him.

23  Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks,

And †look well to thy herds.

24  For †riches are not for ever:

And doth the crown endure †to every generation?

25  mThe hay appeareth, and the ntender grass sheweth itself,

And mherbs of the mountains are gathered.

26  oThe lambs are for pthy clothing,

And the goats are the price of the field.

27  And thou shalt have goats’ milk enough for pthy food,

For the food of thy household,

And for the †maintenance for thy maidens.