42 1 nTo repeat othe word thou hast heardo,

And to lay bare any secret counsel:

So shalt thou be truly pshamefastp,

And find favour in the sight of all living.

qBut of these things be not ashamed,

And accept not persons runto sinr:

2 Of the Law of the Most High, and the statute;

And of justice, to do right by the wicked;

HB 3 Of reckoning with a comrade sand (fellow) travellers,

And of the division of an inheritance tand a propertyt;

4 uOf the small dustu of the scales and balance,

vAnd wof testingw measure and weighty;

4(b) Of buying whether little or much,

5 wwAnd of profit from traffick with the merchantww;

G xOf frequent correction of children,

And of smiting the side of an evil-disposed servantx.

HB 6 For an evil wife ya sealy,

And where zmanyz hands are, aa keya!

7 bUpon what is deposited make a markb,

And let giving and receiving all be in writing.—

8 Of the correction of the simple and foolish (be not ashamed),

cOr of the tottering grey-head occupied with whoredomc:

So shalt thou be truly well-advised,

And a man (truly) modest before all living.

(b) 42:9–14. The care of daughters

(= 4 + 2 + 2 + 2 distichs).

HB 9 dA daughter is to a father ea treasure of sleeplessnesse,

fAnd the care of her banisheth slumberf:

In her youth, lest gshe pass the flower of her ageg,

And hwhen she is marriedh, ilest she be hatedi;

10 d iiIn her virginityii, lest she be seduced,

j kAnd in the house of her husbandk, kklest she prove unfaithfulkk;

In her father’s house, lest lshe become pregnantl j,

mAnd in her husband’s housem, lest she be barren.

11 nOver thy daughter keep a strict watchn,

oLest she make thee a name of evil odouro—

HB A byword in the city pand accursed of the peoplep—

qAnd shame theeq rin the assembly of the gater.

sIn the place where she lodgeth tlet there be no latticet,

uOr spot overlooking the entrance round aboutu s.

12 vLet her not show her beauty to any malev,

wand amongw wives let her not converse.

13 For from the garment issueth the moth,

And from a woman a woman’s wickedness.

14 x yBetter is the wickedness of a man than the goodness of a womany;

zAnd a disgraceful daughter poureth forth disgracez x.

In praise of God as Nature’s Lord.

(a) 42:15–25. Exordium

(= 1 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 distichs).

15 aI would fain remembera God’s works,

And what I have seen I would recount.

bBy the word of God His works were formedb,

cAnd what was wrought by His good pleasure according to His decreec.

H 17 The rising sun dis revealedd over all things,

And the glory of Jahveh eis over all His workse.

16 fGod’s holy ones have not the powerf

To recount gHis wondrous works of mightg;

(Though) God hath given strength hto His hostsh

iTo endure in the presence of His gloryi.

18 He searcheth out the deep and (man’s) heart,

jAnd all their secretsj kHe surveyethk:

G lFor Jahveh possesseth all knowledge,

And seeth what cometh unto eternityl.

HB 19 He declareth mwhat is past and what is futurem,

And revealeth nthe profoundest secretsn.

20 oNo knowledge is lacking to Himo,

pAnd no matter escapeth Himp.

21 qThe might of His wisdomq ris establishedr,

From everlasting sHe is the sames:

tNothing hath been added and nothing taken away (therefrom)t,

And He needeth none to give counsel.

G(S) 22 uAll His works are truly lovely,

And are [like blossoms] to beholdu.

HB(G) 23 vEverything liveth and abideth for everv,

wAnd to every need all things respondw.

24 xThey are all different, one from the otherx,

But He hath not made any one of them ysuperfluousy.

25 zThe one exchangeth what is good (in it) with the otherz,

And who can be satiated with beholding athe beautya?

(b) 43:1–26. Recital of the manifestations in Nature of God’s might

(= 1 + 4 + 1 + 4 + 2 + 2 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 3 + 1 distichs).