1 ARST Do not envy evil people; do not want to associate with them, BSB BSB: Do not envy wicked men or desire their company;
2 ARST because they plan to act violently, and they talk about troubling people. BSB BSB: for their hearts devise violence, and their lips declare trouble.
3 ARST People build houses by acting wisely, they make houses stable by acting understandably. BSB BSB: By wisdom a house is built and by understanding it is established;
4 ARST By acting knowledgeably, people fill the rooms{ of those houses} with all kinds of valuable and delightful riches. BSB BSB: through knowledge its rooms are filled with every precious and beautiful treasure.
5 ARST Wise people are strong, and knowledgeable people make themselves more powerful, BSB BSB: A wise man is strong, and a man of knowledge enhances his strength.
6 ARST because letting people advise you will make you fight your war successfully, and letting many people counsel you will rescue you{ from losing the war}. BSB BSB: Only with sound guidance should you wage war, and victory lies in a multitude of counselors.
7 ARST Foolish people cannot understand what is wise; they have nothing to say in court. BSB BSB: Wisdom is too high for a fool; he does not open his mouth in the meeting place.
8 ARST { Some} people are always planning to act evilly; other people refer to them as schemers. BSB BSB: He who plots evil will be called a schemer.
9 ARST Foolish plans are sinful, and people detest people who ridicule others. BSB BSB: A foolish scheme is sin, and a mocker is detestable to men.
10 ARST If you fail during distressful times, then you are weak. BSB BSB: If you faint in the day of distress, how small is your strength!
11 ARST Save people whom others are{ unjustly} leading away to kill; prevent them from staggering to{ the place where} people will{ unjustly} slaughter them! BSB BSB: Rescue those being led away to death, and restrain those stumbling toward the slaughter.
12 ARST If you{ falsely} claim that you did not know that those people were dying unjustly, then think about this: Yahweh discerns what people think and surely understands! He keeps you alive and surely knows! He will surely make people receive what they deserve for what they have done! BSB BSB: If you say, “Behold, we did not know about this,” does not He who weighs hearts consider it? Does not the One who guards your life know? Will He not repay a man according to his deeds?
13 ARST My child, eat honey because it tastes good, and honey dripping from the comb tastes sweet. BSB BSB: Eat honey, my son, for it is good, and the honeycomb is sweet to your taste.
14 ARST Be aware that what is wise is like honey for you. If you become wise, then you will have a{ good} future, and what you hope will happen will indeed occur! BSB BSB: Know therefore that wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, there is a future for you, and your hope will never be cut off.
15 ARST Do not be like wicked people and hide in wait in order to attack the places where righteous people dwell. Do not devastate the places where righteous people rest! BSB BSB: Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, near the dwelling of the righteous; do not destroy his resting place.
16 ARST { Do not do so} because righteous people can recover many times when disastrous things happen to them, but disastrous things will destroy wicked people. BSB BSB: For though a righteous man may fall seven times, he still gets up; but the wicked stumble in bad times.
17 ARST Do not be happy when something disastrous happens to your adversaries. Indeed, do not rejoice when that happens! BSB BSB: Do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,
18 ARST If you do, then Yahweh will notice and disapprove, so that he stops being angry with your enemies. BSB BSB: or the LORD will see and disapprove, and turn His wrath away from him.
19 ARST Do not worry about people who do what is evil. Do not be jealous of wicked people. BSB BSB: Do not fret over evildoers, and do not be envious of the wicked.
20 ARST { Do not do so} because evil people will not have{ good} futures,{ but} wicked people{ will merely die} like an oil lamp that stops burning{ oil}. BSB BSB: For the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.
21 ARST My child, reverently fear Yahweh and kings. Avoid people who rebel{ against either Yahweh or the king}, BSB BSB: My son, fear the LORD and the king, and do not associate with the rebellious.
22 ARST because disastrous things will happen quickly to those people, and no one knows how terribly both Yahweh and kings can destroy{ others}! BSB BSB: For they will bring sudden destruction. Who knows what ruin they can bring?
23 ARST Here are more things that wise people have said: It is very evil to favor someone when you judge. BSB BSB: These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
24 ARST Many people will curse and people groups will hate anyone who declares that any guilty person is innocent. BSB BSB: Whoever tells the guilty, “You are innocent”—peoples will curse him, and nations will denounce him;
25 ARST However, people who condemn{ guilty people} will prosper, and Yahweh will bless them well. BSB BSB: but it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come upon them.
26 ARST People who answer honestly show that they are true friends. BSB BSB: An honest answer given is like a kiss on the lips.
27 ARST Do the work you must do outside and prepare your fields before you build your house. BSB BSB: Complete your outdoor work and prepare your field; after that, you may build your house.
28 ARST Do not testify against someone you know if you do not have a good reason{ to do so}. Do not speak deceitfully! BSB BSB: Do not testify against your neighbor without cause, and do not deceive with your lips.
29 ARST Do not say,“I will do to him that same{ bad} thing he did to me; I will pay him back for what he did to me!” BSB BSB: Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will repay the man according to his work.”
30 ARST I walked by the land of a lazy person and past the vineyard of someone who does not think wisely. BSB BSB: I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment.
31 ARST And I saw that thistles and weeds were everywhere in that field and vineyard. Even the stone wall surrounding them had fallen down. BSB BSB: Thorns had grown up everywhere, thistles had covered the ground, and the stone wall was broken down.
32 ARST When I saw{ that}, I considered carefully{ what I was seeing}. When I observed{ that}, I learned{ this}: BSB BSB: I observed and took it to heart; I looked and received instruction:
33 ARST { You say to yourself,}“Let me sleep just a little more! Let me lay my hands{ across my chest} in order to rest comfortably for a little while longer!” BSB BSB: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
34 ARST { Being so lazy} will result in you suddenly becoming poor and needy as if a thief has attacked you. BSB BSB: and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.