| New King James Version | New Living Translation |
| 1Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth. | 1Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring. |
| 2Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips. | 2Let someone else praise you, not your own mouth— a stranger, not your own lips. |
| 3A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, But a fool’s wrath is heavier than both of them. | 3A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, but the resentment caused by a fool is even heavier. |
| 4Wrath is cruel and anger a torrent, But who is able to stand before jealousy? | 4Anger is cruel, and wrath is like a flood, but jealousy is even more dangerous. |
| 5Open rebuke is better Than love carefully concealed. | 5An open rebuke is better than hidden love! |
| 6Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. | 6Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy. |
| 7A satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb, But to a hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet. | 7A person who is full refuses honey, but even bitter food tastes sweet to the hungry. |
| 8Like a bird that wanders from its nest Is a man who wanders from his place. | 8A person who strays from home is like a bird that strays from its nest. |
| 9Ointment and perfume delight the heart, And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by hearty counsel. | 9The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense. |
| 10Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away. | 10Never abandon a friend— either yours or your father’s. When disaster strikes, you won’t have to ask your brother for assistance. It’s better to go to a neighbor than to a brother who lives far away. |
| 11My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may answer him who reproaches me. | 11Be wise, my child, and make my heart glad. Then I will be able to answer my critics. |
| 12A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself; The simple pass on and are punished. | 12A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. |
| 13Take the garment of him who is surety for a stranger, And hold it in pledge when he is surety for a seductress. | 13Get security from someone who guarantees a stranger’s debt. Get a deposit if he does it for foreigners. |
| 14He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It will be counted a curse to him. | 14A loud and cheerful greeting early in the morning will be taken as a curse! |
| 15A continual dripping on a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike; | 15A quarrelsome wife is as annoying as constant dripping on a rainy day. |
| 16Whoever restrains her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand. | 16Stopping her complaints is like trying to stop the wind or trying to hold something with greased hands. |
| 17As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. | 17As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. |
| 18Whoever keeps the fig tree will eat its fruit; So he who waits on his master will be honored. | 18As workers who tend a fig tree are allowed to eat the fruit, so workers who protect their employer’s interests will be rewarded. |
| 19As in water face reflects face, So a man’s heart reveals the man. | 19As a face is reflected in water, so the heart reflects the real person. |
| 20Hell and Destruction are never full; So the eyes of man are never satisfied. | 20Just as Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so human desire is never satisfied. |
| 21The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, And a man is valued by what others say of him. | 21Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being praised. |
| 22Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, Yet his foolishness will not depart from him. | 22You cannot separate fools from their foolishness, even though you grind them like grain with mortar and pestle. |
| 23Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, And attend to your herds; | 23Know the state of your flocks, and put your heart into caring for your herds, |
| 24For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations. | 24for riches don’t last forever, and the crown might not be passed to the next generation. |
| 25When the hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself, And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in, | 25After the hay is harvested and the new crop appears and the mountain grasses are gathered in, |
| 26The lambs will provide your clothing, And the goats the price of a field; | 26your sheep will provide wool for clothing, and your goats will provide the price of a field. |
| 27You shall have enough goats’ milk for your food, For the food of your household, And the nourishment of your maidservants. | 27And you will have enough goats’ milk for yourself, your family, and your servant girls. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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