| New American Standard Bible 1995 | New Living Translation |
| 1Dead flies make a perfumer's oil stink, so a little foolishness is weightier than wisdom and honor. | 1As dead flies cause even a bottle of perfume to stink, so a little foolishness spoils great wisdom and honor. |
| 2A wise man's heart directs him toward the right, but the foolish man's heart directs him toward the left. | 2A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one. |
| 3Even when the fool walks along the road, his sense is lacking and he demonstrates to everyone that he is a fool. | 3You can identify fools just by the way they walk down the street! |
| 4If the ruler's temper rises against you, do not abandon your position, because composure allays great offenses. | 4If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit can overcome even great mistakes. The Ironies of Life |
| 5There is an evil I have seen under the sun, like an error which goes forth from the ruler-- | 5There is another evil I have seen under the sun. Kings and rulers make a grave mistake |
| 6folly is set in many exalted places while rich men sit in humble places. | 6when they give great authority to foolish people and low positions to people of proven worth. |
| 7I have seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the land. | 7I have even seen servants riding horseback like princes—and princes walking like servants! |
| 8He who digs a pit may fall into it, and a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall. | 8When you dig a well, you might fall in. When you demolish an old wall, you could be bitten by a snake. |
| 9He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits logs may be endangered by them. | 9When you work in a quarry, stones might fall and crush you. When you chop wood, there is danger with each stroke of your ax. |
| 10If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength. Wisdom has the advantage of giving success. | 10Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade. That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed. |
| 11If the serpent bites before being charmed, there is no profit for the charmer. | 11If a snake bites before you charm it, what’s the use of being a snake charmer? |
| 12Words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, while the lips of a fool consume him; | 12Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. |
| 13the beginning of his talking is folly and the end of it is wicked madness. | 13Fools base their thoughts on foolish assumptions, so their conclusions will be wicked madness; |
| 14Yet the fool multiplies words. No man knows what will happen, and who can tell him what will come after him? | 14they chatter on and on. No one really knows what is going to happen; no one can predict the future. |
| 15The toil of a fool so wearies him that he does not even know how to go to a city. | 15Fools are so exhausted by a little work that they can’t even find their way home. |
| 16Woe to you, O land, whose king is a lad and whose princes feast in the morning. | 16What sorrow for the land ruled by a servant, the land whose leaders feast in the morning. |
| 17Blessed are you, O land, whose king is of nobility and whose princes eat at the appropriate time-- for strength and not for drunkenness. | 17Happy is the land whose king is a noble leader and whose leaders feast at the proper time to gain strength for their work, not to get drunk. |
| 18Through indolence the rafters sag, and through slackness the house leaks. | 18Laziness leads to a sagging roof; idleness leads to a leaky house. |
| 19Men prepare a meal for enjoyment, and wine makes life merry, and money is the answer to everything. | 19A party gives laughter, wine gives happiness, and money gives everything! |
| 20Furthermore, in your bedchamber do not curse a king, and in your sleeping rooms do not curse a rich man, for a bird of the heavens will carry the sound and the winged creature will make the matter known. | 20Never make light of the king, even in your thoughts. And don’t make fun of the powerful, even in your own bedroom. For a little bird might deliver your message and tell them what you said. |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | 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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