75 lines
3.0 KiB
Markdown
75 lines
3.0 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 23
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1 While dining with a ruler,
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pay attention to what is put before you.
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2 If you are a big eater,
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put a knife to your throat;
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3 don’t desire all the delicacies,
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for he might be trying to trick you.
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4 Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich.
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Be wise enough to know when to quit.
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5 In the blink of an eye wealth disappears,
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for it will sprout wings
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and fly away like an eagle.
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6 Don’t eat with people who are stingy;
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don’t desire their delicacies.
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7 They are always thinking about how much it costs.
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“Eat and drink,” they say, but they don’t mean it.
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8 You will throw up what little you’ve eaten,
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and your compliments will be wasted.
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9 Don’t waste your breath on fools,
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for they will despise the wisest advice.
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10 Don’t cheat your neighbor by moving the ancient boundary markers;
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don’t take the land of defenseless orphans.
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11 For their Redeemer is strong;
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he himself will bring their charges against you.
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12 Commit yourself to instruction;
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listen carefully to words of knowledge.
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13 Don’t fail to discipline your children.
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The rod of punishment won’t kill them.
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14 Physical discipline
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may well save them from death.
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15 My child, if your heart is wise,
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my own heart will rejoice!
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16 Everything in me will celebrate
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when you speak what is right.
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17 Don’t envy sinners,
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but always continue to fear the Lord.
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18 You will be rewarded for this;
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your hope will not be disappointed.
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19 My child, listen and be wise:
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Keep your heart on the right course.
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20 Do not carouse with drunkards
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or feast with gluttons,
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21 for they are on their way to poverty,
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and too much sleep clothes them in rags.
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22 Listen to your father, who gave you life,
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and don’t despise your mother when she is old.
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23 Get the truth and never sell it;
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also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment.
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24 The father of godly children has cause for joy.
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What a pleasure to have children who are wise.
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25 So give your father and mother joy!
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May she who gave you birth be happy.
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26 O my son, give me your heart.
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May your eyes take delight in following my ways.
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27 A prostitute is a dangerous trap;
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a promiscuous woman is as dangerous as falling into a narrow well.
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28 She hides and waits like a robber,
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eager to make more men unfaithful.
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29 Who has anguish? Who has sorrow?
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Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining?
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Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?
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30 It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns,
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trying out new drinks.
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31 Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is,
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how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down.
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32 For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake;
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it stings like a viper.
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33 You will see hallucinations,
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and you will say crazy things.
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34 You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea,
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clinging to a swaying mast.
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35 And you will say, “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it.
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I didn’t even know it when they beat me up.
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When will I wake up
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so I can look for another drink?” |