Proverbs 24:13-27
Proverbs 24:13-27 The Message (MSG)
Eat honey, dear child—it’s good for you— and delicacies that melt in your mouth. Likewise knowledge, and wisdom for your soul— Get that and your future’s secured, your hope is on solid rock. Don’t interfere with good people’s lives; don’t try to get the best of them. No matter how many times you trip them up, God-loyal people don’t stay down long; Soon they’re up on their feet, while the wicked end up flat on their faces. Don’t laugh when your enemy falls; don’t gloat over his collapse. GOD might see, and become very provoked, and then take pity on his plight. Don’t bother your head with braggarts or wish you could succeed like the wicked. Those people have no future at all; they’re headed down a dead-end street. Fear GOD, dear child—respect your leaders; don’t be defiant or mutinous. Without warning your life can turn upside down, and who knows how or when it might happen? It’s wrong, very wrong, to go along with injustice. Whoever whitewashes the wicked gets a black mark in the history books, But whoever exposes the wicked will be thanked and rewarded. An honest answer is like a warm hug. First plant your fields; then build your barn.
Proverbs 24:13-27 King James Version (KJV)
My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; And the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste: So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: When thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, And thy expectation shall not be cut off. Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Spoil not his resting place: For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: But the wicked shall fall into mischief. Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, And let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, And he turn away his wrath from him. Fret not thyself because of evil men, Neither be thou envious at the wicked; For there shall be no reward to the evil man; The candle of the wicked shall be put out. My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: And meddle not with them that are given to change: For their calamity shall rise suddenly; And who knoweth the ruin of them both? These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment. He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous; Him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him: But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, And a good blessing shall come upon them. Every man shall kiss his lips That giveth a right answer. Prepare thy work without, And make it fit for thyself in the field; And afterwards build thine house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
My son, eat honey, for it is good, Yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste; Know that wisdom is thus for your soul; If you find it, then there will be a future, And your hope will not be cut off. Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not destroy his resting place; For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of calamity. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; Or the LORD will see it and be displeased, And turn His anger away from him. Do not fret because of evildoers Or be envious of the wicked; For there will be no future for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out. My son, fear the LORD and the king; Do not associate with those who are given to change, For their calamity will rise suddenly, And who knows the ruin that comes from both of them? These also are sayings of the wise. To show partiality in judgment is not good. He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,” Peoples will curse him, nations will abhor him; But to those who rebuke the wicked will be delight, And a good blessing will come upon them. He kisses the lips Who gives a right answer. Prepare your work outside And make it ready for yourself in the field; Afterwards, then, build your house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 New Century Version (NCV)
My child, eat honey because it is good. Honey from the honeycomb tastes sweet. In the same way, wisdom is pleasing to you. If you find it, you have hope for the future, and your wishes will come true. Don’t be wicked and attack a good family’s house; don’t rob the place where they live. Even though good people may be bothered by trouble seven times, they are never defeated, but the wicked are overwhelmed by trouble. Don’t be happy when your enemy is defeated; don’t be glad when he is overwhelmed. The LORD will notice and be displeased. He may not be angry with them anymore. Don’t envy evil people, and don’t be jealous of the wicked. An evil person has nothing to hope for; the wicked will die like a flame that is put out. My child, respect the LORD and the king. Don’t join those people who refuse to obey them. The LORD and the king will quickly destroy such people. Those two can cause great disaster! These are also sayings of the wise: It is not good to take sides when you are the judge. Don’t tell the wicked that they are innocent; people will curse you, and nations will hate you. But things will go well if you punish the guilty, and you will receive rich blessings. An honest answer is as pleasing as a kiss on the lips. First, finish your outside work and prepare your fields. After that, you can build your house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 American Standard Version (ASV)
My son, eat thou honey, for it is good; And the droppings of the honeycomb, which are sweet to thy taste: So shalt thou know wisdom to be unto thy soul; If thou hast found it, then shall there be a reward, And thy hope shall not be cut off. Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the habitation of the righteous; Destroy not his resting-place: For a righteous man falleth seven times, and riseth up again; But the wicked are overthrown by calamity. Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, And let not thy heart be glad when he is overthrown; Lest Jehovah see it, and it displease him, And he turn away his wrath from him. Fret not thyself because of evil-doers; Neither be thou envious at the wicked: For there shall be no reward to the evil man; The lamp of the wicked shall be put out. My son, fear thou Jehovah and the king; And company not with them that are given to change: For their calamity shall rise suddenly; And the destruction from them both, who knoweth it? These also are sayings of the wise. To have respect of persons in judgment is not good. He that saith unto the wicked, Thou art righteous, Peoples shall curse him, nations shall abhor him; But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, And a good blessing shall come upon them. He kisseth the lips Who giveth a right answer. Prepare thy work without, And make it ready for thee in the field; And afterwards build thy house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 New International Version (NIV)
Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Know also that wisdom is like honey for you: If you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. Do not lurk like a thief near the house of the righteous, do not plunder their dwelling place; for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes. Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice, or the LORD will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from them. Do not fret because of evildoers or be envious of the wicked, for the evildoer has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out. Fear the LORD and the king, my son, and do not join with rebellious officials, for those two will send sudden destruction on them, and who knows what calamities they can bring? These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judging is not good: Whoever says to the guilty, “You are innocent,” will be cursed by peoples and denounced by nations. But it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come on them. An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips. Put your outdoor work in order and get your fields ready; after that, build your house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 New King James Version (NKJV)
My son, eat honey because it is good, And the honeycomb which is sweet to your taste; So shall the knowledge of wisdom be to your soul; If you have found it, there is a prospect, And your hope will not be cut off. Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not plunder his resting place; For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; Lest the LORD see it, and it displease Him, And He turn away His wrath from him. Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the wicked; For there will be no prospect for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out. My son, fear the LORD and the king; Do not associate with those given to change; For their calamity will rise suddenly, And who knows the ruin those two can bring? These things also belong to the wise: It is not good to show partiality in judgment. He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,” Him the people will curse; Nations will abhor him. But those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, And a good blessing will come upon them. He who gives a right answer kisses the lips. Prepare your outside work, Make it fit for yourself in the field; And afterward build your house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 Amplified Bible (AMP)
¶My son, eat honey, because it is good, And the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste. Know that [skillful and godly] wisdom is [so very good] for your life and soul; If you find wisdom, then there will be a future and a reward, And your hope and expectation will not be cut off. ¶Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not destroy his resting place; For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of disaster and collapse. [Job 5:19; Ps 34:19; 37:24; Mic 7:8] ¶Do not rejoice and gloat when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad [in self-righteousness] when he stumbles, Or the LORD will see your gloating and be displeased, And turn His anger away from your enemy. ¶Do not get upset because of evildoers, Or be envious of the wicked, For there will be no future for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out. ¶My son, fear the LORD and the king; And do not associate with those who are given to change [of allegiance, and are revolutionary], For their tragedy will rise suddenly, And who knows the punishment that both [the LORD and the king] will bring on the rebellious? ¶These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good. He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,” Peoples will curse him, nations will denounce him; But to those [honorable judges] who rebuke the wicked, it will go well with them and they will find delight, And a good blessing will come upon them. He kisses the lips [and wins the hearts of people] Who gives a right and straightforward answer. ¶Prepare your work outside And get it ready for yourself in the field; Afterward build your house and establish a home.
Proverbs 24:13-27 New Living Translation (NLT)
My child, eat honey, for it is good, and the honeycomb is sweet to the taste. In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hopes will not be cut short. Don’t wait in ambush at the home of the godly, and don’t raid the house where the godly live. The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again. But one disaster is enough to overthrow the wicked. Don’t rejoice when your enemies fall; don’t be happy when they stumble. For the LORD will be displeased with you and will turn his anger away from them. Don’t fret because of evildoers; don’t envy the wicked. For evil people have no future; the light of the wicked will be snuffed out. My child, fear the LORD and the king. Don’t associate with rebels, for disaster will hit them suddenly. Who knows what punishment will come from the LORD and the king? Here are some further sayings of the wise: It is wrong to show favoritism when passing judgment. A judge who says to the wicked, “You are innocent,” will be cursed by many people and denounced by the nations. But it will go well for those who convict the guilty; rich blessings will be showered on them. An honest answer is like a kiss of friendship. Do your planning and prepare your fields before building your house.
Proverbs 24:13-27 The Passion Translation (TPT)
Revelation-knowledge is a delicacy, sweet like flowing honey that melts in your mouth. Eat as much of it as you can, my friend! For then you will perceive what is true wisdom, your future will be bright, and this hope living within you will never disappoint you. Listen up, you wicked, irreverent ones— don’t harass the lovers of God and don’t invade their resting place. For the lovers of God may suffer adversity and stumble seven times, but they will continue to rise over and over again. But the unrighteous are brought down by just one calamity and will never be able to rise again. Never gloat when your enemy meets disaster, and don’t be quick to rejoice if he falls. For the Lord, who sees your heart, will be displeased with you and will pity your foe. Don’t be angrily offended over evildoers or be agitated by them. For the wicked have no life and no future— their light of life will die out. My child, stand in awe of YAHWEH! Give counsel to others, but don’t mingle with those who are rebellious. For sudden destruction will fall upon them and their lives will be ruined in a moment. And who knows what retribution they will face! Those enlightened with wisdom have spoken these proverbs: Judgment must be impartial, for it is always wrong to be swayed by a person’s status. If you say to the guilty, “You are innocent,” the nation will curse you and the people will revile you. But when you convict the guilty, the people will thank you and reward you with favor. Speaking honestly is a sign of true friendship. Go ahead, build your career and give yourself to your work. But if you put me first, you’ll see your family built up!
Proverbs 24:13-27 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)
My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste. Know that wisdom is such to your soul; if you find it, there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off. Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the righteous; do no violence to his home; for the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the LORD see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from him. Fret not yourself because of evildoers, and be not envious of the wicked, for the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. My son, fear the LORD and the king, and do not join with those who do otherwise, for disaster will arise suddenly from them, and who knows the ruin that will come from them both? These also are sayings of the wise. Partiality in judging is not good. Whoever says to the wicked, “You are in the right,” will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations, but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them. Whoever gives an honest answer kisses the lips. Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.