1 Do not boast{tit'hallel: self-focused boasting} about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth{yeled: produce unexpectedly}.
2 Let someone else{zar: one not yourself} speak your praise, and not your own mouth{pikha: speaking organ}; let a foreigner say it, and not your own lips.
3 The weight of a stone and the burden of sand—yet the anger {ka’as: intense provocation} of a fool {ewil: morally deficient person} is heavier than both of them.
4 Wrath {khemah: fierce indignation} is cruel, and anger is a flood {shetef: overflowing surge}; but who can stand before jealousy?
5 An open rebuke {megullah: openly disclosed} is preferable to love {mesuteret: secret affection} kept hidden.
6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend {ohev: loving companion}, but profuse are the kisses of an enemy {sone: adversary}.
7 A soul{nefesh: inner self, seat of desire} that is satisfied will loathe honeycomb{nofet: natural honey}, but a soul that is hungry finds every bitter thing sweet.
8 As a bird wanders from her nest {qinah: secure dwelling}, so a man wanders from his place {maqom: fixed abode}.
9 Oil {shemen: rich anointing} and incense make the heart rejoice, and the sweetness of a friend comes from the counsel of the soul {nefesh: innermost being}.
10 Do not forsake your friend {re’a: loyal companion} or your father’s friend; and do not go into your brother’s house on the day of your calamity {eidekha: time of distress}. Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far.
11 Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad {vesamach: cause delight}, so that I may answer the one who reproaches me {chorpi: one who brings shame}.
12 The prudent perceives danger {ra‘ah: perilous threat} and takes refuge, but the simple go on and suffer punishment {ne’enashu: incur penalty}.
13 Take his garment{bigdo: collateral item} when he has become surety for a stranger{zar: non-community member}, and take a pledge from him for a foreign woman.
14 Whoever blesses his friend {re’ehu: close companion} with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will have it counted as a curse {kelalah: spoken ill} to him.
15 A steady dripping {delef: steady leak} on a rainy day and a quarrelsome woman {midyanim: habitual strife} are alike.
16 Whoever restrains her is like restraining {tsapan: suppressive effort} the wind, and oil in his right hand calls out {yikra: inevitable reveal}.
17 Iron {barzel: strong metal} sharpens iron, and a man sharpens the face of his friend {re’a: close companion}.
18 The one who guards the fig tree {te'enah: source of sustenance} will eat its fruit {piryah: yield or produce}, and the one who guards his master will be honored.
19 As water {kamayim: reflective liquid} reflects face to face, so the heart {lev: inner self} of a man reflects him.
20 Sheol {sheol: underworld realm} and Abaddon are never satisfied; the eyes of man {adam: individual human} are never satisfied.
21 As the crucible is for silver and the furnace {khur: purifying furnace} is for gold, so a man is tested by his praise {mahalalo: public acclaim}.
22 Even if you crush the fool {’evil: moral dullard} in a mortar among grain with a pestle, his folly {ivalto: innate defect} will not depart from him.
23 You shall surely know {yadoa: persistent awareness} the condition of your flocks; set {shit: deliberate resolve} your heart to the herds.
24 For riches {hosen: material wealth} are not forever, and does a crown {nezer: royal symbol} endure to every generation?
25 The grass {chatzir: dried stalks for feeding} is removed, the tender grass appears, and the herbs {issevot: wild mountain plants} of the mountains are gathered.
26 The lambs {kevassim: young sheep} will be for your clothing, and the goats the price of a field {sadeh: cultivated land}.
27 And there will be enough goat’s milk for your food, for the bread of your house, and life {chayyim: sustenance} for your maidens {na'arot: female servants}.