Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
To look up a word in a dictionary, select the word with your mouse and press 'd' on your keyboard.
Laziness and Foolishness
1
2 Lazy people are no better
than dung; they are repulsive,
and no one wants to get near them.
3 It is a disgrace to a father to
have an undisciplined child, especially
if it is a daughter.
4 A sensible
daughter will get a husband, but a
shameless daughter brings her father
grief.
5 A girl with no sense of
propriety will disgrace both her husband
and her father; neither will
have any respect for her.
6 Lecturing your children can
sometimes be as out of place as singing
to people in mourning, but a
whipping is a wise choice of discipline
at any time.
7 Trying to teach a fool is like gluing
a broken pot back together, like
waking someone out of a deep sleep.
8 Explaining something to a fool is
like explaining it to a sleepy man;
when you have finished, he'll say,
“What was that again?” note
11 We mourn for the dead because
they have no access to light. We
ought to mourn for fools, because
they have no access to intelligence.
In fact, we should go into deeper
mourning for fools, because the life
they lead is worse than death. The
dead are at least at rest.
12 For seven
days we mourn the dead, but a foolish
or ungodly person causes a lifetime
of grief. note
13 Don't visit stupid people or
spend a lot of time talking with
them. Avoid them; then they can't
contaminate you, and you can live in
peace without being troubled or
worn down by their foolishness.
14 Such people are a heavier burden
to bear than lead; and the only word
that fits them is “fools.”
15 It is easier
to carry a load of sand, salt, and iron
than to put up with a stupid person.
16 A wooden beam can be put into
a building so firmly that an earthquake
cannot shake it loose; a person
can be trained to use reason and
good sense so well that he keeps his
head when a crisis comes.
17 A mind
that thinks things through intelligently
is like a firm wall, finely decorated.
18 Small stones on top of a
wall note will not stay put when the
wind blows, and a person whose stupid
ideas have made him timid will
not be able to stand up to frightening
situations.
Friendship
19 If you stick something in your
eye, tears will flow; and if you hurt a
person deeply, you will discover his
true feelings.
20 If you throw rocks at
birds, you will scarce them away; and
if you insult a friend, you will break
up the friendship.
21
22 Even if you
have a violent argument with a
friend, and speak sharply, all is not
lost. You can still make up with him.
But any friend will leave you if you
insult him, if you are arrogant, if you
reveal his secrets, or if you turn on
him unexpectedly.
23 Gain the confidence of your
neighbor if he is poor; then you can
share his happiness if he becomes
successful. Stand by him when he is
in trouble if you want to share with
him when better times come his
way.
24 Fumes and smoke appear before
the flames do; insults come before
violence.
25 I will never be afraid to protect a
friend, and I will never turn a friend
away if he needs me.
26 If I suffer because
of him, everyone who learns
of it will be on guard against him.
A Prayer for Help against Sin
27 I wish that a guard could be
placed at my mouth, that my lips
could be wisely sealed. It would
keep me from making mistakes and
prevent me from destroying myself
with my own tongue!
Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
|