27 1 Boast not thyself of [a]tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth: a stranger, and not thine own lips.
3 A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty: but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both.
4 Anger is cruel, and wrath is raging: but who can stand before [b]envy?
5 Open rebuke is better than secret love.
6 The wounds of a lover are faithful, and the kisses of an enemy are [c]pleasant.
7 (A)The person that is full, despiseth an honeycomb: but unto the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.
8 As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is a man that wandereth from his own place.
9 As ointment and perfume rejoice the heart, so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.
10 Thine own friend and thy father’s friend forsake thou not: neither enter into thy brother’s [d]house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbor that is near, than a brother far off.
11 My son, be wise, and rejoice mine heart, that I may answer him that reproacheth me.
12 [e]A prudent man seeth the plague, and hideth himself: but the foolish go on still, and are punished.
13 (B)Take his garment that is surety for a stranger, and a pledge of him for the stranger.
14 He that [f]praiseth his friend with a loud voice, rising [g]early in the morning, it shall be counted to him as a curse.
15 A (C)continual dropping in the day of rain, and a contentious woman are alike.
16 He that hideth her, hideth the wind, and she is as the oil in his right hand that uttereth itself.
17 Iron sharpeneth iron, so doth [h]man sharpen the face of his friend.
18 He that keepeth the fig tree, shall eat the fruit thereof: so he that waiteth upon his master, shall come to honor.
19 As in water face answereth to face, [i]so the heart of man to man.
20 The grave and destruction can never be full, so the eyes of man can never be satisfied.
21 (D)As is the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold, so is every man according to his [j]dignity.
22 Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat brayed with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.
23 Be diligent to know the state of thy flock, and take heed to the herds.
24 For riches remain not always, nor the crown from generation to generation.
25 The hay discovereth itself, and the grass appeareth, and the herbs of the mountains are gathered.
26 The [k]lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.
27 And let the milk of the goats be sufficient for thy food, for the food of thy family, and for the sustenance of thy maids.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:1 Delay not the time, but take occasion when it is offered.
- Proverbs 27:4 For the envious are obstinate, and cannot be reconciled.
- Proverbs 27:6 They are flattering, and seem friendful.
- Proverbs 27:10 Trust not to any worldly help in the day of thy trouble.
- Proverbs 27:12 Read Prov. 22:3.
- Proverbs 27:14 Hebrew, blesseth.
- Proverbs 27:14 Hastily and without cause.
- Proverbs 27:17 One hasty man provoketh another to anger.
- Proverbs 27:19 There is no difference between man and man by nature, but only the grace of God maketh the difference.
- Proverbs 27:21 That is, he is either known to be ambitious, and glorious, or humble and modest.
- Proverbs 27:26 This declareth the great goodness of God towards man, and the diligence that he requireth of him for the preservation of his gifts.