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Proverbs 23

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1 ἐὰν καθίσῃς δειπνεῖν ἐπὶ τραπέζης δυναστῶν νοητῶς νόει τὰ παρατιθέμενά σοι 2 καὶ ἐπίβαλλε τὴν χεῖρά σου εἰδὼς ὅτι τοιαῦτά σε δεῖ παρασκευάσαι 3 εἰ δὲ ἀπληστότερος εἶ μὴ ἐπιθύμει τῶν ἐδεσμάτων αὐτοῦ ταῦτα γὰρ ἔχεται ζωῆς ψευδοῦς

1 When thou art sitting at table with a prince, mark well what is set before thee, 2 and, have thou thy appetite under control, guard as with a drawn knife thy gullet. 3 Hanker thou never after those good things of his; they are bait to lure thee.[1]

1

Quando sederis ut comedas cum principe,
diligenter attende quæ apposita sunt ante faciem tuam. 2
Et statue cultrum in gutture tuo:
si tamen habes in potestate animam tuam. 3
Ne desideres de cibis ejus,
in quo est panis mendacii.

4 μὴ παρεκτείνου πένης ὢν πλουσίῳ τῇ δὲ σῇ ἐννοίᾳ ἀπόσχου 5 ἐὰν ἐπιστήσῃς τὸ σὸν ὄμμα πρὸς αὐτόν οὐδαμοῦ φανεῖται κατεσκεύασται γὰρ αὐτῷ πτέρυγες ὥσπερ ἀετοῦ καὶ ὑποστρέφει εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ προεστηκότος αὐτοῦ

4 Do not be at pains to amass riches; let thy scheming[2] have its bounds. 5 Never let thy eyes soar to the wealth that is beyond thy reach, eagle-winged against thy pursuit.

4
Noli laborare ut diteris,
sed prudentiæ tuæ pone modum. 5
Ne erigas oculos tuos ad opes quas non potes habere,
quia facient sibi pennas quasi aquilæ, et volabunt in cælum.

6 μὴ συνδείπνει ἀνδρὶ βασκάνῳ μηδὲ ἐπιθύμει τῶν βρωμάτων αὐτοῦ 7 ὃν τρόπον γὰρ εἴ τις καταπίοι τρίχα οὕτως ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει 8 μηδὲ πρὸς σὲ εἰσαγάγῃς αὐτὸν καὶ φάγῃς τὸν ψωμόν σου με{T'} αὐτοῦ ἐξεμέσει γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ λυμανεῖται τοὺς λόγους σου τοὺς καλούς

6 Shun the niggard’s table; not for thee his dainties. 7 Abstracted he sits, like soothsayer brooding over false dreams; Eat and drink, he tells thee, but his mind is far away. 8 For that grudged food thou wilt have no stomach; all gracious speech will die away on thy tongue.[3]

6
Ne comedas cum homine invido,
et ne desideres cibos ejus: 7
quoniam in similitudinem arioli et conjectoris
æstimat quod ignorat.
Comede et bibe, dicet tibi;
et mens ejus non est tecum. 8
Cibos quos comederas evomes,
et perdes pulchros sermones tuos.

9 εἰς ὦτα ἄφρονος μηδὲν λέγε μήποτε μυκτηρίσῃ τοὺς συνετοὺς λόγους σου

9 Speak not with fools for thy hearers; of thy warning utterance they will reck nothing.

9
In auribus insipientium ne loquaris,
qui despicient doctrinam eloquii tui.

10 μὴ μεταθῇς ὅρια αἰώνια εἰς δὲ κτῆμα ὀρφανῶν μὴ εἰσέλθῃς 11 ὁ γὰρ λυτρούμενος αὐτοὺς κύριος κραταιός ἐστιν καὶ κρινεῖ τὴν κρίσιν αὐτῶν μετὰ σοῦ

10 Leave undisturbed the landmarks of friendless folk, nor encroach on the orphan’s patrimony; 11 a strong Champion they have, to grant them redress.

10
Ne attingas parvulorum terminos,
et agrum pupillorum ne introëas: 11
propinquus enim illorum fortis est,
et ipse judicabit contra te causam illorum.

12 δὸς εἰς παιδείαν τὴν καρδίαν σου τὰ δὲ ὦτά σου ἑτοίμασον λόγοις αἰσθήσεως 13 μὴ ἀπόσχῃ νήπιον παιδεύειν ὅτι ἐὰν πατάξῃς αὐτὸν ῥάβδῳ οὐ μὴ ἀποθάνῃ 14 σὺ μὲν γὰρ πατάξεις αὐτὸν ῥάβδῳ τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἐκ θανάτου ῥύσῃ 15 υἱέ ἐὰν σοφὴ γένηταί σου ἡ καρδία εὐφρανεῖς καὶ τὴν ἐμὴν καρδίαν 16 καὶ ἐνδιατρίψει λόγοις τὰ σὰ χείλη πρὸς τὰ ἐμὰ χείλη ἐὰν ὀρθὰ ὦσιν 17 μὴ ζηλούτω ἡ καρδία σου ἁμαρτωλούς ἀλλὰ ἐν φόβῳ κυρίου ἴσθι ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν 18 ἐὰν γὰρ τηρήσῃς αὐτά ἔσται σοι ἔκγονα ἡ δὲ ἐλπίς σου οὐκ ἀποστήσεται

12 Still let thy heart be attentive to warnings, open be thy ear to words of instruction. 13 Nor ever from child of thine withhold chastisement; he will not die under the rod; 14 rather, the rod thou wieldest shall baulk the grave of its prey. 15 Wise heart of thine, my son, is glad heart of mine; 16 speak thou aright, all my being thrills. 17 Do not envy sinners their good fortune, but abide in the fear of the Lord continually; 18 the future holds blessings for thee, never shall that hope play thee false.

12

Ingrediatur ad doctrinam cor tuum,
et aures tuæ ad verba scientiæ. 13
Noli subtrahere a puero disciplinam:
si enim percusseris eum virga, non morietur. 14
Tu virga percuties eum,
et animam ejus de inferno liberabis. 15
Fili mi, si sapiens fuerit animus tuus,
gaudebit tecum cor meum: 16
et exsultabunt renes mei,
cum locuta fuerint rectum labia tua. 17
Non æmuletur cor tuum peccatores,
sed in timore Domini esto tota die: 18
quia habebis spem in novissimo,
et præstolatio tua non auferetur.

19 ἄκουε υἱέ καὶ σοφὸς γίνου καὶ κατεύθυνε ἐννοίας σῆς καρδίας 20 μὴ ἴσθι οἰνοπότης μηδὲ ἐκτείνου συμβολαῖς κρεῶν τε ἀγορασμοῖς 21 πᾶς γὰρ μέθυσος καὶ πορνοκόπος πτωχεύσει καὶ ἐνδύσεται διερρηγμένα καὶ ῥακώδη πᾶς ὑπνώδης 22 ἄκουε υἱέ πατρὸς τοῦ γεννήσαντός σε καὶ μὴ καταφρόνει ὅτι γεγήρακέν σου ἡ μήτηρ 23 24 καλῶς ἐκτρέφει πατὴρ δίκαιος ἐπὶ δὲ υἱῷ σοφῷ εὐφραίνεται ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτοῦ 25 εὐφραινέσθω ὁ πατὴρ καὶ ἡ μήτηρ ἐπὶ σοί καὶ χαιρέτω ἡ τεκοῦσά σε

19 Listen, then, my son, and shew thyself wise, keeping still an even course. 20 Be not of their company, that drink deep and pile the dishes high at their revels; 21 ruined they shall be, sot and trencherman, and wake from their drunken sleep to find themselves dressed in rags. 22 Thine to obey the father who begot thee, nor leave thy mother without reverence in her grey hairs; 23 truth to covet, hold wisdom, and self-command, and discernment for treasured heirlooms. 24 Joy there is and pride in an upright man’s begetting for the glad father of a wise son; 25 such joy let thy father have, such pride be hers, the mother who bore thee!

19
Audi, fili mi, et esto sapiens,
et dirige in via animum tuum. 20
Noli esse in conviviis potatorum,
nec in comessationibus eorum qui carnes ad vescendum conferunt: 21
quia vacantes potibus et dantes symbola consumentur,
et vestietur pannis dormitatio. 22
Audi patrem tuum, qui genuit te,
et ne contemnas cum senuerit mater tua. 23
Veritatem eme, et noli vendere sapientiam,
et doctrinam, et intelligentiam. 24
Exsultat gaudio pater justi;
qui sapientem genuit, lætabitur in eo. 25
Gaudeat pater tuus et mater tua,
et exsultet quæ genuit te.

26 δός μοι υἱέ σὴν καρδίαν οἱ δὲ σοὶ ὀφθαλμοὶ ἐμὰς ὁδοὺς τηρείτωσαν 27 πίθος γὰρ τετρημένος ἐστὶν ἀλλότριος οἶκος καὶ φρέαρ στενὸν ἀλλότριον 28 οὗτος γὰρ συντόμως ἀπολεῖται καὶ πᾶς παράνομος ἀναλωθήσεται

26 My son, give me the gift of thy heart, scan closely the path I shew thee. 27 What pit so deep as the harlot’s greed, what snare holds so close as wanton wife? 28 Like a footpad she lurks beside the way, a deadly peril to all that forget their troth.

26
Præbe, fili mi, cor tuum mihi,
et oculi tui vias meas custodiant. 27
Fovea enim profunda est meretrix,
et puteus angustus aliena. 28
Insidiatur in via quasi latro,
et quos incautos viderit, interficiet.

29 τίνι οὐαί τίνι θόρυβος τίνι κρίσις τίνι ἀηδίαι καὶ λέσχαι τίνι συντρίμματα διὰ κενῆς τίνος πέλειοι οἱ ὀφθαλμοί 30 οὐ τῶν ἐγχρονιζόντων ἐν οἴνοις οὐ τῶν ἰχνευόντων ποῦ πότοι γίνονται 31 μὴ μεθύσκεσθε οἴνῳ ἀλλὰ ὁμιλεῖτε ἀνθρώποις δικαίοις καὶ ὁμιλεῖτε ἐν περιπάτοις ἐὰν γὰρ εἰς τὰς φιάλας καὶ τὰ ποτήρια δῷς τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου ὕστερον περιπατήσεις γυμνότερος ὑπέρου 32 τὸ δὲ ἔσχατον ὥσπερ ὑπὸ ὄφεως πεπληγὼς ἐκτείνεται καὶ ὥσπερ ὑπὸ κεράστου διαχεῖται αὐτῷ ὁ ἰός 33 οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου ὅταν ἴδωσιν ἀλλοτρίαν τὸ στόμα σου τότε λαλήσει σκολιά 34 καὶ κατακείσῃ ὥσπερ ἐν καρδίᾳ θαλάσσης καὶ ὥσπερ κυβερνήτης ἐν πολλῷ κλύδωνι 35 ἐρεῖς δέ τύπτουσίν με καὶ οὐκ ἐπόνεσα καὶ ἐνέπαιξάν μοι ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ ᾔδειν πότε ὄρθρος ἔσται ἵνα ἐλθὼν ζητήσω με{Q'} ὧν συνελεύσομαι

29 Unhappy son of an unhappy father, who is this, ever brawling, ever falling, scarred but not from battle, blood-shot of eye? 30 Who but the tosspot that sits long over his wine? 31 Look not at the wine’s tawny glow, sparkling there in the glass beside thee; how insinuating its address! 32 Yet at last adder bites not so fatally, poison it distils like the basilisk’s own. 33 Eyes that stray to forbidden charms, a mind uttering thoughts that are none of thine, 34 shall make thee helpless as mariner asleep in mid ocean, when the tiller drops from the helmsman’s drowsy grasp. 35 What! thou wilt say, blows all unfelt, wounds that left no sting! Could I but come to myself, and be back, even now, at my wine!

29

Cui væ? cujus patri væ?
cui rixæ? cui foveæ?
cui sine causa vulnera? cui suffusio oculorum? 30
nonne his qui commorantur in vino,
et student calicibus epotandis? 31
Ne intuearis vinum quando flavescit,
cum splenduerit in vitro color ejus:
ingreditur blande, 32
sed in novissimo mordebit ut coluber,
et sicut regulus venena diffundet. 33
Oculi tui videbunt extraneas,
et cor tuum loquetur perversa. 34
Et eris sicut dormiens in medio mari,
et quasi sopitus gubernator, amisso clavo. 35
Et dices: Verberaverunt me, sed non dolui;
traxerunt me, et ego non sensi.
Quando evigilabo, et rursus vina reperiam?

[1] At first sight, this passage suggests the danger of poisoning; but since no such occurrences are mentioned in the Old Testament, we should perhaps understand that the prince is trying to extort some advantage out of his guest by taking him off his guard.

[2] Literally, ‘prudence’.

[3] vv. 6-8. The language of this passage is strained throughout, and it is hard to feel certain that we have found the right clue to its meaning.

Knox Translation Copyright © 2013 Westminster Diocese
Nihil Obstat. Father Anton Cowan, Censor.
Imprimatur. +Most Rev. Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster. 8th January 2012.
Re-typeset and published in 2012 by Baronius Press Ltd