1
One who touches pitch shall be stained, and one who joins himself to the proud shall become like him.
2
Do not lift a burden beyond your strength, and do not join yourself to one stronger and wealthier than you. What fellowship has a clay pot with a bronze vessel? One strikes, and the other is shattered.
3
A wealthy man acts unrighteously and then rages; a poor man is treated unrighteously and then must plead.
4
If you are useful, he works you; if you lack, he abandons you.
5
If you possess, he lives with you and empties you, while he himself feels no pain.
6
When he needs you, he misleads you, smiles upon you, gives you hope, speaks pleasant things, and says, “What do you need?”
7
He shames you with his food until he has emptied you twice or three times, and at the end he mocks you. Afterward he beholds you, abandons you, and shakes his head over you.
8
Guard yourself from being misled and humiliated through your own foolishness.
9
When a ruler calls you, withdraw a little, and he shall call you all the more.
10
Do not press forward, lest you be pushed away; do not stand too far away, lest you be forgotten.
11
Do not presume to speak with him as an equal, and do not trust his many words. Through abundant speech he tests you, and while smiling he examines you.
12
Merciless is one who does not guard words; he shall not spare injury or bonds.
13
Guard yourself and pay close attention, for you walk together with your own fall.
14
When you hear these things even in sleep, awaken. Love Yahuah through all your life, and call upon Him for your salvation.
15
Every living creature loves its own likeness, and every Adam one near to himself.
16
All flesh gathers according to its kind, and an ish clings to one like himself.
17
What fellowship has a wolf with a lamb? So it is with a sinner and one who reveres.
18
What shalom exists between a hyena and a dog? What shalom between the wealthy and the poor?
19
Wild donkeys in the wilderness are prey for lions; so the poor are pasture for the wealthy.
20
Humility is detestable to the proud; so the poor are detestable to the wealthy.
21
When a wealthy man is shaken, companions uphold him; when a humble man falls, companions push him farther away.
22
When a wealthy man stumbles, many take hold of him. He speaks things not to be spoken, and they declare him right. A humble man stumbles, and they correct him further; he speaks with understanding, yet no place is given to him.
23
A wealthy man speaks, and all become silent; they lift his word to the clouds. A poor man speaks, and they say, “Who is this?” If he stumbles, they overthrow him further.
24
Wealth is good where there is no sin, and poverty is evil in the mouth of the profane.
25
The heart of an Adam changes his face, whether toward good or toward evil.
26
The sign of a heart in good is a radiant face, but finding a proverb requires laboring thought.