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Proverbs 31

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1 οἱ ἐμοὶ λόγοι εἴρηνται ὑπὸ θεοῦ βασιλέως χρηματισμός ὃν ἐπαίδευσεν ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ

1 Here are words of king Lamuel; here is revelation his mother made known to him for his instruction.

1 Verba Lamuelis regis. Visio qua erudivit eum mater sua.

2 τί τέκνον τηρήσεις τί ῥήσεις θεοῦ πρωτογενές σοὶ λέγω υἱέ τί τέκνον ἐμῆς κοιλίας τί τέκνον ἐμῶν εὐχῶν 3 μὴ δῷς γυναιξὶ σὸν πλοῦτον καὶ τὸν σὸν νοῦν καὶ βίον εἰς ὑστεροβουλίαν 4 μετὰ βουλῆς πάντα ποίει μετὰ βουλῆς οἰνοπότει οἱ δυνάσται θυμώδεις εἰσίν οἶνον δὲ μὴ πινέτωσαν 5 ἵνα μὴ πιόντες ἐπιλάθωνται τῆς σοφίας καὶ ὀρθὰ κρῖναι οὐ μὴ δύνωνται τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς 6 δίδοτε μέθην τοῖς ἐν λύπαις καὶ οἶνον πίνειν τοῖς ἐν ὀδύναις 7 ἵνα ἐπιλάθωνται τῆς πενίας καὶ τῶν πόνων μὴ μνησθῶσιν ἔτι 8 ἄνοιγε σὸν στόμα λόγῳ θεοῦ καὶ κρῖνε πάντας ὑγιῶς 9 ἄνοιγε σὸν στόμα καὶ κρῖνε δικαίως διάκρινε δὲ πένητα καὶ ἀσθενῆ

2 What word have I for my son, the child of my own womb, the fulfilment of my prayers? 3 Wouldst thou give thyself up to the love of women, spend thy all on a king’s undoing? 4 Wine was never made for kings, Lamuel, never for kings; carouse befits ill thy council-chamber. 5 Not for them to drink deep, and forget the claims of right, and misjudge the plea of the friendless. 6 Strong drink for the mourner, wine for the afflicted heart; 7 deep let them drink, and forget their need, and think of their misery no more. 8 Do thou, meanwhile, give thy voice for dumb pleader and for doomed prisoner; 9 ever let that voice of thine pronounce true sentence, giving redress to the friendless and the poor.

2

Quid, dilecte mi? quid, dilecte uteri mei?
quid, dilecte votorum meorum? 3
Ne dederis mulieribus substantiam tuam,
et divitias tuas ad delendos reges. 4
Noli regibus, o Lamuel, noli regibus dare vinum,
quia nullum secretum est ubi regnat ebrietas; 5
et ne forte bibant, et obliviscantur judiciorum,
et mutent causam filiorum pauperis. 6
Date siceram mœrentibus,
et vinum his qui amaro sunt animo. 7
Bibant, et obliviscantur egestatis suæ,
et doloris sui non recordentur amplius. 8
Aperi os tuum muto,
et causis omnium filiorum qui pertranseunt. 9
Aperi os tuum, decerne quod justum est,
et judica inopem et pauperem.

10 γυναῖκα ἀνδρείαν τίς εὑρήσει τιμιωτέρα δέ ἐστιν λίθων πολυτελῶν ἡ τοιαύτη 11 θαρσεῖ ἐ{P'} αὐτῇ ἡ καρδία τοῦ ἀνδρὸς αὐτῆς ἡ τοιαύτη καλῶν σκύλων οὐκ ἀπορήσει 12 ἐνεργεῖ γὰρ τῷ ἀνδρὶ ἀγαθὰ πάντα τὸν βίον 13 μηρυομένη ἔρια καὶ λίνον ἐποίησεν εὔχρηστον ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῆς 14 ἐγένετο ὡσεὶ ναῦς ἐμπορευομένη μακρόθεν συνάγει δὲ αὕτη τὸν βίον 15 καὶ ἀνίσταται ἐκ νυκτῶν καὶ ἔδωκεν βρώματα τῷ οἴκῳ καὶ ἔργα ταῖς θεραπαίναις 16 θεωρήσασα γεώργιον ἐπρίατο ἀπὸ δὲ καρπῶν χειρῶν αὐτῆς κατεφύτευσεν κτῆμα 17 ἀναζωσαμένη ἰσχυρῶς τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτῆς ἤρεισεν τοὺς βραχίονας αὐτῆς εἰς ἔργον 18 ἐγεύσατο ὅτι καλόν ἐστιν τὸ ἐργάζεσθαι καὶ οὐκ ἀποσβέννυται ὅλην τὴν νύκτα ὁ λύχνος αὐτῆς 19 τοὺς πήχεις αὐτῆς ἐκτείνει ἐπὶ τὰ συμφέροντα τὰς δὲ χεῖρας αὐτῆς ἐρείδει εἰς ἄτρακτον 20 χεῖρας δὲ αὐτῆς διήνοιξεν πένητι καρπὸν δὲ ἐξέτεινεν πτωχῷ 21 οὐ φροντίζει τῶν ἐν οἴκῳ ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς ὅταν που χρονίζῃ πάντες γὰρ οἱ πα{R'} αὐτῆς ἐνδιδύσκονται 22 δισσὰς χλαίνας ἐποίησεν τῷ ἀνδρὶ αὐτῆς ἐκ δὲ βύσσου καὶ πορφύρας ἑαυτῇ ἐνδύματα 23 περίβλεπτος δὲ γίνεται ἐν πύλαις ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς ἡνίκα ἂν καθίσῃ ἐν συνεδρίῳ μετὰ τῶν γερόντων κατοίκων τῆς γῆς 24 σινδόνας ἐποίησεν καὶ ἀπέδοτο περιζώματα δὲ τοῖς Χαναναίοις 25 στόμα αὐτῆς διήνοιξεν προσεχόντως καὶ ἐννόμως καὶ τάξιν ἐστείλατο τῇ γλώσσῃ αὐτῆς 26 ἰσχὺν καὶ εὐπρέπειαν ἐνεδύσατο καὶ εὐφράνθη ἐν ἡμέραις ἐσχάταις 27 στεγναὶ διατριβαὶ οἴκων αὐτῆς σῖτα δὲ ὀκνηρὰ οὐκ ἔφαγεν 28 τὸ στόμα δὲ ἀνοίγει σοφῶς καὶ νομοθέσμως ἡ δὲ ἐλεημοσύνη αὐτῆς ἀνέστησεν τὰ τέκνα αὐτῆς καὶ ἐπλούτησαν καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς ᾔνεσεν αὐτήν 29 πολλαὶ θυγατέρες ἐκτήσαντο πλοῦτον πολλαὶ ἐποίησαν δυνατά σὺ δὲ ὑπέρκεισαι καὶ ὑπερῆρας πάσας 30 ψευδεῖς ἀρέσκειαι καὶ μάταιον κάλλος γυναικός γυνὴ γὰρ συνετὴ εὐλογεῖται φόβον δὲ κυρίου αὕτη αἰνείτω 31 δότε αὐτῇ ἀπὸ καρπῶν χειρῶν αὐτῆς καὶ αἰνείσθω ἐν πύλαις ὁ ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς

10 A man who has found a vigorous wife has found a rare treasure, brought from distant shores. 11 Bound to her in loving confidence, he will have no need of spoil. 12 Content, not sorrow, she will bring him as long as life lasts. 13 Does she not busy herself with wool and thread, plying her hands with ready skill? 14 Ever she steers her course like some merchant ship, bringing provision from far away. 15 From early dawn she is up, assigning food to the household, so that each waiting-woman has her share. 16 Ground must be examined, and bought, and planted out as a vineyard, with the earnings of her toil. 17 How briskly she girds herself to the task, how tireless are her arms! 18 Industry, she knows, is well rewarded, and all night long her lamp does not go out. 19 Jealously she sets her hands to work, her fingers clutch the spindle. 20 Kindly is her welcome to the poor, her purse ever open to those in need. 21 Let the snow lie cold if it will, she has no fears for her household; no servant of hers but is warmly clad. 22 Made by her own hands was the coverlet on her bed, the clothes of lawn and purple that she wears. 23 None so honoured at the city gate as that husband of hers, when he sits in council with the elders of the land. 24 Often she will sell linen of her own weaving, or make a girdle for the travelling merchant to buy. 25 Protected by her own industry and good repute, she greets the morrow with a smile. 26 Ripe wisdom governs her speech, but it is kindly instruction she gives. 27 She keeps watch over all that goes on in her house, not content to go through life eating and sleeping. 28 That is why her children are the first to call her blessed, her husband is loud in her praise: 29 Unrivalled art thou among all the women that have enriched their homes. 30 Vain are the winning ways, beauty is a snare; it is the woman who fears the Lord that will achieve renown. 31 Work such as hers claims its reward; let her life be spoken of with praise at the city gates.

10

Mulierem fortem quis inveniet?
procul et de ultimis finibus pretium ejus. 11
Confidit in ea cor viri sui,
et spoliis non indigebit. 12
Reddet ei bonum, et non malum,
omnibus diebus vitæ suæ. 13
Quæsivit lanam et linum,
et operata est consilia manuum suarum. 14
Facta est quasi navis institoris,
de longe portans panem suum. 15
Et de nocte surrexit,
deditque prædam domesticis suis,
et cibaria ancillis suis. 16
Consideravit agrum, et emit eum;
de fructu manuum suarum plantavit vineam. 17
Accinxit fortitudine lumbos suos,
et roboravit brachium suum. 18
Gustavit, et vidit quia bona est negotiatio ejus;
non extinguetur in nocte lucerna ejus. 19
Manum suam misit ad fortia,
et digiti ejus apprehenderunt fusum. 20
Manum suam aperuit inopi,
et palmas suas extendit ad pauperem. 21
Non timebit domui suæ a frigoribus nivis;
omnes enim domestici ejus vestiti sunt duplicibus. 22
Stragulatam vestem fecit sibi;
byssus et purpura indumentum ejus. 23
Nobilis in portis vir ejus,
quando sederit cum senatoribus terræ. 24
Sindonem fecit, et vendidit,
et cingulum tradidit Chananæo. 25
Fortitudo et decor indumentum ejus,
et ridebit in die novissimo. 26
Os suum aperuit sapientiæ,
et lex clementiæ in lingua ejus. 27
Consideravit semitas domus suæ,
et panem otiosa non comedit. 28
Surrexerunt filii ejus, et beatissimam prædicaverunt;
vir ejus, et laudavit eam. 29
Multæ filiæ congregaverunt divitias;
tu supergressa es universas. 30
Fallax gratia, et vana est pulchritudo:
mulier timens Dominum, ipsa laudabitur. 31
Date ei de fructu manuum suarum,
et laudent eam in portis opera ejus.

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