Poetry

---

1 The wicked man flees though no one pursues,
but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

The wicked man flees though no one pursues,
A truth that applies to both Gentiles and Jews,
But the righteous like a great lion are bold,
And they grab for God's riches like a miser for gold.


2 When a country is rebellious, it has many rulers,
but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order.

When people are rebellious, authorities multiply,
For confusion makes you wonder on whom to rely.
But when your leader is sharp with knowledge to keep order,
You are never concerned about when to head for the border.

3 A ruler [a] who oppresses the poor
is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.

A ruler who sees fit to oppress the poor
To God's clear word he has shut the door.
We must label him among the top flops,
For he's a driving rain that destroys the crops.

4 Those who forsake the law praise the wicked,
but those who keep the law resist them.

Those who see in wickedness things to be praised,
Have forsakes the law, and in rebellion are raised,
But those raised to honor the law will ever insist
That all such rebellion we must constantly resist.


5 Evil men do not understand justice,
but those who seek the LORD understand it fully.

Those who are evil just can't get it right,
That what makes life good is not power and might,
But the righteous seek the Lord and they understand,
That justice for all is his great command,
For the good of all people in every land.

6 Better a poor man whose walk is blameless
than a rich man whose ways are perverse.

Wiser is the poor man whose walk is without blame,
Than the rich man who lives his life in great shame.
The value of a life is not found in his purse,
But in how he avoids those ways so perverse.

7 He who keeps the law is a discerning son,
but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father.

The son who is discerning and keeps the law,
Brings honor to his father without a flaw,
But the companion of gluttons ever feeding his face,
Brings upon his father nothing but disgrace.

8 He who increases his wealth by exorbitant interest
amasses it for another, who will be kind to the poor.

The man who increases his wealth by bleeding people dry,
Will leave his estate to a much wiser and compassionate guy.
This man is much richer than the man before,
For he has God's heart for the downtrodden and poor.


9 If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law,
even his prayers are detestable.

If to the law a deaf ear you turn,
This is the lesson you then must learn:
You just as well write your prayers on paper, and then burn,
For all such prayers God will just spurn.



10 He who leads the upright along an evil path
will fall into his own trap,
but the blameless will receive a good inheritance.

He who leads people astray is truly a sap,
And he will fall into his own trap,
But those who lead others in a safe and right way,
Can count on a good inheritance coming their way.
For God is the one with the final say,
And he will make sure that kindness will pay.

11 A rich man may be wise in his own eyes,
but a poor man who has discernment sees through him.

A rich man may be wise in his own eyes,
But this truth may come as quite a surprise,
That a poor man with wisdom may see his inside,
And know he is filled with greed and with pride.



12 When the righteous triumph, there is great elation;
but when the wicked rise to power, men go into hiding.

When the good guys win, there is such great elation,
And the people rejoice all over the nation,
But when the bad guys rise to places of power,
People in sorrow find some safe place to cower.

13 He who conceals his sins does not prosper,
but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

He will not prosper who his sins he conceals,
For he will continue in sin this clearly reveals,
But he who confesses and from sin backs away,
Will find mercy to forgive and lighten his way.

14 Blessed is the man who always fears the LORD,
but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

Happy is the man when the Lord he fears,
For he will live peacefully for a good many years,
But not so for the hardened heart that brings trouble,
For his rebellion bring heartache, and that on the double.

15 Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
is a wicked man ruling over a helpless people.

Like a roaring lion or a charging bear,
Comes the tyrant ruler who has no care.
He is a wicked man without a heart,
And helpless people from his presence dart,
And they long to see him on a cart.
For the quicker the better when from life he will part.



16 A tyrannical ruler lacks judgment,
but he who hates ill-gotten gain will enjoy a long life.

A ruling tyrant in all wise judgment lacks,
For he forces his meanness on the poor people's backs,
But the wise ruler hates all ill-gotten gain,
And eliminate all such foolish unnecessary pain.
He will have good reason to be singing a song,
For God will assure him a life that is long.

17 A man tormented by the guilt of murder
will be a fugitive till death;
let no one support him.

One guilty of murder will be a tormented man,
Always on the run, and hiding wherever he can.
In dealing with such its okay to exhort him,
But whatever you do, do not support him.


18 He whose walk is blameless is kept safe,
but he whose ways are perverse will suddenly fall.

The one who walks blameless is safely kept,
Rising each day as one who has peacefully slept,
But the one who walks in perverse ways,
Will suddenly fall, and thus end his days.

19 He who works his land will have abundant food,
but the one who chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty.

The man who works his land will be a happy dude,
For he and his family will have abundance of food,
But the man who chases fantasies will fail in great degree,
For he and his family will live in perpetual poverty.

20 A faithful man will be richly blessed,
but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished.

The person God will richly bless is a faithful man,
For he will ever strive to be the best that he can,
But the man who has just one goal, and to be only rich he is eager,
Will suffer great loss, for his spiritual wealth will always be meager.

21 To show partiality is not good—
yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.

It is great injustice so obvious and crass,
To show favoritism to any one class,
But this sin is so common, and it will never be dead,
So long as people will do wrong for a piece of bread.

22 A stingy man is eager to get rich
and is unaware that poverty awaits him.

A stingy man is eager to get rich,
And climb his way to the highest niche,
But he is unaware that his plan has a glitch,
That will land him instead in a poverty ditch.

23 He who rebukes a man will in the end gain more favor
than he who has a flattering tongue.

When you tell your friend he is going the wrong way,
He may resent it for hours, and for even a day,
But in the final analysis he will say though it stung,
It meant more to him than the flattering tongue.

24 He who robs his father or mother
and says, "It's not wrong"—
he is partner to him who destroys.

He who robs his parents and says he did no wrong,
Is hard to classify, for in what species does he belong?
Just to think such a one exists, my mind annoys
For the only place he fits is with one who destroys.

25 A greedy man stirs up dissension,
but he who trusts in the LORD will prosper.

It is beyond my comprehension
Why greedy men stir up dissension,
For by trusting in the Lord above,
They could prosper and add love.

26 He who trusts in himself is a fool,
but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe.

He who trusts in himself is a fool
For he is locked into his class of pre-school.
He needs a higher education so in wisdom he can safely walk,
Relying on God's guidance, away from all foolish actions and talk.


27 He who gives to the poor will lack nothing,
but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.

Those who give to the poor will nothing lack,
For God will give them so much more back,
But those who refuse to open their eyes and purses,
Will receive nothing from God but his curses.

28 When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding;
but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive.

When the wicked rise to power, people shut their door,
For they hide in fear that soon justice will be no more,
But when these same rulers are no longer alive,
People dance in the streets as they see righteousness thrive.

---

PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE AS A MEMBER OR VISITOR