PROVERBS CHAPTER 9 - 16

PROVERBS 9

1 Wisdom has built her house and she
Has hewn out her seven pillars wee.
2 She’s killed her beasts and mixed her wine,
She’s furnished her table to dine.
3 She’s sent out maidens to give word,
She’s cried on the city walls stirred.
4 ”Let the simple one turn in here,
The one who lacks in mindful gear,”
She says to him, 5 ”Come eat my bread,
And drink my wine mixed and outspread.
6 ”Forsake the foolish now and live,
And go the way the thoughtful give.”
7 The one who chides a scorner gets
Shame on himself, and he who sets
A wicked man to an account
Gets a blot on himself to mount.
8 Do not reprove a scorner lest
He hate you, but rebuke the best
Of wise men and he’ll love your zest.

How true it is! I’ve seen the place where one
Cannot in peace and quiet under sun
Withdraw from company of scorners met
But he will be slandered by all the set.
The lies that scorners tell and publicize
About the just mount up into the skies.
If I had only minded that the crew
That claims on this earth to represent You
Is such a scorner band, I might have saved
Myself the barrage of what fools engraved.
Beloved, let me have discourse with You and
Leave others to their own device at hand,
And dwell in peace to cantillate Your word
While fools recite their litanies absurd.

9 Teach a wise man, he’ll be but wiser,
Teach a just man and no despiser,
And he’ll increase in learnings’ visor.
10 The fear of YHWH is wisdom’s start,
Knowledge of holy things in cart
Is underestanding for an art.
11 By me your days are multiplied,
The years of life increased to bide.
12 If you’re wise, you just benefit,
If you’re a scorner, it’s your kit.
If you should prove a wicked one,
You’ll bear alone the evil done,
The one who depends on the false,
Attempting with the wind to waltz,
Will chase after birds in their flight.
For he’s forsaken vineyard’s right,
And turned his own cart-wheels to spite.
He wanders in dry desert land
Appointed for the drought at hand,
Gathers for harvest blowing sand.
13 A foolish wench clamours aloud,
Simple, she knows nothing but cloud.
14 She sits at the door of her house,
On the walls of the town like mouse.
15 She calls to travellers on journey.
16 ”Let ignorant ones come to me,
Who lack understanding freely,”
She says to travellers she can see.
17 ”Sweet are the stolen waters and
Secret bread is pleasant in hand.”
18 He does not know the dead are there,
Her guests have depths of hell for share.

Relinquishing reason is just the same
As dancing with the wind for harvest claim
Upon the dry and desert sands where none
Have planted any crops under the sun.
To set aside fair reason is the act
Of one who travels, despite marriage pact,
And stops to sleep with harlots on the stray,
And so takes on death’s burden for the day.
Beloved, I lay my mind and tongue upon
The reason You created from the dawn
Of human history to be the guide
Of human hearts to right and justice’ side.
I take the reason first and put away
The things that may feel right in darkness’ sway.

PROVERBS 10

1 Here are proverbs of Solomon.
A father’s glad of a wise son,
But a fool’s a weight of a ton
To his mother out on the run.
2 Treasures of wickedness are spite,
Righteousness saves from the death’s night.
3 YHWH will not suffer righteous souls
To faint with hunger on the doles.
But He throws out the substance wrought
By the wicked in what they sought.
4 The lazy hand becomes poor stitch,
But hard working will make one rich.
5 The one who harvests in the heat
Of summer is a wise son’s feat,
But the son that sleeps in the time
Of harvest causes shameful crime.
6 Blessings are on the head of just,
Violence takes the mouth with dust.
7 The memory of the just is blessed,
The wicked one’s name rots at best.
8 The wise in heart receive precepts,
Foolish lips fail among adepts.

The memory of the just is enclosed
In Your heart, my Beloved, and not exposed
To monuments that wear, and rust and crack.
The wicked name rots on such bronze and slack.
The memory of the just is fast engraved
Upon Your divine heart, Beloved, and saved
Within Your songs upon the universe
That sweep in cosmic breaths away the curse
That rises from the human lip to bear
Away forgotten on the empty air.
Beloved, I crave that memory of Yours
That’s hidden from human eyes by the doors
Of faith and righteousness, obedience
To Your commands hidden in secret tents.

9 The upright walks in a sure way,
But the one who perverts his stay
Will be known when he goes astray.
10 The one who winks an eye is cause
Of sorrow, but foolish lips’ flaws
Shall fail. 11 The mouth of righteous ones
Is a well of life, but the runs
Of violence cover the mouth
Of the wicked from north to south.
12 Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers
All sins wherever a sin hovers.
13 In lips of one with understanding
Wisdom is found, but a rod’s landing
On the back of the one without.
14 Wise people lay up knowledge stout,
But the mouth of the foolish lout
Is near destruction thereabout.
15 The rich man’s wealth is his strong town,
Destruction of the poor is crown
Of their poverty lying down.
16 The righteous labour comes to life,
The fruit of wicked sin is strife.

Solomon is naive, Beloved, to think
That hatred can be smitten with a wink.
The truth is not all strife is result of
The porter’s failure and his lack of love.
Truth is the victim may be innocent,
With not a shred of hatred in his tent,
And still be pounced upon and made to look
A sorry spectacle in human book.
I trow the most of famous men are fools
And rascals drinking from unlawful pools,
While those who are great truly are unknown
To the encyclopedia and throne.
Beloved, count me among the bold and brave
Who keep Your law, whether free man or slave.

17 He is the way of life to keep
Instruction, but the one asleep
To reproof wades in error deep.
18 The one who hides hatred with lips
Of falsehood is the one that slips
In slander, and he is a fool,
The dupe of power, unthinking tool.
19 In many words no lack for sin,
The one who doesn’t speak will win.
20 The just man’s tongue is silver choice,
The wicked heart gives empty voice.
21 The righteous lips feed many, but
Fools die outside of wisdom shut.
22 The blessing of YHWH, it makes rich,
He adds no sorrow in the stitch.
23 A fool thinks doing mischief’s funny,
A man’s wisdom’s worth more than money.
24 The fear of the wicked shall come
Upon him, but the righteous hum
Of hope shall be fulfilled in scope.
25 As the whirlwind passes, so cope
The wicked no more, but the just
Has eternal foundation’s trust.

It may be true the more the speech the more
Sin lies exposed and raw at the heart door.
If so I’ve sinned above all men to write
So many words in praise of wrong and sight.
It may be true the multiplying words
Set speakers out among the flocks of birds
Where wisdom is long gone and only specks
Of insect matter on the ground perplex.
It may be true that with each word the soul
Lays bare the sin of centuries on the dole,
While Your one speech can be heard in the space
Of three minutes of standing face to face.
Beloved, I take the words on tongue to taste
Whether the sin is sweet or whether waste.

26 As vinegar to teeth and smoke
To eyes, so is the lazy bloke
To those who sent him for a stroke.
27 The fear of YHWH lengthens man’s days,
The years of wicked ones are haze.
28 Hope of the righteous shall be glad,
The wicked expectation sad.
29 YHWH’s way is strength to the upright,
But sinners’ destruction’s in sight.
30 The righteous shall never be moved,
The wicked on earth not be grooved.
31 The just mouth brings forth wisdom’s fruit,
A perverse tongue pulled out by root.
32 The righteous lips tell what is right,
The wicked mouth speaks perverse blight.

Myself I don’t eat things that have included
Such liquids as vinegar when exuded.
I disremember what it’s like to taste
The acid wine of apple unerased,
Or even that of grape in wine that’s gone
Unsavoury from sophisticated brawn.
But laziness I think I know, for I
Have felt the pull of warm sun in the sky
And white sands on bright beaches whether by
The Arctic loneliness or tropic wealth.
I’ve walked hand in hand with such lazy stealth.
But still when something catches hold of me
And my imagination for a fee,
I’m up and doing as though faithfully.

PROVERBS 11

1 Dishonest weights are abhorred by
YHWH, but a just scale in His eye
Is a delight. 2 Pride stands in stall,
Then comes the shame in face of all
Who buy and sell in market place.
But with the humble, wisdom’s grace.
3 The upright man’s integrity
Will guide him as though with a fee,
But the wicked’s perversity
Shall destroy him eternally.
4 In wealth there is no profit found
Upon the day of wrath when bound.
But righteousness saves one from death,
As long as he can get his breath.
5 The perfect man’s righteousness will
Direct his way up and down hill,
But the wicked shall fall down by
His own iniquity in sty.
6 The upright man’s righteousness saves,
But sinners go down to the graves.

So I interpreted that last word loosely,
But only because the context obtusely
Said that the wicked go into that death
That righteous ones avoid by their sweet breath.
Paul and his preachers must have failed to read
This text that says clearly for any need,
That there are perfect people and they’re saved
By their right doing of what You engraved.
By contrast those stubborn to stay in sin
Are gathered on the day of wrath in bin.
No grace is found for those who raise a cry
That Jesus came to save them and to die,
But only for the ones in covenant
Whose righteousness is seen and is not scant.

7 When a wicked man dies his hopes
Perish with him in his death’s ropes.
The hope of the unjust is gropes.
8 The righteous is saved from the pit,
The wicked falls in that place fit.
9 A hypocrite with his mouth slays
His neighbour, but through knowledge ways
The just shall be saved in his days.
10 When it goes well with the upright,
The city rejoices, the night
Of destruction of wicked men
Is filled with happy shouts again.
By blessing the upright exalts
The city, but the wicked’s faults
Bring it down with a mouth in frown.

The blessing, barakat, as by this word
Comes on the earth and every city stirred
By whirling feet and cantillation taught
From lips of the upright in what they sought.
It seems strange to the living men today
That dancing, as it were, and on the stray,
Could do the world some good, and yet the king
Here recognizes it like anything.
Beloved, I have no hand to cure the ills
Of this world of its armaments and mills,
But I can cantillate the sacred song
And keep my hand from doing any wrong.
I take with my right hand the blessing strong
And scatter barakat the left hand fills.

12 The one who lacks wisdom despises
His neighbour, but a man in guises
Of understanding holds his peace.

There is no way not to despise the neighbour
Except to leave off trying to by labour
And recognizing there’s no soul but one
Reflected bright or dim and without sun
From You, Beloved, Creator of all things.
There’s no despising merchantmen or kings,
The farmer, fisherman, the one in rings
Who keeps guard of the city when he’s done.
Beloved, I see Your face reflected in
The neighbour’s and the evil man’s of sin,
For sin itself can only come about
When the soul that’s divine errs when without
Awareness of divine in every face
Thinks he alone is source of heavenly grace.

13 A gossip’s telling secrets, but
A faithful spirit keeps things shut.
14 Where there is no counsel there fall
The people, but a mighty wall
Is good advice given by all.
15 The one who undersigns a note
Security for unknown stoat
Will surely lose, but he who hates
To stand in is safe in his gates.
16 A gracious woman keeps her honour,
And strong men save their wealth upon her.
17 The merciful helps his own soul,
But a cruel man earns his death’s toll.
18 The wicked does deceitful work,
Reward’s to one who does not shirk
In sowing righteousness in kirk.
19 As righteousness ends up in life,
So wickedness in death and strife.
20 Those who have heart’s perversity
Are an abomination, see,
To YHWH, but upright in their way
Are His delight both night and day.

Abomination’s not a matter of
The genealogy in land of love,
But all about the heart and where it stands
In its perversity upon the sands.
The upright are not defined by the faith
They put in sacrifices of a wraith,
But by the walk, not frock, and by the good
They do about them everywhere they should.
Beloved, take Your delight in me today,
As You have kept me in the perfect way
That You once pronounced in the mountain’s sway,
As I give thanks for guidance and the power
You lay on hand and foot in trouble’s hour,
For rest beneath the shedding lilac’s bower.

21 Despite the help they give each other,
Punishment falls on wicked brother;
But the descendants of the just
Shall be delivered from the dust.
22 A jewel of gold in a pig’s snout,
A dame without good sense in rout.
23 The righteous desire only good,
The wicked wait for wrath as could.
24 Some scatter and increase in wealth,
Some save for poverty in stealth.
25 The soul that blesses shall be fat,
Who gives water finds where it’s at.
26 The one who keeps back corn is cursed,
But many blessings shall be versed
On him who sells it from the vat.
27 He who diligently seeks good
Gets favour, but the one who could
Do mischief, gets it back on him.
28 The one who relies on wealth dim
Shall fall; but the upright shall be
Like a branch to flourish and see.
29 The one who troubles his own house
Shall inherit the winds of grouse;
The fool shall come to serve at last
The wise in heart with a mind fast.
30 The fruit of the righteous shall be
A tree of life, and he who’s free
To win souls is wise to a tee.
31 See how the upright recompense
Receive upon the earth for vents,
Much more the wicked in their tents
And sinners who act without sense.

I’m not sure what this verse is speaking of
That says some win souls in wisdom and love,
Since in the time of Solomon the share
Of Baptists with attendance goals to bear
Had not yet made appearance on the stage.
Maybe it was a prophecy to wage
The promises of John who came to dip,
And Paul and Peter, latter with a slip.
Beloved, the great soul-winners of the past
Are with us no more. See the fallen cast
Of our twin billies gave You such bad name
That Freud will soon take Your place and Your fame.
If I could just convince now one or two
To keep the ten commandments, I’d be through.

PROVERBS 12

1 The one who enjoys being taught
Is one who loves his knowledge sought,
But he who hates reproof’s a bore,
And better shunted out the door.
2 A good man gets favour from YHWH,
Those in wicked devices’ crew
He will condemn there in their pew.
3 A man shall not be set for life
By wicked actions done in strife,
But the root of an upright man
Shall not be moved by any plan.
4 A virtuous woman’s a crown
To her husband, but one who brings
Him shame is like rottenness down
Into his very bones and springs.
5 The thoughts of the upright are right,
But wicked counsels are false sight.
6 Affairs of the wicked are that
They lie in wait for blood in vat,
But the mouth of the upright will
Give witness to his justice’ fill.
7 The wicked ones are overthrown
And cease to be, but the house grown
Of the upright shall stand like stone.

I build a house of praise to You, my Lord,
And with the precious stones and gems adored
Of Hebrew cantillation I strike chord
Of Your eternity with my small voice.
I build a temple that stands like the stone
Beneath the wind and weather all alone,
And yet abides around eternal throne,
Without regret the building is my choice.
The house I live in has foundation weak
Made so by careless road builders with cheek.
It’s lasted for a century and might
Last while I am myself living in sight.
But the house that stands is one from my lips
That rises on the air and runs like ships.

8 A man shall be commended by
His wisdom, but he that is sly
In heart shall be despised thereby.
9 Better’s the poor man who provides
His sustenance, than who derides
All vaunting but lacks bread besides.
10 An upright man thinks how it feels
To beasts of burden pulling wheels,
But tender mercies of the wicked
Are cruel in the ways they stick it.
11 The one who tills his land shall be
Satisfied with bread faithfully,
But he who follows vanity
Is void of understanding’s fee.
12 The wicked hope in evil net,
But roots of the upright still get.
13 The wicked’s caught up in the snare
Of transgressions that his lips bear,
The just comes out of trouble’s share.
14 A man is satisfied with good
By what mouth produces or should.
What a man’s hands earn shall at last
Come to him in reward or blast.

Beloved, the works of my hands may repent
And turn to dust and toil from which they’re sent.
But let what’s good and right in what I say
Responding to Your love-knots in my way
Earn peace and comfort on the Judgement Day.
Beloved, I’ve done the this and that for work
And have not been one on the earth to shirk,
But let all disappear except the praise
I bring to You in response to the lays
Of billets doux with which You bless my days.
Beloved, I’m satisfied at times to read
And reread my sonnets and spell my creed,
So give me my reward and punishment
In the grace of Your loving heart and spent.

15 The way of a fool’s right to see
In his own thinking, but then he
Who hears good counsel’s wise and free.
16 A fool flies out in wrath to start,
A prudent man hides his hurt’s part.
17 The one who speaks the truth shows right,
A false witness is deceit’s wight.
18 Many scatter words like the pricks
Of a sword, but the tongue that licks
Wisdom is like medicine’s kicks.
19 What truthful lips say is steadfast,
But lies are temporary cast.
20 Deceit is in the heart of those
Who imagine evil in rows,
But to the counsellors of peace
There is joy ever in release.
21 No evil shall befall the just,
The wicked shall be filled with dust.

Perhaps Solomon did not read the case
Of Job manhandled by accusers base.
If he had done, he’d know that some have been
The butt of evil even without sin.
Perhaps Solomon in his wealth and plot
Of wives and concubines, many unsought,
Was too filled with the pleasures of good things
To realize not all men sit like kings.
Beloved, I see the rain fall on the just
And on the unjust as the raincloud must,
And fill my heart with hope that I may run
A slender soul and quickly on my bun
To pass between the raindrops till I’m done
And smell the sweet rain splattering the dust.

22 Lying lips are abomination
To YHWH, but those who deal their ration
In truth are His delight and nation.
23 A prudent man hides what he knows,
But fools’ hearts proclaim foolish rows.
24 The diligent one’s hand bears rule,
The slothful shall be tribute’s mule.
25 Heaviness in the heart of man
Makes it stoop, but a good word can
Make it glad quickly or by plan.
26 The righteous is more excellent
Than his neighbour, but the descent
Of wickedness seduction’s meant.
27 The slothful man will never roast
The hunted prey and raise his boast,
But what a diligent man has
Is wealth and health and all that jazz.
28 In way of righteousness is life,
And in its path’s no deathly strife.

How many of the six millions and more
Who died at hand of holocaust in store
Were righteous? I count not a few of them,
Both Jewish and Gentile to show a gem.
And yet they all went up in smoke while those
Who fired the ovens range around in clothes
Of latest fashion and give interviews
That show not even slight remorse in dues.
Beloved, I take the counsel of the king
Solomon and its followers who sing
To heart and know my actions must improve
By following the wisdom of their groove.
But since I live in Auschwitz’ wake I know
My life hangs on a thread despite my show.

PROVERBS 13

1 A wise son hears what his dad teaches,
A scorner rejects what he preaches.
2 A good man shall eat of good things,
The transgressor of wicked stings.
3 The one who keeps his mouth keeps life,
To open it is to have strife.
4 The lazy man wants but has not,
The diligent gets fat in pot.
5 A righteous man hates lying tongues,
The wicked’s loathsome in shame’s rungs.
6 Righteousness keeps the upright straight,
Wickedness spills the sinner’s gate.
7 Some pretend to be rich when poor,
Some pretend poverty for sure.

I’ve seen such pretence all my life I swear.
When I lived in America the fair,
Everyone I saw tried to look the part
Of millionaire, his donkey after cart.
When I came to the northland I found out
That only wealthy folk complain about
Not having funds to keep in house and home,
Starvation from the door, put out to roam.
Beloved, I smile at human hearts like mine,
Who wish to paint a mask of wealth or brine,
And never satisfied to be the thing
They are in summertime when on the wing
Or in the winter barren on the field.
No man is satisfied with his life’s yield.

8 Wealth ransoms life of man in danger,
But the poor hear no call of ranger.
9 The light of the upright rejoices,
The wicked’s lamp’s put out of choices.
10 Only by pride comes in contention,
Wisdom’s the well advised’s convention.
11 Wealth from idolatry falls low,
But from hard work has what to show.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart go sick,
Desire come, tree of life grows thick.
13 Destroyed shall be the one despising
The word, but he who takes advising
From the commandment shall gain grace.
14 The law of the wise man’s to trace
The fountain of life, to depart
From snares of death and do his part.
15 Good understanding will give favour,
Transgressors’ paths have a hard savour.
16 Every wise man keeps knowledge well,
A fool lays open folly’s spell.

The rich think that they must have guards to keep
Their houses and wealth from the thieves who creep
About the world to steal the lovely share.
The truth is those who do not have to bear
The burden of wealth need not fear the thief.
It takes both wealth and greed to bring to grief.
That’s why the poor man hears no call at night
Of someone scratching at his cupboard site.
I thank You, my Beloved, for greedy men
Whose wealth keeps thieves away from my own den,
Where they know stock is small and picking few.
For greedy men to guard my house, thank You.
Of course if wealth were scattered among all,
Neither guard nor thief would scale the stone wall.

17 Wicked messengers fall to grief,
Good representative’s relief.
18 Want and shame come on those who stay
From instruction, but those who say
They take reproof get honour’s way.
19 Satisfied desire’s sweet to soul,
Fools hurt departing evil’s goal.
20 Who walks with the wise shall be wise,
Fools’ friends are destroyed under eyes.
21 Evil walks in sinners’ tracks bound,
To righteous good’s in payment found.
22 Good men leave own inheritance,
Sinner’s wealth’s for the just’s instance.
23 Much food is in tillage of poor,
Without justice destruction’s sure.
24 He who spares his rod hates his son,
But he who loves corrects his bun.
25 The righteous eats to fill his soul,
But wicked man’s paunch lacks the toll.

How many centuries ago did You
Tell Solomon to write the proverbs’ view
That the wealth of the wicked should go down
To the upright folk living in the town.
The fact is wicked men steal more today
Than ever before in history’s pay,
And they can do it now by legal fee,
Since wealth’s created by a pen in glee.
Beloved, I’m waiting still to see all things
Put in the hand of upright men and kings
Instead of in the hands of those who wait
In lobby at the parliamentary gate.
I’ll wait a thousand years it seems to me,
Apocalypse in an eternity.

PROVERBS 14

1 Every wise woman builds her house,
The foolish nibbles it like mouse.
2 The one who behaves right fears YHWH,
Who acts perversely hates His crew.
3 The foolish mouth’s a rod of pride,
But wise lips shall preserve their side.
4 Without oxen the crib is clean,
By strength of ox increase is seen.
5 A faithful witness will not lie,
A false witness can’t pass it by.
6 A scorner seeks knowledge in vain,
Understanding is wisdom’s gain.
7 Leave the sight of a foolish man,
When you see he speaks without plan.

I trow the man who leaves the fool’s sight when
He notices he speaks without the den
Of knowledge, if the man’s his boss, he’ll go
From one job to another in the flow
And never find a stable place to work.
The foolish rise to power, it is a quirk
Of the reality where I now live,
In a world based upon success to give
Aushpits and Buckbald in experiment.
The pattern’s been fine everywhere it went.
Beloved, I might step out of line and take
My number from the roster for Your sake,
But I would not last long upon the plate,
Slaughtered with all the rest in smoky fate.

8 The wisdom of the prudent here
Will understand where to appear,
But the folly of fools is gear.
9 Fools make a mockery of sin,
The righteous live in favour’s bin.
10 The heart knows its own bitterness,
A stranger does not come to mess
With the joy of other’s address.
11 The wicked house is overthrown,
The upright’s tent raised upon stone.
12 There is a way seems right to man,
The ends of it are death to scan.
13 Even in laughter heart has grief,
Sadness comes after mirth’s relief.
14 A fool is filled with his own ways,
A good man has a higher praise.

Freud and the sweet ones come in consolation
Of every heartfelt grief found in the nation,
And in their meddlesome intrusion bear
But more stones into Bunyan’s slough of care.
Life in Aushpits is not meant to be just
Hilarious before we hit the dust.
We’re meant to work in sorrow and to trust
That You will make it right, though man is cursed
By human lips and not Your own, Beloved.
I keep my bitterness as one work-gloved,
And shun the diagnosis of the shoved.
I rage if I must in the vacant stare,
And nurse the burning coal hidden with care,
And so win out above the pagan share.

15 The simple man believes each word,
The prudent watches out for turd.
16 A wise man takes warning and flees
From evil, but fools come to please
With heedless confidence in slease.
17 Quick temper leads to foolish acts,
Wicked device hatred exacts.
18 The simple have a heritage
Of folly, but the prudent’s stage
Is crowned with knowledge of the age.
19 The evil bow before the good,
The wicked at upright gates should.
20 Even his own neighbour is filled
With hatred to the poor unspilled,
But the rich has many friends billed.
21 The one who hates his neighbour sins,
But the one who takes from his bins
To feed the poor, it’s he that wins.

I do admire the simple soul who still
Can shop and trust advertisement and fill
Her poke with goods promised to make one wise
And beautiful in every neighbour’s eyes.
My own heart is like many more that shake
A head at all that’s spent in vain words’ sake
To cause the poor to enter poverty
By giving up her wealth to company.
The evil bow before the good and sell
The innocent a rainbow and brass bell.
Beloved, I buy from You alone what I
Need to keep me afloat under the sky,
And trust You more than any friends I buy,
And wait for Your lifting me out of hell.

22 Do they not err who devise wrong?
Mercy and truth shall come along
To those who devise good for song.
23 In all labour there’s profit’s share,
But talk just keeps the table bare.
24 The crown of the wise is their wealth,
Folly comes on the fools in stealth.
25 A true witness delivers souls,
Deceitful lying wrecks on shoals.
26 In YHWH’s fear the strong places trust,
His children have a spot they must
Find refuge from the mouldy crust.
YHWH’s fear is a fountain of life,
Departing from death’s snares of strife.
28 In crowds of folk is the king’s glory,
In lack of crowds, it’s end of story.

The difference between You and the king
And prancing of new prime ministering,
Is that the honour of the royalty
Needs shouting crowds to feel its honour’s fee.
You are the king of universe and yet
You’re satisfied with worship on the set
Of two or three, at times just one, to pray
You praises and petitions and the sway
Of penitence and plaint after the dark.
The phantom court and rule needs brick and stone
And gold and gems and wealth to buttress throne.
But You need nothing more than simple lay
Of Psalm to find a dwelling where to stay,
An orchard where to pluck fruit in the park.

29 Patience is of great understanding,
But hasty wrath raises demanding.
30 A sound heart is life of the flesh,
But envy rots the bones afresh.
31 Oppression of the poor’s reproach
Poured on his Maker, but the coach
Who honours Him has mercy on
The poor at noon, at night, at dawn.
32 The wicked stumble at the weight
Of their own wickedness in fate,
But upright men hope in their death.
33 Wisdom rests in the heart and breath
Of him in understanding’s gate,
But that which is among the fools
Is well reflected in their pools.
34 Uprightness brings a nation high,
But sin’s a shame in each folk’s eye.
35 The king favours a wise servant,
But rages at a shameful slant.

I’m not sure what You mean, Beloved, by this:
The upright hope in their death not to miss.
The fate of the wicked ones come before
In falling in a wilderness for shore
Suggests that the upright get something more,
A fine reward after their own death’s door.
But then the sentence could mean that they hope
In the death of sinners at end of rope.
Beloved, not sure at all what Your word means,
I turn to You for better, firmer scenes,
Proposing that the both are things I’ll take
And thank You with the giving for Your sake.
Let wicked men die quickly’s my desire,
But let me find rejoicing after ire.

PROVERBS 15

1 A quiet answer puts out wrath,
But grievous words stir up its path.
2 The wise tongue uses knowledge right,
The foolish mouth runs out of sight.
3 YHWH’s eyes are cast in every place,
Evil and good before His face.
4 A peaceful tongue’s a tree of life,
Perversity is spirit’s strife.
5 A fool casts out his father’s teaching,
Prudence takes reproof far as reaching.
6 In the house of the righteous one
There’s a great store of treasure spun;
But all the wicked earn is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge,
But foolish hearts just blow a bubble.
8 The sacrifice of wicked college
Is an abomination to
YHWH, but the prayer of the upright
Comes up before Him in delight.

The wicked college of the priests of yore
Who sacrificed to Moloch on the shore
And lifted children to the hands of Baal
Are still in Rome and in Geneva hale.
The human sacrifice atones no whit
For human sin, but only making fit
In sound repentance for the damage done,
And praying with an upright heart that You,
Beloved, shall have grace on repenting crew.
Atonement by the intercession made
Of the just before Your throne is not paid
With honour in the world today, but when
You turn Your hand of mercy to all men.
Then sacrifice shall cease, the victory won.

9 The wicked way come before YHWH
Is an abomination’s view,
But He loves the one that is true
In following righteousness due.
10 Correction’s grievous to the one
Who forsakes the way of life spun,
And he that hates reproof shall die.
11 Sheol and destruction before
YHWH, hearts of mankind how much more?
12 A corrupt man does not love one
That reproves him, and yet he’ll run
Away from advice the wise stun.
13 A glad heart makes a cheerful face,
But grief of mind casts down its trace.
14 The heart of the wise seeks instruction,
But fools’ mouths feed on foolish suction.
15 All the days of the poor are evil;
Contented hearts with feasts coeval.
16 Better the little YHWH provides
With fear than treasures on their tides.

The cheerful face has become the mark known
Among all Christians, it seems, at Your throne
In proof of their faith. Any folk that groan
Under oppression do so at the risk
Of getting reputations far from brisk.
If anyone looks sad or has the rate
Of bank account as empty as his plate,
The sweet Christian comes in to say he’s late
And ought to make repentance for his fate.
Beloved, if You made faces that could smile,
You also made them capable a while
Of being sad without sin, without guile.
So I put on a sad face when I will,
Or then a happy one: You foot the bill.

17 Better a meal of herbs with love
Than fatted calf hatred in glove.
18 A raging man will stir up strife,
The patient appeases the rife.
19 The slothful way’s a hedge of thorns,
Just way’s without offence in bourns
20 A wise son brings his father joy,
The fool despises mother’s sigh.
21 Folly is gladness to the fool,
The wise man makes straight steps his tool.
22 Plans fail without good counsel, so
Where many give advice, they glow.
23 Folk joy to make a smart retort,
But the right word’s a better sort.
24 The path of life’s high for the wise,
To keep from Sheol’s wicked guise.

I much prefer the vegan fare to that
That’s based on roasted meat and broiled fat.
I prefer it I think with love or hate,
It makes no difference to my hungry slate.
That’s why I’ve had occasion in the world
To be lax in the labour of the swirled,
And take it easy as I dig my herbs
While others spend their wealth upon the curbs
Of steaks sirloin and possum fat and bacon
With sauces and with spices there to cake on.
Beloved, I taste a mutton chop indeed
When guest of the upright and holy seed,
But when I come back home my lentil soup
Is tastier than egg from chicken coop.

25 YHWH tramps upon the proud man’s hut,
But widow’s boundaries He’ll shut.
26 Wicked thought’s horrible to YHWH,
But sweet words purify the crew.
The greedy gain trouble at home,
But the one who hates bribes of Rome
Shall live. By mercy and by faith
Are sins atoned and not by wraith.
By fear of YHWH each one turns back
From doing evil on the slack.
26 The upright heart will contemplate
To do obedience in rate,
The wicked mouth will overflow
With evil deeds done on the go.
29 YHWH’s far away from wicked ones,
He’ll hear the prayers of upright duns.
30 Light for the eyes makes glad the heart,
A good name the bones fat in part.
31 The ear that hears reproofs of life
Shall bide with the wise without strife.
32 The one who sets aside the teaching
Despises his own soul for preaching,
But the one who yields to reproof,
From understanding’s not aloof.
33 The fear of YHWH’s wisdom’s accord,
Humility at first is stored,
And then glory before the Lord.

Mercy and faith make up the precious load
Of tools by which salvation is bestowed.
Not by the raging sacrifice of man,
Not by the resurrection as by plan
Of man-gods in the fertile fields for gain
That grace with water the Canaanite plain.
An ear to hear Your law is what it takes,
Not willingness to eat the sacred cakes
Of Queen of Heaven decked out for Mary’s sakes,
Who would with horror hear the chimes ring stakes.
To hear reproof read from Your law and then
Repent in faith to take Your grace to men,
That is the way and only way to live.
The pagan heart is buried like a sieve.

PROVERBS 16

1 Man’s part’s
to prepare the heart well,
YHWH shall take care of the tongue’s spell.
2 All ways of man in his own eyes
Are pure, but YHWH weighs spirit’s guise.
3 Lay open to YHWH all your works,
So you’ll succeed and without quirks.
4 All has YHWH made by His own plan,
The wicked too for their day’s scan.
5 Abomination to YHWH’s each
Proud man, though hands joined each to preach,
He is not innocent to teach.
The start of a good way’s to do
Justice, it’s better in God’s view,
And offering sacrifice’s rue.
6 By mercy and truth wickedness
Is redeemed, and by fear’s address
Before YHWH men leave evil’s mess.
7 When men’s ways please YHWH, He’ll convert
Even His foes to peace alert.
8 Better a little in account
With justice, than a large amount
In gross iniquity for fount.

There’s hardly anyone alive on earth
Who does the evil deed for its own worth,
But everyone whose hand is set to that
Does so because what he sees where he’s at
Is that the thing’s a profit to his bill,
Or justified by past or future ill.
Decision to take human life is caught
Each time it’s done because the narrow plot
Says it is necessary to the joy
Of me and mine and so I must employ.
Beloved, keep me from acting on the sway
Of what I think is good and right today,
But rather on the word made clear that You
Reveal of what is beautiful and true.

9 The heart of man plans out his way,
But YHWH shall keep him not astray.
10 The divination’s the king’s lips
His mouth in judgement knows no slips.
11 The weight and measure are for YHWH,
He’s made all the weights in the brew.
12 Kings have horror of doing wrong,
For justice keeps the throne along.
13 Just lips are the delight of kings,
Those speaking right find love in springs.
14 The king’s wrath is death’s messenger:
The wise will pacify the cur.
15 Life’s when the king has a glad face,
His favour’s like soft rain in pace.
16 Get wisdom, it’s better than gold,
More precious than silver untold
Is prudence bought and kept in hold.

You made earth’s gravity to bear on all
With equal weight so that balances fall
With justice to both stranger and the friend.
The automatic gives You time to spend
In contemplation of the human soul,
That portrait that You dote on to the pole.
If I were truly as divine as You,
I’d never take eyes away from the view
Of human faces where the soul is met
In polished gems, both rubies and the set
Of diamonds and of emeralds’ parade
Across the sapphire pathway to the jade.
If I were truly as divine as what
Your hand has made, I should not keep eye shut.

17 The path of the just bars events
That arise as in accidents,
He keeps his soul in ways of sense.
18 Pride goes before destruction’s way;
Highmindedness before fall’s sway.
19 Better in the wake of the meek
Than fighting for prey the proud seek.
20 The learnèd in word finds good things,
Trusting in YHWH and His blessings.
21 The wise heart lies in prudence’ fame,
Soft words on the lips great things claim.
22 Knowledge is a fountain of life
To those who have it, but the strife
Of fools with foolishness is rife.
23 The wise heart gives the mouth no slips,
And it shall add grace to his lips.
24 Words of grace are like honeycomb,
Sweet to the soul, balm to the loam.

I follow in the wake of the meek who
Are despised by the market and its crew.
I see the azure eye, the blackened pool
Of eyes that turn every man into fool.
I search with probing glance beneath the brow,
They arc of Your descent upon the how,
And find wherever I turn in the meed,
Your heart’s reflected above every need.
Beloved, I follow in the wake to see
The etchings of mighty eternity,
Where tyrants have no guess of what is there,
Of what shimmers beneath the scalding air,
Of what can never be destroyed, effaced,
But by itself alone darkened, disgraced.

25 There is a way right in men’s eyes,
The end of it is death’s disguise.
26 Who labours labours for himself,
His own mouth makes him work like elf.
27 The wicked man delves wickedness,
His lips the burning fires caress.
28 A perverse man spreads mischief round,
Deceitful, he spills friends aground.
29 An unjust man allures his friend,
And leads him in the ways of fiend.
30 The one who contemplates his thoughts
With eyes closed, biting lips in plots
Brings wickedness to pass in draughts.
31 Age is a crown of dignity
When it’s found in just ways to be.
32 The patient man’s better than those
With courage and lined up in rows,
And he who rules his spirit than
The guards upon the wall who scan.
33 The lots are cast into the lap,
But YHWH makes the decision’s gap.

The way that seems right in the eyes of man
Becomes the blueprint of religious scan,
And so are born the many faiths that see
The torment of fashioned humanity.
The only faith that is pure in the sun,
Is not that which brings glory to the one
Who was its founder as it seems to be,
But that faith that from earth’s eternity
Is spoken and proclaimed upon the shore
Where Sinai raises up an open door.
Beloved, I cast my lot upon the lap
Of Your true faith and suckle at the sap
That sweetly nourishes the soul laid bare
Where praises and petitions rise on air.

AUTHOR: THOMAS G. MCELWAIN

Copyright © 2007 Adams & McElwain Publishers and Thomas McElwain First Published in two volumes, The Beloved and I 2005, and Led of the Beloved, 2006. Second Edition, 2010 Third and revised edition, 2012 All rights reserved. No part of this verse commentary on the sacred Scriptures may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from publisher.

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