Zvirevo 1

¹Zvirevo zvaSoromoni, mwanakomana waDhavhidhi, mambo waIsiraeri.The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

²Kuti vanhu vazive uchenjeri nokurairirwa; Nokunzwisisa mashoko enjere;To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

³Varairirwe nzira yokungwara, Neyokururama, nokururamisa, nokutendeka;To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

⁴Vasina mano vapiwe kungwara, Jaya ripiwe zivo nokuchenjera;To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

⁵Kuti wakachenjera anzwe, awedzere kudzidza; Nomunhu wenjere awane mano akanaka.A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

⁶Vanzwisise chirevo nomufananidzo, Mashoko avakachenjera nezvirahwe zvavo.To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

⁷Kutya Jehovha ndiko kuvamba kwezivo; Mapenzi anoshora uchenjeri nokurairirwa.The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

⁸Mwanakomana wangu, inzwa kurairira kwababa vako; Usarasha kudzidzisa kwamai vako.My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

⁹Nokuti zvichava chishongo chakanaka pamusoro wako, Nengetani pamutsipa pako.For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

¹⁰Mwanakomana wangu, kana vatadzi vachikugombedzera, Usatenda iwe.My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

¹¹Kana vachiti, Hendei tose, Ngatirindire ropa; Ngativandire vasina mhosva kunyange pasina mhaka.If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause:

¹²Ngativamedze vari vapenyu seSheori, Vari vakukutu saivo vanoburukira kugomba.Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit:

¹³Tichawana fuma yamarudzi mazhinji; Tichazadza dzimba dzedu nezvatakapamba;We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil:

¹⁴Iwe uchava mumwe wedu; Tose tichava nechikwama chimwechete.Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

¹⁵Mwanakomana wangu, usafamba navo nenzira yavo; Dzora rutsoka rwako panzira yavo;My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path:

¹⁶Nokuti tsoka dzavo dzinovangira zvakaipa; Vanokurumidza kudurura ropa.For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷Nokuti mumbure unodzikirwa pasina Shiri dzamarudzi ose dzichizviona.Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.

¹⁸Vanhu ava vanogarira ropa ravo vamene; Vanozvivandira hupenyu hwavo.And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.

¹⁹Ndizvo zvakaitawo nzira dzavose vanokarira fuma; Zvinotorera mwene wazvo upenyu hwake.So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰Uchenjeri unodanidzira panzira dzomumusha; hunonzwisa inzwi rahwo panzvimbo dzakafara;Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

²¹hunodana panzvimbo panoungana vazhinji; Pavanopinda pamasuo, Paguta, ndipo pahunotaura mashoko ahwo, huchiti,She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

²²Nhai imi vasina mano, muchada kusava namano kusvikira rinhiko? Nemi vaseki kufarira kuseka kwenyu, Namapenzi kuvenga zivo?How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

²³Dzokai kana muchinzwa kuraira kwangu, Tarirai ndichadurura mweya wangu pamusoro penyu; Ndichakuzivisai mashoko angu.Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

²⁴Zvandakadana, imi mukaramba; Ndikatambanudza ruoko rwangu, kukasava nomunhu akarangarira;Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;

²⁵Asi makazvidza mano angu ose, Mukaramba chose kuraira kwangu,But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:

²⁶Naizvozvo neniwo ndichaseka kana mava munhamo yenyu; Ndichakudadirai, kana kutya kwenyu kuchisvika.I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;

²⁷Kana kutya kwenyu kuchisvika sedutu guru, Nenhamo yenyu ichisvika sechamupupuri; Kana kutambudzika nokudumbirwa zvichikuwirai.When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

²⁸Nenguva iyo uchadana kwandiri, asi handingapinduri; Vachanditsvaka zvikuru, asi havangandiwani.Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

²⁹Zvavakavenga zivo, Vakasazvitsaurira kutya Jehovha,For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:

³⁰Vakaramba mano angu ose, Vakashora kuraira kwangu kwose,They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

³¹Naizvozvo vachadya zvibereko zvenzira yavo; Vachagutswa namano avo.Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

³²Nokuti kudzokera shure kwavasina mano kuchavauraya, Kusava nehanya kwamapenzi kuchavaparadza.For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

³³Asi ani naani anonditeerera achagara zvakasimba, Achagadzikana, asingatyi zvakaipa.But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.