1 If you touch tar, it will stick to you, and if you keep company with arrogant people, you will come to be just like them. 2 Don't try to lift something too heavy for you, and don't keep company with people who are richer and more powerful than you. You cannot keep a clay pot next to an iron kettle; the pot will break if it hits the kettle. 3 If a rich person wrongs someone, he can afford to add insult to injury; but if a poor person is wronged, he is forced to apologize for himself. 4 A rich person will use you as long as he can profit from it, but when you need him, he will leave you helpless. 5 He will live with you as long as you have anything and will gladly drain you dry. 6 If he needs you, he will trick you with his smiles and cheerful, kindly words. “Do you need anything?” he will ask. 7 He will feed you until you are embarrassed. Finally, when he has drained you two or three times over, he will laugh at you. If you see him later, he will pretend he doesn't know you, and will pass you by.
8 Be careful not to be misled; you can be enjoying yourself and suddenly find yourself humiliated. 9 If you are invited to the home of someone influential, be reserved in your behavior. Then he will invite you more often. 10 If you push yourself on him, he will put you in your place. On the other hand, if you keep your distance from him, he will forget about you. 11 Don't pretend to be his equal or trust everything he says. In spite of all of his long and polite conversation, he is testing you.
12 If a person does not keep confidences, he is cruel; he will not hesitate to hurt you or have you put in jail. 13 Keep your secrets to yourself and be very careful, for you are always walking on dangerous ground.
15 Every creature prefers its own kind, and people are no different. 16 Just as animals of the same species flock together, so people keep company with people like themselves. 17 A sinner has no more in common with a devout person than a wolf has with a lamb. 18 Rich people have no more in common with poor people than hyenas have with dogs. 19 The rich hunt down the poor just as lions hunt down wild donkeys in the open country. 20 Arrogant people have nothing but scorn for the humble, and the rich think of the poor in the same way. 21 When a rich person stumbles, his friends will steady him, but if a poor person falls, his friends will have nothing to do with him. 22 When someone rich makes a mistake, there are many people to cover up for him and explain away all the things he never should have said. But let someone poor make a mistake, and he gets nothing but criticism. Even if what he says makes good sense, nobody will listen. 23 When a rich person speaks, everyone is silent, and they praise him to the skies for what he says. But let a poor person speak, and everybody says, “Who is that?” They push him down if he so much as stumbles.
24 There is nothing wrong with being rich if you haven't sinned to get that way. But there is nothing sinful about being poor, either. Only the ungodly think so. 25 It's what is in your heart that makes the expression on your face happy or sad. 26 If you feel cheerful, you will look cheerful, although making up proverbs calls for some intense thought.
1 Tēr-ets ga tsâǀkhā, o-i ge nî ǂae-ai tsi, tsî ǀgapiǂâixa khoen di ǀhûhâsib ǃnâts ga hâ, ots ge ǁîn ǁkhān khami nî ī. 2 Tā satsa ǃgomba xū-e ūkhâitsâ tsî tā kaise ǃkhū hâ tsî sats xa ǃnāsa ǁkhāsiba ūhâ khoen ǀkha ǀguipa hâ. Sats ge ǂgoasū-e ǀuri ketels xōǀkhā ūhâ ǁoa; ǂgoasūs ge ketels ais ga ǂgâusen, o nî khôa. 3 ǃKhū hâ khoe-i ga tsūdī, o-i ge satsa tsûtsûs ǃaroma ǃkhāǃkhā tsi ǁkhā, xawe ǀgâsa-i ga tsūdī, o-i ge ǀûbaba i nî ǂgan ǃkhaisa ra ǁgarihe. 4 ǃKhū hâ khoe-i ge satsa xu i hōǂgāsa hō ǁkhas kōse nî sîsenū tsi, xawets ga satsa ǂhâsiba ūhâ, o i ge huiose nî ǁnāxū tsi. 5 ǁÎ-i ge xū-ets ūhâs kōse ǀgui sats ǀkha nî hâ tsî ǃgâiǂgaoxase, ǂnâts nîs kōse nî ǀgomǂuiǃnâ tsi. 6 Satsa i ga ǂhâba, o ǀnomba tsi tsî ǃgâise tsâ kai tsi, tsî khoexaǃnâ mîdi ǀkha nî gā tsi. ǁÎb ge ǃgâi ǀgaub ǃnâ satsa ǃhoa-ū tsî “Tare-e ta hui tsi ǁkhā?” ti nî dî. 7 ǁÎb ge ǃgâi ǂûxūn ǀkha nî taotao tsi. ǀUnis aib ge ǀgam tsî ǃnona ǃnādeb satsa ǀgomǂui ǃnâ hâs khaoǃgâ nî âiǂui tsi. Tsîts ga ega mû bi, ob ge satsa ǀū khami tanisen tsî sa xōǀkhā nî ǃgûǃkharu.
8 ǂAnbasen i tā ǂgaeǂhapuhe tsî sa ǃgâiaǂgaob ǃnâ ǃgamǃgamhe. 9 ǃGôaǃgôasa khoe-i xats ga ǁî-i di oms ǃoa ǁkhauǂuihe, o sa tanisens ǃnâ ǃkhō-oasen, o i ge nî ǁkhau ka ǁkhau tsi. 10 Aisǀkhāb ǃoats ga ǀgaiǁgū, o i ge nē ǃgôaǃgôasa khoe-e nî ǂhā-oa tsi. ǀNî ǀkhāb ai i ge ǁî-e xuts ga ǃnūse hâ, o nî ǀuru tsi. 11 Tā ǁî-i ǀkha ǀguiti dīsen tamas ka io ǁî-i ra mî xū-i hoa-e ǂgom. ǁÎ-i di gaxu ǃhoa-ain ǀkha i ge ra ǃâitsâ tsi.
12 Khoe-i ga ǂgomǃgâde ǃkhōǀgara tama i, o-i ge karosaǂgaoxa. ǁÎ-i ge satsa tsûtsûs tamas ka io ǃkhō-oms ǃnâ ǂgā tsisa îganǀgē tide. 13 Sa ǂganǃgâsiga ūhâbasen, î ǃaorosa ǃhūb aits ra ǃgû xuige ǃûisen.
15 Mâ ûitsama ǀguru-i hoa-i ge ǁî-i di īsib ǂûb xa a ǃgâibahe tsî khoen tsîn ge ǁnās ǁkhās xase i. 16 ǀGurun tsî xamarin ǀgui ǀgaub din ra ǀhao khamin ge khoen hîa ǀguiti-īna ra ǀhao. 17 ǁOre-aon tsî khoen hîa ra Eloba ǃaoǃgân ra ǃkharagagu khamin ge ǂhiran tsî ǁkhaon tsîna a ǃkharagagu. 18 ǃKhū hâ khoeb tsî ǀgâsa khoeb hâkha khākhoegu khami i ge ǂhira-i tsî ari-i tawas tsîna ī. 19 ǃKhū hâ khoe-i ge ǀgâsa-e, xamn ra ǃaub dâukina ǃaub ǃnâ ǃkhō khami ra ǃkhō. 20 ǀGapiǂâixa khoen ge xū-en ūhâ tama, xawe ǃgamǃgamsensa ra ǃgôaǁnâ tsî ǃkhū hâb ge ǁkhā ǀgaub ai ǀgâsab xa ra ǂâi. 21 ǃKhū hâ khoeb ga ǃnôa, on ge ǁîb ǀhōsana nî ūkhâi bi, xawe ǀgâsab ga ǁnā, on ge ǁîb di ǀhōsana ǁîb ǀkha ǁae tide. 22 ǃKhū hâ khoeb ga dīsā, on ge ǂgui khoena ǁîba ra hui tsî ra mâǂgāba tsî ǁîb ra mî xūn a ǂhanu ǃkhaisa ra mîǃgāǃgā. Xawe ǀgâsa khoeb ga dīsā, ob ge ǀnî xū-i ose ǀgoraǃgâs ǀguisa ra hō. ǁÎb ra mîn ǀkhab ga ǃgâiba ǂâibasen, xawe i ge ǀgui khoe-i tsîna ǃgâ bi tide. 23 ǃKhū hâ khoeb ra ǃhoa, o i ge mâ-i hoa-e ra ǃnō tsîn ge mîb ran ǃaroma ǁîba ra koa. Xawe ǀgâsa khoeb ga ǃhoa, o-i ge khoe-i hoa-e “Tari-e ǁnā-e?” ti ra mî. Tsîb ga tsū xū-e mî, on ge khoena ǁnā mîsa ǁnās ǃgâ-ai tsūse ra gom kai.
24 ǃKhūsis ge tsū tama hâ, hanats ga ǀhôagao ǀgaub ai ǁîsa hō tama io. Xaweb ge ǀgâsiba ǁkhāti tsū tama hâ, eloxoresan ǀguin ge ǁnāti ra ǂâi. 25 Khoen ga sa aisa ǃoa kō, on ge dâxats a tamas ka iots ra tsûaǂgao ǃkhaisa ra mû. 26 Dâxasibats ga hōǃâ, ots ge dâxase ra mûsen, xawe ǂkhoamîde dīs ge a ǀgaisa sîsen tsî ra tsau kai tsi.
