3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; and the thinking of mine heart shall speak prudence.
4 I shall bow down mine ear into a parable; I shall open my reason set forth in a psaltery. (I shall listen closely to a parable; then I shall set forth my understanding on a lute.)
5 Why shall I dread in the evil day? the wickedness of mine heel shall (en)compass me. (Why should I have fear, or be afraid, on the day of evil, when the wickedness of my enemies shall surround me?)
6 Which trust in their own virtue (or They who trust in their wealth); and have glory in the multitude of their riches.
7 A brother again-buyeth not, shall a man again-buy? and he shall not give to God his pleasing. (No one shall ever be able to redeem himself; he shall never be able to pay God the price that he asketh for him.)
8 And he shall not (be able to) give the price of ransom for his soul; and he shall travail into without end, (Yea, he shall never be able to pay the price of ransom for his own soul; even if he could work forever,)
9 and he shall live yet into the end. He shall not see perishing, (so that he would live forever, and not see perishing, or corruption.)
10 when he shall see wise men dying; the unwise man and the fool shall perish together. And they shall leave their riches to aliens; (For he seeth that the wise die; and that the foolish and the ignorant perish together with them. But they all leave their riches to others, even strangers;)
11 and the sepulchres of them be the houses of them without end. The tabernacles of them be in generation and in generation; they called their names in their lands. (and their tombs, or their graves, shall be their houses forever. Yea, their dwelling places for all generations; even though their lands were once called by their own names.)
12 A man/Man, when he was in honour, understood not; he is comparisoned to unwise beasts, and is made like to those. (For anyone, even when he hath been given great honour, liveth not forever; he is comparable to the unthinking beasts, and soon is made like them.)