16
The reeds by any water or river bank are plucked up before any grass;
17
but kindness is like a garden of blessings, and almsgiving endures forever.
18
Wealth and wages make life sweet, but better than either is finding a treasure.
19
Children and the building of a city establish one's name, but better than either is the one who finds wisdom. Cattle and orchards make one prosperous; but a blameless wife is accounted better than either.
20
Wine and music gladden the heart, but the love of friends is better than either.
Footnotes 1
[a].
Heb: Gk [Life is sweet for the self-reliant worker]
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.