17
The Lord's gifts to religious people are gifts that endure. If he approves of you, you will always be successful.
18
Someone may grow rich by working hard and denying himself pleasure, but what does he get for it?
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19
He says to himself, "Now I can finally sit back and enjoy what I have worked for." But he has no idea how long it will be before he must die and leave his wealth to others.
20
Stand by your duty and stick to it; grow old at your work.
21
Don't be jealous of what sinners achieve; just stick to your own work, and trust the Lord. It is very easy for the Lord to make a poor person suddenly rich.
22
Devout people will receive the Lord's blessing as their reward, and that blessing can be given in a moment.
23
Don't be concerned about what you need, or what success the future holds for you.
24
On the other hand, don't think that you have everything you need or that nothing can go wrong for you in the future.
25
When things are going well, people don't think about hard times; and when things are going badly, they forget about prosperity.
26
The Lord can easily wait until the day of our death to reward or punish us.
27
At that time our deeds are open for all to see; all our happiness can be erased in that one moment of misery.