Instead, he followed the advice of the young men. He said,“ My father put a heavy load on your shoulders. But I’ll make it even heavier. My father beat you with whips. But I’ll beat you with bigger whips.”

照着少年人所出的主意对民说：“我父亲使你们负重轭，我必使你们负更重的轭！我父亲用鞭子责打你们，我要用蝎子鞭责打你们！”

他照着年轻人所出的主意对他们说：“我父亲使你们负重轭，我必使你们负更重的轭！我父亲用鞭子惩罚你们，我却要用蝎子惩罚你们！”

他照着年轻人所出的主意对他们说：“我父亲使你们负重轭，我必使你们负更重的轭！我父亲用鞭子惩罚你们，我却要用蝎子惩罚你们！”

却照着年轻人给他所出的主意，对他们说：“我父亲加重你们所负的重担，我要使你们负更重的重担；我父亲用鞭子责打你们，我要用蝎子鞭责打你们。”

照着少年人所出的主意對民說：「我父親使你們負重軛，我必使你們負更重的軛！我父親用鞭子責打你們，我要用蠍子鞭責打你們！」

他照着年輕人所出的主意對他們說：「我父親使你們負重軛，我必使你們負更重的軛！我父親用鞭子懲罰你們，我卻要用蠍子懲罰你們！」

他照着年輕人所出的主意對他們說：「我父親使你們負重軛，我必使你們負更重的軛！我父親用鞭子懲罰你們，我卻要用蠍子懲罰你們！」

卻照著年輕人給他所出的主意，對他們說：“我父親加重你們所負的重擔，我要使你們負更重的重擔；我父親用鞭子責打你們，我要用蠍子鞭責打你們。”

反而照少年人出的主意對眾民說：『我父親使你們負的軛很重，我卻要加重你們的軛呢；我父親用鞭子責打你們，我卻要用蠍子鞭責打你們呢。』

依少者之謀、告之曰、我父使爾負重軛、我必益之、我父責爾以鞭、我則責爾以蠍、

乃循少者之謀、謂民曰、我父使爾負重軛、我必使爾負尤重之軛、我父以鞭責爾、我必以蠍責爾、

he followed the advice of the young men and said,“ My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.”

he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying,“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.”

and followed the counsel of his younger advisers. He told the people,“ My father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!”

and spoke to them according to the young men’s advice:“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with barbed whips.”

and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying,“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions!”

and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying,“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!”

and spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

and spoke to them according to the young men’s advice:“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with barbed whips.”

And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father[ also] chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

and followed the advice of the younger ones. He said,“ My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.”

and spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying,“ My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.”

Pharaoh continued,“ There are large numbers of your people in the land. But you are stopping them from working.”That same day Pharaoh gave orders to the slave drivers and the overseers in charge of the people.He said,“ Don’t give the people any more straw to make bricks. Let them go and get their own straw.But require them to make the same number of bricks as before. Don’t lower the number they have to make. They are lazy. That’s why they are crying out,‘ Let us go. We want to offer sacrifices to our God.’Make them work harder. Then they will be too busy to pay attention to lies.”

You didn’t give us any straw. But you told us,‘ Make bricks!’ We are being whipped. But it’s the fault of your own people.”Pharaoh said,“ You are lazy! That’s why you keep saying,‘ Let us go. We want to offer sacrifices to the Lord.’Now get to work. We won’t give you any straw. But you still have to make the same number of bricks.”

The young men who had grown up with him gave their answer. They replied,“ These people have said to you,‘ Your father put a heavy load on our shoulders. Make it lighter.’ Now tell them,‘ My little finger is stronger than my father’s legs.My father put a heavy load on your shoulders. But I’ll make it even heavier. My father beat you with whips. But I’ll beat you with bigger whips.’ ”

Starting to argue is like making a crack in a dam. So drop the matter before a fight breaks out.

But suppose your hearts are jealous and bitter. Suppose you are concerned only about getting ahead. Then don’t brag about it. And don’t say no to the truth.Wisdom like this doesn’t come down from heaven. It belongs to the earth. It doesn’t come from the Holy Spirit. It comes from the devil.Are you jealous? Are you concerned only about getting ahead? Then your life will be a mess. You will be doing all kinds of evil things.But the wisdom that comes from heaven is pure. That’s the most important thing about it. And that’s not all. It also loves peace. It thinks about others. It obeys. It is full of mercy and good fruit. It is fair. It doesn’t pretend to be what it is not.Those who make peace plant it like a seed. They will harvest a crop of right living.Why do you fight and argue among yourselves? Isn’t it because of your sinful desires? They fight within you.You want something, but you don’t have it. So you kill. You want what others have, but you can’t get what you want. So you argue and fight. You don’t have what you want, because you don’t ask God.

So he did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did what the family of Ahab had done. After Ahaziah’s father died, the members of Ahab’s family became his advisers. That’s what destroyed him.He also followed their advice when he joined forces with Joram, the king of Israel. They went to war against Hazael at Ramoth Gilead. Joram was the son of Ahab. Hazael was king of Aram. The soldiers of Aram wounded Joram.

The end of a matter is better than its beginning. So it’s better to be patient than proud.

All the royal leaders, high officials, royal rulers, advisers and governors want to make a suggestion. We’ve agreed that you should give an order. And you should make sure it’s obeyed. Your Majesty, here is the command you should make your people obey for the next 30 days. Don’t let any of your people pray to any god or human being except to you. If they do, throw them into the lions’ den.

The people suffered because of their hard labor. The slave drivers forced them to work with bricks and mud. And they made them do all kinds of work in the fields. The Egyptians didn’t show them any pity at all. They made them work very hard.

Where there is arguing, there is pride. But those who take advice are wise.

Then Memukan gave a reply to the king and the nobles. He said,“ Queen Vashti has done what is wrong. But she didn’t do it only against you, King Xerxes. She did it also against all the nobles. And she did it against the people in all the territories you rule over.All the women will hear about what the queen has done. Then they won’t respect their husbands. They’ll say,‘ King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to be brought to him. But she wouldn’t come.’Here is what will start today. The leading women in Persia and Media who have heard about the queen’s actions will act in the same way. They’ll disobey all your nobles, just as she disobeyed you. They won’t have any respect for their husbands. They won’t honor them.“ So if it pleases you, send out a royal order. Let it be written down in the laws of Persia and Media. Those laws can never be changed. Let the royal order say that Vashti can never see you again. Also let her position as queen be given to someone who is better than she is.And let your order be announced all through your entire kingdom. Then all women will have respect for their husbands, from the least important to the most important.”The king and his nobles were pleased with that advice. So he did what Memukan had suggested.

At that time the king’s personal attendants made a suggestion. They said,“ King Xerxes, let a search be made for some beautiful young virgins for you.Appoint some officials in every territory in your kingdom. Have them bring all these beautiful young women into the fort of Susa. Put them in the special place where the virgins stay. Then put Hegai in charge of them. He’s the official who serves you. He’s in charge of the women. Let beauty care be given to the new group of women.Then let the young woman who pleases you the most become queen in Vashti’s place.” The king liked that advice. So he followed it.

The officials of the city of Zoan are very foolish. Pharaoh’s wise men give advice that doesn’t make any sense. How can they dare to say to Pharaoh,“ We’re among the wise men”? How can they say to him,“ We’re like the advisers to the kings of long ago”?Pharaoh, where are your wise men now? Let them tell you what the Lord who rules over all has planned against Egypt.The officials of Zoan have become foolish. The leaders of Memphis have been lied to. The most important leaders in Egypt have led its people astray.

The plans of godly people are right. But the advice of sinners will lead you the wrong way.

If you are proud, you will be destroyed. If you are proud, you will fall.