Here’s a good verse in the Apocrypha, which is probably why it’s not in the Protestant Bible. 😉
People who are afraid to act
are like clumps of cow manure;
those who pick it up
will shake off their hand. (Sirach 22:2, CEB)
A good mental picture that is hard to forget.
Learn to get moving! Don’t be caught in paralysis by analysis!
Part of that is translation. The New Jerusalem Bible says, “An idler is like a lump of dung, anyone picking it up shakes it off his hand.” There are strong statements like that in other parts of the Bible, though, so I don’t see why that is unique to the Apocrypha.
It’s not unique, really. It’s interesting to see how the CEB translates it, then to also see how other translations in the “main” parts of the Bible use euphemisms to make some harsh sayings a bit more palatable.
Interesting things to think about when it comes to translation.