Proverbs 6:9

Modern

How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?

Traditional

How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

Literal

Until when, O sluggish one, will you slumber? When will you rise from your sleep?

Latin

Usquequo, piger, dormies? quando consurges e somno tuo?

Hebrew

English

How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?

Lazy people sleep instead of preparing for what they need (see also Proverbs 24:33–34). They are the opposite of self-motivated and hardworking ants.
Extra sleep and more slumber sarcastically describe a lazy person’s ambition.

Theme notes and profiles

Proverbs 24:33–34
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
Psalm 94:8
Take notice, O senseless among the people! O fools, when will you be wise?
Jeremiah 4:14
Wash the evil from your heart, O Jerusalem, so that you may be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts within you?
Ephesians 5:14
So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
Romans 13:11
And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
Proverbs 1:22
“How long, O simple ones, will you love your simple ways? How long will scoffers delight in their scorn and fools hate knowledge?
1 Thessalonians 5:2–7
For you are fully aware that the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.