1. أَنا النَذيرُ لِمُسدي نِعمَةٍ أَبَداً

    إِلى المَقاريفِ ما لَم يَخبِرُ الدَخَلا

    I warn anyone who ever bestows a favor

    on the baseborn without discerning their hidden corruption.

  2. إِن أَنتَ أَكرَمتَهُم أَلفَيتَهُم بُطُراً

    وَإِن أَهَنتَهُم أَلفَيتَهُم ذُلُلا

    If you honor them, you find them arrogant and ungrateful;

    and if you abase them, you find them submissive.

  3. أَتَشمَخونَ وَمِنّا أَصلُ نِعمَتُكُم

    سَتَعلَمونَ إِذا صِرتُم لَنا خَوَلا

    Do you hold your heads high, though we are the source of your bounty?

    You will learn when you become our servants.

  4. أُنظُر فَإِن أَنتَ لَم تَقدِر عَلى مَثلٍ

    لَهُم سِوى الكَلبِ فَاِضرِبهُ لَهُم مَثَلا

    Consider: if you can find no comparison

    for them but a dog, then set it forth as their likeness.

  5. بَيناً يُسَمِّنُهُ لِلصَيدِ صاحِبُهُ

    حَتّى إِذا ما قَوِيَ مِن بَعدِ ما هَزُلا

    While its master was fattening it for the hunt,

    when at last it grew strong after being lean,

  6. عَدا عَلَيهِ فَلَم تَضرُرهُ عَدوَتُهُ

    وَلَو أَطاقَ لَهُ أَكلاً لَقَد أَكَلا

    it turned on him, but its attack did him no harm;

    and had it been able to devour him, it surely would have.