لَا تُهْمِلْ وَقْتَكَ، فَإِنَّ مَا يَمْضِي مِنْهُ لَا يَعُودُ. نَظِّمْ أَعْمَالَكَ وَاحْفَظْ وَعْدَكَ، وَلَا تُحَمِّلْ نَفْسَكَ مَا لَا تُطِيقُ.
Do not neglect your time, for what passes of it never returns. Organize your tasks and keep your promises, but do not burden yourself beyond what you can bear.
The passage combines prohibition, explanation, coordinated instructions and a final limit on excessive burden. These functions are not mere restatements. The opening forbids waste, the following clause gives its rationale, and the later instructions propose practical action without demanding unsustainable exertion.