«اِلشُّكُكْ يِفَلِّسِ التَّاجِرِ الْأَلْفِي»

A trader who keeps acquiring goods while postponing payment is quietly building a heap of obligations; he is the buyer and debtor here, not a seller extending credit. Any single deferred purchase may seem manageable, but together they can outgrow his resources. In the end even a merchant worth thousands can be driven into insolvency by what he owes.

More generally, the proverb casts deferred-payment dealing itself in a poor light. It treats the practice as a hidden hazard rather than a convenience, and it urges people to settle their purchases instead of letting debts accumulate. A large fortune is presented as no guarantee against that slow erosion.

Say it to caution a trader, or anyone running a business, against routinely buying goods on deferred terms. It also works as a broader remark disapproving of any dealing in which payment is put off until later.