Proverbs 17

17Better a dry crust with peace

than a house full of feasting with strife.^k

²A prudent servant will rule over a disgraceful son

and share an inheritance among brothers.

³A crucible for silver, and a smelter for gold,^l

and the Lord is the tester of hearts.^m

⁴A wicked person listens to malicious talk;^G

a liar pays attention to a destructive tongue.

⁵The one who mocks the poor insults his Maker,ⁿ

and one who rejoices over calamity

will not go unpunished.^o

⁶Grandchildren are the crown of the elderly,

and the pride of children is their fathers.

⁷Eloquent words are not appropriate on a fool’s lips;

how much worse are lies for a ruler.

⁸A bribe^p seems like a magic stone to its owner;

wherever he turns, he succeeds.^q

⁹Whoever conceals an offense promotes love,^r

but whoever gossips about it separates friends.^s

¹⁰A rebuke cuts into a perceptive person

more than a hundred lashes into a fool.

¹¹An evil person desires only rebellion;

a cruel messenger^At will be sent against him.

¹²Better for a person to meet a bear robbed of her cubs^u

than a fool in his foolishness.

¹³If anyone returns evil for good,^v

evil will never depart from his house.^w

¹⁴To start a conflict is to release a flood;

stop the dispute before it breaks out.^x

¹⁵Acquitting the guilty and condemning the just^y —

both are detestable to the Lord.

¹⁶Why does a fool have money in his hand

with no intention of buying wisdom?^z

¹⁷A friend loves at all times,^aa

and a brother is born for a difficult time.

¹⁸One without sense enters an agreement^B

and puts up security for his friend.^a

¹⁹One who loves to offend loves strife;^b

one who builds a high threshold invites injury.

²⁰One with a twisted mind will not succeed,

and one with deceitful speech will fall into ruin.^c

²¹A man fathers a fool to his own sorrow;

the father of a fool has no joy.^d

²²A joyful heart is good medicine,

but a broken spirit dries up the bones.^e

²³A wicked person secretly takes a bribe^f

to subvert the course of justice.^g

²⁴Wisdom is the focus of the perceptive,

but a fool’s eyes^h roam to the ends of the earth.

²⁵A foolish son is grief to his father

and bitterness to the one who bore him.ⁱ

²⁶It is certainly not good to fine an innocent person

or to beat a noble for his honesty.^Aj

²⁷The one who has knowledge restrains his words,^k

and one who keeps a cool head^B

is a person of understanding.

²⁸Even a fool is considered wise when he keeps silent—

discerning, when he seals his lips.^l