Proverbs 25:1–29:27

^*These are also ^aproverbs of Solomon, which ^bthe men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.

²It is the glory of God ^cto conceal a thing:

But the honour of kings is ^dto search out a matter.

³The heaven for height, and the earth for depth,

And the heart of kings ^†is unsearchable.

^4eTake away ^fthe dross from the silver,

And there shall come forth a vessel for the finer.

^5eTake away ^gthe wicked from before the king,

And ^hhis throne shall be established in righteousness.

^6†Put not forth thyself in the presence of the king,

And ⁱstand not in the place of great men:

^7jFor better it is that it be said unto thee, Come up hither;

Than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the prince

^kWhom thine eyes have seen.

^8lGo not forth hastily to strive,

Lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof,

When thy neighbour hath ^llput thee to shame.

^9mDebate thy cause with thy neighbour himself;

And ^||discover not a secret to another:

¹⁰Lest he that heareth it ⁿput thee to shame,

And thine infamy turn not away.

^11oA word ^†fitly spoken

Is like ^papples of gold in ^qpictures of silver.

¹²As ^ran earring of gold, and an ^sornament of ^tfine gold,

^uSo is a wise reprover upon an ^xobedient ear.

¹³As the cold of snow in the time of harvest,

So is ^ya faithful messenger to them that send him:

For he refresheth the soul of his masters.

^14zWhoso boasteth himself ^†of a false gift

Is like ^aclouds and wind without rain.

^15bBy ^clong forbearing is a ^dprince persuaded,

And a soft tongue breaketh the bone.

^16eHast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee,

Lest thou be filled therewith, and ^fvomit it.

^17||Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbour’s house;

Lest he be ^†weary of thee, and so hate thee.

¹⁸A man that ^gbeareth false witness against his neighbour

Is a maul, and ^ha sword, and a ⁱsharp arrow.

¹⁹Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble

Is like a broken tooth, and ^ka foot out of joint.

²⁰As he that ^ltaketh away a garment in cold weather,

And as vinegar upon ^mnitre,

So is he ⁿthat singeth songs to an heavy heart.

^21oIf thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat;

And if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:

²²For thou shalt ^pheap ^qcoals of fire upon his head,

And the Lord shall reward thee.

^23||The north wind driveth away rain:

So doth an angry countenance a ^sbackbiting tongue.

^24tIt is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop,

^tThan with a brawling woman and in a wide house.

²⁵As cold waters ^uto a thirsty soul,

So is ^wgood news from a far country.

²⁶A righteous man ^xfalling down before the wicked

Is as a ^ytroubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.

^27zIt is not good to eat much honey:

^aSo for men ^bto search their own ^bcglory is not glory.

^28dHe that hath no rule over his own spirit

Is like a city that is ^ebroken down, and without walls.

26As snow in summer, and ^aas rain in harvest,

^bSo honour is not ^cseemly for a fool.

²As the ^dbird by wandering, as the ^dswallow by flying,

So ^ethe curse causeless shall not come.

^3fA whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass,

And ^ga rod for the fool’s back.

^4hAnswer not a fool according to his folly,

Lest thou also be like unto him.

⁵ⁱAnswer a fool according to his folly,

Lest he be wise in ^†his own conceit.

⁶He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool

Cutteth off the feet, and ^kdrinketh ^||damage.

⁷The legs of the lame ^†are not equal:

So is a ^lparable in the mouth of fools.

^8||As he that bindeth a stone in a sling,

^bSo is he that giveth honour to a fool.

⁹As ^ma thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard,

So is a ^lparable in the mouth of fools.

^10||The great God that ⁿformed all things

Both rewardeth the fool, and rewardeth transgressors.

¹¹As ^pa dog returneth to his vomit,

So ^qa fool ^†returneth to his folly.

^12rSeest thou a man wise in his own conceit?

^sThere is more hope of a fool than of him.

^13tThe slothful man saith, There is ^ua lion in the way;

A lion is in the streets.

¹⁴As the door turneth upon his hinges,

So doth the slothful upon his bed.

^15wThe slothful hideth his hand in his bosom;

^||It grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth.

¹⁶The sluggard is wiser ^xin his own conceit

Than ^yseven men that can ^zrender a ^zzreason.

¹⁷He that passeth by, and ^||ameddleth with strife belonging not to him,

Is like one that taketh a dog by the ears.

¹⁸As a mad man who casteth ^†firebrands, arrows, and death,

¹⁹So is the man that deceiveth his neighbour,

And saith, Am not I in sport?

^20†Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out:

So where there is no ^||talebearer, ^bthe strife ^†ceaseth.

²¹As ^ccoals are to ^dburning coals, and wood to fire;

So is ^ea contentious man to kindle strife.

^22fThe words of a talebearer are as wounds,

And they go down into the ^†innermost parts of the belly.

^23gBurning lips and a wicked heart

Are like a potsherd ^hcovered with silver ⁱdross.

²⁴He that hateth ^||kdissembleth with his lips,

And layeth up deceit within him;

^25lWhen he ^†speaketh fair, believe him not:

For there are ^yseven abominations in his heart.

²⁶Whose ^||hatred is covered by deceit,

His wickedness shall be ^mshewed ⁿbefore the whole congregation.

^27oWhoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein:

And he that rolleth a stone, it will ^preturn upon him.

²⁸A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it;

And a flattering mouth worketh ruin.

27^aBoast not thyself of ^†to morrow;

^aFor thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

^2bLet another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth;

A stranger, and not thine own lips.

³A stone is ^†heavy, and ^cthe sand weighty;

But a ^ccfool’s wrath is heavier than them both.

^4†Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous;

But who is able to stand before ^||envy?

^5eOpen rebuke is better than secret love.

^6eFaithful are ^fthe wounds of a friend;

But the ^gkisses of an enemy are ^||deceitful.

⁷The full soul ^†loatheth ^han honeycomb;

But to the hungry soul ⁱevery bitter thing is sweet.

^8jAs a bird that wandereth from her nest,

So is a man that wandereth from his place.

^9kOintment and perfume rejoice the heart:

So doth the sweetness of a man’s friend ^†by ^lhearty counsel.

¹⁰Thine own friend, and ^mthy father’s friend, forsake not;

Neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity:

For ⁿbetter is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.

^11oMy son, ^pbe wise, and make my heart glad,

That I may ^qanswer ^rhim that reproacheth me.

^12sA prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself;

But ^tthe simple pass on, and are punished.

^13uTake his garment that is surety for a stranger,

And take a pledge of him for a strange woman.

¹⁴He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning,

It shall be counted a curse to him.

^15xA continual dropping in a very rainy day

And a contentious woman are alike.

¹⁶Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind,

And the ointment of his right hand, which ^ybewrayeth itself.

¹⁷Iron sharpeneth iron;

So a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

^18zWhoso ^akeepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof:

So he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.

¹⁹As in water ^aaface answereth to face,

So the heart of man to man.

^20bHell and destruction ^care ^†never full;

So ^dthe eyes of man ^eare never satisfied.

^21fAs the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold;

^gSo is a man ^hto his praise.

²²ⁱThough thou shouldest bray a fool in a ^kmortar among ^lwheat with a pestle,

Yet will not his foolishness depart from him.

²³Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks,

And ^†look well to thy herds.

²⁴For ^†riches are not for ever:

And doth the crown endure ^†to every generation?

^25mThe hay appeareth, and the ⁿtender grass sheweth itself,

And ^mherbs of the mountains are gathered.

^26oThe lambs are for ^pthy clothing,

And the goats are the price of the field.

²⁷And thou shalt have goats’ milk enough for ^pthy food,

For the food of thy household,

And for the ^†maintenance for thy maidens.

28The wicked ^aflee when no man pursueth:

But the righteous are bold as a lion.

²For the transgression of a land ^bmany are the princes thereof:

But ^||by a man of understanding and knowledge the ^cstate thereof shall be prolonged.

³A poor man that oppresseth the ^dpoor

Is like a ^esweeping rain ^†which leaveth no food.

⁴They that forsake the law ^fpraise the wicked:

But such as keep the law ^gcontend with them.

^5hEvil men understand not judgment:

But ⁱthey that seek the Lord understand all things.

^6kBetter is the poor ^klthat walketh in his uprightness,

Than he that is ^lperverse in his ways, though he be rich.

⁷Whoso keepeth the law is ^ma wise son:

But he that ^||is a companion of riotous men ⁿshameth his father.

^8oHe that by usury and ^†unjust gain increaseth his substance,

^pHe shall gather it for ^qhim that will pity the poor.

⁹He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law,

Even ^rhis prayer shall be abomination.

¹⁰Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way,

^sHe shall fall himself into his own pit:

But the upright ^tshall have good things in possession.

¹¹The rich man is wise ^†in his own conceit;

But the poor that hath understanding ^usearcheth him out.

^12xWhen righteous men do rejoice, there is great glory:

But ^ywhen the wicked rise, a man is ^||zhidden.

^13abHe that covereth his sins shall not prosper:

But ^bwhoso ^cconfesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

¹⁴Happy is the man ^dthat feareth ^ealway:

But he that ^fhardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

^15gAs a roaring lion, and a ^hranging bear;

So is ⁱa wicked ruler over the poor people.

¹⁶The prince ^jthat wanteth understanding is also a great ^koppressor:

But he that hateth ^kcovetousness shall prolong his days.

^17lA man that doeth violence to the blood of any person

Shall flee to the pit; let no man stay him.

^18mWhoso ⁿwalketh uprightly shall be saved:

But he that is ⁿperverse in his ways shall fall at once.

^19oHe that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread:

But he that ^pfolloweth after vain persons shall have poverty enough.

²⁰A faithful man shall abound with blessings:

But ^qhe that maketh haste to be rich shall not be ^||innocent.

^21rTo have respect of persons is not good:

For ^sfor a piece of bread that man will transgress.

^22||tHe that ^uhasteth to be rich hath ^van evil eye,

And considereth not that ^wpoverty shall…