Proverbs 25:1–29:27

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

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

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

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

And the heart of kings †is unsearchable.

4  eTake away fthe dross from the silver,

And there shall come forth a vessel for the finer.

5  eTake 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:

7  jFor 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.

8  lGo not forth hastily to strive,

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

When thy neighbour hath llput thee to shame.

9  mDebate thy cause with thy neighbour himself;

And ||discover not a secret to another:

10  Lest he that heareth it nput thee to shame,

And thine infamy turn not away.

11  oA word †fitly spoken

Is like papples of gold in qpictures of silver.

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

uSo is a wise reprover upon an xobedient ear.

13  As 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.

14  zWhoso boasteth himself †of a false gift

Is like aclouds and wind without rain.

15  bBy clong forbearing is a dprince persuaded,

And a soft tongue breaketh the bone.

16  eHast 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.

18  A man that gbeareth false witness against his neighbour

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

19  Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble

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

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

And as vinegar upon mnitre,

So is he nthat singeth songs to an heavy heart.

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

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

22  For 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.

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

tThan with a brawling woman and in a wide house.

25  As cold waters uto a thirsty soul,

So is wgood news from a far country.

26  A righteous man xfalling down before the wicked

Is as a ytroubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.

27  zIt is not good to eat much honey:

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

28  dHe that hath no rule over his own spirit

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

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

bSo honour is not cseemly for a fool.

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

So ethe curse causeless shall not come.

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

And ga rod for the fool’s back.

4  hAnswer not a fool according to his folly,

Lest thou also be like unto him.

5  iAnswer a fool according to his folly,

Lest he be wise in †his own conceit.

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

Cutteth off the feet, and kdrinketh ||damage.

7  The 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.

9  As 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.

11  As pa dog returneth to his vomit,

So qa fool †returneth to his folly.

12  rSeest thou a man wise in his own conceit?

sThere is more hope of a fool than of him.

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

A lion is in the streets.

14  As the door turneth upon his hinges,

So doth the slothful upon his bed.

15  wThe slothful hideth his hand in his bosom;

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

16  The sluggard is wiser xin his own conceit

Than yseven men that can zrender a zzreason.

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

Is like one that taketh a dog by the ears.

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

19  So 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.

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

So is ea contentious man to kindle strife.

22  fThe words of a talebearer are as wounds,

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

23  gBurning lips and a wicked heart

Are like a potsherd hcovered with silver idross.

24  He that hateth ||kdissembleth with his lips,

And layeth up deceit within him;

25  lWhen he †speaketh fair, believe him not:

For there are yseven abominations in his heart.

26  Whose ||hatred is covered by deceit,

His wickedness shall be mshewed nbefore the whole congregation.

27  oWhoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein:

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

28  A 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.

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

A stranger, and not thine own lips.

3  A 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?

5  eOpen rebuke is better than secret love.

6  eFaithful are fthe wounds of a friend;

But the gkisses of an enemy are ||deceitful.

7  The full soul †loatheth han honeycomb;

But to the hungry soul ievery bitter thing is sweet.

8  jAs a bird that wandereth from her nest,

So is a man that wandereth from his place.

9  kOintment and perfume rejoice the heart:

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

10  Thine 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.

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

That I may qanswer rhim that reproacheth me.

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

But tthe simple pass on, and are punished.

13  uTake his garment that is surety for a stranger,

And take a pledge of him for a strange woman.

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

It shall be counted a curse to him.

15  xA continual dropping in a very rainy day

And a contentious woman are alike.

16  Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind,

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

17  Iron sharpeneth iron;

So a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

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

So he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.

19  As in water aaface answereth to face,

So the heart of man to man.

20  bHell and destruction care †never full;

So dthe eyes of man eare never satisfied.

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

gSo is a man hto his praise.

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

Yet will not his foolishness depart from him.

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

And †look well to thy herds.

24  For †riches are not for ever:

And doth the crown endure †to every generation?

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

And mherbs of the mountains are gathered.

26  oThe lambs are for pthy clothing,

And the goats are the price of the field.

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

For the food of thy household,

And for the †maintenance for thy maidens.

28 The wicked aflee when no man pursueth:

But the righteous are bold as a lion.

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

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

3  A poor man that oppresseth the dpoor

Is like a esweeping rain †which leaveth no food.

4  They that forsake the law fpraise the wicked:

But such as keep the law gcontend with them.

5  hEvil men understand not judgment:

But ithey that seek the Lord understand all things.

6  kBetter is the poor klthat walketh in his uprightness,

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

7  Whoso keepeth the law is ma wise son:

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

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

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

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

Even rhis prayer shall be abomination.

10  Whoso 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.

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

But the poor that hath understanding usearcheth him out.

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

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

13  abHe that covereth his sins shall not prosper:

But bwhoso cconfesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

14  Happy is the man dthat feareth ealway:

But he that fhardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

15  gAs a roaring lion, and a hranging bear;

So is ia wicked ruler over the poor people.

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

But he that hateth kcovetousness shall prolong his days.

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

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

18  mWhoso nwalketh uprightly shall be saved:

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

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

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

20  A faithful man shall abound with blessings:

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

21  rTo 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 …