Proverbs 22

22A reputation^a is to be chosen rather than^b great riches;

favor is better than silver and gold.^c

²Rich and poor have much in common;

Yahweh is the maker of all of them.

³The clever sees danger and hides,

but the simple go on and suffer.

⁴The reward of humility is the fear of Yahweh—

wealth and honor and life.

⁵Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;

he who guards himself^d will keep away from them.

⁶Train the child concerning his way;^e

even when he is old, he will not stray from it.

⁷The rich will rule over the poor,

and the borrower is a slave of the lender.^f

⁸He who sows injustice will reap calamity,

and the rod of his anger will fail.

⁹He who is generous^g will be blessed,

for he gives to the poor from his own bread.

¹⁰Drive out a scoffer and strife will go out;

quarrel and abuse will cease.

¹¹He who loves purity of heart

and has gracious speech,^h his friend is the king.

¹²The eyes of Yahweh keep watch over knowledge,

but he will overthrow the words of the faithless.

¹³A lazy person says “A lion in the street!

In the middle of the highway, I shall be killed!”

¹⁴A deep pit is the mouth of an adulteress,ⁱ

he with whom Yahweh is angry will fall there.

¹⁵Folly is bound up in the heart^j of a boy;^k

the rod of discipline will drive it^l from him.

¹⁶He who oppresses the poor in order to enrich himself,

or gives to the rich, will come to poverty.^m

Words of the Wise

¹⁷Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise;

you shall apply your heartⁿ to my teaching.

¹⁸For it is pleasant if you guard them within you;^o

together they will be ready upon your lips.

¹⁹In order for your trust to be in Yahweh,

I have made them known to you today^p—even^q you.

²⁰Have I not written for you thirty sayings

with admonitions and knowledge?

²¹In order to show you what is right—sayings of truth—

in order to return a true saying to him who sent you.

²²Do not rob the poor because he is poor,

and do not crush the afflicted at the gate;

²³For Yahweh will plead their case

and despoil those who despoil them of life.^r

²⁴Do not befriend an owner^s of anger,^t

and with a man of wrath you shall not associate;

²⁵lest you learn his way

and become entangled in a snare to yourself.^u

²⁶Do not be with those who give a pledge^v

by becoming^w surety.

²⁷If there is nothing for you to pay,^x

why will he take your bed from under you?

²⁸Do not remove an ancient boundary marker

which your ancestors^y made.

²⁹A man who is skillful in his work, you shall see:

before kings, he will serve;

he will not serve before the commoners.