Proverbs 18

CHAPTER 18

¹He who separates himself seeks his own desire,

He ^abreaks out in dispute against all sound wisdom.

²A fool does not delight in discernment,

But only ^ain revealing his own heart.

³When a wicked man comes, despising also comes,

And with disgrace comes reproach.

⁴The words of a man’s mouth are ^adeep waters;

¹The fountain of wisdom is a flowing brook.

⁵To ^ashow partiality to the wicked is not good,

Nor to ^bthrust aside the righteous in judgment.

⁶A fool’s lips come with strife,

And his mouth calls for ^abeatings.

⁷A ^afool’s mouth is his ruin,

And his lips are the snare of his soul.

⁸The words of a whisperer are like dainty morsels,

And they go down into the ¹innermost parts of the stomach.

⁹He also who is ^aslack in his work

^bIs brother to him who destroys.

¹⁰The ^aname of Yahweh is a ^bstrong tower;

The righteous runs into it and is ^cset securely on high.

¹¹A ^arich man’s wealth is his strong city,

And like a high wall in his own delusion.

^12aBefore destruction the heart of man is haughty,

But ^bhumility goes before glory.

¹³He who ^aresponds with a word before he hears,

It is folly and shame to him.

¹⁴The ^aspirit of a man can endure his sickness,

But as for a ^bbroken spirit, who can bear it?

¹⁵The ^aheart of the understanding acquires knowledge,

And the ^bear of the wise seeks knowledge.

¹⁶A man’s ^agift makes room for him

And leads him into the presence of great men.

¹⁷The first ¹to plead his case seems right,

Until ²another comes and examines him.

¹⁸The cast ^alot puts an end to contentions

And ¹decides between the mighty ones.

¹⁹A brother offended is harder to win over than a strong city,

And contentions are like the bars of a citadel.

²⁰From the ^1afruit of a man’s mouth his stomach will be satisfied;

^bWith the produce of his lips he will be satisfied.

^21aDeath and life are in the ¹power of the tongue,

And those who love it will eat its ^bfruit.

²²He who finds a ^awife finds a good thing

And ^bobtains favor from Yahweh.

²³The ^apoor man speaks supplications,

But the ^brich man ^canswers with strong words.

²⁴A man of too many friends comes to ¹ruin,

But there is ^aa ²friend who sticks closer than a brother.