Proverbs 11

Without Good Direction, People Lose Their Way

¹11God hates cheating in the marketplace;

he loves it when business is aboveboard.

²The stuck-up fall flat on their faces,

but down-to-earth people stand firm.

³The integrity of the honest keeps them on track;

the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin.

⁴A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart,

but a principled life can stand up to the worst.

⁵Moral character makes for smooth traveling;

an evil life is a hard life.

⁶Good character is the best insurance;

crooks get trapped in their sinful lust.

⁷When the wicked die, that’s it—

the story’s over, end of hope.

⁸A good person is saved from much trouble;

a bad person runs straight into it.

⁹The loose tongue of the godless spreads destruction;

the common sense of the godly preserves them.

¹⁰When it goes well for good people, the whole town cheers;

when it goes badly for bad people, the town celebrates.

¹¹When right-living people bless the city, it flourishes;

evil talk turns it into a ghost town in no time.

¹²Mean-spirited slander is heartless;

quiet discretion accompanies good sense.

¹³A gadabout gossip can’t be trusted with a secret,

but someone of integrity won’t violate a confidence.

¹⁴Without good direction, people lose their way;

the more wise counsel you follow, the better your chances.

¹⁵Whoever makes deals with strangers is sure to get burned;

if you keep a cool head, you’ll avoid rash bargains.

¹⁶A woman of gentle grace gets respect,

but men of rough violence grab for loot.

A God-Shaped Life

¹⁷When you’re kind to others, you help yourself;

when you’re cruel to others, you hurt yourself.

¹⁸Bad work gets paid with a bad check;

good work gets solid pay.

¹⁹Take your stand with God’s loyal community and live,

or chase after phantoms of evil and die.

²⁰God can’t stand deceivers,

but oh how he relishes integrity.

²¹Count on this: The wicked won’t get off scot-free,

and God’s loyal people will triumph.

²²Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout

is a beautiful face on an empty head.

²³The desires of good people lead straight to the best,

but wicked ambition ends in angry frustration.

²⁴The world of the generous gets larger and larger;

the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.

²⁵The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed;

those who help others are helped.

²⁶Curses on those who drive a hard bargain!

Blessings on all who play fair and square!

²⁷The one who seeks good finds delight;

the student of evil becomes evil.

²⁸A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump;

a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.

²⁹Exploit or abuse your family, and end up with a fistful of air;

common sense tells you it’s a stupid way to live.

³⁰A good life is a fruit-bearing tree;

a violent life destroys souls.

³¹If good people barely make it,

what’s in store for the bad!