Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

1 A afalse balance is an abomination to the Lord,

But a bjust weight is His delight.

2 When apride comes, then comes dishonor,

But with the humble is wisdom.

3 The aintegrity of the upright will guide them,

But the bcrookedness of the treacherous will destroy them.

4 aRiches do not profit in the day of wrath,

But brighteousness delivers from death.

5 The arighteousness of the blameless will smooth his way,

But bthe wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

6 The righteousness of the upright will deliver them,

But the treacherous will abe caught by their own greed.

7 When a wicked man dies, his aexpectation will perish,

And the bhope of strong men perishes.

8 The righteous is delivered from trouble,

But the wicked 1takes his place.

9 With his amouth the godless man destroys his neighbor,

But through knowledge the brighteous will be delivered.

10 When it agoes well with the righteous, the city rejoices,

And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.

11 By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,

But by the mouth of the wicked it is torn down.

12 He who despises his neighbor lacks 1sense,

But a man of understanding keeps silent.

13 He awho goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets,

But he who is 1trustworthy bconceals a matter.

14 Where there is no aguidance the people fall,

But in abundance of counselors there is 1victory.

15 He who is aguarantor for a stranger will surely suffer for it,

But he who hates 1being a guarantor is secure.

16 A agracious woman attains honor,

And ruthless men attain riches.

17 The amerciful man does 1himself good,

But the cruel man 2does himself harm.

18 The wicked earns deceptive wages,

But he who asows righteousness gets a true reward.

19 He who is steadfast in arighteousness will attain to life,

And bhe who pursues evil will bring about his own death.

20 The perverse in heart are an abomination to the Lord,

But the ablameless in their 1walk are His bdelight.

21 1Assuredly, the evil man will not go unpunished,

But the 2descendants of the righteous will be delivered.

22 As a aring of gold in a swine’s snout

So is a beautiful woman who lacks 1discretion.

23 The desire of the righteous is only good,

But the aexpectation of the wicked is wrath.

24 There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,

And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want.

25 The 1agenerous man will be 2prosperous,

And he who bwaters will himself be watered.

26 He who withholds grain, the apeople will curse him,

But bblessing will be on the head of him who csells it.

27 He who diligently seeks good seeks favor,

But ahe who seeks evil, evil will come to him.

28 He who atrusts in his riches will fall,

But bthe righteous will flourish like the green leaf.

29 He who atroubles his own house will binherit wind,

And cthe foolish will be servant to the wisehearted.

30 The fruit of the righteous is aa tree of life,

And bhe who is wise 1wins souls.

31 If athe righteous will be rewarded in the earth,

How much more the wicked and the sinner!