Proverbs 13–16

Chapter 13

Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

1 A awise son accepts his father’s discipline,

But a bscoffer does not listen to rebuke.

2 From the fruit of a man’s mouth he 1aenjoys good,

But the 2desire of the treacherous is bviolence.

3 The one who aguards his mouth preserves his life;

The one who bopens wide his lips 1comes to ruin.

4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,

But the soul of the diligent is made fat.

5 A righteous man ahates falsehood,

But a wicked man 1bacts disgustingly and shamefully.

6 Righteousness aguards the 1one whose way is blameless,

But wickedness subverts the 2sinner.

7 There is one who apretends to be rich, but has nothing;

Another 1pretends to be bpoor, but has great wealth.

8 The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth,

But the poor hears no rebuke.

9 The alight of the righteous 1rejoices,

But the blamp of the wicked goes out.

10 Through insolence 1comes nothing but strife,

But wisdom is with those who receive counsel.

11 Wealth obtained by 1fraud dwindles,

But the one who gathers 2by labor increases it.

12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

But desire 1fulfilled is a tree of life.

13 The one who adespises the word will be 1in debt to it,

But the one who fears the commandment will be brewarded.

14 The 1teaching of the wise is a afountain of life,

To turn aside from the bsnares of death.

15 aGood understanding produces favor,

But the way of the treacherous is hard.

16 Every aprudent man acts with knowledge,

But a fool 1displays folly.

17 A wicked messenger falls into adversity,

But aa faithful envoy brings healing.

18 Poverty and shame will come to him who aneglects 1discipline,

But he who regards reproof will be honored.

19 Desire realized is sweet to the soul,

But it is an abomination to fools to turn away from evil.

20 aHe who walks with wise men will be wise,

But the companion of fools will suffer harm.

21 aAdversity pursues sinners,

But the brighteous will be rewarded with prosperity.

22 A good man aleaves an inheritance to his 1children’s children,

And the bwealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.

23 aAbundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor,

But 1it is swept away by injustice.

24 He who awithholds his 1rod hates his son,

But he who loves him 2bdisciplines him diligently.

25 The arighteous 1has enough to satisfy his appetite,

But the stomach of the bwicked is in need.

Chapter 14

Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

1 The awise woman builds her house,

But the foolish tears it down with her own hands.

2 He who awalks in his uprightness fears the Lord,

But he who is bdevious in his ways despises Him.

3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod 1for his back,

But athe lips of the wise will protect them.

4 Where no oxen are, the manger is clean,

But much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.

5 A atrustworthy witness will not lie,

But a bfalse witness 1cutters lies.

6 A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none,

But knowledge is easy to one who has understanding.

7 Leave the apresence of a fool,

Or you will not 1discern 2words of knowledge.

8 The wisdom of the sensible is to understand his way,

But athe foolishness of fools is deceit.

9 Fools mock at 1sin,

But aamong the upright there is 2good will.

10 The heart knows its own abitterness,

And a stranger does not share its joy.

11 The ahouse of the wicked will be destroyed,

But the tent of the upright will flourish.

12 There ais a way which seems right to a man,

But its bend is the way of death.

13 Even in laughter the heart may be in pain,

And the aend of joy may be grief.

14 The backslider in heart will have his afill of his own ways,

But a good man will bbe satisfied 1with his.

15 The 1naive believes everything,

But the sensible man considers his steps.

16 A wise man 1is cautious and aturns away from evil,

But a fool is arrogant and careless.

17 A quick-tempered man acts foolishly,

And a man of evil devices is hated.

18 The 1naive inherit foolishness,

But the sensible are crowned with knowledge.

19 The aevil will bow down before the good,

And the wicked at the gates of the righteous.

20 The apoor is hated even by his neighbor,

But those who love the rich are many.

21 He who adespises his neighbor sins,

But bhappy is he who is gracious to the 1poor.

22 Will they not go astray who adevise evil?

But kindness and truth will be to those who devise good.

23 In all labor there is profit,

But 1mere talk leads only to poverty.

24 The acrown of the wise is their riches,

But the folly of fools is foolishness.

25 A truthful witness saves lives,

But he who 1autters lies is 2treacherous.

26 In the 1afear of the Lord there is strong confidence,

And 2his children will have refuge.

27 The 1fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,

That one may avoid the snares of death.

28 In a multitude of people is a king’s glory,

But in the dearth of people is a prince’s ruin.

29 He who is aslow to anger has great understanding,

But he who is 1quick-tempered exalts folly.

30 A atranquil heart is life to the body,

But passion is brottenness to the bones.

31 He awho oppresses the poor taunts bhis Maker,

But he who is gracious to the needy honors Him.

32 The wicked is athrust down by his 1wrongdoing,

But the brighteous has a refuge when he dies.

33 Wisdom rests in the heart of one who has understanding,

But in the 1hearts of fools it is made known.

34 Righteousness exalts a nation,

But sin is a disgrace to any people.

35 The king’s favor is toward a aservant who acts wisely,

But his anger is toward him who acts shamefully.

Chapter 15

Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

1 A agentle answer turns away wrath,

But a 1bharsh word stirs up anger.

2 The atongue of the wise makes knowledge 1acceptable,

But the bmouth of fools spouts folly.

3 The aeyes of the Lord are in every place,

Watching the evil and the good.

4 A 1soothing tongue is a tree of life,

But perversion in it 2crushes the spirit.

5 A fool 1rejects his father’s discipline,

But he who regards reproof is sensible.

6 Great wealth is in the house of the arighteous,

But trouble is in the income of the wicked.

7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge,

But the hearts of fools are not so.

8 The asacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,

But bthe prayer of the upright is His delight.

9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,

But He loves one who apursues righteousness.

10 Grievous punishment is for him who forsakes the way;

He who hates reproof will die.

11 1aSheol and 2Abaddon lie open before the Lord,

How much more the bhearts of 3men!

12 A ascoffer does not love one who reproves him,

He will not go to the wise.

13 A ajoyful heart makes a 1cheerful face,

But 2when the heart is bsad, the cspirit is broken.

14 The amind of the intelligent seeks knowledge,

But the mouth of fools feeds on folly.

15 All the days of the afflicted are bad,

But a 1cheerful heart has a continual feast.

16 aBetter is a little with the 1fear of the Lord

Than great treasure and turmoil with it.

17 aBetter is a 1dish of 2vegetables where love is

Than a bfattened ox served with hatred.

18 A ahot-tempered man stirs up strife,

But the bslow to anger ccalms a dispute.

19 The way of the lazy is as a hedge of thorns,

But the path of the upright is a highway.

20 A awise son makes a father glad,

But a foolish man bdespises his mother.

21 Folly is joy to him who lacks 1sense,

But a man of understanding awalks straight.

22 Without consultation, plans are frustrated,

But with many counselors they 1succeed.

23 A aman has joy in an 1apt answer,

And how delightful is a timely bword!

24 The apath of life leads upward for the wise

That he may keep away from 1Sheol below.

25 The Lord will atear down the house of the proud,

But He will bestablish the boundary of the cwidow.

26 Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord,

But pleasant words are pure.

27 He who aprofits illicitly troubles his own house,

But he who bhates bribes will live.

28 The heart of the righteous aponders how to answer,

But the bmouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

29 The Lord is afar from the wicked,

But He bhears the prayer of the righteous.

30 1Bright eyes gladden the heart;

Good news puts fat on the bones.

31 He whose ear listens to the life-giving reproof

Will dwell among the wise.

32 He who aneglects discipline bdespises himself,

But he who clistens to reproof acquires 1understanding.

33 The 1fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom,

And before honor comes humility.

Chapter 16

Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

1 The aplans of the heart belong to man,

But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.

2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight,

But the aLord weighs the 1motives.

3 1aCommit your works to the Lord

And your plans will be established.

4 The Lord ahas made everything for 1its own purpose,

Even the bwicked for the day of evil.

5 Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord;

Assuredly, he will not be unpunished.

6 By alovingkindness and truth iniquity is atoned for,

And by the 1bfear of the Lord one keeps away from evil.

7 When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord,

He amakes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

8 Better is a little with righteousness

Than great income with injustice.

9 The mind of aman plans his way,

But bthe Lord directs his steps.

10 A divine adecision is in the lips of the king;

His mouth should not 1err in judgment.

11 A ajust balance and scales belong to the Lord;

All the 1weights of the bag are His 2concern.

12 It is an abomination for kings to commit wicked acts,

For a athrone is established on righteousness.

13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings,

And he who speaks right is loved.

14 The fury of a king is like messengers of death,

But a wise man will appease it.

15 In the light of a king’s face is life,

And his favor is like a cloud with the 1aspring rain.

16 How much abetter it is to get wisdom than gold!

And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver.

17 The ahighway of the upright is to depart from evil;

He who watches his way preserves his 1life.

18 aPride goes before destruction,

And a haughty spirit before stumbling.

19 It is better to be ahumble in spirit with the lowly…