Proverbs 25–27

Chapter 25

Similitudes, Instructions

¹These also are ^aproverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, transcribed.

²It is the glory of God to ^aconceal a matter,

But the glory of ^bkings is to search out a matter.

³As the heavens for height and the earth for depth,

So the heart of kings is unsearchable.

⁴Take away the ^adross from the silver,

And there comes out a vessel for the ^bsmith;

⁵Take away the ^awicked before the king,

And his ^bthrone will be established in righteousness.

⁶Do not claim honor in the presence of the king,

And do not stand in the place of great men;

⁷For ^ait is better that it be said to you, “Come up here,”

Than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince,

Whom your eyes have seen.

⁸Do not go out ^ahastily to ¹argue your case;

²Otherwise, what will you do in ³the end,

When your neighbor humiliates you?

^91aArgue your case with your neighbor,

And ^bdo not reveal the secret of another,

¹⁰Or he who hears it will reproach you,

And the evil report about you will not ¹pass away.

¹¹Like apples of gold in settings of silver

Is a ^aword spoken in ¹right circumstances.

¹²Like ¹an ^aearring of gold and an ^bornament of ^cfine gold

Is a wise reprover to a ^dlistening ear.

¹³Like the cold of snow in the ¹time of harvest

Is a ^afaithful messenger to those who send him,

For he refreshes the soul of his masters.

¹⁴Like ^aclouds and ^bwind without rain

Is a man who boasts ¹of his gifts falsely.

¹⁵By ^1aforbearance a ruler may be persuaded,

And a soft tongue breaks the bone.

¹⁶Have you ^afound honey? Eat only ¹what you need,

That you not have it in excess and vomit it.

¹⁷Let your foot rarely be in your neighbor’s house,

Or he will become ¹weary of you and hate you.

¹⁸Like a club and a ^asword and a sharp ^barrow

Is a man who bears ^cfalse witness against his neighbor.

¹⁹Like a bad tooth and ¹an unsteady foot

Is confidence in a ^afaithless man in time of trouble.

²⁰Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar on ¹soda,

Is he who sings songs to ²a troubled heart.

^21aIf ¹your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat;

And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;

²²For you will ¹heap burning coals on his head,

And ^athe Lord will reward you.

²³The north wind brings forth rain,

And a ^1abackbiting tongue, an angry countenance.

²⁴It is ^abetter to live in a corner of the roof

Than ¹in a house shared with a contentious woman.

²⁵Like cold water to a weary soul,

So is ^agood news from a distant land.

²⁶Like a ^atrampled spring and a ¹polluted well

Is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

²⁷It is not good to eat much honey,

Nor is it glory to ^asearch out ¹one’s own glory.

²⁸Like a ^acity that is broken into and without walls

Is a man ^bwho has no control over his spirit.

Chapter 26

Similitudes, Instructions

¹Like snow in summer and like ^arain in harvest,

So honor is not ^bfitting for a fool.

²Like a ^asparrow in its ¹flitting, like a swallow in its flying,

So a ^bcurse without cause does not ²alight.

³A ^awhip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

And a ^brod for the back of fools.

^4aDo not answer a fool according to his folly,

Or you will also be like him.

^5aAnswer a fool as his folly deserves,

That he not be ^bwise in his own eyes.

⁶He cuts off his own feet and drinks violence

Who sends a message by the hand of a fool.

⁷Like the legs which ¹are useless to the lame,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

⁸Like ¹one who binds a stone in a sling,

So is he who gives honor to a fool.

⁹Like a thorn which ¹falls into the hand of a drunkard,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

¹⁰¹Like an archer who wounds everyone,

So is he who hires a fool or who hires those who pass by.

¹¹Like ^aa dog that returns to its vomit

Is a fool who ^brepeats ¹his folly.

¹²Do you see a man ^awise in his own eyes?

^bThere is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³The ^asluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!

A lion is ¹in the open square!”

¹⁴As the door turns on its hinges,

So does the ^asluggard on his bed.

¹⁵The ^asluggard buries his hand in the dish;

He is weary of bringing it to his mouth again.

¹⁶The sluggard is ^awiser in his own eyes

Than seven men who can ¹give a discreet answer.

¹⁷Like one who takes a dog by the ears

Is he who passes by and ¹meddles with ^astrife not belonging to him.

¹⁸Like a madman who throws

^aFirebrands, arrows and death,

¹⁹So is the man who ^adeceives his neighbor,

And says, “^bWas I not joking?”

²⁰For lack of wood the fire goes out,

And where there is no ^awhisperer, ^bcontention quiets down.

²¹Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,

So is a ^acontentious man to kindle strife.

²²The ^awords of a whisperer are like dainty morsels,

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

²³Like an earthen ^avessel overlaid with silver ^bdross

Are burning lips and a wicked heart.

²⁴He who ^ahates disguises it with his lips,

But he lays up ^bdeceit in his ¹heart.

²⁵When ¹he ^aspeaks graciously, do not believe him,

For there are seven abominations in his heart.

²⁶Though his hatred ^acovers itself with guile,

His wickedness will be ^brevealed before the assembly.

²⁷He who ^adigs a pit will fall into it,

And he who rolls a stone, it will come back on him.

²⁸A lying tongue hates ¹those it crushes,

And a ^aflattering mouth works ruin.

Chapter 27

Warnings and Instructions

^1aDo not boast about tomorrow,

For you ^bdo not know what a day may bring forth.

²Let ^aanother praise you, and not your own mouth;

A stranger, and not your own lips.

³A stone is heavy and the sand weighty,

But the provocation of a fool is heavier than both of them.

⁴Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood,

But ^awho can stand before jealousy?

⁵Better is ^aopen rebuke

Than love that is concealed.

⁶Faithful are the ^awounds of a friend,

But ¹deceitful are the ^bkisses of an enemy.

⁷A sated ¹man ²loathes honey,

But to a famished man any bitter thing is sweet.

⁸Like a ^abird that wanders from her nest,

So is a man who ^bwanders from his ¹home.

^9aOil and perfume make the heart glad,

So a ¹man’s counsel is sweet to his friend.

¹⁰Do not forsake your own ^afriend or ^byour father’s friend,

And do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity;

Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother far away.

^11aBe wise, my son, and make my heart glad,

That I may ^breply to him who reproaches me.

¹²A prudent man sees evil and hides himself,

The ¹naive proceed and pay the penalty.

^13aTake his garment when he becomes surety for a stranger;

And for an ¹adulterous woman hold him in pledge.

^14aHe who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning,

It will be reckoned a curse to him.

¹⁵A ^aconstant dripping on a day of steady rain

And a contentious woman are alike;

¹⁶He who would ¹restrain her restrains the wind,

And ²grasps oil with his right hand.

¹⁷Iron sharpens iron,

So one man sharpens another.

¹⁸He who tends the ^afig tree will eat its fruit,

And he who ^bcares for his master will be honored.

¹⁹As in water face reflects face,

So the heart of man reflects man.

^201aSheol and ²Abaddon are ^bnever satisfied,

Nor are the ^ceyes of man ever satisfied.

²¹The ^acrucible is for silver and the furnace for gold,

And each ^bis tested by the praise accorded him.

²²Though you ^apound a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain,

Yet his foolishness will not depart from him.

^23aKnow well the ¹condition of your flocks,

And pay attention to your herds;

²⁴For riches are not forever,

Nor does a ^acrown endure to all generations.

²⁵When the grass disappears, the new growth is seen,

And the herbs of the mountains are ^agathered in,

²⁶The lambs will be for your clothing,

And the goats will bring the price of a field,

²⁷And there will be goats’ milk enough for your food,

For the food of your household,

And sustenance for your maidens.