Proverbs 16–18

16People may make plans in their minds,

but only the Lord can make them come true.

²You may believe you are doing right,

but the Lord will judge your reasons.

³Depend on the Lord in whatever you do,

and your plans will succeed.

⁴The Lord makes everything go as he pleases.

He has even prepared a day of disaster for evil people.

⁵The Lord hates those who are proud.

They will surely be punished.

⁶Love and truth bring forgiveness of sin.

By respecting the Lord you will avoid evil.

⁷When people live so that they please the Lord,

even their enemies will make peace with them.

⁸It is better to be poor and right

than to be wealthy and dishonest.

⁹People may make plans in their minds,

but the Lord decides what they will do.

¹⁰The words of a king are like a message from God,

so his decisions should be fair.

¹¹The Lord wants honest balances and scales;

all the weights are his work.

¹²Kings hate those who do wrong,

because governments only continue if they are fair.

¹³Kings like honest people;

they value someone who speaks the truth.

¹⁴An angry king can put someone to death,

so a wise person will try to make him happy.

¹⁵A smiling king can give people life;

his kindness is like a spring shower.

¹⁶It is better to get wisdom than gold,

and to choose understanding rather than silver!

¹⁷Good people stay away from evil.

By watching what they do, they protect their lives.

¹⁸Pride leads to destruction;

a proud attitude brings ruin.

¹⁹It is better to be humble and be with those who suffer

than to share stolen property with the proud.

²⁰Whoever listens to what is taught will succeed,

and whoever trusts the Lord will be happy.

²¹The wise are known for their understanding.

Their pleasant words make them better teachers.

²²Understanding is like a fountain which gives life to those who use it,

but foolishness brings punishment to fools.

²³Wise people’s minds tell them what to say,

and that helps them be better teachers.

²⁴Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,

making people happy and healthy.

²⁵Some people think they are doing right,

but in the end it leads to death.

²⁶The workers’ hunger helps them,

because their desire to eat makes them work.

²⁷Useless people make evil plans,

and their words are like a burning fire.

²⁸A useless person causes trouble,

and a gossip ruins friendships.

²⁹Cruel people trick their neighbors

and lead them to do wrong.

³⁰Someone who winks is planning evil,

and the one who grins is planning something wrong.

³¹Gray hair is like a crown of honor;

it is earned by living a good life.

³²Patience is better than strength.

Controlling your temper is better than capturing a city.

³³People throw lots to make a decision,

but the answer comes from the Lord.

17It is better to eat a dry crust of bread in peace

than to have a feast where there is quarreling.

²A wise servant will rule over the master’s disgraceful child

and will even inherit a share of what the master leaves his children.

³A hot furnace tests silver and gold,

but the Lord tests hearts.

⁴Evil people listen to evil words.

Liars pay attention to cruel words.

⁵Whoever mistreats the poor insults their Maker;

whoever enjoys someone’s trouble will be punished.

⁶Old people are proud of their grandchildren,

and children are proud of their parents.

⁷Fools should not be proud,

and rulers should not be liars.

⁸Some people think they can pay others to do anything they ask.

They think it will work every time.

⁹Whoever forgives someone’s sin makes a friend,

but gossiping about the sin breaks up friendships.

¹⁰A wise person will learn more from a warning

than a fool will learn from a hundred lashings.

¹¹Disobedient people look only for trouble,

so a cruel messenger will be sent against them.

¹²It is better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs

than to meet a fool doing foolish things.

¹³Whoever gives evil in return for good

will always have trouble at home.

¹⁴Starting a quarrel is like a leak in a dam,

so stop it before a fight breaks out.

¹⁵The Lord hates both of these things:

freeing the guilty and punishing the innocent.

¹⁶It won’t do a fool any good to try to buy wisdom,

because he doesn’t have the ability to be wise.

¹⁷A friend loves you all the time,

and a brother helps in time of trouble.

¹⁸It is not wise to promise

to pay what your neighbor owes.

¹⁹Whoever loves to argue loves to sin.

Whoever brags a lot is asking for trouble.

²⁰A person with an evil heart will find no success,

and the person whose words are evil will get into trouble.

²¹It is sad to have a foolish child;

there is no joy in being the parent of a fool.

²²A happy heart is like good medicine,

but a broken spirit drains your strength.

²³When the wicked accept money to do wrong

there can be no justice.

²⁴The person with understanding is always looking for wisdom,

but the mind of a fool wanders everywhere.

²⁵Foolish children make their father sad

and cause their mother great sorrow.

²⁶It is not good to punish the innocent

or to beat leaders for being honest.

²⁷The wise say very little,

and those with understanding stay calm.

²⁸Even fools seem to be wise if they keep quiet;

if they don’t speak, they appear to understand.

18Unfriendly people are selfish

and hate all good sense.

²Fools do not want to understand anything.

They only want to tell others what they think.

³Do something evil, and people won’t like you.

Do something shameful, and they will make fun of you.

⁴Spoken words can be like deep water,

but wisdom is like a flowing stream.

⁵It is not good to honor the wicked

or to be unfair to the innocent.

⁶The words of fools start quarrels.

They make people want to beat them.

⁷The words of fools will ruin them;

their own words will trap them.

⁸The words of a gossip are like tasty bits of food.

People like to gobble them up.

⁹A person who doesn’t work hard

is just like someone who destroys things.

¹⁰The Lord is like a strong tower;

those who do right can run to him for safety.

¹¹Rich people trust their wealth to protect them.

They think it is like the high walls of a city.

¹²Proud people will be ruined,

but the humble will be honored.

¹³Anyone who answers without listening

is foolish and confused.

¹⁴The will to live can get you through sickness,

but no one can live with a broken spirit.

¹⁵The mind of a person with understanding gets knowledge;

the wise person listens to learn more.

¹⁶Taking gifts to important people

will help get you in to see them.

¹⁷The person who tells one side of a story seems right,

until someone else comes and asks questions.

¹⁸Throwing lots can settle arguments

and keep the two sides from fighting.

¹⁹A brother who has been insulted is harder to win back than a walled city,

and arguments separate people like the barred gates of a palace.

²⁰People will be rewarded for what they say;

they will be rewarded by how they speak.

²¹What you say can mean life or death.

Those who speak with care will be rewarded.

²²When a man finds a wife, he finds something good.

It shows that the Lord is pleased with him.

²³The poor beg for mercy,

but the rich give rude answers.

²⁴Some friends may ruin you,

but a real friend will be more loyal than a brother.