17 Better a dry crust with peace and quiet

than a house full of feasting, with strife.r

2 A prudent servant will rule over a disgraceful son

and will share the inheritance as one of the family.

3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,s

but the Lord tests the heart.t

4 A wicked person listens to deceitful lips;

a liar pays attention to a destructive tongue.

5 Whoever mocks the pooru shows contempt for their Maker;v

whoever gloats over disasterw will not go unpunished.x

6 Children’s childreny are a crown to the aged,

and parents are the pride of their children.

7 Eloquent lips are unsuited to a godless fool—

how much worse lying lips to a ruler!z

8 A bribe is seen as a charm by the one who gives it;

they think success will come at every turn.a

9 Whoever would foster love covers over an offense,b

but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.c

10 A rebuke impresses a discerning person

more than a hundred lashes a fool.

11 Evildoers foster rebellion against God;

the messenger of death will be sent against them.

12 Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs

than a fool bent on folly.d

13 Evil will never leave the house

of one who pays back evile for good.f

14 Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;

so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.g

15 Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocenth—

the Lord detests them both.i

16 Why should fools have money in hand to buy wisdom,

when they are not able to understand it?j

17 A friend loves at all times,

and a brother is born for a time of adversity.k

18 One who has no sense shakes hands in pledge

and puts up security for a neighbor.l

19 Whoever loves a quarrel loves sin;

whoever builds a high gate invites destruction.

20 One whose heart is corrupt does not prosper;

one whose tongue is perverse falls into trouble.

21 To have a fool for a child brings grief;

there is no joy for the parent of a godless fool.m

22 A cheerful heart is good medicine,

but a crushedn spirit dries up the bones.o

23 The wicked accept bribesp in secret

to pervert the course of justice.q

24 A discerning person keeps wisdom in view,

but a fool’s eyesr wander to the ends of the earth.

25 A foolish son brings grief to his father

and bitterness to the mother who bore him.s

26 If imposing a fine on the innocent is not good,t

surely to flog honest officials is not right.

27 The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint,u

and whoever has understanding is even-tempered.v

28 Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent,

and discerning if they hold their tongues.w