Proverbs 15:1–9
A gentle answerr turns away wrath,s
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge,t
but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.u
3 The eyesv of the Lord are everywhere,w
keeping watch on the wicked and the good.x
4 The soothing tonguey is a tree of life,z
but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.a
5 A fool spurns a parent’s discipline,
but whoever heeds correction shows prudence.b
6 The house of the righteous contains great treasure,c
but the income of the wicked brings ruin.d
7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge,e
but the hearts of fools are not upright.
8 The Lord detests the sacrificef of the wicked,g
but the prayer of the upright pleases him.h
9 The Lord detests the way of the wicked,i
but he loves those who pursue righteousness.j
Proverbs 15:1–9 — English Standard Version (ESV)
1 A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise commends knowledge,
but the mouths of fools pour out folly.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.
4 A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
5 A fool despises his father’s instruction,
but whoever heeds reproof is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.
7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge;
not so the hearts of fools.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but the prayer of the upright is acceptable to him.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but he loves him who pursues righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — King James Version (KJV 1900)
1 A soft answer turneth away wrath:
But grievous words stir up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright:
But the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
Beholding the evil and the good.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life:
But perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
5 A fool despiseth his father’s instruction:
But he that regardeth reproof is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous is much treasure:
But in the revenues of the wicked is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge:
But the heart of the foolish doeth not so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord:
But the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the Lord:
But he loveth him that followeth after righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — New Living Translation (NLT)
1 A gentle answer deflects anger,
but harsh words make tempers flare.
2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge appealing,
but the mouth of a fool belches out foolishness.
3 The Lord is watching everywhere,
keeping his eye on both the evil and the good.
4 Gentle words are a tree of life;
a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.
5 Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline;
whoever learns from correction is wise.
6 There is treasure in the house of the godly,
but the earnings of the wicked bring trouble.
7 The lips of the wise give good advice;
the heart of a fool has none to give.
8 The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked,
but he delights in the prayers of the upright.
9 The Lord detests the way of the wicked,
but he loves those who pursue godliness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — The New King James Version (NKJV)
1 A soft answer turns away wrath,
But a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly,
But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
Keeping watch on the evil and the good.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life,
But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
5 A fool despises his father’s instruction,
But he who receives correction is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
But in the revenue of the wicked is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge,
But the heart of the fool does not do so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
But the prayer of the upright is His delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
But He loves him who follows righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — New Century Version (NCV)
1 A gentle answer will calm a person’s anger,
but an unkind answer will cause more anger.
2 Wise people use knowledge when they speak,
but fools pour out foolishness.
3 The Lord’s eyes see everything;
he watches both evil and good people.
4 As a tree gives fruit, healing words give life,
but dishonest words crush the spirit.
5 Fools reject their parents’ correction,
but anyone who accepts correction is wise.
6 Much wealth is in the houses of good people,
but evil people get nothing but trouble.
7 Wise people use their words to spread knowledge,
but there is no knowledge in the thoughts of fools.
8 The Lord hates the sacrifice that the wicked offer,
but he likes the prayers of honest people.
9 The Lord hates what evil people do,
but he loves those who do what is right.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — American Standard Version (ASV)
1 A soft answer turneth away wrath;
But a grievous word stirreth up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise uttereth knowledge aright;
But the mouth of fools poureth out folly.
3 The eyes of Jehovah are in every place,
Keeping watch upon the evil and the good.
4 A gentle tongue is a tree of life;
But perverseness therein is a breaking of the spirit.
5 A fool despiseth his father’s correction;
But he that regardeth reproof getteth prudence.
6 In the house of the righteous is much treasure;
But in the revenues of the wicked is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge;
But the heart of the foolish doeth not so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to Jehovah;
But the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to Jehovah;
But he loveth him that followeth after righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)
1 A soft answer turneth away fury; but a grievous word stirreth up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright; but the mouth of the foolish poureth out folly.
3 The eyes of Jehovah are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.
4 Gentleness of tongue is a tree of life; but crookedness therein is a breaking of the spirit.
5 A fool despiseth his father’s instruction; but he that regardeth reproof becometh prudent.
6 In the house of a righteous man is much treasure; but in the revenue of a wicked man is disturbance.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge, but not so the heart of the foolish.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to Jehovah; but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 The way of a wicked man is an abomination to Jehovah; but him that pursueth righteousness he loveth.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
1 A gentle answer turns away rage,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongues of wise people give good expression to knowledge,
but the mouths of fools pour out a flood of stupidity.
3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere.
They watch evil people and good people.
4 A soothing tongue is a tree of life,
but a deceitful tongue breaks the spirit.
5 A stubborn fool despises his father’s discipline,
but whoever appreciates a warning shows good sense.
6 Great treasure is in the house of a righteous person,
but trouble comes along with the income of a wicked person.
7 The lips of wise people spread knowledge,
but a foolish attitude does not.
8 A sacrifice brought by wicked people is disgusting to the Lord,
but the prayers of decent people please him.
9 The way of wicked people is disgusting to the Lord,
but he loves those who pursue righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
1 A gentle answer turns away anger,
but a harsh word stirs up wrath.
2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge attractive,
but the mouth of fools blurts out foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere,
observing the wicked and the good.
4 The tongue that heals is a tree of life,
but a devious tongue breaks the spirit.
5 A fool despises his father’s discipline,
but a person who accepts correction is sensible.
6 The house of the righteous has great wealth,
but trouble accompanies the income of the wicked.
7 The lips of the wise broadcast knowledge,
but not so the heart of fools.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable to the Lord,
but the prayer of the upright is His delight.
9 The Lord detests the way of the wicked,
but He loves the one who pursues righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
1 A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge,
but the mouths of fools pour out folly.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.
4 A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
5 A fool despises a parent’s instruction,
but the one who heeds admonition is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.
7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge;
not so the minds of fools.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but he loves the one who pursues righteousness.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)
1 A soft answer will turn away wrath,
but a word of trouble will stir anger.
2 The tongue of the wise will dispense knowledge,
but the mouth of fools will pour out folly.
3 In every place, the eyes of Yahweh
keep watch over the evil and the good.
4 Gentleness of tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it causes a break in spirit.
5 A fool will despise the instruction of his father,
but he who guards reproof is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
but the income of the wicked brings trouble.
7 The lips of the wise will spread knowledge,
but the heart of fools, not so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination of Yahweh,
but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 An abomination of Yahweh is the way of the wicked,
but he who pursues righteousness he will love.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)
1 A gentle answer turns anger away.
But mean words stir up anger.
2 The tongues of wise people use knowledge well.
But the mouths of foolish people pour out foolish words.
3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere.
They watch those who are evil and those who are good.
4 A tongue that brings healing is like a tree of life.
But a tongue that tells lies produces a broken spirit.
5 A foolish person turns his back on how his father has trained him.
But anyone who accepts being corrected shows understanding.
6 The houses of those who do what is right hold great wealth.
But those who do what is wrong earn only trouble.
7 The lips of wise people spread knowledge.
But that’s not true of the hearts of foolish people.
8 The Lord hates the sacrifice of sinful people.
But the prayers of honest people please him.
9 The Lord hates how sinners live.
But he loves those who run after what is right.
Proverbs 15:1–9 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)
1 A gentle answer turns away wrath,
But a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable,
But the mouth of fools spouts folly.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
Watching the evil and the good.
4 A soothing tongue is a tree of life,
But perversion in it crushes the spirit.
5 A fool rejects his father’s discipline,
But he who regards reproof is sensible.
6 Great wealth is in the house of the righteous,
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 sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
But the prayer of the upright is His delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
But He loves one who pursues righteousness.