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Proverbs 14:1–9

14 The wise woman builds her house,

But the foolish pulls it down with her hands.

2 He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord,

aBut he who is perverse in his ways despises Him.

3 In the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride,

bBut the lips of the wise will preserve them.

4 Where no oxen are, the 1trough is clean;

But much increase comes by the strength of an ox.

5 A cfaithful witness does not lie,

But a false witness will utter dlies.

6 A scoffer seeks wisdom and does not find it,

But eknowledge is easy to him who understands.

7 Go from the presence of a foolish man,

When you do not perceive in him the lips of fknowledge.

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

But the folly of fools is deceit.

9 gFools mock at 2sin,

But among the upright there is favor.

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Proverbs 14:1–9 — The New International Version (NIV)

The wise woman builds her house,

but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.

Whoever fears the Lord walks uprightly,

but those who despise him are devious in their ways.

A fool’s mouth lashes out with pride,

but the lips of the wise protect them.

Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty,

but from the strength of an ox come abundant harvests.

An honest witness does not deceive,

but a false witness pours out lies.

The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none,

but knowledge comes easily to the discerning.

Stay away from a fool,

for you will not find knowledge on their lips.

The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways,

but the folly of fools is deception.

Fools mock at making amends for sin,

but goodwill is found among the upright.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — English Standard Version (ESV)

The wisest of women builds her house,

but folly with her own hands tears it down.

Whoever walks in uprightness fears the Lord,

but he who is devious in his ways despises him.

By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back,

but the lips of the wise will preserve them.

Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean,

but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

A faithful witness does not lie,

but a false witness breathes out lies.

A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,

but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.

Leave the presence of a fool,

for there you do not meet words of knowledge.

The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way,

but the folly of fools is deceiving.

Fools mock at the guilt offering,

but the upright enjoy acceptance.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — King James Version (KJV 1900)

Every wise woman buildeth her house:

But the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.

He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the Lord:

But he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him.

In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride:

But the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

Where no oxen are, the crib is clean:

But much increase is by the strength of the ox.

A faithful witness will not lie:

But a false witness will utter lies.

A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not:

But knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.

Go from the presence of a foolish man,

When thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.

The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way:

But the folly of fools is deceit.

Fools make a mock at sin:

But among the righteous there is favour.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — New Living Translation (NLT)

A wise woman builds her home,

but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands.

Those who follow the right path fear the Lord;

those who take the wrong path despise him.

A fool’s proud talk becomes a rod that beats him,

but the words of the wise keep them safe.

Without oxen a stable stays clean,

but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.

An honest witness does not lie;

a false witness breathes lies.

A mocker seeks wisdom and never finds it,

but knowledge comes easily to those with understanding.

Stay away from fools,

for you won’t find knowledge on their lips.

The prudent understand where they are going,

but fools deceive themselves.

Fools make fun of guilt,

but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — New Century Version (NCV)

A wise woman strengthens her family,

but a foolish woman destroys hers by what she does.

People who live good lives respect the Lord,

but those who live evil lives don’t.

Fools will be punished for their proud words,

but the words of the wise will protect them.

When there are no oxen, no food is in the barn.

But with a strong ox, much grain can be grown.

A truthful witness does not lie,

but a false witness tells nothing but lies.

Those who make fun of wisdom look for it and do not find it,

but knowledge comes easily to those with understanding.

Stay away from fools,

because they can’t teach you anything.

A wise person will understand what to do,

but a foolish person is dishonest.

Fools don’t care if they sin,

but honest people work at being right.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — American Standard Version (ASV)

Every wise woman buildeth her house;

But the foolish plucketh it down with her own hands.

He that walketh in his uprightness feareth Jehovah;

But he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him.

In the mouth of the foolish is a rod for his pride;

But the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

Where no oxen are, the crib is clean;

But much increase is by the strength of the ox.

A faithful witness will not lie;

But a false witness uttereth lies.

A scoffer seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not;

But knowledge is easy unto him that hath understanding.

Go into the presence of a foolish man,

And thou shalt not perceive in him the lips of knowledge.

The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way;

But the folly of fools is deceit.

A trespass-offering mocketh fools;

But among the upright there is good will.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)

The wisdom of women buildeth their house; but folly plucketh it down with her hands.

He that walketh in his uprightness feareth Jehovah; but he that is perverted in his ways despiseth him.

In the fool’s mouth is a rod of pride; but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

Where no oxen are, the crib is clean; but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

A faithful witness will not lie; but a false witness uttereth lies.

A scorner seeketh wisdom, and there is none for him; but knowledge is easy unto the intelligent.

Go from the presence of a foolish man, in whom thou perceivest not the lips of knowledge.

The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way; but the folly of the foolish is deceit.

Fools make a mock at trespass; but for the upright there is favour.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

The wisest of women builds up her home, 

but a stupid one tears it down with her own hands. 

Whoever lives right fears the Lord

but a person who is devious in his ways despises him. 

Because of a stubborn fool’s words a whip is lifted against him, 

but wise people are protected by their speech. 

Where there are no cattle, the feeding trough is empty, 

but the strength of an ox produces plentiful harvests. 

A trustworthy witness does not lie, 

but a dishonest witness breathes lies. 

A mocker searches for wisdom without finding it, 

but knowledge comes easily to a person who has understanding. 

Stay away from a fool, 

because you will not receive knowledge from his lips. 

The wisdom of a sensible person guides his way of life, 

but the stupidity of fools misleads them. 

Stubborn fools make fun of guilt, 

but there is forgiveness among decent people. 

Proverbs 14:1–9 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

Every wise woman builds her house,

but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.

Whoever lives with integrity fears the Lord,

but the one who is devious in his ways despises Him.

The proud speech of a fool brings a rod of discipline,

but the lips of the wise protect them.

Where there are no oxen, the feeding trough is empty,

but an abundant harvest comes

through the strength of an ox.

An honest witness does not deceive,

but a dishonest witness utters lies.

A mocker seeks wisdom and doesn’t find it,

but knowledge comes easily to the perceptive.

Stay away from a foolish man;

you will gain no knowledge from his speech.

The sensible man’s wisdom is to consider his way,

but the stupidity of fools deceives them.

Fools mock at making restitution,

but there is goodwill among the upright.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

The wise woman builds her house,

but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.

Those who walk uprightly fear the Lord,

but one who is devious in conduct despises him.

The talk of fools is a rod for their backs,

but the lips of the wise preserve them.

Where there are no oxen, there is no grain;

abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

A faithful witness does not lie,

but a false witness breathes out lies.

A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,

but knowledge is easy for one who understands.

Leave the presence of a fool,

for there you do not find words of knowledge.

It is the wisdom of the clever to understand where they go,

but the folly of fools misleads.

Fools mock at the guilt offering,

but the upright enjoy God’s favor.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)

The wisest of women builds her house,

but the foolish tears it down with her hands.

He who walks in uprightness fears Yahweh,

but he who is devious in his ways displeases him.

In the mouth of a fool is the rod of pride,

but the lips of the wise preserve them.

When there are no oxen the manger is empty,

but an abundance of crops comes by the strength of an ox.

A faithful witness does not lie,

but he who breathes out falsehood is a witness of deceit.

A scoffer seeks wisdom, but there is none,

but knowledge comes easily to him who understands.

Leave the presence of a foolish man,

for you will not come to know words of knowledge.

The wisdom of the clever is understanding his ways,

but the folly of fools is deceit.

Fools mock the guilt offering,

but among the upright, it is favorable.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)

A wise woman builds her house.

But a foolish woman tears hers down with her own hands.

An honest person has respect for the Lord.

But a person whose paths are crooked hates him.

Foolish people are punished for what they say.

But the things wise people say keep them safe.

Where there are no oxen, the feed box is empty.

But a strong ox brings in a great harvest.

An honest witness does not lie.

But a dishonest witness pours out lies.

Those who make fun of others look for wisdom and don’t find it.

But knowledge comes easily to those who understand what is right.

Stay away from a foolish man.

You won’t find knowledge in what he says.

People are wise and understanding when they think about the way they live.

But people are foolish when their foolish ways trick them.

Foolish people laugh at making things right when they sin.

But honest people try to do the right thing.

Proverbs 14:1–9 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)

The wise woman builds her house,

But the foolish tears it down with her own hands.

He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord,

But he who is devious in his ways despises Him.

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

But the lips of the wise will protect them.

Where no oxen are, the manger is clean,

But much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.

A trustworthy witness will not lie,

But a false witness utters lies.

A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none,

But knowledge is easy to one who has understanding.

Leave the presence of a fool,

Or you will not discern words of knowledge.

The wisdom of the sensible is to understand his way,

But the foolishness of fools is deceit.

Fools mock at sin,

But among the upright there is good will.


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