Proverbs 20–21

Chapter 20

¹Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler;

and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

²The dread wrath of a king is like the growling of a lion;

he who provokes him to anger forfeits his life.

³It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife;

but every fool will be quarreling.

⁴The sluggard does not plow in the autumn;

he will seek at harvest and have nothing.

⁵The purpose in a man’s mind is like deep water,

but a man of understanding will draw it out.

⁶Many a man proclaims his own loyalty,

but a faithful man who can find?

⁷A righteous man who walks in his integrity—

blessed are his sons after him!

⁸A king who sits on the throne of judgment

winnows all evil with his eyes.

⁹Who can say, “I have made my heart clean;

I am pure from my sin”?

¹⁰Diverse weights and diverse measures

are both alike an abomination to the Lord.

¹¹Even a child makes himself known by his acts,

whether what he does is pure and right.

¹²The hearing ear and the seeing eye,

the Lord has made them both.

¹³Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty;

open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.

¹⁴“It is bad, it is bad,” says the buyer;

but when he goes away, then he boasts.

¹⁵There is gold, and abundance of costly stones;

but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

¹⁶Take a man’s garment when he has given surety for a stranger,

and hold him in pledge when he gives surety for foreigners.

¹⁷Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man,

but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel.

¹⁸Plans are established by counsel;

by wise guidance wage war.

¹⁹He who goes about gossiping reveals secrets;

therefore do not associate with one who speaks foolishly.

²⁰If one curses his father or his mother,

his lamp will be put out in utter darkness.

²¹An inheritance gotten hastily in the beginning

will in the end not be blessed.

²²Do not say, “I will repay evil”;

wait for the Lord, and he will help you.

²³Diverse weights are an abomination to the Lord,

and false scales are not good.

²⁴A man’s steps are ordered by the Lord;

how then can man understand his way?

²⁵It is a snare for a man to say rashly, “It is holy,”

and to reflect only after making his vows.

²⁶A wise king winnows the wicked,

and drives the wheel over them.

²⁷The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord,

searching all his innermost parts.

²⁸Loyalty and faithfulness preserve the king,

and his throne is upheld by righteousness.

²⁹The glory of young men is their strength,

but the beauty of old men is their gray hair.

³⁰Blows that wound cleanse away evil;

strokes make clean the innermost parts.

Chapter 21

¹The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;

he turns it wherever he will.

²Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,

but the Lord weighs the heart.

³To do righteousness and justice

is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

⁴Haughty eyes and a proud heart,

the lamp of the wicked, are sin.

⁵The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,

but every one who is hasty comes only to want.

⁶The getting of treasures by a lying tongue

is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.

⁷The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,

because they refuse to do what is just.

⁸The way of the guilty is crooked,

but the conduct of the pure is right.

⁹It is better to live in a corner of the housetop

than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

¹⁰The soul of the wicked desires evil;

his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.

¹¹When a scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise;

when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.

¹²The righteous observes the house of the wicked;

the wicked are cast down to ruin.

¹³He who closes his ear to the cry of the poor

will himself cry out and not be heard.

¹⁴A gift in secret averts anger;

and a bribe in the bosom, strong wrath.

¹⁵When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous,

but dismay to evildoers.

¹⁶A man who wanders from the way of understanding

will rest in the assembly of the dead.

¹⁷He who loves pleasure will be a poor man;

he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.

¹⁸The wicked is a ransom for the righteous,

and the faithless for the upright.

¹⁹It is better to live in a desert land

than with a contentious and fretful woman.

²⁰Precious treasure remains in a wise man’s dwelling,

but a foolish man devours it.

²¹He who pursues righteousness and kindness

will find life and honor.

²²A wise man scales the city of the mighty

and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.

²³He who keeps his mouth and his tongue

keeps himself out of trouble.

²⁴“Scoffer” is the name of the proud, haughty man

who acts with arrogant pride.

²⁵The desire of the sluggard kills him

for his hands refuse to labor.

²⁶All day long the wicked covets,

but the righteous gives and does not hold back.

²⁷The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;

how much more when he brings it with evil intent.

²⁸A false witness will perish,

but the word of a man who hears will endure.

²⁹A wicked man puts on a bold face,

but an upright man considers his ways.

³⁰No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel,

can avail against the Lord.

³¹The horse is made ready for the day of battle,

but the victory belongs to the Lord.