1 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a stench;
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2 A wise man’s heart inclines him to the right,
but a fool’s heart to the left.
3 Even when the fool walks on the road, he lacks sense,
and he says to everyone that he is a fool.
4 If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your place,
for calmness1 will lay great offenses to rest.
5 eThere is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as it were an error proceeding from the ruler: 6 folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place. 7 I have seen fslaves on horses, and princes walking on the ground like slaves.
8 He who digs a pit will gfall into it,
and a serpent will bite him who breaks through a wall.
9 He who quarries stones is hurt by them,
and he who splits logs is endangered by them.
10 If the iron is blunt, and one does not sharpen the edge,
he must use more strength,
but wisdom helps one to succeed.2
11 If the serpent bites before it is charmed,
there is no advantage to the charmer.
12 The words of a wise man’s mouth win him favor,3
but the lips of a fool consume him.
13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness,
and the end of his talk is evil madness.
14 A fool hmultiplies words,
though ino man knows what is to be,
and jwho can tell him what will be after him?
15 The toil of a fool wearies him,
for he does not know the way to the city.
16 Woe to you, O land, kwhen your king is a child,
and your princes feast in the morning!
17 Happy are you, O land, when your king is the son of the nobility,
and your princes lfeast at the proper time,
for strength, and not for drunkenness!
18 mThrough sloth the roof sinks in,
and through indolence the house leaks.
19 Bread is made for laughter,
and nwine gladdens life,
and money answers everything.
20 Even in your thoughts, do not ocurse the king,
nor in your bedroom curse the rich,
for a bird of the air will carry your voice,
or some winged creature tell the matter.
My Soul Waits for the Lord
A Song of Ascents.
1 Out of the fdepths I cry to you, O Lord!
2 O Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be gattentive
to the voice of my pleas for mercy!
3 If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, hwho could stand?
4 But with you there is iforgiveness,
jthat you may be feared.
5 I kwait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and lin his word I hope;
6 mmy soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen for the morning,
more than watchmen for the morning.
7 nO Israel, hope in the Lord!
For with the Lord there is osteadfast love,
and with him is plentiful redemption.
8 And he will predeem Israel
from all his iniquities.
1 Since we have these promises, beloved, qlet us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body1 and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the rfear of God.
Paul’s Joy
2 sMake room in your hearts2 for us. tWe have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. 3 I do not say this to condemn you, for uI said before that you are vin our hearts, to die together and to live together. 4 I am acting with great wboldness toward you; I have great xpride in you; yI am filled with comfort. In zall our affliction, I am aoverflowing with joy.
5 For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had bno rest, but we were afflicted at every turn—fighting without and fear within. 6 But God, who ccomforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of dTitus, 7 and not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more. 8 For eeven if I made you grieve with fmy letter, I do not regret it—though I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. 9 As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.
10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. 11 For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. 12 So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God. 13 Therefore we are gcomforted.
And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. 14 For whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as heverything we said to you was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. 15 And his affection for you is even greater, as he remembers the iobedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. 16 I rejoice, because jI have complete confidence in you.
Encouragement to Give Generously
1 We want you to know, brothers,3 about the grace of God that has been given kamong the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their labundance of joy and mtheir extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave naccording to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor4 of taking part in the orelief of the saints— 5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. 6 Accordingly, pwe urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this qact of grace. 7 But ras you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you5—see that you excel in this act of grace also.
8 sI say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is tgenuine. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, uyet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might vbecome rich. 10 And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who wa year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. 11 So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. 12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness 14 your abundance at the present time should supply their xneed, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. 15 As it is written, y“Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”
Commendation of Titus
16 zBut thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same earnest care I have for you. 17 For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest he is going6 to you of his own accord. 18 With him we are sending7 athe brother who is famous among all the churches for his preaching of the gospel. 19 And not only that, but he has been bappointed by the churches to travel with us as we carry out this act of grace that is being ministered by us, for the glory of the Lord himself and to show our good will. 20 We take this course so that no one should blame us about this generous gift that is being administered by us, 21 for we caim at what is dhonorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man. 22 And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever because of his great econfidence in you. 23 As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker for your benefit. And as for our brothers, they are messengers8 of the churches, the glory of Christ. 24 So give proof before the churches of your love and of our fboasting about you to these men.
