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

he turns it wherever he will.

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

but the Lord weighs the heart.

3  ⁱTo do righteousness and justice

is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

4  Haughty eyes and a proud heart,

the lamp¹ of the wicked, are sin.

5  ^jThe plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,

but ^keveryone who is hasty comes only to poverty.

6  The getting of treasures ^lby a lying tongue

is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.²

7  ^mThe violence of the wicked will sweep them away,

because they refuse to do what is just.

8  The way of the guilty is ⁿcrooked,

but the conduct of the pure is upright.

9  ^oIt is better to live in a corner of the housetop

than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.

10  The soul of the wicked desires evil;

his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.

11  When a scoffer is punished, the ^psimple becomes wise;

when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.

12  The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked;

he throws the wicked down to ruin.

13  ^qWhoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor

will himself call out and not be answered.

14  ^rA gift in secret averts anger,

and a concealed bribe,³ strong wrath.

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

^sbut terror to evildoers.

16  One who wanders from the way of good sense

will rest in the assembly of the dead.

17  ^tWhoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;

he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.

18  The wicked is a ransom for the righteous,

and the traitor for the upright.

19  ^uIt is better to live in a desert land

than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman.

20  Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man’s dwelling,

but a foolish man devours it.

21  Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness

will find ^vlife, righteousness, and honor.

22  A wise man scales the city of the mighty

and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.

23  Whoever ^wkeeps his mouth and his tongue

keeps himself out of trouble.

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

who acts with arrogant pride.

25  ^xThe desire of the sluggard kills him,

for his hands refuse to labor.

26  All day long he craves and craves,

but the righteous ^ygives and does not hold back.

27  ^zThe sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;

how much more when he brings it with evil intent.

28  A ^afalse witness will perish,

but the word of a man who hears will endure.

29  A wicked man puts on a bold face,

but the upright ^bgives thought to⁴ his ways.

30  No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel

can avail against the Lord.

31  ^cThe horse is made ready for the day of battle,

^dbut the victory belongs to the Lord.

22  ^eA good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,

and favor is better than silver or gold.

2  ^fThe rich and the poor meet together;

the Lord is ^gthe Maker of them all.

3  ^hThe prudent sees danger and hides himself,

but the simple go on and suffer for it.

4  The reward for humility and fear of the Lord

is riches and honor and life.¹

5  Thorns and snares are in the way of the crooked;

whoever guards his soul will keep far from them.

6  Train up a child in the way he should go;

even when he is old he will not ⁱdepart from it.

7  The rich rules over the poor,

and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

8  ^jWhoever sows injustice will reap calamity,

and the rod of his fury will fail.

9  Whoever has a bountiful² eye will be blessed,

for ^khe shares his bread with the poor.

10  Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out,

and ^lquarreling and abuse will cease.

11  He who loves purity of heart,

and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend.

12  The eyes of the Lord keep watch over knowledge,

but he overthrows the words of the traitor.

13  ^mThe sluggard says, “There is a lion outside!

I shall be killed in the streets!”

14  The mouth of forbidden³ women is ⁿa deep pit;

^ohe with whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.

15  ^pFolly is bound up in the heart of a child,

but the rod of ^qdiscipline drives it far from him.

16  Whoever ^roppresses the poor to increase his own wealth,

or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.

17  ^sIncline your ear, and hear ^tthe words of the wise,

and apply your heart to my knowledge,

18  for it will be ^upleasant if you keep them within you,

if all of them are ready on your lips.

19  That your trust may be in the Lord,

I have made them known to you today, even to you.

20  Have I not written for you thirty sayings

of counsel and knowledge,

21  to make you know what is right and true,

that you may give a true answer to those who sent you?

22  ^vDo not rob the poor, because he is poor,

or ^wcrush the afflicted at the gate,

23  for the Lord will ^xplead their cause

and rob of life those who rob them.

24  Make no friendship with a man given to anger,

nor go with a wrathful man,

25  ^ylest you learn his ways

and entangle yourself in a snare.

26  Be not one of those who ^zgive pledges,

who put up security for debts.

27  If you have nothing with which to pay,

why should your bed be taken from under you?

28  ^aDo not move the ancient landmark

that your fathers have set.

29  Do you see a man skillful in his work?

He will stand before kings;

he will not stand before obscure men.

23  When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

observe carefully what¹ is before you,

2  and put a knife to your throat

if you are given to appetite.

3  Do not desire his delicacies,

for they are deceptive food.

4  ^bDo not toil to acquire wealth;

be discerning enough to desist.

5  When your eyes light on it, it is gone,

for ^csuddenly it sprouts wings,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

6  Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy;²

do not desire his delicacies,

7  for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.³

“Eat and drink!” he says to you,

but his heart is not with you.

8  You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,

and waste your pleasant words.

9  ^dDo not speak in the hearing of a fool,

for he will despise the good sense of your words.

10  ^eDo not move an ancient landmark

or enter the fields of the fatherless,

11  for ^ftheir Redeemer is strong;

he will ^gplead their cause against you.

12  Apply your heart to ^hinstruction

and your ear to words of knowledge.

13  ⁱDo not withhold discipline from a child;

if you strike him with a rod, he will not die.

14  If you strike him with the rod,

you will save his soul from Sheol.

15  My son, if your heart is wise,

my heart too will be glad.

16  My inmost being⁴ will exult

when your lips speak what is right.

17  Let not your heart ^jenvy sinners,

but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day.

18  ^kSurely there is a future,

and your hope will not be cut off.

19  Hear, my son, and be wise,

and direct your heart in the way.

20  Be not among ^ldrunkards⁵

or among ^mgluttonous eaters of meat,

21  for the drunkard and the glutton ⁿwill come to poverty,

and ^oslumber will clothe them with rags.

22  Listen to your ^pfather who gave you life,

and do not despise your mother ^qwhen she is old.

23  ^rBuy truth, and do not sell it;

buy wisdom, ^sinstruction, and understanding.

24  ^tThe father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;

he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.

25  Let your father and mother be glad;

let her who bore you rejoice.

26  My son, give me your heart,

and let your eyes observe⁶ my ways.

27  For a prostitute is ^ua deep pit;

an adulteress⁷ is a narrow well.

28  ^vShe lies in wait like a robber

and increases the traitors among mankind.

29  Who has woe? Who has sorrow?

Who has strife? Who has complaining?

Who has wounds without cause?

Who has redness of eyes?

30  Those who tarry long over ^wwine;

those who go to try mixed wine.

31  Do not look at wine when it is red,

when it sparkles in the cup

and goes down smoothly.

32  In the end it bites like a serpent

and stings like an adder.

33  Your eyes will see strange things,

and your heart utter ^xperverse things.

34  You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,

like one who lies on the top of a mast.⁸

35  “They struck me,” you will say,⁹ “but I was not hurt;

they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?

I must have another drink.”

24  Be not ^yenvious of evil men,

nor desire to be with them,

2  for their hearts devise violence,

and their lips talk of trouble.

3  By wisdom a house is built,

and by understanding it is established;

4  by knowledge the rooms are filled

with all precious and pleasant riches.

5  A wise man is full of strength,

and a man of knowledge enhances his might,

6  for ^zby wise guidance you can wage your war,

and ^ain abundance of counselors there is victory.

7  Wisdom is too high for a fool;

in the gate he does not open his mouth.

8  Whoever ^bplans to do evil

will be called a schemer.

9  The devising¹ of folly is sin,

and the scoffer is an abomination to mankind.

10  If you faint in the day of adversity,

your strength is small.

11  ^cRescue those who are being taken away to death;

hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.

12  If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,”

does not he who ^dweighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it,

and will he not repay man ^eaccording to his work?

13  My son, eat honey, for it is good,

and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.

14  Know that wisdom is such to your soul;

if you find it, ^fthere will be a future,

and your hope will not be cut off.

15  Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the righteous;

do no violence to his home;

16  for the righteous ^gfalls seven times and rises again,

but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.

17  ^hDo not rejoice when your enemy falls,

and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles,

18  lest the Lord see it and be displeased,

and turn away his anger from him.

19  ⁱFret not yourself because of evildoers,

and be not envious of the wicked,

20  for the evil man has no future;

the ^jlamp of the wicked will be put out.

21  My son, ^kfear the Lord and the king,

and do not join with those who do otherwise,

22  for disaster will arise suddenly from them,

and who knows the ruin that will come from them both?

^mPartiality in judging is not good.

24  Whoever ⁿsays to the wicked, “You are in the right,”

will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations,

25  but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight,

and a good blessing will come upon them.

26  Whoever gives an honest answer

kisses the lips.

27  ^oPrepare your work outside;

get everything ready for yourself in the field,

and after that build your house.

28  Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause,

and do not deceive with your lips.

29  ^pDo not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me;

I will pay the man back for what he has done.”

30  ^qI passed by the field of a sluggard,

by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,

31  and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;

the ground was covered with nettles,

and its stone wall was broken down.

32  Then I saw and considered it;

I looked and received instruction.

33  ^rA little sleep, a little slumber,

a little ^sfolding of the hands to rest,

34  and ^tpoverty will come upon you like a robber,

and want like an armed man.

2  It is the glory of God to conceal things,

but the glory of kings is to search things out.

3  As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth,

so the heart of kings is unsearchable.

4  Take away the ^vdross from the silver,

and the smith has material for a vessel;

5  take away the wicked from the presence of the king,

and ^whis throne will be established in righteousness.

6  ^xDo not put yourself forward in the king’s presence

or stand in the place of the great,

7  for it is better to be told, “Come up here,”

than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.

^yWhat your eyes have seen

8  do not hastily bring into court,¹

for² what will you do in the end,

when your neighbor puts you to shame?

9  ^zArgue your case with your neighbor himself,

and do not reveal another’s secret,

10  lest he who hears you bring shame upon you,

and your ill repute have no end.

11  ^aA word fitly spoken

is ^blike apples of gold in a setting of silver.

12  Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold

is a wise ^creprover to a listening ear.

13  Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest

is a faithful messenger to those who send him;

he refreshes the soul of his masters.

14  Like clouds and wind without rain

is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give.

15  With patience a ruler may be persuaded,

and ^da soft tongue will break a bone.

16  If you have found honey, eat only enough for you,

lest you have your fill of it and vomit it.

17  ^eLet your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house,

lest he have his fill of you and hate you.

18  A man who bears false witness against his neighbor

is like a war club, or a sword, or a sharp arrow.

19  Trusting in a treacherous man in time of trouble

is like a bad tooth or a foot that slips.

20  ^fWhoever ^gsings songs to a heavy heart

is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day,

and like vinegar on soda.

21  ^hIf your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat,

and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,

22  for you will heap burning coals on his head,

and the Lord will reward you.

23  The north wind brings forth rain,

and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

24  ⁱIt is better to live in a corner of the housetop

than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.

25  Like cold water to a thirsty soul,

so is ^jgood news from a far country.

26  Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain

is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

27  It is not good to eat much honey,

^knor is it glorious to seek one’s own glory.³

28  A man without self-control

is like a city broken into and left without walls.