Proverbs 22–23; Psalm 117; 1 Thessalonians 1

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Proverbs 22–23

pA good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,

and favor is better than silver or gold.

qThe rich and the poor meet together;

the Lord is rthe Maker of them all.

sThe prudent sees danger and hides himself,

but the simple go on and suffer for it.

The reward for humility and fear of the Lord

is triches and honor and life.1

uThorns and snares are in the way of the crooked;

whoever vguards his soul will keep far from them.

wTrain up a child in the way he should go;

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

xThe rich rules over the poor,

and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

Whoever ysows injustice will reap calamity,

and zthe rod of his fury will fail.

aWhoever has a bountiful2 eye will be blessed,

for he bshares his bread with the poor.

10  cDrive out a scoffer, dand strife will go out,

and equarreling and abuse will cease.

11  He who floves purity of heart,

and whose gspeech is gracious, hwill have the king as his friend.

12  The eyes of the Lord keep watch over knowledge,

but he ioverthrows the words of the traitor.

13  jThe sluggard says, There is a lion outside!

I shall be killed in the streets!

14  The mouth of kforbidden3 women is la deep pit;

mhe with whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.

15  Folly is bound up in the heart of a child,

but nthe rod of discipline drives it far from him.

16  Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth,

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

Words of the Wise

17  pIncline your ear, and hear qthe words of the wise,

rand apply your heart to my knowledge,

18  for it will be pleasant 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 sthirty sayings

of counsel and knowledge,

21  to tmake you know what is right and true,

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

22  uDo not rob the poor, because he is poor,

or vcrush the afflicted at wthe gate,

23  for xthe Lord will plead 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  lest you learn his ways

and entangle yourself in a snare.

26  Be not one of those who ygive pledges,

who put up security for debts.

27  If you have nothing with which to pay,

why should zyour bed be taken from under you?

28  Do not move the ancient alandmark

that your fathers have set.

29  Do you see a man skillful in his work?

He will bstand before kings;

he will not stand before obscure men.

When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

observe carefully what4 is before you,

and put a knife to your throat

if you are given to appetite.

cDo not desire his delicacies,

for they are deceptive food.

dDo not toil to acquire wealth;

ebe discerning enough to desist.

When your eyes light on it, it is gone,

ffor suddenly it sprouts wings,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

gDo not eat the bread of a man who is hstingy;5

ido not desire his delicacies,

for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.6

Eat and drink! he says to you,

but his jheart is not with you.

You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,

and waste your pleasant words.

Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,

for he will despise the good sense of your words.

10  kDo not move an ancient landmark

or enter the fields of the fatherless,

11  for their lRedeemer is strong;

he will mplead their cause against you.

12  Apply your heart to instruction

and your ear to words of knowledge.

13  Do not withhold ndiscipline from a child;

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

14  If you strike him with the rod,

you will psave his soul from Sheol.

15  qMy son, if your heart is wise,

my heart too will be glad.

16  My rinmost being7 will exult

when your lips speak swhat is right.

17  Let not your heart tenvy sinners,

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

18  Surely vthere is a future,

and your whope will not be cut off.

19  Hear, my son, and xbe wise,

and ydirect your heart in the way.

20  Be not among zdrunkards8

or among agluttonous eaters of meat,

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

and bslumber will clothe them with rags.

22  cListen to your father who gave you life,

dand do not despise your mother when she is old.

23  eBuy truth, and do not sell it;

buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.

24  fThe father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;

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

25  fLet your father and mother be glad;

let gher who bore you rejoice.

26  My son, give me your heart,

and let your eyes observe9 my ways.

27  For a prostitute is ha deep pit;

ian adulteress10 is a narrow jwell.

28  kShe lies in wait like a robber

and increases the traitors among mankind.

29  lWho has woe? Who has sorrow?

Who has strife? Who has complaining?

Who has mwounds without cause?

Who has nredness of eyes?

30  Those who otarry long over wine;

those who go to try pmixed 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 qbites like a serpent

and stings like an adder.

33  Your eyes will see strange things,

and your heart utter rperverse 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.11

35  They sstruck me, you will say,12 but I was not hurt;

they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?

I tmust have another drink.


Psalm 117

The Lord’s Faithfulness Endures Forever

cPraise the Lord, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!

For dgreat is his steadfast love toward us,

and ethe faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

bPraise the Lord!


1 Thessalonians 1

Greeting

Paul, aSilvanus, and Timothy,

To the church of the bThessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

cGrace to you and peace.

The Thessalonians’ Faith and Example

dWe give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 ementioning you in our prayers, remembering before four God and Father gyour work of faith and labor of hlove and isteadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, jbrothers2 loved by God, kthat he has chosen you, because lour gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and min the Holy Spirit and with full nconviction. You know owhat kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And pyou became imitators of us qand of the Lord, for ryou received the word in much affliction, swith the tjoy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord usounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth veverywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of wreception we had among you, and how xyou turned to God yfrom idols to serve the living and ztrue God, 10 and ato wait for his Son bfrom heaven, cwhom he raised from the dead, Jesus dwho delivers us from ethe wrath to come.