1  ^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.

1  When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

observe carefully what⁴ 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;⁵

do not desire his delicacies,

7  for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.⁶

“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 being⁷ 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 ^ldrunkards⁸

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 observe⁹ my ways.

27  For a prostitute is ^ua deep pit;

an adulteress¹⁰ 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.¹¹

35  “They struck me,” you will say,¹² “but I was not hurt;

they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?

I must have another drink.”

1  ^qPraise the Lord, all nations!

Extol him, ^rall peoples!

2  For ^sgreat is his steadfast love toward us,

and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord!