11 hdiscretion will iwatch over you,
understanding will guard you,
12 delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
to jwalk in the ways of darkness,
14 who krejoice in doing evil
and ldelight in the perverseness of evil,
15 men whose mpaths are crooked,
16 So pyou will be delivered from the forbidden1 woman,
from qthe adulteress2 with rher smooth words,
17 who forsakes sthe companion of her youth
and forgets tthe covenant of her God;
18 ufor her house sinks down to death,
and her paths to the departed;3
19 none who go to her come back,
nor do they regain the paths of life.
20 So you will walk in the way of the good
and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright vwill inhabit the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it,
22 but the wicked will be wcut off from the land,
and the treacherous will be xrooted out of it.
31 wDo not envy xa man of violence
and do not choose any of his ways,
32 for ythe devious person is an abomination to the Lord,
but the upright are zin his confidence.
12 vA worthless person, a wicked man,
goes about with wcrooked speech,
13 xwinks with his eyes, signals1 with his feet,
points with his finger,
14 with yperverted heart zdevises evil,
continually asowing discord;
15 therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;
6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
11 uThe mouth of the righteous is va fountain of life,
but the mouth of the wicked nconceals violence.
12 Hatred stirs up strife,
but wlove covers all offenses.
13 On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found,
18 The one who conceals hatred has lying lips,
and whoever utters slander is a fool.
13 Whoever rgoes about slandering reveals secrets,
but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered.
15 yThe way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
but a wise man listens to advice.
16 zThe vexation of a fool is known at once,
but the prudent ignores an insult.
17 aWhoever speaks1 the truth gives honest evidence,
but ba false witness utters deceit.
18 cThere is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts,
but the tongue of the wise brings dhealing.
16 qEvery prudent man acts with knowledge,
rbut a fool flaunts his folly.
27 yA worthless man plots evil,
and his speech1 is like za scorching fire.
28 aA dishonest man spreads strife,
and ba whisperer cseparates close friends.
29 A man of violence dentices his neighbor
and leads him in a way that is not good.
30 Whoever winks his eyes plans2 edishonest things;
he who fpurses his lips brings evil to pass.
4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips,
and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.
9 Whoever zcovers an offense seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter aseparates close friends.
11 An evil man seeks only rebellion,
and ba cruel messenger will be sent against him.
19 Whoever loves transgression loves strife;
he who lmakes his door high seeks destruction.
20 mA man of crooked heart does not discover good,
and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity.
24 sThe discerning sets his face toward wisdom,
but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
1 Whoever yisolates himself seeks his own desire;
he breaks out against all sound judgment.
2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only zin expressing his opinion.
14 “Bad, bad,” says the buyer,
but when he goes away, then he boasts.
29 A wicked man puts on a bold face,
10 cDrive out a scoffer, dand strife will go out,
and equarreling and abuse will cease.
8 Whoever ysows injustice will reap calamity,
and zthe rod of his fury will fail.
26 Be not one of those who ygive pledges,
who put up security for debts.
1 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 cDo not desire his delicacies,
for they are deceptive food.
6 gDo not eat the bread of a man who is hstingy;1
ido not desire his delicacies,
7 for he is like one who is inwardly calculating.2
“Eat and drink!” he says to you,
but his jheart is not with you.
8 You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten,
and waste your pleasant words.
9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,
for he will despise the good sense of your words.
6 Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool
cuts off his own feet and edrinks violence.
10 Like an archer who wounds everyone
is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.1
24 Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips
and harbors deceit in his heart;
25 vwhen he speaks graciously, believe him not,
for there are wseven abominations in his heart;
26 though his hatred be covered with deception,
his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
27 xWhoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
28 A lying tongue hates its victims,
and a flattering mouth works ruin.
6 Faithful are dthe wounds of a friend;
profuse are the kisses of an enemy.
5 iA man who flatters his neighbor
spreads ja net for his feet.
