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  ^cDo not desire his delicacies,

for they are deceptive food.

4  ^dDo not toil to acquire wealth;

^ebe discerning enough to desist.

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

^ffor suddenly it sprouts wings,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

6  ^gDo not eat the bread of a man who is ^hstingy;²

ⁱdo not desire his delicacies,

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

“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.

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 being⁴ 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 ^zdrunkards⁵

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 observe⁶ my ways.

27  For a prostitute is ^ha deep pit;

ⁱan adulteress⁷ 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.⁸

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

they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?

I ^tmust have another drink.”

24  Be not ^uenvious of evil men,

nor desire to be ^vwith them,

2  for their hearts ^wdevise violence,

and their lips ^xtalk of trouble.

3  By ^ywisdom a house is built,

and by understanding it is established;

4  by knowledge the rooms are filled

with all ^zprecious and pleasant riches.

5  ^aA wise man is full of strength,

and a man of knowledge enhances his might,

6  for by ^bwise guidance you can wage your war,

and in ^cabundance of counselors there is victory.

7  Wisdom is ^dtoo high for a fool;

in ^ethe gate he does not open his mouth.

8  Whoever ^fplans to do evil

will be called a schemer.

9  ^gThe devising¹ of folly is sin,

and ^hthe scoffer is an abomination to mankind.

10  If you ⁱfaint in the day of adversity,

your strength is small.

11  ^jRescue 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,”

^kdoes not he who ^lweighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who ^mkeeps watch over your soul know it,

and will he not repay man ⁿaccording to his work?

13  My son, ^oeat honey, for it is good,

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

14  Know that wisdom is such to your soul;

if you find it, there will be ^qa future,

and your hope will not be cut off.

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

do no violence to his home;

16  ^sfor the righteous falls ^tseven times and rises again,

but ^uthe wicked stumble in times of calamity.

17  ^vDo 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  ^wFret not yourself because of evildoers,

and be not ^xenvious of the wicked,

20  for the evil man has no ^qfuture;

^ythe lamp of the wicked will be put out.

21  My son, ^zfear 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?

^bPartiality in judging is not good.

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

^dwill 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  ^ePrepare your work outside;

get everything ready for yourself in the field,

and after that build your house.

28  ^fBe not a witness against your neighbor without cause,

and do not deceive with your lips.

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

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

30  ^hI passed by the field of a sluggard,

by the vineyard of a man ⁱlacking sense,

31  and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;

the ground was covered with nettles,

and its stone ^jwall was broken down.

32  Then I saw and ^kconsidered it;

I looked and received instruction.

33  ^lA little sleep, a little slumber,

a little folding of the hands to rest,

34  and poverty will come upon you like a robber,

and want like an armed man.

2  It is the glory of God to ⁿconceal things,

but the glory of kings is to ^osearch things out.

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

so the heart of kings is ^punsearchable.

4  Take away ^qthe dross from the silver,

and ^rthe smith has material for a vessel;

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

and his ^tthrone will be established in righteousness.

6  Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence

or stand in the place of the great,

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

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

What your eyes have seen

8  ^wdo not hastily bring into court,¹

for² what will you do in the end,

when your neighbor puts you to shame?

9  ^xArgue 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  ^yA word fitly spoken

is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.

12  Like ^za gold ring or an ornament of gold

is a wise reprover to ^aa listening ear.

13  Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest

is ^ba faithful messenger to those who send him;

he refreshes the soul of his masters.

14  Like ^cclouds and wind without rain

is a man who ^dboasts of a gift he does not give.

15  With ^epatience a ruler may be persuaded,

and a soft tongue will break a bone.

16  If you have ^ffound honey, eat ^gonly enough for you,

lest you have your fill of it and vomit it.

17  Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house,

lest he have his fill of you and hate you.

18  A man who ^hbears false witness against his neighbor

is like a war club, or ⁱa 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  Whoever ^jsings songs to a heavy heart

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

and like vinegar on soda.

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

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

22  for you will heap ^lburning coals on his head,

and the Lord will reward you.

23  The north wind brings forth rain,

and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

24  ^mIt is better to live in a corner of the housetop

than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.

25  Like cold water to ⁿa thirsty soul,

so is ^ogood news from a far country.

26  Like ^pa muddied spring or a polluted fountain

is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

27  It is ^qnot good to eat much honey,

nor is it glorious to ^rseek one’s own glory.³

28  A man ^swithout self-control

is like ^ta city broken into and left without walls.

26  Like snow in summer or ^urain in harvest,

so ^vhonor is ^wnot fitting for a fool.

2  Like ^xa sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,

^ya curse that is causeless does not alight.

3  ^zA whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

and ^aa rod for the back of fools.

4  ^bAnswer not a fool according to his folly,

lest you be like him yourself.

5  ^cAnswer a fool according to his folly,

lest he be ^dwise in his own eyes.

6  Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool

cuts off his own feet and ^edrinks violence.

7  Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless,

is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

8  Like one who binds the stone in the sling

is ^fone who gives honor to a fool.

9  Like ^ga thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard

is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

10  Like an archer who wounds everyone

is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.¹

11  Like ^ha dog that returns to his vomit

is ⁱa fool who repeats his folly.

12  Do you see a man who is ^jwise in his own eyes?

^kThere is more hope for a fool than for him.

13  ^lThe sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!

There is a lion in the streets!”

14  As a door turns on its hinges,

so does a sluggard on his bed.

15  ^mThe sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.

16  The sluggard is ^jwiser in his own eyes

ⁿthan seven men who can answer sensibly.

17  Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own

is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.

18  Like a madman who throws ^ofirebrands, arrows, and death

19  is the man who deceives his neighbor

and says, “I am only joking!”

20  For lack of wood the fire goes out,

and where there is no ^pwhisperer, ^qquarreling ceases.

21  As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,

so is ^ra quarrelsome man for kindling strife.

22  ^sThe words of ^pa whisperer are like delicious morsels;

they go down into the inner parts of the body.

23  ^tLike the ^uglaze² covering an earthen vessel

are fervent lips with an evil heart.

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.

27  Do not boast about tomorrow,

^yfor you do not know what a day may bring.

2  Let ^zanother praise you, and not your own mouth;

a stranger, and not your own lips.

3  A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,

but ^aa fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

4  Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,

but who can stand before ^bjealousy?

5  ^cBetter is open rebuke

than hidden love.

6  Faithful are ^dthe wounds of a friend;

profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

7  One who is full loathes ^ehoney,

but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.

8  Like ^fa bird that strays from its nest

is a man who strays from his home.

9  ^gOil and perfume make the heart glad,

and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.¹

10  Do not forsake your friend and ^hyour father’s friend,

and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity.

ⁱBetter is a neighbor who is near

than a brother who is far away.

11  ^jBe wise, ^kmy son, and ^lmake my heart glad,

that I may ^manswer him who reproaches me.

12  ⁿThe prudent sees danger and hides himself,

but ^othe simple go on and suffer for it.

13  ^pTake a man’s garment when he has put up security for a stranger,

and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.²

14  Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,

rising early in the morning,

will be counted as cursing.

15  ^qA continual dripping on a rainy day

and a quarrelsome wife are alike;

16  to restrain her is to restrain the wind

or to grasp³ oil in one’s right hand.

17  Iron sharpens iron,

and one man sharpens another.⁴

18  ^rWhoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,

and he who ^sguards his master will be honored.

19  As in water face reflects face,

so the heart of man reflects the man.

20  ^tSheol and Abaddon are ^unever satisfied,

and ^vnever satisfied are the eyes of man.

21  ^wThe crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,

and a man is tested by his praise.

22  ^xCrush a fool in a mortar with a pestle

along with crushed grain,

yet his folly will not depart from him.

23  ^yKnow well the condition of your flocks,

and ^ygive attention to your herds,

24  for ^zriches do not last forever;

and does a crown endure to all generations?

25  ^aWhen the grass is gone and the new growth appears

and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered,

26  ^bthe lambs will provide your clothing,

and the goats the price of a field.

27  ^bThere will be enough goats’ milk for your food,

for the food of your household

and maintenance for your girls.