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Proverbs 22:21-23
New Catholic Bible
Proverbs 22:21-23
New Catholic Bible
21 to show you what is right and true
so that you can offer sound answers to the one who sent you?
Practical Counsels[a]
22 Do not rob the poor because they are helpless
or oppress the needy at the gate.
23 For the Lord will take up their cause[b]
and rob of life those who despoiled them.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 22:22 These are practical counsels inspired by respect for the poor, by prudence, and by the sense of justice. These virtues are essential for a responsible society. The ending remains obscure: one notes that the capable person quickly reaches the level of success, a simple fact about which no judgment is made.
- Proverbs 22:23 Will take up their cause: i.e., the cause of the poor (see Prov 23:11; Pss 12:6; 140:13; Isa 3:14-16; Mal 3:5).
