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Proverbs 11
Easy-to-Read Version
Proverbs 11
Easy-to-Read Version
11 The Lord hates false scales, but he loves accurate weights.
2 Proud and boastful people will be shamed, but wisdom stays with those who are modest and humble.
3 Good people are guided by their honesty, but crooks who lie and cheat will ruin themselves.
4 Money is worthless when you face God’s punishment, but living right will save you from death.
5 Doing right makes life better for those who are good, but the wicked are destroyed by their own wicked ways.
6 Doing right sets honest people free, but people who can’t be trusted are trapped by their greed.
7 When the wicked die, all their hopes are lost; everything they thought they could do comes to nothing.
8 Good people escape from trouble, but the wicked come along and are trapped by it.
9 With their words hypocrites can destroy their neighbors. But with what they know, good people can escape.
10 When good people are successful, the whole city is happy, and they all shout with joy when evil people are destroyed.
11 Blessings from the honest people living in a city will make it great, but the things evil people say can destroy it.
12 Stupid people say bad things about their neighbors.[a] Wise people know to be quiet.
13 People who tell secrets about others cannot be trusted. Those who can be trusted keep quiet.
14 A nation without wise leaders will fall. Many good advisors make a nation safe.
15 You will be sorry if you promise to pay a stranger’s debt. Refuse to make such promises and you will be safe.
16 A kind and gentle woman gains respect, but violent men gain only wealth.
17 People who are kind will be rewarded for their kindness, but cruel people will be rewarded with trouble.
18 The work of evil people is all lies, but those who do right will receive a good reward.[b]
19 People who do what is right are on their way to life, but those who always want to do wrong are on their way to death.
20 The Lord hates those who love to do evil, but he is pleased with those who try to do right.
21 The truth is, evil people will be punished, and good people will be set free.
22 A beautiful woman without good sense is like a gold ring in a pig’s nose.
23 What good people want brings more good. What evil people want brings more trouble.
24 Some people give freely and gain more; others refuse to give and end up with less.
25 Give freely, and you will profit. Help others, and you will gain more for yourself.
26 People curse a greedy man who refuses to sell his grain, but they bless a man who sells his grain to feed others.
27 People are pleased with those who try to do good. Those who look for trouble will find it.
28 Those who trust in their riches will fall like dead leaves, but good people will blossom.
29 Those who cause trouble for their families will inherit nothing but the wind. A foolish person will end up as a servant to one who is wise.
30 What good people produce is like a life-giving tree. Those who are wise give new life to others.[c]
31 If good people are rewarded here on earth, then surely those who do evil will also get what they deserve.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 11:12 Stupid people … neighbors Or “The neighbors hate a stupid person.”
- Proverbs 11:18 This is a wordplay in Hebrew. The word “lies” sounds like the word “reward.”
- Proverbs 11:30 Or, according to one ancient version, “The fruit of a good man is a tree of life, but a violent man takes lives.”
Proverbs 11
New International Version
Proverbs 11
New International Version
3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.(E)
5 The righteousness of the blameless makes their paths straight,(I)
but the wicked are brought down by their own wickedness.(J)
6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them,
but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.(K)
8 The righteous person is rescued from trouble,
and it falls on the wicked instead.(N)
9 With their mouths the godless destroy their neighbors,
but through knowledge the righteous escape.(O)
10 When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices;(P)
when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.(Q)
11 Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,(R)
but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed.(S)
12 Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense,(T)
but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.(U)
15 Whoever puts up security(Z) for a stranger will surely suffer,
but whoever refuses to shake hands in pledge is safe.(AA)
16 A kindhearted woman gains honor,(AB)
but ruthless men gain only wealth.
17 Those who are kind benefit themselves,
but the cruel bring ruin on themselves.
18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.(AC)
20 The Lord detests those whose hearts are perverse,(AF)
but he delights(AG) in those whose ways are blameless.(AH)
21 Be sure of this: The wicked will not go unpunished,
but those who are righteous will go free.(AI)
22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout
is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.
23 The desire of the righteous ends only in good,
but the hope of the wicked only in wrath.
24 One person gives freely, yet gains even more;
another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
26 People curse the one who hoards grain,
but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell.
27 Whoever seeks good finds favor,
but evil comes to one who searches for it.(AL)
28 Those who trust in their riches will fall,(AM)
but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.(AN)
29 Whoever brings ruin on their family will inherit only wind,
and the fool will be servant to the wise.(AO)
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,(AP)
and the one who is wise saves lives.
31 If the righteous receive their due(AQ) on earth,
how much more the ungodly and the sinner!
Footnotes
- Proverbs 11:7 Two Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts, Vulgate, Syriac and Targum When the wicked die, their hope perishes; / all they expected from
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
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