Historical

24 Don’t envy the evil^(A)
or desire to be with them,^(B)
2 for their hearts plan violence,
and their words stir up trouble.^(C)

³ A house is built by wisdom,^(D)
and it is established by understanding;
⁴ by knowledge the rooms are filled
with every precious and beautiful treasure.

⁵ A wise warrior is better than a strong one,^[a]
and a man of knowledge than one of strength;^[b](E)
6 for you should wage war with sound guidance—
victory comes with many counselors.^(F)

⁷ Wisdom is inaccessible to^[c] a fool;^(G)
he does not open his mouth at the city gate.^(H)

⁸ The one who plots evil^(I)
will be called a schemer.
⁹ A foolish scheme is sin,
and a mocker is detestable to people.

¹⁰ If you do nothing in a difficult time,
your strength is limited.
¹¹ Rescue those being taken off to death,
and save those stumbling toward slaughter.^(J)
12 If you say, “But we didn’t know about this,”
won’t he who weighs hearts^(K) consider it?
Won’t he who protects your life^(L) know?
Won’t he repay a person according to his work?^(M)

¹³ Eat honey,^(N) my son, for it is good,
and the honeycomb is sweet to your palate;^(O)
14 realize that wisdom is the same for you.^(P)
If you find it, you will have a future,
and your hope will never fade.^(Q)

¹⁵ Don’t set an ambush, you wicked one,
at the camp of the righteous man;^(R)
don’t destroy his dwelling.
¹⁶ Though a righteous person falls seven times,
he will get up,^(S)
but the wicked will stumble into ruin.^(T)

¹⁷ Don’t gloat when your enemy falls,
and don’t let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,^(U)
18 or the Lord will see, be displeased,
and turn his wrath away from him.

¹⁹ Don’t be agitated by evildoers,
and don’t envy the wicked.^(V)
20 For the evil have no future;^(W)
the lamp of the wicked will be put out.^(X)

²¹ My son, fear the Lord, as well as the king,^(Y)
and don’t associate with rebels,^[d]
22 for destruction will come suddenly from them;
who knows what distress these two can bring?

²³ These sayings also belong to the wise:^(Z)
It is not good to show partiality in judgment.^(AA)
24 Whoever says to the guilty, “You are innocent”^(AB)—
peoples will curse him,^(AC) and nations will denounce him;
²⁵ but it will go well with those who convict the guilty,
and a generous blessing will come to them.

²⁶ He who gives an honest answer
gives a kiss on the lips.

²⁷ Complete your outdoor work, and prepare your field;^(AD)
afterward, build your house.

²⁸ Don’t testify against your neighbor without cause.^(AE)
Don’t deceive with your lips.
²⁹ Don’t say, “I’ll do to him what he did to me;
I’ll repay the man for what he has done.”^(AF)

³⁰ I went by the field of a slacker
and by the vineyard of one lacking sense.
³¹ Thistles had come up everywhere,
weeds covered the ground,^(AG)
and the stone wall was ruined.
³² I saw, and took it to heart;
I looked, and received instruction:
³³ a little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the arms to rest,
³⁴ and your poverty will come like a robber,
and your need, like a bandit.^(AH)

² It is the glory of God to conceal a matter^(AK)
and the glory of kings to investigate a matter.
³ As the heavens are high and the earth is deep,
so the hearts of kings cannot be investigated.

⁴ Remove impurities from silver,^(AL)
and material will be produced^[e] for a silversmith.^[f](AM)
5 Remove the wicked from the king’s presence,^(AN)
and his throne will be established in righteousness.^(AO)

⁶ Don’t boast about yourself before the king,
and don’t stand in the place of the great;
⁷ for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!”
than to demote you in plain view of a noble.^[g](AP)

⁸ Don’t take a matter to court hastily.^(AQ)
Otherwise, what will you do afterward
if your opponent^[h] humiliates you?
⁹ Make your case with your opponent
without revealing another’s secret;^(AR)
10 otherwise, the one who hears will disgrace you,
and you’ll never live it down.^[i]

¹¹ A word spoken at the right time
is like gold apples in silver settings.^(AS)
12 A wise correction to a receptive ear^(AT)
is like a gold ring or an ornament of gold.

¹³ To those who send him, a trustworthy envoy
is like the coolness of snow on a harvest day;
he refreshes the life of his masters.^(AU)

¹⁴ The one who boasts about a gift that does not exist
is like clouds and wind without rain.^(AV)
15 A ruler can be persuaded through patience,
and a gentle tongue can break a bone.^(AW)
16 If you find honey,^(AX) eat only what you need;
otherwise, you’ll get sick from it and vomit.^(AY)
17 Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house;
otherwise, he’ll get sick of you and hate you.

¹⁸ A person giving false testimony against his neighbor^(AZ)
is like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow.^(BA)
19 Trusting an unreliable person in a difficult time
is like a rotten tooth or a faltering foot.^(BB)

²⁰ Singing songs to a troubled heart
is like taking off clothing on a cold day
or like pouring vinegar on soda.^[j](BC)

²¹ If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat,
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,^(BD)
22 for you will heap burning coals on his head,
and the Lord will reward you.^(BE)

²³ The north wind produces rain,
and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

²⁴ Better to live on the corner of a roof
than to share a house with a nagging wife.^(BF)

²⁵ Good news from a distant land
is like cold water to a parched throat.^[k](BG)

²⁶ A righteous person who yields to the wicked^(BH)
is like a muddied spring or a polluted well.^(BI)

²⁷ It is not good to eat too much honey^(BJ)
or to seek glory after glory.^[l](BK)

²⁸ A person who does not control his temper^(BL)
is like a city whose wall is broken down.^(BM)

26 Like snow in summer and rain at harvest,^(BN)
honor is inappropriate for a fool.^(BO)

² Like a flitting sparrow or a fluttering swallow,^(BP)
an undeserved curse goes nowhere.^(BQ)

³ A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,^(BR)
and a rod for the backs of fools.^(BS)
4 Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness^(BT)
or you’ll be like him yourself.
⁵ Answer a fool according to his foolishness^(BU)
or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.^(BV)
6 The one who sends a message by a fool’s hand^(BW)
cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.^(BX)
7 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like lame legs that hang limp.
⁸ Giving honor to a fool
is like binding a stone in a sling.
⁹ A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like a stick with thorns,
brandished by^[m] the hand of a drunkard.
¹⁰ The one who hires a fool or who hires those passing by
is like an archer who wounds everyone indiscriminately.
¹¹ As a dog returns to its vomit,
so also a fool repeats his foolishness.^(BY)
12 Do you see a person who is wise in his own eyes?^(BZ)
There is more hope for a fool than for him.^(CA)

¹³ The slacker says, “There’s a lion in the road—
a lion in the public square!” ^(CB)
14 A door turns on its hinges,
and a slacker, on his bed.^(CC)
15 The slacker buries his hand in the bowl;
he is too weary to bring it to his mouth!^(CD)
16 In his own eyes, a slacker is wiser^(CE)
than seven who can answer sensibly.

¹⁷ A person who is passing by and meddles in a quarrel that’s not his
is like one who grabs a dog by the ears.
¹⁸ Like a madman who throws flaming darts and deadly arrows,^(CF)
19 so is the person who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I was only joking!”

²⁰ Without wood, fire goes out;
without a gossip, conflict dies down.^(CG)
21 As charcoal for embers and wood for fire,
so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife.^(CH)
22 A gossip’s words are like choice food
that goes down to one’s innermost being.^[n](CI)

²³ Smooth^[o] lips with an evil heart
are like glaze on an earthen vessel.^(CJ)
24 A hateful person disguises himself with his speech
and harbors deceit within.
²⁵ When he speaks graciously, don’t believe him,
for there are seven detestable things in his heart.^(CK)
26 Though his hatred is concealed by deception,
his evil will be revealed in the assembly.
²⁷ The one who digs a pit will fall into it,
and whoever rolls a stone—
it will come back on him.^(CL)
28 A lying tongue hates those it crushes,
and a flattering mouth causes ruin.