1 Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler, And whoever is led astray by it is not wise. |
2 The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life. |
3 It is honorable for a man to stop striving, Since any fool can start a quarrel. |
4 The lazy man will not plow because of winter; He will beg during harvest and have nothing. |
5 Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water, But a man of understanding will draw it out. |
6 Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, But who can find a faithful man? |
7 The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him. |
8 A king who sits on the throne of judgment Scatters all evil with his eyes. |
9 Who can say, "I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin"? |
10 Diverse weights and diverse measures, They are both alike, an abomination to the LORD. |
11 Even a child is known by his deeds, Whether what he does is pure and right. |
12 The hearing ear and the seeing eye, The LORD has made them both. |
13 Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with bread. |
14 "It is good for nothing," cries the buyer; But when he has gone his way, then he boasts. |
15 There is gold and a multitude of rubies, But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel. |
16 Take the garment of one who is surety for a stranger, And hold it as a pledge when it is for a seductress. |
17 Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel. |
18 Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war. |
19 He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with one who flatters with his lips. |
20 Whoever curses his father or his mother, His lamp will be put out in deep darkness. |
21 An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning Will not be blessed at the end. |
22 Do not say, "I will recompense evil"; Wait for the LORD, and He will save you. |
23 Diverse weights are an abomination to the LORD, And dishonest scales are not good. |
24 A man's steps are of the LORD; How then can a man understand his own way? |
25 It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, And afterward to reconsider his vows. |
26 A wise king sifts out the wicked, And brings the threshing wheel over them. |
27 The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, Searching all the inner depths of his heart. |
28 Mercy and truth preserve the king, And by lovingkindness he upholds his throne. |
29 The glory of young men is their strength, And the splendor of old men is their gray head. |
30 Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart. |