17 aBetter is a dry morsel, and quietness therewith,

Than an house full of ||sacrifices with strife.

2  A wise servant shall have rule over ba son that causeth shame,

And shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren.

3  cThe fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold:

But the Lord dtrieth the hearts.

4  A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips;

And a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue.

5  Whoso mocketh the poor ereproacheth ehis Maker:

And fhe that is glad at calamities shall not be †unpunished.

6  gChildren’s children are hthe crown of old men;

And ithe glory of children are their fathers.

7  †Excellent speech kbecometh not a fool:

Much less do †lying lips a prince.

8  lA gift is as †a precious stone in the eyes of mhim that hath it:

Whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth.

9  nHe that covereth a transgression ||seeketh love;

But he that repeateth a matter oseparateth very friends.

10  ||A reproof qentereth more into a wise man

Than an hundred stripes into a fool.

11  An evil man seeketh only rebellion:

Therefore a rcruel messenger sshall be sent against him.

12  tLet a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man,

ttRather than a fool in his folly.

13  uWhoso rewardeth xevil for good,

Evil shall not depart from his house.

14  The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water:

Therefore yleave off contention, before it zbe meddled with.

15  He that ajustifieth the wicked, and he that bcondemneth the just,

Even they both are abomination to the Lord.

16  Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool

To cget wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?

17  dA friend loveth at all times,

And a brother is born for adversity.

18  A man void of †understanding estriketh hands,

And ebecometh surety in the presence of his friend.

19  He loveth transgression that loveth strife:

And fhe that exalteth his gate seeketh destruction.

20  †He that hath a froward heart findeth no good:

And he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.

21  gHe that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow:

And the father of a fool hath no joy.

22  hA merry heart doeth good ||like a medicine:

But a hbroken spirit idrieth the bones.

23  A wicked man taketh a gift out of the kbosom

lTo pervert the ways of judgment.

24  mWisdom is nbefore him that hath understanding;

But nthe eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth.

25  gA foolish son is a grief to his father,

And bitterness to nnher that bare him.

26  Also bto opunish the just is not good,

Nor to strike princes for equity.

27  He that hath knowledge oospareth his words:

And a man of understanding is of ||an excellent spirit.

28  Even a fool, pwhen he holdeth his peace, is counted wise:

And he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.

18 ||Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh

And bintermeddleth with all cwisdom.

2  A fool hath no delight in understanding,

But dthat his heart may discover itself.

3  When the wicked cometh, then cometh also contempt,

And with ignominy reproach.

4  eThe words of a man’s mouth are as fdeep waters,

And the wellspring of wisdom as ga flowing brook.

5  It is not good to haccept the person of the wicked,

To ioverthrow the righteous in judgment.

6  A fool’s lips enter into contention,

And his mouth calleth for kstrokes.

7  lA fool’s mouth is his destruction,

And his lips are the snare of his soul.

8  mThe words of a ||talebearer are ||as wounds,

mAnd they go down into the †innermost parts of the belly.

9  He also that is slothful in his work

Is nbrother to him that is a ogreat waster.

10  The name of the Lord is pa strong tower:

The righteous runneth into it, and †is safe.

11  qThe rich man’s wealth is his strong city,

And as an high wall in his own rconceit.

12  sBefore destruction the heart of man is haughty,

And tbefore honour is humility.

13  He that †answereth a matter ubefore he heareth it,

It is folly and shame unto him.

14  The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity;

But xa wounded spirit who can bear?

15  The heart of the prudent ygetteth knowledge;

And the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.

16  zA man’s gift maketh room for him,

And bringeth him before great men.

17  He that is first in his own cause seemeth just;

But ahis neighbour cometh and searcheth him.

18  The lot causeth contentions to cease,

And parteth between the mighty.

19  A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city:

And their contentions are like the bars of a bcastle.

20  cA man’s belly shall be satisfied with cthe fruit of his mouth;

And with the increase of his lips shall he be filled.

21  dDeath and life are in the power of the tongue:

And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

22  eWhoso findeth a wife findeth a fgood thing,

And gobtaineth favour hof the Lord.

23  The poor useth intreaties;

But ithe rich answereth roughly.

24  A man that hath friends must jshew himself friendly:

And kthere is la friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

19 aBetter is the poor bthat walketh in his integrity,

aThan he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool.

2  Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good;

And che that hasteth with his feet sinneth.

3  The foolishness of man dperverteth his way:

And ehis heart fretteth against the Lord.

4  fWealth maketh many friends;

But fthe poor is separated from his neighbour.

5  gA false witness shall not be †unpunished,

gAnd he hthat speaketh lies shall not escape.

6  iMany will kintreat the favour of the prince:

And levery man is a friend to †him that giveth gifts.

7  mAll the brethren of the poor do hate him:

How much more do his friends ngo far from him?

He opursueth them with words, yet they are wanting to him.

8  He that pgetteth †wisdom loveth his own soul:

He that keepeth understanding qshall find good.

9  gA false witness shall not be unpunished,

gAnd he hthat speaketh lies rshall perish.

10  sDelight is not tseemly for a fool;

Much less ufor a servant to have rule over princes.

11  xThe ||discretion of a man deferreth his anger;

And it is his glory to pass over a transgression.

12  The king’s wrath is yas the roaring of a lion;

But zhis favour is aas dew upon the grass.

13  bA foolish son is the calamity of his father:

And cthe contentions of a wife are a dcontinual dropping.

14  eHouse and riches are the inheritance of fathers:

And a prudent wife is ffrom the Lord.

15  gSlothfulness hcasteth into a deep sleep;

And an idle soul shall isuffer hunger.

16  kHe that keepeth the commandment keepeth his own soul;

But khe that despiseth his ways shall die.

17  lHe that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord;

And ||that which he hath given mwill he pay him again.

18  nChasten thy son while there is hope,

And let not othy soul spare ||for his crying.

19  A man of great wrath shall suffer punishment:

For if thou deliver him, yet thou must †do it again.

20  Hear counsel, and receive instruction,

That thou mayest be wise pin thy latter end.

21  qThere are many devices in a man’s heart;

Nevertheless qthe counsel of the Lord, rthat shall stand.

22  The desire of a man is his skindness:

And a poor man is better than a liar.

23  The fear of the Lord tendeth tto life:

And he that hath it shall uabide satisfied;

xHe shall not be visited with evil.

24  yA gslothful man hideth his hand in his zbosom,

And will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.

25  aSmite a fscorner, and the simple †bwill beware:

And creprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.

26  He that wasteth his father, and chaseth away his mother,

Is a dson that causeth shame, and bringeth reproach.

27  Cease, my son, to hear the instruction

That causeth to err from the words of knowledge.

28  †An ungodly witness scorneth judgment:

And the mouth of the wicked edevoureth iniquity.

29  Judgments are prepared for fscorners,

And gstripes hfor the back of fools.