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16The plans of the mind belong to mortals,
but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.
²All one’s ways may be pure in one’s own eyes,
but the Lord weighs the spirit.
³Commit your work to the Lord,
and your plans will be established.
⁴The Lord has made everything for its purpose,
even the wicked for the day of trouble.
⁵All those who are arrogant are an abomination to the Lord;
be assured, they will not go unpunished.
⁶By loyalty and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,
and by the fear of the Lord one avoids evil.
⁷When the ways of people please the Lord,
he causes even their enemies to be at peace with them.
⁸Better is a little with righteousness
than large income with injustice.
⁹The human mind plans the way,
but the Lord directs the steps.
¹⁰Inspired decisions are on the lips of a king;
his mouth does not sin in judgment.
¹¹Honest balances and scales are the Lord’s;
all the weights in the bag are his work.
¹²It is an abomination to kings to do evil,
for the throne is established by righteousness.
¹³Righteous lips are the delight of a king,
and he loves those who speak what is right.
¹⁴A king’s wrath is a messenger of death,
and whoever is wise will appease it.
¹⁵In the light of a king’s face there is life,
and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain.
¹⁶How much better to get wisdom than gold!
To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.
¹⁷The highway of the upright avoids evil;
those who guard their way preserve their lives.
¹⁸Pride goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a fall.
¹⁹It is better to be of a lowly spirit among the poor
than to divide the spoil with the proud.
²⁰Those who are attentive to a matter will prosper,
and happy are those who trust in the Lord.
²¹The wise of heart is called perceptive,
and pleasant speech increases persuasiveness.
²²Wisdom is a fountain of life to one who has it,
but folly is the punishment of fools.
²³The mind of the wise makes their speech judicious,
and adds persuasiveness to their lips.
²⁴Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
²⁵Sometimes there is a way that seems to be right,
but in the end it is the way to death.
²⁶The appetite of workers works for them;
their hunger urges them on.
²⁷Scoundrels concoct evil,
and their speech is like a scorching fire.
²⁸A perverse person spreads strife,
and a whisperer separates close friends.
²⁹The violent entice their neighbors,
and lead them in a way that is not good.
³⁰One who winks the eyes plans perverse things;
one who compresses the lips brings evil to pass.
³¹Gray hair is a crown of glory;
it is gained in a righteous life.
³²One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
and one whose temper is controlled than one who captures a city.
³³The lot is cast into the lap,
but the decision is the Lord’s alone.
17Better is a dry morsel with quiet
than a house full of feasting with strife.
²A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully,
and will share the inheritance as one of the family.
³The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
but the Lord tests the heart.
⁴An evildoer listens to wicked lips;
and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue.
⁵Those who mock the poor insult their Maker;
those who are glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
⁶Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
and the glory of children is their parents.
⁷Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;
still less is false speech to a ruler.
⁸A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of those who give it;
wherever they turn they prosper.
⁹One who forgives an affront fosters friendship,
but one who dwells on disputes will alienate a friend.
¹⁰A rebuke strikes deeper into a discerning person
than a hundred blows into a fool.
¹¹Evil people seek only rebellion,
but a cruel messenger will be sent against them.
¹²Better to meet a she-bear robbed of its cubs
than to confront a fool immersed in folly.
¹³Evil will not depart from the house
of one who returns evil for good.
¹⁴The beginning of strife is like letting out water;
so stop before the quarrel breaks out.
¹⁵One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous
are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
¹⁶Why should fools have a price in hand
to buy wisdom, when they have no mind to learn?
¹⁷A friend loves at all times,
and kinsfolk are born to share adversity.
¹⁸It is senseless to give a pledge,
to become surety for a neighbor.
¹⁹One who loves transgression loves strife;
one who builds a high threshold invites broken bones.
²⁰The crooked of mind do not prosper,
and the perverse of tongue fall into calamity.
²¹The one who begets a fool gets trouble;
the parent of a fool has no joy.
²²A cheerful heart is a good medicine,
but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.
²³The wicked accept a concealed bribe
to pervert the ways of justice.
²⁴The discerning person looks to wisdom,
but the eyes of a fool to the ends of the earth.
²⁵Foolish children are a grief to their father
and bitterness to her who bore them.
²⁶To impose a fine on the innocent is not right,
or to flog the noble for their integrity.
²⁷One who spares words is knowledgeable;
one who is cool in spirit has understanding.
²⁸Even fools who keep silent are considered wise;
when they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.