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17Better is a dry morsel with quiet
   than a house full of feasting with strife.
² A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully,
   and will share the inheritance as one of the family.
³ The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
   but the Lord tests the heart.
⁴ An evildoer listens to wicked lips;
   and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue.
⁵ Those who mock the poor insult their Maker;
   those who are glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
⁶ Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
   and the glory of children is their parents.
⁷ Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;
   still less is false speech to a ruler.^*
8 A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of those who give it;
   wherever they turn they prosper.
⁹ One who forgives an affront fosters friendship,
   but one who dwells on disputes will alienate a friend.
¹⁰ A rebuke strikes deeper into a discerning person
   than a hundred blows into a fool.
¹¹ Evil people seek only rebellion,
   but a cruel messenger will be sent against them.
¹² Better to meet a she-bear robbed of its cubs
   than to confront a fool immersed in folly.
¹³ Evil will not depart from the house
   of one who returns evil for good.
¹⁴ The beginning of strife is like letting out water;
   so stop before the quarrel breaks out.
¹⁵ One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous
   are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
¹⁶ Why should fools have a price in hand
   to buy wisdom, when they have no mind to learn?
¹⁷ A friend loves at all times,
   and kinsfolk are born to share adversity.
¹⁸ It is senseless to give a pledge,
   to become surety for a neighbour.
¹⁹ One who loves transgression loves strife;
   one who builds a high threshold invites broken bones.
²⁰ The crooked of mind do not prosper,
   and the perverse of tongue fall into calamity.
²¹ The one who begets a fool gets trouble;
   the parent of a fool has no joy.
²² A cheerful heart is a good medicine,
   but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.
²³ The wicked accept a concealed bribe
   to pervert the ways of justice.
²⁴ The discerning person looks to wisdom,
   but the eyes of a fool to the ends of the earth.
²⁵ Foolish children are a grief to their father
   and bitterness to her who bore them.
²⁶ To impose a fine on the innocent is not right,
   or to flog the noble for their integrity.
²⁷ One who spares words is knowledgeable;
   one who is cool in spirit has understanding.
²⁸ Even fools who keep silent are considered wise;
   when they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.

18The one who lives alone is self-indulgent,
   showing contempt for all who have sound judgement.^*
2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
   but only in expressing personal opinion.
³ When wickedness comes, contempt comes also;
   and with dishonour comes disgrace.
⁴ The words of the mouth are deep waters;
   the fountain of wisdom is a gushing stream.
⁵ It is not right to be partial to the guilty,
   or to subvert the innocent in judgement.
⁶ A fool’s lips bring strife,
   and a fool’s mouth invites a flogging.
⁷ The mouths of fools are their ruin,
   and their lips a snare to themselves.
⁸ The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
   they go down into the inner parts of the body.
⁹ One who is slack in work
   is close kin to a vandal.
¹⁰ The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
   the righteous run into it and are safe.
¹¹ The wealth of the rich is their strong city;
   in their imagination it is like a high wall.
¹² Before destruction one’s heart is haughty,
   but humility goes before honour.
¹³ If one gives answer before hearing,
   it is folly and shame.
¹⁴ The human spirit will endure sickness;
   but a broken spirit—who can bear?
¹⁵ An intelligent mind acquires knowledge,
   and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
¹⁶ A gift opens doors;
   it gives access to the great.
¹⁷ The one who first states a case seems right,
   until the other comes and cross-examines.
¹⁸ Casting the lot puts an end to disputes
   and decides between powerful contenders.
¹⁹ An ally offended is stronger than a city;^*
   such quarrelling is like the bars of a castle.
²⁰ From the fruit of the mouth one’s stomach is satisfied;
   the yield of the lips brings satisfaction.
²¹ Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
   and those who love it will eat its fruits.
²² He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
   and obtains favour from the Lord.
²³ The poor use entreaties,
   but the rich answer roughly.
²⁴ Some^* friends play at friendship^*
   but a true friend sticks closer than one’s nearest kin.

19Better the poor walking in integrity
   than one perverse of speech who is a fool.
² Desire without knowledge is not good,
   and one who moves too hurriedly misses the way.
³ One’s own folly leads to ruin,
   yet the heart rages against the Lord.
⁴ Wealth brings many friends,
   but the poor are left friendless.
⁵ A false witness will not go unpunished,
   and a liar will not escape.
⁶ Many seek the favour of the generous,
   and everyone is a friend to a giver of gifts.
⁷ If the poor are hated even by their kin,
   how much more are they shunned by their friends!
When they call after them, they are not there.^*
8 To get wisdom is to love oneself;
   to keep understanding is to prosper.
⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished,
   and the liar will perish.
¹⁰ It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury,
   much less for a slave to rule over princes.
¹¹ Those with good sense are slow to anger,
   and it is their glory to overlook an offence.
¹² A king’s anger is like the growling of a lion,
   but his favour is like dew on the grass.
¹³ A stupid child is ruin to a father,
   and a wife’s quarrelling is a continual dripping of rain.
¹⁴ House and wealth are inherited from parents,
   but a prudent wife is from the Lord.
¹⁵ Laziness brings on deep sleep;
   an idle person will suffer hunger.
¹⁶ Those who keep the commandment will live;
   those who are heedless of their ways will die.
¹⁷ Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord,
   and will be repaid in full.
¹⁸ Discipline your children while there is hope;
   do not set your heart on their destruction.
¹⁹ A violent-tempered person will pay the penalty;
   if you effect a rescue, you will only have to do it again.^*
20 Listen to advice and accept instruction,
   that you may gain wisdom for the future.
²¹ The human mind may devise many plans,
   but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established.
²² What is desirable in a person is loyalty,
   and it is better to be poor than a liar.
²³ The fear of the Lord is life indeed;
   filled with it one rests secure
   and suffers no harm.
²⁴ The lazy person buries a hand in the dish,
   and will not even bring it back to the mouth.
²⁵ Strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence;
   reprove the intelligent, and they will gain knowledge.
²⁶ Those who do violence to their father and chase away their mother
   are children who cause shame and bring reproach.
²⁷ Cease straying, my child, from the words of knowledge,
   in order that you may hear instruction.
²⁸ A worthless witness mocks at justice,
   and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
²⁹ Condemnation is ready for scoffers,
   and flogging for the backs of fools.