11:1 A FALSE balance {and} unrighteous dealings are extremely offensive {and} shamefully sinful to the Lord, but a just weight is His delight. |
11:2 When swelling {and} pride come, then emptiness {and} shame come also, but with the humble (those who are lowly, who have been pruned or chiseled by trial, and renounce self) are skillful {and} godly Wisdom {and} soundness. |
11:3 The integrity of the upright shall guide them, but the willful contrariness {and} crookedness of the treacherous shall destroy them. |
11:4 Riches provide no security in any day of wrath {and} judgment, but righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God) delivers from death. |
11:5 The righteousness of the blameless shall rectify {and} make plain their way {and} keep it straight, but the wicked shall fall by their own wickedness. |
11:6 The righteousness of the upright [their rectitude in every area and relation] shall deliver them, but the treacherous shall be taken in their own iniquity {and} greedy desire. |
11:7 When the wicked man dies, his hope [for the future] perishes; and the expectation of the godless comes to nothing. |
11:8 The [uncompromisingly] righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked gets into it instead. |
11:9 With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge {and} superior discernment shall the righteous be delivered. |
11:10 When it goes well with the [uncompromisingly] righteous, the city rejoices, but when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy. |
11:11 By the blessing of the influence of the upright {and} God's favor [because of them] the city is exalted, but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked. |
11:12 He who belittles {and} despises his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding keeps silent. |
11:13 He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy {and} faithful in spirit keeps the matter hidden. |
11:14 Where no wise guidance is, the people fall, but in the multitude of counselors there is safety. |
11:15 He who becomes security for an outsider shall smart for it, but he who hates suretyship is secure [from its penalties]. |
11:16 A gracious {and} good woman wins honor [for her husband], and violent men win riches {but} {a woman who hates righteousness is a throne of dishonor for him}. |
11:17 The merciful, kind, {and} generous man benefits himself [for his deeds return to bless him], but he who is cruel {and} callous [to the wants of others] brings on himself retribution. |
11:18 The wicked man earns deceitful wages, but he who sows righteousness (moral and spiritual rectitude in every area and relation) shall have a sure reward [permanent and satisfying]. |
11:19 He who is steadfast in righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God) attains to life, but he who pursues evil does it to his own death. |
11:20 They who are willfully contrary in heart are extremely disgusting {and} shamefully vile in the eyes of the Lord, but such as are blameless {and} wholehearted in their ways are His delight! |
11:21 Assuredly [I pledge it] the wicked shall not go unpunished, but the multitude of the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall be delivered. |
11:22 As a ring of gold in a swine's snout, so is a fair woman who is without discretion. |
11:23 The desire of the [consistently] righteous brings only good, but the expectation of the wicked brings wrath. |
11:24 There are those who [generously] scatter abroad, and yet increase more; there are those who withhold more than is fitting {or} what is justly due, but it results only in want. |
11:25 The liberal person shall be enriched, and he who waters shall himself be watered. |
11:26 The people curse him who holds back grain [when the public needs it], but a blessing [from God and man] is upon the head of him who sells it. |
11:27 He who diligently seeks good seeks [God's] favor, but he who searches after evil, it shall come upon him. |
11:28 He who leans on, trusts in, {and} is confident in his riches shall fall, but the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall flourish like a green bough. |
11:29 He who troubles his own house shall inherit the wind, and the foolish shall be servant to the wise of heart. |
11:30 The fruit of the [uncompromisingly] righteous is a tree of life, and he who is wise captures human lives [for God, as a fisher of men--he gathers and receives them for eternity]. |
11:31 Behold, the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall be recompensed on earth; how much more the wicked and the sinner! {And} {if the righteous are barely saved, what will become of the ungodly and wicked?} |