1 A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
He rages against all
1 wise judgment.
‡
2 A fool has no delight in understanding,
But in expressing his
a own heart.
‡
3 When the wicked comes, contempt comes also;
And with dishonor
comes reproach.
4 a The words of a man’s mouth
are deep waters;
b The wellspring of wisdom
is a flowing brook.
‡
5 It is not good to show partiality to the wicked,
Or to overthrow the righteous in
a judgment.
‡
6 A fool’s lips enter into contention,
And his mouth calls for blows.
7 a A fool’s mouth
is his destruction,
And his lips
are the snare of his
b soul.
‡
8 a The words of a
1 talebearer
are like tasty trifles,
And they go down into the
1 inmost body.
‡
9 He who is slothful in his work
Is a brother to him who is a great destroyer.
10 The name of the
Lord is a strong
a tower;
The righteous run to it and are
1 safe.
‡
11 The rich man’s wealth
is his strong city,
And like a high wall in his own esteem.
12 a Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty,
And before honor
is humility.
‡
13 He who answers a matter before he hears
it, It
is folly and shame to him.
14 The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness,
But who can bear a broken spirit?
15 The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge,
And the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
16 a A man’s gift makes room for him,
And brings him before great men.
‡
17 The first
one to plead his cause
seems right,
Until his neighbor comes and examines him.
18 Casting
a lots causes contentions to cease,
And keeps the mighty apart.
‡
19 A brother offended
is harder to win than a strong city,
And contentions
are like the bars of a castle.
20 a A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth;
From the produce of his lips he shall be filled.
‡
21 a Death and life
are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
‡
22 a He who finds a wife finds a good
thing, And obtains favor from the
Lord .
‡
23 The poor
man uses entreaties,
But the rich answers
a roughly.
‡
24 A man
who has friends
1 must himself be friendly,
a But there is a friend
who sticks closer than a brother.
‡
New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
