Proverbs 24 (New American Standard)

Precepts and Warnings

1 Do not be ¹envious of evil men, Nor desire to ²be with them; 2 For their ^aminds devise ³violence, And their lips ⁴talk of trouble. 3 ⁵By wisdom a house is built, And by understanding it is established ; 4 And by knowledge the rooms are ⁶filled With all precious and pleasant riches. 5 A ⁷wise man is ^bstrong, And a man of knowledge ^cincreases power. 6 For ⁸by wise guidance you will ^dwage war, And ⁹in abundance of counselors there is victory. 7 Wisdom is ¹⁰too exalted for a fool, He does not open his mouth ¹¹in the gate. 8 One who ¹²plans to do evil, Men will call a ^eschemer . 9 The ¹³devising of folly is sin, And the scoffer is an abomination to men. 10 If you ¹⁴are slack in the day of distress, Your strength is limited. 11 ¹⁵Deliver those who are being taken away to death, And those who are staggering to slaughter, Oh hold them back. 12 If you say, "See, we did not know this," Does He not ¹⁶consider it ¹⁷who weighs the hearts ? And ¹⁸does He not know it who ¹⁹keeps your soul ? And will He not ^f20render to man according to his work ? 13 My son, eat ²¹honey, for it is good, Yes, the ²²honey from the comb is sweet to your taste ; 14 Know that ²³wisdom is thus for your soul ; If you find it, then there will be a ^g24future, And your hope will not be cut off. 15 ²⁵Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous ; Do not destroy his resting place ; 16 For a ²⁶righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the ²⁷wicked stumble in time of calamity. 17 ²⁸Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles ; 18 Or the LORD will see it and ^hbe displeased , And turn His anger away from him. 19 ²⁹Do not fret because of evildoers Or be ³⁰envious of the wicked ; 20 For ³¹there will be no ⁱ³²future for the evil man ; The ³³lamp of the wicked will be put out. 21 My son, ^j34fear the LORD and the king ; Do not associate with those who are given to change, 22 For their ³⁵calamity will rise suddenly, And who knows the ruin that comes from both of them? 23 These also are ³⁶sayings of the wise. To ^k37show partiality in judgment is not good. 24 He ³⁸who says to the wicked, "You are righteous," ³⁹Peoples will curse him, nations will abhor him; 25 But ⁴⁰to those who rebuke the wicked will be delight, And a good blessing will come upon them. 26 He kisses the lips Who gives ^la right answer. 27 Prepare your work outside And ⁴¹make it ready for yourself in the field ; Afterwards, then, build your house. 28 Do not be a ⁴²witness against your neighbor without cause, And ⁴³do not deceive with your lips. 29 ⁴⁴Do not say, "Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me; I will ^mrender to the man according to his work." 30 I passed by the field of the sluggard And by the vineyard of the man ⁴⁵lacking ⁿsense, 31 And behold, it was completely ⁴⁶overgrown with thistles ; Its surface was covered with ^o47nettles, And its stone ⁴⁸wall was broken down. 32 When I saw, I ^preflected upon it; I looked, and received instruction. 33 "⁴⁹A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest," 34 Then your poverty will come as ^qa robber And your want like ^ran armed man.