Proverbs 17:12-22

12 It is safer to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than to confront a fool caught in foolishness.

13 If you repay good with evil, evil will never leave your house.

14 Starting a quarrel is like opening a floodgate, so stop before a dispute breaks out.

15 Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent— both are detestable to the LORD .

16 It is senseless to pay to educate a fool, since he has no heart for learning.

17 A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

18 It’s poor judgment to guarantee another person’s debt or put up security for a friend.

19 Anyone who loves to quarrel loves sin; anyone who trusts in high walls invites disaster.

20 The crooked heart will not prosper; the lying tongue tumbles into trouble.

21 It is painful to be the parent of a fool; there is no joy for the father of a rebel.

22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.

Proverbs 17:12-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 7

This chapter gives an account of some buildings of Solomon for himself, 1Ki 7:1-12; and of other things for the use of the temple; of two pillars of brass, 1Ki 7:13-22; of the molten sea, 1Ki 7:23-26; and of ten bases, and ten layers on them, 1Ki 7:27-39; with other utensils and ornaments, 1Ki 7:40-51.