Proverbs 21:4-14

4 Proud eyes and a proud heart are the lamp of sinful people. But those things are evil.

5 The plans of people who work hard succeed. You can be sure that those in a hurry will become poor.

6 A fortune made by people who tell lies amounts to nothing and leads to death.

7 The harmful things that evil people do will drag them away. They refuse to do what is right.

8 The path of those who are guilty is crooked. But the conduct of those who are not guilty is honest.

9 It is better to live on a corner of a roof than to share a house with a nagging wife.

10 A sinful person longs to do evil. He doesn't show his neighbor any mercy.

11 When you punish someone who makes fun of others, childish people get wise. If you teach a person who is already wise, he will get even more knowledge.

12 The Blameless One knows where sinners live. And he destroys them.

13 If you refuse to listen to the cries of poor people, you too will cry out and not be answered.

14 A secret gift calms anger down. A hidden favor softens great anger.

Proverbs 21:4-14 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 9

This chapter relates a second vision Solomon had at Gibeon, in which he received an answer to his prayer in the preceding chapter, 1Ki 9:1-9 that passed between him and Hiram king of Tyre, 1Ki 9:10-14, the places that Solomon built or repaired, 1Ki 9:15-19, the Canaanitish people that became bondmen to him, and the officers he had among the children of Israel, 1Ki 9:20-23 the removal of Pharaoh's daughter to the house built for her, 1Ki 9:24. Solomon's attention to religious services, 1Ki 9:25 and the navy of ships he employed, which brought him in great riches, 1Ki 9:26-28.