23
Gain the confidence of your neighbor if he is poor; then you can share his happiness if he becomes successful. Stand by him when he is in trouble if you want to share with him when better times come his way.
24
Fumes and smoke appear before the flames do; insults come before violence.
25
I will never be afraid to protect a friend, and I will never turn a friend away if he needs me.
26
If I suffer because of him, everyone who learns of it will be on guard against him.
27
I wish that a guard could be placed at my mouth, that my lips could be wisely sealed. It would keep me from making mistakes and prevent me from destroying myself with my own tongue!
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.