Proverbs 24; Proverbs 25; Proverbs 26

1 Do not want what evil men have. Don't long to be with them. 2 In their hearts they plan to hurt others. With their lips they talk about making trouble. 3 By wisdom a house is built. Through understanding it is made secure. 4 Through knowledge its rooms are filled with priceless and beautiful things. 5 A wise man has great power. A man who has knowledge increases his strength. 6 If you go to war, you need guidance. If you want to win, you need many good advisers. 7 Wisdom is too high for anyone who is foolish. He has nothing to say when people meet at the city gate to conduct business. 8 Anyone who thinks up sinful things to do will be known as one who plans evil. 9 Foolish plans are sinful. People hate those who make fun of others. 10 If you grow weak when trouble comes, your strength is very small! 11 Save those who are being led away to death. Hold back those who are about to be killed. 12 Don't say, "But we didn't know anything about this." The One who knows what you are thinking sees it. The One who guards your life knows it. He will pay each person back for what he has done. 13 Eat honey, my child. It is good. Honey from a honeycomb has a sweet taste. 14 I want you to know that wisdom is sweet to you. If you find it, there is hope for you tomorrow. So your hope will not be cut off. 15 Don't hide and wait like a burglar at a godly person's house. Don't rob his home. 16 Even if godly people fall down seven times, they always get up. But those who are evil are brought down by trouble. 17 Don't be happy when your enemy falls. When he trips, don't let your heart be glad. 18 The LORD will see it, but he won't be pleased. He might turn his anger away from your enemy. 19 Don't be upset because of evil people. Don't long for what sinners have. 20 Tomorrow evil people won't have any hope. The lamps of sinners will be blown out. 21 My son, have respect for the LORD and the king. Don't join those who disobey them. 22 The LORD and the king will suddenly destroy them. Who knows what trouble those two can bring? 23 Here are more sayings of those who are wise. Taking sides in court is not good. 24 A curse will fall on those who say the guilty are not guilty. Nations will call down curses on them. People will speak against them. 25 But it will go well with those who sentence guilty people. Rich blessings will come to them. 26 An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips. 27 Finish your outdoor work. Get your fields ready. After that, build your house. 28 Don't give witness against your neighbor without any reason. Don't use your lips to tell lies. 29 Don't say, "I'll do to him what he did to me. I'll get even with that man for what he did." 30 I went past the field of someone who didn't want to work. I went past the vineyard of a man who didn't have any sense. 31 Thorns had grown up everywhere. The ground was covered with weeds. The stone wall had fallen down. 32 I applied my heart to what I observed. I learned a lesson from what I saw. 33 You might sleep a little or take a little nap. You might even fold your hands and rest. 34 Then you would be poor, as if someone had robbed you. You would have little, as if someone had stolen from you.

1 These are more proverbs of Solomon. They were copied down by the men of Hezekiah, the king of Judah. 2 When God hides a matter, he gets glory. When kings figure out a matter, they get glory. 3 The heavens are high and the earth is deep. In the same way, the minds of kings are hard to figure out. 4 Remove the scum from the silver. Then the master worker can make something. 5 Remove sinful people from where the king is. When he does what is right, his kingdom will be secure. 6 Don't brag in front of the king. Don't claim a place among great people. 7 Let the king say to you, "Come up here." That's better than for him to shame you in front of nobles. What you have seen with your own eyes 8 don't bring too quickly to court. What will you do in the end if your neighbor puts you to shame? 9 If you talk about a matter with your neighbor, don't tell others what was said. 10 If you do, someone might hear it and put you to shame. Then no one will ever respect you again. 11 The right word at the right time is like golden apples in silver jewelry. 12 A wise person's warning to a listening ear is like a gold earring or jewelry made of fine gold. 13 A messenger trusted by those who send him is like cool snow at harvest time. He renews the spirit of his masters. 14 A man who brags about gifts he doesn't give is like wind and clouds that don't produce rain. 15 If you are patient, you can win an official over to your side. And gentle words can break a bone. 16 If you find honey, eat just enough. If you eat too much of it, you will throw up. 17 Don't go to your neighbor's home very often. If he sees too much of you, he will hate you. 18 A man who gives false witness against his neighbor is like a club, a sword or a sharp arrow. 19 Trusting someone who is not faithful when trouble comes is like a bad tooth or a disabled foot. 20 You may sing songs to a troubled heart. But that's like taking a coat away on a cold day. It's like pouring vinegar on baking soda. 21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat. If he is thirsty, give him water to drink. 22 By doing those things, you will pile up burning coals on his head. And the LORD will reward you. 23 The north wind brings rain. And a crafty tongue brings angry looks. 24 It is better to live on a corner of a roof than to share a house with a nagging wife. 25 Hearing good news from a land far away is like drinking cold water when you are tired. 26 Sometimes a godly person gives in to those who are evil. Then he becomes like a muddy spring of water or a polluted well. 27 It isn't good for you to eat too much honey. And you shouldn't try to get others to honor you. 28 A man who can't control himself is like a city whose walls are broken down.

1 It isn't proper to honor a foolish person. That's like having snow in summer or rain at harvest time. 2 A curse given for no reason is like a wandering bird or a flying sparrow. It doesn't go anywhere. 3 A whip is for a horse. A harness is for a donkey. And a beating is for the backs of foolish people. 4 Don't answer a foolish person in keeping with his foolish acts. If you do, you will be like him yourself. 5 Answer a foolish person in keeping with his foolish acts. If you do, he won't be wise in his own eyes. 6 Sending a message in the hand of a foolish person is like cutting off your feet or drinking something harmful. 7 A proverb in the mouth of a foolish person is like disabled legs that are useless. 8 Giving honor to a foolish person is like tying a stone in a slingshot. 9 A proverb in the mouth of a foolish person is like a thorn in the hand of someone who is drunk. 10 Anyone who hires a foolish person or someone who is passing by is like a person who shoots arrows at just anybody. 11 A foolish person who does the same foolish things again is like a dog that returns to where it has thrown up. 12 Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a foolish person than for him. 13 A person who doesn't want to work says, "There's a lion in the road! There's an angry lion wandering in the streets!" 14 A person who doesn't want to work turns over in bed just like a door that swings back and forth. 15 A person who doesn't want to work leaves his hand in the dish. He acts as if he is too tired to bring it back up to his mouth. 16 A person who doesn't want to work is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who give careful answers. 17 Don't get mixed up in someone else's fight as you are passing by. That's like picking a dog up by its ears. 18 Suppose a crazy person shoots flaming arrows that can kill. 19 A man who lies to his neighbor and says, "I was only joking!" is just like that person. 20 If you don't have wood, your fire goes out. If you don't talk about others, arguing dies down. 21 Coal glows. Wood burns. And a man who argues stirs up fights. 22 The words of anyone who talks about others are like tasty bites of food. They go deep down inside you. 23 Warm words that come from an evil heart are like shiny paint on a clay pot. 24 Someone who wants to hurt you uses his words to hide his hatred. But his heart is full of lies that cover up his evil plans. 25 What a person says can be charming. But don't believe him. Seven things that God hates can fill that person's heart. 26 Hatred can be hidden by lies. But what is evil will be shown to everyone. 27 If anyone digs a pit, he will fall into it. If he rolls a big stone, it will roll back on him. 28 A tongue that tells lies hates the people it hurts. And words that seem to praise you destroy you.