Revised Standard Version RSV
Good News Translation GNT
1 Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.
1
Better to eat a dry crust of bread with peace of mind than have a banquet in a house full of trouble.
2 A slave who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully, and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
2
A shrewd servant will gain authority over a master's worthless son and receive a part of the inheritance.
3 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the LORD tries hearts.
3
Gold and silver are tested by fire, and a person's heart is tested by the Lord.
4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips; and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue.
4
Evil people listen to evil ideas, and liars listen to lies.
5 He who mocks the poor insults his Maker; he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
5
If you make fun of poor people, you insult the God who made them. You will be punished if you take pleasure in someone's misfortune.
6 Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of sons is their fathers.
6
Grandparents are proud of their grandchildren, just as children are proud of their parents.
7 Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a prince.
7
Respected people do not tell lies, and fools have nothing worthwhile to say.
8 A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of him who gives it; wherever he turns he prospers.
8
Some people think a bribe works like magic; they believe it can do anything.
9 He who forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter alienates a friend.
9
If you want people to like you, forgive them when they wrong you. Remembering wrongs can break up a friendship.
10 A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool.
10
An intelligent person learns more from one rebuke than a fool learns from being beaten a hundred times.
11 An evil man seeks only rebellion, and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
11
Death will come like a cruel messenger to wicked people who are always stirring up trouble.
12 Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs, rather than a fool in his folly.
12
It is better to meet a mother bear robbed of her cubs than to meet some fool busy with a stupid project.
13 If a man returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house.
13
If you repay good with evil, you will never get evil out of your house.
14 The beginning of strife is like letting out water; so quit before the quarrel breaks out.
14
The start of an argument is like the first break in a dam; stop it before it goes any further.
15 He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the LORD.
15
Condemning the innocent or letting the wicked go - both are hateful to the Lord.
16 Why should a fool have a price in his hand to buy wisdom, when he has no mind?
16
It does a fool no good to spend money on an education, because he has no common sense.
17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
17
Friends always show their love. What are relatives for if not to share trouble?
18 A man without sense gives a pledge, and becomes surety in the presence of his neighbor.
18
Only someone with no sense would promise to be responsible for someone else's debts.
19 He who loves transgression loves strife; he who makes his door high seeks destruction.
19
To like sin is to like making trouble. If you brag all the time, you are asking for trouble.
20 A man of crooked mind does not prosper, and one with a perverse tongue falls into calamity.
20
Anyone who thinks and speaks evil can expect to find nothing good - only disaster.
21 A stupid son is a grief to a father; and the father of a fool has no joy.
21
There is nothing but sadness and sorrow for parents whose children do foolish things.
22 A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.
22
Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time.
23 A wicked man accepts a bribe from the bosom to pervert the ways of justice.
23
Corrupt judges accept secret bribes, and then justice is not done.
24 A man of understanding sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
24
An intelligent person aims at wise action, but a fool starts off in many directions.
25 A foolish son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him.
25
Foolish children bring grief to their fathers and bitter regrets to their mothers.
26 To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good; to flog noble men is wrong.
26
It is not right to make an innocent person pay a fine; justice is perverted when good people are punished.
27 He who restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
27
Those who are sure of themselves do not talk all the time. People who stay calm have real insight.
28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.
28
After all, even fools may be thought wise and intelligent if they stay quiet and keep their mouths shut.
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.