Proverbs 11:16-31

16 ¹A gracious woman gets honor, and ²violent men get riches.

17 ³A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.

18 The wicked earns deceptive wages, but one who ⁴sows righteousness gets a sure reward.

19 Whoever is steadfast in righteousness ⁵will live, but ⁶he who pursues evil will die.

20 Those of ⁷crooked heart are ⁸an abomination to the LORD, but those of ⁹blameless ways are ¹⁰his delight.

21 ¹¹Be assured, ¹²an evil person will not go unpunished, but ¹³the offspring of the righteous will be delivered.

22 Like ¹⁴a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman without discretion.

23 The desire of the righteous ends only in good; ¹⁵the expectation of the wicked in wrath.

24 ¹⁶One gives ¹⁷freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.

25 ¹⁸Whoever brings blessing ¹⁹will be enriched, and ²⁰one who waters will himself be watered.

26 ²¹The people curse him who holds back grain, but ²²a blessing is on the head of him who ²³sells it.

27 Whoever diligently seeks good seeks favor,^[a] but evil comes to ²⁴him who searches for it.

28 Whoever ²⁵trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will ²⁶flourish like a green leaf.

29 Whoever ²⁷troubles his own household will ²⁸inherit the wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.

30 The fruit of the righteous is ²⁹a tree of life, and whoever ³⁰captures souls is wise.

31 If ³¹the righteous is repaid on earth, how much more the wicked and the sinner!

Cross References

• 1. [Proverbs 31:30]
• 2. [Luke 11:21]
• 3. [Matthew 5:7]; See Matthew 25:34-40
• 4. Hosea 10:12; Galatians 6:8, 9; [James 3:18]
• 5. Proverbs 10:16; Proverbs 19:23
• 6. [Romans 6:23; Galatians 6:8]
• 7. [Proverbs 17:20]
• 8. Proverbs 12:22; Proverbs 16:5
• 9. Proverbs 13:6; Psalms 119:1
• 10. 1 Chronicles 29:17
• 11. Proverbs 16:5
• 12. Proverbs 12:7; [Psalms 37:2, 9]; See Isaiah 28:15-18
• 13. See Psalms 112:2
• 14. [Genesis 24:47; Isaiah 3:21; Ezekiel 16:12]
• 15. Romans 2:8, 9
• 16. Proverbs 13:7
• 17. Psalms 37:21; Psalms 112:9; [Proverbs 19:17]
• 18. See 2 Corinthians 9:6-11
• 19. Proverbs 13:4; Proverbs 28:25
• 20. [Matthew 7:2]
• 21. Proverbs 24:24
• 22. [Job 29:13]
• 23. [Genesis 42:6]
• 24. See Psalms 7:16
• 25. See Psalms 49:6
• 26. Jeremiah 17:8; See Psalms 92:12
• 27. Proverbs 15:27
• 28. [Ecclesiastes 5:16]
• 29. See Proverbs 3:18
• 30. Daniel 12:3; James 5:20; See 1 Corinthians 9:19-22
• 31. [Jeremiah 25:29; 1 Peter 4:18]

Footnotes

• [a]. Or acceptance