Proverbs 27:6-16

6 Friends mean well, even when they hurt you. But when an enemy puts his arm around your shoulder - watch out!
7 When you are full, you will refuse honey, but when you are hungry, even bitter food tastes sweet.
8 Anyone away from home is like a bird away from its nest.
9 Perfume and fragrant oils make you feel happier, but trouble shatters your peace of mind.
10 Do not forget your friends or your father's friends. If you are in trouble, don't ask a relative for help; a nearby neighbor can help you more than relatives who are far away.
11 Be wise, my child, and I will be happy; I will have an answer for anyone who criticizes me.
12 Sensible people will see trouble coming and avoid it, but an unthinking person will walk right into it and regret it later.
13 Any people stupid enough to promise to be responsible for a stranger's debts deserve to have their own property held to guarantee payment.
14 You might as well curse your friends as wake them up early in the morning with a loud greeting.
15 A nagging wife is like water going drip-drip-drip on a rainy day.
16 How can you keep her quiet? Have you ever tried to stop the wind or ever tried to hold a handful of oil?

Footnotes 3

  • [a]. [One ancient translation] but trouble . . . mind; [Hebrew unclear.]
  • [b]. [One ancient translation] stranger's debts; [Hebrew] stranger's debts or those of an immoral woman.
  • [c]. [Probable text] or ever . . . oil; [Hebrew unclear.]
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.