221 A good name is to be more desired than great wealth , Favor is better than silver and gold .

2 The rich and the poor have a common bond , The Lord is the maker of them all .

3 The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.

4 The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord Are riches , honor and life .

5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse ; He who guards himself will be far from them.

6 Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.

7 The rich rules over the poor , And the borrower becomes the lender's slave .

8 He who sows iniquity will reap vanity , And the rod of his fury will perish .

9 He who is generous e will be blessed , For he gives some of his food to the poor .

10 Drive out the scoffer , and contention will go out, Even strife and dishonor will cease .

11 He who loves purity of heart And whose speech is gracious , the king is his friend .

12 The eyes of the Lord preserve knowledge , But He overthrows the words of the treacherous man.

13 The sluggard says , "There is a lion outside ; I will be killed in the streets !"

14 The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit ; He who is cursed of the Lord will fall into it.

15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child ; The rod of discipline will remove it far from him.

16 He who oppresses the poor to make more for himself Or who gives to the rich , will only come to poverty .

Precepts and Warnings

17 Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise , And apply your mind to my knowledge ; 18 For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be ready on your lips . 19 So that your trust may be in the Lord , I have taught you today , even you. 20 Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge , 21 To make you know the certainty of the words of truth That you may correctly answer him who sent you?

22 Do not rob the poor because he is poor , Or crush the afflicted at the gate ; 23 For the Lord will plead their case And take the life of those who rob them.

24 Do not associate with a man given to anger ; Or go with a hot-tempered man , 25 Or you will learn his ways And find a snare for yourself .

26 Do not be among those who give e pledges e , Among those who become guarantors for debts . 27 If you have nothing with which to pay , Why should he take your bed from under you?

28 Do not move the ancient boundary Which your fathers have set .

29 Do you see a man skilled in his work ? He will stand before kings ; He will not stand before obscure men .

231 When you sit down to dine with a ruler , Consider carefully what is before you, 2 And put a knife to your throat If you are a man of great appetite . 3 Do not desire his delicacies , For it is deceptive food .

4 Do not weary yourself to gain wealth , Cease from your consideration of it 5 When you set your eyes on it, it is gone . For wealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens .

6 Do not eat the bread of a selfish e man , Or desire his delicacies ; 7 For as he thinks within himself , so he is. He says to you, "Eat and drink !" But his heart is not with you. 8 You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten , And waste your compliments .

9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool , For he will despise the wisdom of your words .

10 Do not move the ancient boundary Or go into the fields of the fatherless , 11 For their Redeemer is strong ; He will plead their case against you.

12 Apply your heart to discipline And your ears to words of knowledge . 13 Do not hold back discipline from the child , although you strike him with the rod , he will not die . 14 You shall strike him with the rod and rescue his soul from Sheol 15 My son , if your heart is wise , My own heart also will be glad ; 16 And my inmost being will rejoice When your lips speak what is right .

17 Do not let your heart envy sinners , But live in the fear of the Lord always e . 18 Surely e there is a future , And your hope will not be cut off .

19 Listen , my son , and be wise , And direct your heart in the way 20 Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine , Or with gluttonous eaters of meat ; 21 For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty , And drowsiness will clothe one with rags 22 Listen to your father who begot you, And do not despise your mother when she is old . 23 Buy truth , and do not sell it, Get wisdom and instruction and understanding . 24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice , And he who sires a wise son will be glad in him. 25 Let your father and your mother be glad , And let her rejoice who gave birth to you. 26 Give me your heart , my son , And let your eyes delight in my ways . 27 For a harlot is a deep pit And an adulterous woman is a narrow well . 28 Surely she lurks as a robber , And increases the faithless among men .

29 Who has woe ? Who has sorrow ? Who has contentions ? Who has complaining ? Who has wounds without cause ? Who has redness of eyes ? 30 Those who linger long over wine , Those who go to taste mixed wine . 31 Do not look on the wine when it is red , When it sparkles e in the cup , When it goes down smoothly ; 32 At the last it bites like a serpent And stings like a viper . 33 Your eyes will see strange things And your mind will utter perverse things . 34 And you will be like one who lies down in the middle of the sea , Or like one who lies down on the top of a mast . 35 "They struck me, but I did not become ill ; They beat me, but I did not know it. When shall I awake ? I will seek another e drink."

241 Do not be envious of evil men , Nor desire to be with them; 2 For their minds devise violence , And their lips talk of trouble .

3 By wisdom a house is built , And by understanding it is established ; 4 And by knowledge the rooms are filled With all precious and pleasant riches . 5 A wise man is strong , And a man of knowledge increases power . 6 For by wise guidance you will wage war , And in abundance of counselors there is victory .

7 Wisdom is too exalted for a fool , He does not open his mouth in the gate . 8 One who plans to do evil , Men will call a schemer e . 9 The devising of folly is sin , And the scoffer is an abomination to men .

10 If you are slack in the day of distress , Your strength is limited .

11 Deliver those who are being taken away to death , And those who are staggering to slaughter , Oh hold them back . 12 If you say , "See , we did not know this ," Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts ? And does He not know it who keeps your soul ? And will He not render to man according to his work ?

13 My son , eat honey , for it is good , Yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste ; 14 Know that wisdom is thus for your soul ; If you find it, then there will be a future , And your hope will not be cut off .

15 Do not lie in wait , O wicked man , against the dwelling of the righteous ; Do not destroy his resting place ; 16 For a righteous man falls seven times , and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of calamity .

17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls , And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles ; 18 Or the Lord will see it and be displeased e , And turn His anger away from him.

19 Do not fret because of evildoers Or be envious of the wicked ; 20 For there will be no future for the evil man ; The lamp of the wicked will be put out.

21 My son , fear the Lord and the king ; Do not associate with those who are given to change , 22 For their calamity will rise suddenly , And who knows the ruin that comes from both of them?

23 These also are sayings of the wise . To show partiality e in judgment is not good . 24 He who says to the wicked , "You are righteous ," Peoples will curse him, nations will abhor him; 25 But to those who rebuke the wicked will be delight , And a good blessing will come upon them. 26 He kisses the lips Who gives a right answer .

27 Prepare your work outside And make it ready for yourself in the field ; Afterwards , then, build your house .

28 Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause , And do not deceive with your lips . 29 Do not say , "Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work ."

30 I passed by the field of the sluggard And by the vineyard of the man lacking sense , 31 And behold , it was completely overgrown with thistles ; Its surface was covered with nettles , And its stone wall was broken down . 32 When I saw , I reflected e upon it; I looked , and received instruction . 33 " A little sleep , a little slumber , A little folding of the hands to rest ," 34 Then your poverty will come as a robber And your want like an armed man .