13¹ A wise son hears his father's instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

² From the fruit of his mouth a good man eats good, but the desire of the treacherous is for violence.

³ He who guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

⁴ The soul of the sluggard craves, and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

⁵ A righteous man hates falsehood, but a wicked man acts shamefully and disgracefully.

⁶ Righteousness guards him whose way is upright, but sin overthrows the wicked.

⁷ One man pretends to be rich, yet has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.

⁸ The ransom of a man's life is his wealth, but a poor man has no means of redemption.

⁹ The light of the righteous rejoices, but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.

¹⁰ By insolence the heedless make strife, but with those who take advice is wisdom.

¹¹ Wealth hastily gotten will dwindle, but he who gathers little by little will increase it.

¹² Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

¹³ He who despises the word brings destruction on himself, but he who respects the commandment will be rewarded.

¹⁴ The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death.

¹⁵ Good sense wins favor, but the way of the faithless is their ruin.

¹⁶ In everything a prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.

¹⁷ A bad messenger plunges men into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing.

¹⁸ Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction, but he who heeds reproof is honored.

¹⁹ A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul; but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.

²⁰ He who walks with wise men becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.

²¹ Misfortune pursues sinners, but prosperity rewards the righteous.

²² A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, but the sinner's wealth is laid up for the righteous.

²³ The fallow ground of the poor yields much food, but it is swept away through injustice.

²⁴ He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

²⁵ The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite, but the belly of the wicked suffers want.

14¹ Wisdom builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down.

² He who walks in uprightness fears the Lord, but he who is devious in his ways despises him.

³ The talk of a fool is a rod for his back, but the lips of the wise will preserve them.

⁴ Where there are no oxen, there is no grain; but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

⁵ A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness breathes out lies.

⁶ A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain, but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.

⁷ Leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not meet words of knowledge.

⁸ The wisdom of a prudent man is to discern his way, but the folly of fools is deceiving.

⁹ God scorns the wicked, but the upright enjoy his favor.

¹⁰ The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares its joy.

¹¹ The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the upright will flourish.

¹² There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

¹³ Even in laughter the heart is sad, and the end of joy is grief.

¹⁴ A perverse man will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man with the fruit of his deeds.

¹⁵ The simple believes everything, but the prudent looks where he is going.

¹⁶ A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool throws off restraint and is careless.

¹⁷ A man of quick temper acts foolishly, but a man of discretion is patient.

¹⁸ The simple acquire folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.

¹⁹ The evil bow down before the good, the wicked at the gates of the righteous.

²⁰ The poor is disliked even by his neighbor, but the rich has many friends.

²¹ He who despises his neighbor is a sinner, but happy is he who is kind to the poor.

²² Do they not err that devise evil? Those who devise good meet loyalty and faithfulness.

²³ In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to want.

²⁴ The crown of the wise is their wisdom, but folly is the garland of fools.

²⁵ A truthful witness saves lives, but one who utters lies is a betrayer.

²⁶ In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge. ²⁷ The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death.

²⁸ In a multitude of people is the glory of a king, but without people a prince is ruined.

²⁹ He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

³⁰ A tranquil mind gives life to the flesh, but passion makes the bones rot.

³¹ He who oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors him.

³² The wicked is overthrown through his evil-doing, but the righteous finds refuge through his integrity.

³³ Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding, but it is not known in the heart of fools.

³⁴ Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.

³⁵ A servant who deals wisely has the king's favor, but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

15¹ A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

² The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge, but the mouths of fools pour out folly.

³ The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

⁴ A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

⁵ A fool despises his father's instruction, but he who heeds admonition is prudent.

⁶ In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.

⁷ The lips of the wise spread knowledge; not so the minds of fools.

⁸ The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is his delight.

⁹ The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but he loves him who pursues righteousness.

¹⁰ There is severe discipline for him who forsakes the way; he who hates reproof will die.

¹¹ Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the Lord, how much more the hearts of men!

¹² A scoffer does not like to be reproved; he will not go to the wise.

¹³ A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.

¹⁴ The mind of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouths of fools feed on folly.

¹⁵ All the days of the afflicted are evil, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.

¹⁶ Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble with it. ¹⁷ Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it.

¹⁸ A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

¹⁹ The way of a sluggard is overgrown with thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway.

²⁰ A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish man despises his mother.

²¹ Folly is a joy to him who has no sense, but a man of understanding walks aright.

²² Without counsel plans go wrong, but with many advisers they succeed.

²³ To make an apt answer is a joy to a man, and a word in season, how good it is!

²⁴ The wise man's path leads upward to life, that he may avoid Sheol beneath.

²⁵ The Lord tears down the house of the proud, but maintains the widow's boundaries.

²⁶ The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, the words of the pure are pleasing to him.

²⁷ He who is greedy for unjust gain makes trouble for his household, but he who hates bribes will live.

²⁸ The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

²⁹ The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

³⁰ The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the bones.

³¹ He whose ear heeds wholesome admonition will abide among the wise.

³² He who ignores instruction despises himself, but he who heeds admonition gains understanding.

³³ The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility goes before honor.

5¹ For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² Here indeed we groan, and long to put on our heavenly dwelling, ³ so that by putting it on we may not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are still in this tent, we sigh with anxiety; not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. ⁶ So we are always of good courage; we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive good or evil, according to what he has done in the body.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

¹¹ Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men; but what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.

¹² We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to be proud of us, so that you may be able to answer those who pride themselves on a man's position and not on his heart. ¹³ For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. ¹⁴ For the love of Christ controls us, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. ¹⁵ And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

¹⁶ From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once regarded Christ from a human point of view, we regard him thus no longer. ¹⁷ Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come. ¹⁸ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹ that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ So we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. ²¹ For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.