Proverbs 11
1 Balances of deceit [are] an abomination to YHWH, And a perfect weight [is] His delight.
Scales of deceit are hated by the Lord, but a true weight is his delight.
2 Pride has come, and shame comes, And wisdom [is] with the lowly.
When pride comes, there comes shame, but wisdom is with the quiet in spirit.
3 The integrity of the upright leads them, And the perverseness of the treacherous destroys them.
The righteousness of the upright will be their guide, but the twisted ways of the false will be their destruction.
4 Wealth does not profit in a day of wrath, And righteousness delivers from death.
Wealth is of no profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness keeps a man safe from death.
5 The righteousness of the perfect makes his way right, And by his wickedness the wicked fall.
The righteousness of the good man will make his way straight, but the sin of the evil-doer will be the cause of his fall.
6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, And in mischief the treacherous are captured.
The righteousness of the upright will be their salvation, but the false will themselves be taken in their evil designs.
7 In the death of a wicked man, hope perishes, And the expectation of the iniquitous has been lost.
At the death of an upright man his hope does not come to an end, but the hope of the evil-doer comes to destruction.
8 The righteous is drawn out from distress, And the wicked goes in instead of him.
The upright man is taken out of trouble, and in his place comes the sinner.
9 A hypocrite corrupts his friend with the mouth, And the righteous are drawn out by knowledge.
With his mouth the evil man sends destruction on his neighbour; but through knowledge the upright are taken out of trouble.
10 A city exults in the good of the righteous, And in the destruction of the wicked [is] singing.
When things go well for the upright man, all the town is glad; at the death of sinners, there are cries of joy.
11 By the blessing of the upright is a city exalted, And by the mouth of the wicked thrown down.
By the blessing of the upright man the town is made great, but it is overturned by the mouth of the evil-doer.
12 Whoever is despising his neighbor lacks heart, And a man of understanding keeps silence.
He who has a poor opinion of his neighbour has no sense, but a wise man keeps quiet.
13 A busybody is revealing secret counsel, And the faithful of spirit is covering the matter.
He who goes about talking of others makes secrets public, but the true-hearted man keeps things covered.
14 Without counsels a people falls, And deliverance [is] in a multitude of counselors.
When there is no helping suggestion the people will have a fall, but with a number of wise guides they will be safe.
15 An evil [one] suffers when he has been guarantor [for] a stranger, And whoever hates striking hands [in agreement] is confident.
He who makes himself responsible for a strange man will undergo much loss; but the hater of such undertakings will be safe.
16 A gracious woman retains honor, And terrible [men] retain riches.
A woman who is full of grace is honoured, but a woman hating righteousness is a seat of shame: those hating work will undergo loss, but the strong keep their wealth.
17 A kind man is rewarding his own soul, And the fierce is troubling his own flesh.
The man who has mercy will be rewarded, but the cruel man is the cause of trouble to himself.
18 The wicked is getting a lying wage, And whoever is sowing righteousness—a true reward.
The sinner gets the payment of deceit; but his reward is certain who puts in the seed of righteousness.
19 Correctly [is] righteousness for life, And whoever is pursuing evil—for his own death.
So righteousness gives life; but he who goes after evil gets death for himself.
20 The perverse of heart are an abomination to YHWH, And the perfect of the way [are] His delight.
The uncontrolled are hated by the Lord, but those whose ways are without error are his delight
21 Hand to hand, the wicked is not acquitted, And the seed of the righteous has escaped.
Certainly the evil-doer will not go free from punishment, but the seed of the upright man will be safe.
22 A ring of gold in the nose of a sow—A beautiful woman and stubborn of behavior.
Like a ring of gold in the nose of a pig, is a beautiful woman who has no sense.
23 The desire of the righteous [is] only good, The hope of the wicked [is] transgression.
The desire of the upright man is only for good, but wrath is waiting for the evil-doer.
24 There is [one] who is scattering, and yet is increased, And [one] who is keeping back from uprightness, only to want.
A man may give freely, and still his wealth will be increased; and another may keep back more than is right, but only comes to be in need.
25 A liberal soul is made fat, And whoever is watering, he also is watered.
He who gives blessing will be made fat, but the curser will himself be cursed.
26 Whoever is withholding grain, the people execrate him, And a blessing [is] for the head of him who is selling.
He who keeps back grain will be cursed by the people; but a blessing will be on the head of him who lets them have it for a price.
27 Whoever is earnestly seeking good Seeks a pleasing thing, And whoever is seeking evil—it meets him.
He who, with all his heart, goes after what is good is searching for grace; but he who is looking for trouble will get it.
28 Whoever is confident in his wealth falls, And as a leaf, the righteous flourish.
He who puts his faith in wealth will come to nothing; but the upright man will be full of growth like the green leaf.
29 Whoever is troubling his own house inherits wind, And the fool [is] a servant to the wise of heart.
The troubler of his house will have the wind for his heritage, and the foolish will be servant to the wise-hearted.
30 The fruit of the righteous [is] a tree of life, And whoever is taking souls [is] wise.
The fruit of righteousness is a tree of life, but violent behaviour takes away souls.
31 Behold, the righteous is repaid in the earth, Surely also the wicked and the sinner!
If the upright man is rewarded on earth, how much more the evil-doer and the sinner!
