Proverbs 13
1 A wise son—the instruction of a father, And a scorner—he has not heard rebuke.
A wise son heeds his father’s discipline, but a mocker does not listen to rebuke.
2 A man eats good from the fruit of the mouth, And the soul of the treacherous—violence.
From the fruit of his lips a man enjoys good things, but the desire of the faithless is violence.
3 Whoever is keeping his mouth, is keeping his soul, Whoever is opening wide his lips—ruin to him!
He who guards his mouth protects his life, but the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin.
4 The soul of the slothful is desiring, and does not have. And the soul of the diligent is made fat.
The slacker craves yet has nothing, but the soul of the diligent is fully satisfied.
5 The righteous hates a false word, And the wicked causes abhorrence, and is confounded.
The righteous hate falsehood, but the wicked bring shame and disgrace.
6 Righteousness keeps him who is perfect in the way, And wickedness overthrows a sin offering.
Righteousness guards the man of integrity, but wickedness undermines the sinner.
7 There is [he] who is making himself rich, and has nothing, Who is making himself poor, and wealth [is] abundant.
One pretends to be rich, but has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.
8 The ransom of a man’s life [are] his riches, And the poor has not heard rebuke.
Riches may ransom a man’s life, but a poor man hears no threat.
9 The light of the righteous rejoices, And the lamp of the wicked is extinguished.
The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is extinguished.
10 A vain man causes debate through pride, And wisdom [is] with the counseled.
Arrogance leads only to strife, but wisdom is with the well-advised.
11 Wealth from vanity becomes little, And whoever is gathering by the hand becomes great.
Dishonest wealth will dwindle, but what is earned through hard work will be multiplied.
12 Hope prolonged is making the heart sick, And a tree of life [is] the coming desire.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
13 Whoever is despising the word is destroyed for it, And whoever is fearing the command is repaid.
He who despises instruction will pay the penalty, but the one who respects a command will be rewarded.
14 The law of the wise [is] a fountain of life, To turn aside from snares of death.
The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning one from the snares of death.
15 Good understanding gives grace, And the way of the treacherous [is] hard.
Good understanding wins favor, but the way of the faithless is difficult.
16 Every prudent one deals with knowledge, And a fool spreads out folly.
Every prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool displays his folly.
17 A wicked messenger falls into evil, And a faithful ambassador is healing.
A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing.
18 Whoever is refusing instruction—poverty and shame, And whoever is observing reproof is honored.
Poverty and shame come to him who ignores discipline, but whoever heeds correction is honored.
19 A desire accomplished is sweet to the soul, And an abomination to fools [Is] to turn from evil.
Desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but turning from evil is detestable to fools.
20 Whoever is walking with wise men is wise, And a companion of fools suffers evil.
He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.
21 Evil pursues sinners, And good repays the righteous.
Disaster pursues sinners, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous.
22 A good man causes sons’ sons to inherit, And the sinner’s wealth [is] laid up for the righteous.
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.
23 Abundance of food—the tillage of the poor, And substance is consumed without judgment.
Abundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor, but without justice it is swept away.
24 Whoever is sparing his rod is hating his son, And whoever is loving him has hurried his discipline.
He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently.
25 The righteous is eating to the satiety of his soul, And the belly of the wicked lacks!
A righteous man eats to his heart’s content, but the stomach of the wicked is empty.
