Proverbs 14-15

14The wise woman builds her house,
but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.
²Those who walk uprightly fear the Lord,
but one who is devious in conduct despises him.
³The talk of fools is a rod for their backs,
but the lips of the wise preserve them.
⁴Where there are no oxen, there is no grain;
abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.
⁵A faithful witness does not lie,
but a false witness breathes out lies.
⁶A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,
but knowledge is easy for one who understands.
⁷Leave the presence of a fool,
for there you do not find words of knowledge.
⁸It is the wisdom of the clever to understand where they go,
but the folly of fools misleads.
⁹Fools mock at the guilt offering,
but the upright enjoy God’s favor.
¹⁰The heart knows its own bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
¹¹The house of the wicked is destroyed,
but the tent of the upright flourishes.
¹²There is a way that seems right to a person,
but its end is the way to death.
¹³Even in laughter the heart is sad,
and the end of joy is grief.
¹⁴The perverse get what their ways deserve,
and the good, what their deeds deserve.
¹⁵The simple believe everything,
but the clever consider their steps.
¹⁶The wise are cautious and turn away from evil,
but the fool throws off restraint and is careless.
¹⁷One who is quick-tempered acts foolishly,
and the schemer is hated.
¹⁸The simple are adorned with folly,
but the clever are crowned with knowledge.
¹⁹The evil bow down before the good,
the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
²⁰The poor are disliked even by their neighbors,
but the rich have many friends.
²¹Those who despise their neighbors are sinners,
but happy are those who are kind to the poor.
²²Do they not err that plan evil?
Those who plan good find loyalty and faithfulness.
²³In all toil there is profit,
but mere talk leads only to poverty.
²⁴The crown of the wise is their wisdom,
but folly is the garland of fools.
²⁵A truthful witness saves lives,
but one who utters lies is a betrayer.
²⁶In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,
and one’s children will have a refuge.
²⁷The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
so that one may avoid the snares of death.
²⁸The glory of a king is a multitude of people;
without people a prince is ruined.
²⁹Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding,
but one who has a hasty temper exalts folly.
³⁰A tranquil mind gives life to the flesh,
but passion makes the bones rot.
³¹Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker,
but those who are kind to the needy honor him.
³²The wicked are overthrown by their evildoing,
but the righteous find a refuge in their integrity.
³³Wisdom is at home in the mind of one who has understanding,
but it is not known in the heart of fools.
³⁴Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a reproach to any people.
³⁵A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor,
but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.
15A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
²The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge,
but the mouths of fools pour out folly.
³The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.
⁴A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
⁵A fool despises a parent’s instruction,
but the one who heeds admonition is prudent.
⁶In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,
but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.
⁷The lips of the wise spread knowledge;
not so the minds of fools.
⁸The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
⁹The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but he loves the one who pursues righteousness.
¹⁰There is severe discipline for one who forsakes the way,
but one who hates a rebuke will die.
¹¹Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the Lord,
how much more human hearts!
¹²Scoffers do not like to be rebuked;
they will not go to the wise.
¹³A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance,
but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.
¹⁴The mind of one who has understanding seeks knowledge,
but the mouths of fools feed on folly.
¹⁵All the days of the poor are hard,
but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.
¹⁶Better is a little with the fear of the Lord
than great treasure and trouble with it.
¹⁷Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is
than a fatted ox and hatred with it.
¹⁸Those who are hot-tempered stir up strife,
but those who are slow to anger calm contention.
¹⁹The way of the lazy is overgrown with thorns,
but the path of the upright is a level highway.
²⁰A wise child makes a glad father,
but the foolish despise their mothers.
²¹Folly is a joy to one who has no sense,
but a person of understanding walks straight ahead.
²²Without counsel, plans go wrong,
but with many advisers they succeed.
²³To make an apt answer is a joy to anyone,
and a word in season, how good it is!
²⁴For the wise the path of life leads upward,
in order to avoid Sheol below.
²⁵The Lord tears down the house of the proud,
but maintains the widow’s boundaries.
²⁶Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord,
but gracious words are pure.
²⁷Those who are greedy for unjust gain make trouble for their households,
but those who hate bribes will live.
²⁸The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer,
but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil.
²⁹The Lord is far from the wicked,
but he hears the prayer of the righteous.
³⁰The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
and good news refreshes the body.
³¹The ear that heeds wholesome admonition
will lodge among the wise.
³²Those who ignore instruction despise themselves,
but those who heed admonition gain understanding.
³³The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom,
and humility goes before honor.

From the oremus Bible Browser https://bible.oremus.org v2.9.2 30 June 2021.