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¹In the LORD’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water that he channels toward all who please him.

²A person may think their own ways are right, but the LORD weighs the heart.

³To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

⁴Haughty eyes and a proud heart— the unplowed field of the wicked—produce sin.

⁵The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.

⁶A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare.

⁷The violence of the wicked will drag them away, for they refuse to do what is right.

⁸The way of the guilty is devious, but the conduct of the innocent is upright.

⁹Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

¹⁰The wicked crave evil; their neighbors get no mercy from them.

¹¹When a mocker is punished, the simple gain wisdom; by paying attention to the wise they get knowledge.

¹²The Righteous One takes note of the house of the wicked and brings the wicked to ruin.

¹³Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered.

¹⁴A gift given in secret soothes anger, and a bribe concealed in the cloak pacifies great wrath.

¹⁵When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.

¹⁶Whoever strays from the path of prudence comes to rest in the company of the dead.

¹⁷Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.

¹⁸The wicked become a ransom for the righteous, and the unfaithful for the upright.

¹⁹Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and nagging wife.

²⁰The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.

²¹Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.

²²One who is wise can go up against the city of the mighty and pull down the stronghold in which they trust.

²³Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep themselves from calamity.

²⁴The proud and arrogant person—“Mocker” is his name— behaves with insolent fury.

²⁵The craving of a sluggard will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work.

²⁶All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing.

²⁷The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable— how much more so when brought with evil intent!

²⁸A false witness will perish, but a careful listener will testify successfully.

²⁹The wicked put up a bold front, but the upright give thought to their ways.

³⁰There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.

³¹The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the LORD.

¹A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.

²Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all.

³The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

⁴Humility is the fear of the LORD; its wages are riches and honor and life.

⁵In the paths of the wicked are snares and pitfalls, but those who would preserve their life stay far from them.

⁶Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

⁷The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

⁸Whoever sows injustice reaps calamity, and the rod they wield in fury will be broken.

⁹The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor.

¹⁰Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended.

¹¹One who loves a pure heart and who speaks with grace will have the king for a friend.

¹²The eyes of the LORD keep watch over knowledge, but he frustrates the words of the unfaithful.

¹³The sluggard says, “There’s a lion outside! I’ll be killed in the public square!”

¹⁴The mouth of an adulterous woman is a deep pit; a man who is under the LORD’s wrath falls into it.

¹⁵Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far away.

¹⁶One who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and one who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty.

¹⁷Pay attention and turn your ear to the sayings of the wise; apply your heart to what I teach,

¹⁸for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart and have all of them ready on your lips.

¹⁹So that your trust may be in the LORD, I teach you today, even you.

²⁰Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge,

²¹teaching you to be honest and to speak the truth, so that you bring back truthful reports to those you serve?

²²Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy in court,

²³for the LORD will take up their case and will exact life for life.

²⁴Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered,

²⁵or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared.

²⁶Do not be one who shakes hands in pledge or puts up security for debts;

²⁷if you lack the means to pay, your very bed will be snatched from under you.

²⁸Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your ancestors.

²⁹Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank.

¹When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you,

²and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.

³Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.

⁴Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.

⁵Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

⁶Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies;

⁷for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost. “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is not with you.

⁸You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments.

⁹Do not speak to fools, for they will scorn your prudent words.

¹⁰Do not move an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless,

¹¹for their Defender is strong; he will take up their case against you.

¹²Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.

¹³Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.

¹⁴Punish them with the rod and save them from death.

¹⁵My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad indeed;

¹⁶my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right.

¹⁷Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD.

¹⁸There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁹Listen, my son, and be wise, and set your heart on the right path:

²⁰Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat,

²¹for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

²²Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

²³Buy the truth and do not sell it— wisdom, instruction and insight as well.

²⁴The father of a righteous child has great joy; a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.

²⁵May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful!

²⁶My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways,

²⁷for an adulterous woman is a deep pit, and a wayward wife is a narrow well.

²⁸Like a bandit she lies in wait and multiplies the unfaithful among men.

²⁹Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

³⁰Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.

³¹Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly!

³²In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.

³³Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things.

³⁴You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging.

³⁵“They hit me,” you will say, “but I’m not hurt! They beat me, but I don’t feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?”