¹ An unfriendly person pursues selfish ends
and against all sound judgment starts quarrels.
² Fools find no pleasure in understanding
but delight in airing their own opinions.
³ When wickedness comes, so does contempt,
and with shame comes reproach.
⁴ The words of the mouth are deep waters,
but the fountain of wisdom is a rushing stream.
⁵ It is not good to be partial to the wicked
and so deprive the innocent of justice.
⁶ The lips of fools bring them strife,
and their mouths invite a beating.
⁷ The mouths of fools are their undoing,
and their lips are a snare to their very lives.
⁸ The words of a gossip are like choice morsels;
they go down to the inmost parts.
⁹ One who is slack in his work
is brother to one who destroys.
¹⁰ The name of the Lord is a fortified tower;
the righteous run to it and are safe.
¹¹ The wealth of the rich is their fortified city;
they imagine it a wall too high to scale.
¹² Before a downfall the heart is haughty,
but humility comes before honor.
¹³ To answer before listening—
that is folly and shame.
¹⁴ The human spirit can endure in sickness,
but a crushed spirit who can bear?
¹⁵ The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge,
for the ears of the wise seek it out.
¹⁶ A gift opens the way
and ushers the giver into the presence of the great.
¹⁷ In a lawsuit the first to speak seems right,
until someone comes forward and cross-examines.
¹⁸ Casting the lot settles disputes
and keeps strong opponents apart.
¹⁹ A brother wronged is more unyielding than a fortified city;
disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel.
²⁰ From the fruit of their mouth a person’s stomach is filled;
with the harvest of their lips they are satisfied.
²¹ The tongue has the power of life and death,
and those who love it will eat its fruit.
²² He who finds a wife finds what is good
and receives favor from the Lord.
²³ The poor plead for mercy,
but the rich answer harshly.
²⁴ One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin,
but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.