Proverbs 19 Cross References - LEB

¹ Better a poor person walking in integrity than one who is perverse _⌊in his speech_⌋* and is a fool. ² Also, a life* without knowledge is not good, and he who moves quickly with his feet _⌊misses the mark_⌋.* ³ As for the folly of humankind, its way leads to ruin, and against Yahweh his heart* will rage. ⁴ Wealth adds many friends, but the poor will be left by his friends. ⁵ A witness of falsehood will not go unpunished, and he who breathes lies will not escape. ⁶ Many will seek favor before the generous, and everyone is the friend of a man of gifts.* ⁷ All the brothers of the poor, if they hate him, how much more will his friends keep away from him. He pursues them with words, and they are gone.* ⁸ He who acquires wisdom loves himself;* he who guards understanding loves to find good. ⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes lies will perish. ¹⁰ For a fool living in luxury is not fitting, any more than it is for a slave to rule over princes. ¹¹ The understanding of a person makes him slow to his _⌊anger_⌋,* and his glory overlooks offense. ¹² The rage of a king growls like a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass. ¹³ A foolish child is a ruin to his father, and the quarreling of a woman* is a continuous dripping. ¹⁴ A house and wealth are an inheritance from fathers, but from Yahweh comes a woman* who is prudent. ¹⁵ Laziness will bring on a deep sleep, and a person* of idleness will suffer hunger. ¹⁶ He who guards commandments guards his life;* he who is careless of his ways will be killed. ¹⁷ He who lends to Yahweh is he who is kind to the poor, and his benefits he will repay to him. ¹⁸ Discipline your child, for there is hope, but on his destruction do not set your desire.* ¹⁹ A hot-tempered person pays a penalty; if you rescue him, you will do it yet again. ²⁰ Listen to advice and accept instruction so that you will gain wisdom for your _⌊future_⌋.* ²¹ Many plans are in the heart* of a man, but the purpose of Yahweh will be established. ²² The craving of a man is his steadfast loyalty, and it is better to be poor than a _⌊liar_⌋.* ²³ Fear of Yahweh leads to life; he who is filled with it will rest—he will not suffer harm. ²⁴ A lazy person buries his hand in the dish, and even to his mouth he will not bring it back. ²⁵ The scoffer you shall strike, and the simple, may they learn prudence, and reprove the intelligent and he will gain knowledge. ²⁶ He who does violence to a father, he who chases away a mother, is a child who causes shame and brings reproach. ²⁷ Cease to listen to instruction, my child, _⌊and you will stray_⌋* from sayings of knowledge. ²⁸ A worthless witness will mock justice, and the mouth of the wicked will devour iniquity. ²⁹ Judgments* are prepared for the scoffers, and flogging for the back of fools.

¹⁷ And so then, know and _⌊consider_⌋* what you should do, for evil has been decided against our master and against all his household, and he is such _⌊a wicked man_⌋,* _⌊nobody can reason with him_⌋!"*

²⁵ Please do not let my lord set his heart against _⌊this worthless man_⌋,* Nabal; for as his name, so is he. Nabal is his name, and stupidity is with him! But I, your female servant, did not see the young men* of my lord whom you sent.

¹¹ But as for me, I will walk in my integrity. Redeem me and be gracious to me.

²⁶ All the day he is gracious and lends, and his children are a blessing.

²⁶ A righteous person will seek out his neighbor, but the way of the wicked will lead them astray.

² He who walks in uprightness fears Yahweh, but he who is devious in his ways displeases him.

¹⁶ Better is little with the fear of Yahweh than great treasure and trouble with it.*

⁸ Better is little with righteousness than great income with no justice.

²² The craving of a man is his steadfast loyalty, and it is better to be poor than a _⌊liar_⌋.*

⁷ He who walks in his integrity is righteous; happy are his children who follow him.

⁶ Better to be poor and walking in one's integrity than to be crooked of ways when one is rich.

³ For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity. Your lips have spoken lies, your tongue speaks wickedness.

³¹ For this reason I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven! ³² And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him either in this age or in the coming one! ³³ "Either make the tree good and its fruit is good, or make the tree bad and its fruit is bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. ³⁴ Offspring of vipers! How are you able to say good things when you* are evil? For from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

²⁶ For what will a person be benefited if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what will a person give in exchange for his life?

⁵ Listen, my dear brothers! Did not God choose the poor of the world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? ⁶ But you have dishonored the poor! Are not the rich exploiting you and they themselves dragging you into the courts?

⁵ "If I have walked with falseness, and my foot has hastened to deceit,

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed blood,

²¹ Lips of righteousness feed many, but fools _⌊die for lack of sense_⌋.*

²⁹ He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but the hasty of spirit* exalts folly.

⁵ The plans of the diligent only lead to abundance, but all who are hasty, only to want.

⁸ do not hastily bring out to court, for* what will you do at its end, when your neighbor puts you to shame?

²⁰ A man of faithfulness has abundant blessings, but he who hurries to become rich will not go unpunished.

²² He who hurries for wealth is _⌊a man with an evil eye_⌋,* but he does not know that poverty will come upon him.

²⁰ You see a man who is hasty in his words: there is more hope for a fool than him.

⁹ Do not be quick in your spirit to anger, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.

⁹ The Teacher* was full of wisdom, and he taught the people with knowledge. He carefully considered many proverbs and carefully arranged them.

¹¹ _⌊When its branches are dry_⌋,* they are broken; women are coming and setting light to it.
For it is not a people of understanding;
therefore his maker will not have compassion on him, and his creator will not show him favor.

¹⁶ Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this:
"Look! I am laying a stone in Zion, a _⌊tested_⌋* stone, a precious cornerstone, a founded foundation:
'The one who trusts will not _⌊panic_⌋.'*

⁶ My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from acting as a priest for me.* And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children.*

³ And they will do these things because they do not know the Father or me.

² For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

⁹ And this I pray: that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment,

⁶ When* the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and the tree was desirable to make one wise, then* she took from its fruit and she ate. And she gave it also to her husband with her, and he ate. ⁷ Then* the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed together fig leaves and they made for themselves coverings. ⁸ Then* they heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden _⌊at the windy time of day_⌋.* And the man* and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ And Yahweh God called to the man* and said to him, "Where are you?" ¹⁰ And he replied,* "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid because I am naked, so I hid myself." ¹¹ Then he* asked,* "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from _⌊the tree from which I forbade you to eat_⌋?"* ¹² And the man* replied,* "The woman whom you gave to be with me—she gave to me from the tree and I ate."

⁵ but to Cain and to his offering he did not look with favor. And Cain became very angry, and his face fell. ⁶ And Yahweh said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why is your face fallen? ⁷ If you do well _⌊will I not accept you_⌋?* But if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. And its desire is for you, but you must rule over it." ⁸ Then* Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let us go out into the field."* And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. ⁹ Then* Yahweh said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" And he said, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" ¹⁰ And he said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground. ¹¹ So now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive the blood of your brother from your hand. ¹² When you till the ground _⌊it shall no longer yield its strength to you_⌋.* You shall be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth." ¹³ And Cain said to Yahweh, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. ¹⁴ Look, you have driven me out today from the face of the ground, and from your face I must hide. I will be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth, and it will happen that whoever finds me will kill me."

¹⁹ And Korah summoned them, the entire community, by the doorway of the tent of assembly, and the glory of Yahweh appeared to all the community. ²⁰ And Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ²¹ "Separate yourselves from the midst of this community, that I can destroy them in a moment." ²² And they fell on their faces, and they said, "God, God of the spirits of all flesh, will one man sin and you become angry toward the entire community?" ²³ Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁴ "Speak to the community, saying, 'Move away from the dwelling of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.'" ²⁵ So Moses stood up and went to Dathan and Abiram; the elders of Israel followed after him. ²⁶ He said to the community, saying, "Please turn away from the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything _⌊that belongs to them_⌋,* or you will be destroyed with all their sins." ²⁷ And so they moved away from around the dwellings* of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out standing at the doorway of their tents, with their wives, sons, and little children. ²⁸ And Moses said, "In this you will know that Yahweh has sent me to do all these works; it is not from my heart. ²⁹ _⌊If they die a natural death_⌋* or _⌊if a natural fate is visited upon them_⌋,* Yahweh has not sent me. ³⁰ But if Yahweh creates something new, and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up and _⌊all that belongs to them_⌋,* and they go down alive to Sheol, and you will know that these men have despised Yahweh." ³¹ And it happened, as soon as he finished _⌊speaking_⌋* all these words, the ground that was under them split open. ³² The land opened its mouth and swallowed them up with their houses and every person _⌊that belonged to Korah_⌋* and all the property. ³³ They went down alive to Sheol, they and all that belonged to them, and the land covered over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. ³⁴ All Israel who were around them fled at their cry, because they said, "Lest the land swallow us up!" ³⁵ And fire went out from Yahweh, and it consumed the two hundred and fifty men presenting the incense. ³⁶ * And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁷ "Say to Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, '_⌊Take out_⌋* the censers from among the place of burning because they are sacred, and scatter the fire outside. ³⁸ The censers of these _⌊who have sinned_⌋* at the cost of their lives, let them be made into gilded leafing plating for the altar; because they presented them _⌊before Yahweh_⌋,* they are holy; and they will be a sign for the _⌊Israelites_⌋.'"* ³⁹ Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the ones who were burned presented, and they hammered them out thinly as plating for the altar; ⁴⁰ it was a memorial for the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* so that _⌊no strange man_⌋* who is not from _⌊the offspring_⌋* of Aaron should approach the presence of Yahweh to burn a smoke offering;* he will not be like Korah and his company, just as Yahweh had spoken to him by the hand of Moses.* ⁴¹ The next day all the community of the _⌊Israelites_⌋* grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, "You have killed the people of Yahweh!"

¹² And the _⌊Israelites_⌋* said to Moses, saying, "Look! We will die! We will be destroyed! All of us will perish! ¹³ Anyone who approaches the tabernacle of Yahweh will die. _⌊Will we all die_⌋?"*

¹³ Then Samuel said to Saul, "You have behaved foolishly! You have not kept the command of Yahweh your God which he commanded you. For then, Yahweh would have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

²³ For rebellion is like the sin of divination; arrogance is like iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, he has rejected you from being king!"

¹³ Then Saul said to him, "Why did you conspire against me, you and the son of Jesse, when you gave to him bread and a sword, and by inquiring of God for him so that he might arise against me to ambush me as has been done this day?" ¹⁴ But Ahimelech answered the king and said, "And who among all your servants is as faithful as David? He is the son-in-law of the king who moves quickly to safeguard you and is honored in your house. ¹⁵ Only today I began to inquire of God for him. Far be it from me that _⌊the king should impute anything against his servant_⌋* or against my father's household, for your servant has not known any of this matter, little or much." ¹⁶ Then the king said, "You must certainly die, Ahimelech, you and all your father's household!" ¹⁷ So the king said to the runners who were stationed around him, "Turn and kill the priests of Yahweh, because _⌊they also support David_⌋* and because they knew that he was fleeing and _⌊did not disclose it to me_⌋."* But the servants of the king were not willing to raise their hand to attack the priests of Yahweh. ¹⁸ Then the king said to Doeg, "You turn and attack the priests!" So Doeg the Edomite turned and attacked the priests himself, and on that day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. ¹⁹ And _⌊he put to the sword_⌋* Nob, the city of the priests, from man to woman, from child to infant, and ox and donkey and sheep;* all _⌊to the sword_⌋.* ²⁰ But, one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, whose name was Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. ²¹ Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of Yahweh. ²² Then David said to Abiathar, "I knew on that day that Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would certainly tell Saul. _⌊I am responsible for the deaths of all your father's household_⌋!* ²³ Stay with me! Do not fear, because he who seeks my life seeks your life. You are in good care with me."

⁴² He said to him, "Thus says Yahweh: 'Because you have let the man I devoted for destruction go from your hand, your life shall be in place of his life and your people in place of his people.'" ⁴³ Then the king of Israel went to his house, sullen and angry, and he came to Samaria.

⁹ So the king of Israel and the king of Judah and the king of Edom went around, a way of seven days, but there was no water for the army or for the animals which _⌊were with them_⌋.* ¹⁰ Then the king of Israel said, "Aha, Yahweh has called for these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab."

³³ While he was still speaking with them, suddenly the messenger was coming down to him, and he said, "Look this trouble is from Yahweh. Why should I wait for Yahweh any longer?"

⁹ For the eyes of Yahweh roam throughout all the earth to strengthen those whose heart is fully devoted to him. You have been foolish in this, for from now on you will have wars." ¹⁰ Then Asa was angry with the seer and put him in _⌊the prison_⌋,* for he was enraged with him concerning this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at that time.

¹ Of David.*
Do not fret because of evildoers; do not be envious of doers of wickedness.

⁷ Be quiet before Yahweh and wait for him. Do not fret about one who succeeds in his way, about a man making plots.

³ The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.

²¹ And it* will pass through it* distressed and hungry, and this shall happen: when it is hungry, it will be enraged, and it will curse its king and its gods,* and it will face upwar ²² or look to the earth. But look! Distress and darkness, the gloom of affliction! And it will be thrust into darkness!

⁴⁵ But when* the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and began contradicting what was being said by Paul by* reviling him.* ⁴⁶ Both Paul and Barnabas spoke boldly and* said, "It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you, since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life! Behold, we are turning to the Gentiles!

⁹ And people were burned up by the great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has the authority over these plagues, and they did not repent to give him glory. ¹⁰ And the fifth poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened, and they began chewing their tongues because of the pain. ¹¹ And they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and because of their sores, and they did not repent of their deeds.

¹⁵ My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed; like a streambed of wadis* they flow away, ¹⁶ which are growing dark because of ice upon them, it will pile up snow. ¹⁷ In time they dry up, they disappear; when it is hot, they vanish from their place. ¹⁸ The paths of their way wind around; they go up into the wasteland, and they perish. ¹⁹ The caravans of Tema looked; the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them. ²⁰ They are disappointed, because they trusted; they came _⌊here_⌋* and they are confounded. ²¹ "For now you* have become _⌊such_⌋;* you see terrors, and you fear. ²² Is it because I have said, 'Give to me,' or,* 'Offer a bribe for me from your wealth'? ²³ or,* 'Save me from the foe's hand,' or,* 'Ransom me from the tyrants' hand'?

¹³ "He has removed my kinsfolk from me, and my acquaintances have only* turned aside from me. ¹⁴ My relatives have failed, and my close friends have forgotten me. ¹⁵ The sojourners in* my house and my slave women count me as a stranger; I have become a foreigner in their eyes. ¹⁶ I call to my servant, but* he does not answer; I must _⌊personally_⌋* plead with him. ¹⁷ My breath is repulsive to my wife, and I am loathsome to _⌊my own family_⌋.*

¹⁵ The wealth of the rich is the city of his strength; the ruin of the poor is their poverty.

²⁰ The poor is disliked even by his neighbor, but the lovers of the rich are many.

⁶ Many will seek favor before the generous, and everyone is the friend of a man of gifts.* ⁷ All the brothers of the poor, if they hate him, how much more will his friends keep away from him. He pursues them with words, and they are gone.*

¹³ And after not many days, the younger son gathered everything and* went on a journey to a distant country, and there he squandered his wealth by* living wastefully. ¹⁴ And after* he had spent everything, there was a severe famine throughout that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ And he went and* hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to tend pigs.

¹ " 'You will not _⌊spread_⌋* a false report. Do not lift your hand with the wicked to be a malicious witness.

¹¹ 'You shall not take up the name of Yahweh your God for a worthless purpose, for Yahweh will not leave unpunished anyone who uses his name for a worthless purpose.

¹⁶ If _⌊a malicious witness_⌋* gets up _⌊to accuse_⌋* anyone to testify against him falsely, ¹⁷ then the two men _⌊to whom the legal dispute pertains_⌋* shall stand _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh, _⌊before_⌋* the priests and the judges who are in office in those days. ¹⁸ Then judges shall make a thorough inquiry, and if it turns out* that the witness is a false witness and he testified falsely against his brother, ¹⁹ then you shall do to him as he meant* to do to his brother, and so you shall purge the evil from your midst. ²⁰ _⌊And the rest_⌋* shall hear and shall fear, and _⌊they shall not continue to do such a thing again_⌋* as this evil thing in your midst. ²¹ _⌊You must show no pity_⌋:* life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot."

⁹ So then, do not leave him unpunished, for you are a wise man, and you will know what you must do to him. You must bring his grey hair down to Sheol with blood."

³ What shall be given to you,* and what more shall be done to you, deceitful tongue? ⁴ The sharpened arrows of a warrior, with burning charcoals from broom trees.

¹⁹ a false witness who breathes lies and sends out discord* between brothers.

⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes lies will perish.

²⁸ A false witness will perish, but a man who listens will testify with* success.

²⁴ The king then commanded, and these men were brought _⌊who had accused Daniel_⌋,* and they threw them and their children and their wives into _⌊the lion pit_⌋,* and they had not reached the floor of the pit _⌊before_⌋* the lions had overpowered them and they had crushed all of their bones.

²⁰ And moreover, you shall say, 'Look, your servant Jacob is behind us.'" For he thought, "_⌊Let me appease him_⌋* with the gift going before me, and afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will _⌊show me favor_⌋."*

⁶ Now Joseph was the governor over the land. He was the one who sold food to all the people of the land. And the brothers of Joseph came and bowed down to him with their faces to the ground.

¹⁵ So the men took this gift, and they took double money in their hands, and Benjamin, and they rose up and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph.

¹⁹ and he said to the king, "May not my lord hold me guilty, and may you not remember how your servant did wrong on the day that my lord the king went out from Jerusalem, by taking it to heart! ²⁰ For your servant knows that I have sinned; look, I have come this day as the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king." ²¹ Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah responded and said, "Because of this, should not Shimei be put to death, for he cursed the anointed one of Yahweh?" ²² Then David said, "What is it to me or to you, sons of Zeruiah, that you should be an adversary today? Should anyone be put to death in Israel? Do I not know today that I am king over Israel?" ²³ Then the king said to Shimei, "You shall not die," and so the king swore to him. ²⁴ Now, Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; he had not taken care of his feet nor trimmed his moustache nor washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he came back in peace. ²⁵ It happened that when he came to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, "Why did you not come with me, Mephibosheth?" ²⁶ Then he said, "My lord the king, my servant deceived me, for your servant had said, 'Let me saddle the donkey that I may ride on her and go with the king,' for your servant is lame. ²⁷ But he slandered against your servant to my lord the king. My lord the king is like the angel of God; _⌊do as you see fit._⌋."* ²⁸ For there was no one in all the house of my father _⌊who were not doomed to death_⌋* before my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. Do I have any righteousness any longer except to cry out to the king?" ²⁹ Then the king said to him, "Why should you speak any more about the matter? I have decided: you and Ziba shall divide the land." ³⁰ Then Mephibosheth said to the king, "Let him take the whole thing, since my lord the king has come _⌊safely_⌋* to his house." ³¹ Then Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim and crossed with the king over the Jordan to escort him through the Jordan. ³² Now Barzillai was very old, _⌊eighty years old_⌋.* Now he had provided the king with food while he was staying at Mahanaim, for he was a very wealthy man. ³³ The king said to Barzillai, "You cross over with me, and I will provide for you to dwell with me in Jerusalem." ³⁴ Then Barzillai said to the king, "What are the days of the years of my life, that I should go with the king to Jerusalem? ³⁵ I am eighty years old today. Can I discern between good and bad? Or can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Or can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be a burden any longer to my lord the king? ³⁶ Your servant shall go over the Jordan with the king a little way, but why should the king recompense me with this reward? ³⁷ Please let your servant return, and let me die in my city in the tomb of my father and my mother. Here is your servant Kimham; let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him that which is good in your eyes." ³⁸ The king said, "Let Kimham go over with me, and I will do for him the good in your eyes, and all that you desire of me I will do for you." ³⁹ Then all the people crossed over the Jordan, and the king crossed and kissed Barzillai and blessed him; then he returned to his place.

²⁴ I smiled for them when they had no confidence in anything, and they did not extinguish the light of my face. ²⁵ I chose their way, and I sat as head, and I dwelled like a king among the troops, like one who comforts mourners.

¹² Even the daughter of Tyre will come with a gift. The rich from among people will seek your _⌊favor_⌋.*

¹⁵ In the light of the face of the king there is life, and his favor is like a cloud of spring rain.

⁸ The bribe is a stone of magic in the eyes of its owner;* _⌊everywhere_⌋* he will turn, he will prosper.

¹⁶ The gift of a person will open doors for him, and before the great, it gives him access.

¹² The rage of a king growls like a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹⁴ A gift in secret* will avert _⌊anger_⌋,* and a _⌊concealed bribe_⌋,* strong wrath.

²⁶ Many are those who seek the _⌊favor_⌋* of a ruler, but from Yahweh _⌊one obtains justice_⌋.*

¹¹ And when they* came into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and* worshiped him. And opening their treasure boxes, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

²³ For the compensation due sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

¹¹ My friends and companions stand aloof from my affliction, and my relatives stand afar off.

⁸ You have removed my acquaintances far from me. You have made me detestable* to them. I am confined and cannot go out.

¹⁸ You have removed loved one and friend far from me, my acquaintances far from my darkness.

²³ The poor may speak entreaties, but the rich will answer roughly.

⁴ Wealth adds many friends, but the poor will be left by his friends.

¹³ He who closes his ear from the cry of the poor, he also will cry out and not be heard.

¹⁵ Now, a poor wise man was found in it, and he delivered the city by his wisdom. ¹⁶ So I concluded that wisdom is better than might, yet the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heard.

³⁸ And he called out, saying, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" ³⁹ And those who were in front rebuked him, that he should be silent, but he cried out _⌊even more loudly_⌋,* "Son of David, have mercy on me!" ⁴⁰ So Jesus stopped and* ordered him to be brought to him. And when* he approached, he asked him,

⁶ But you have dishonored the poor! Are not the rich exploiting you and they themselves dragging you into the courts?

¹⁵ If a brother or a sister is poorly clothed and lacking food for the day, ¹⁶ and one of you should say to them, "Go in peace, keep warm and _⌊eat well_⌋*," but does not give them what is necessary for the body, what is the benefit?

¹⁷ But whoever has the world's material possessions and observes his brother _⌊in need_⌋* and shuts his heart against him, how does the love of God reside in him? ¹⁸ Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.

¹¹ Moreover, your servant is warned* by them; in keeping them is great reward.

¹ My child, if you will receive* my sayings, and hide my commands with you, ² in order to incline your ear toward wisdom, then you shall apply your heart to understanding. ³ For if you cry out for understanding,* if you lift* your voice for insight, ⁴ if you seek her like silver and search her out _⌊like treasure_⌋,* ⁵ then you will understand the fear of Yahweh, and the knowledge of God you will find. ⁶ For Yahweh will give wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. ⁷ For the upright, he stores* sound judgment, a shield for those who walk uprightly, ⁸ in order to guard paths of justice and keep* the way of his faithful ones. ⁹ Then you will understand righteousness and justice and uprightness—every good course—

¹⁸ She is a tree of life for those who seize her; those who take hold of her are considered happy.

²¹ My child, may they* not escape from your _⌊sight_⌋;* may you keep sound wisdom and prudence.

⁴ he taught me and said to me, "May your heart hold fast to my words; guard my commandments and live.

⁶ Do not forsake her—then she will guard you; love her and she will keep you.

²¹ May they not escape from your _⌊sight_⌋;* keep them in the midst of your heart.

³⁵ For he who finds me is he who finds* life, and he obtains favor from Yahweh. ³⁶ But he who misses me injures himself.* All those who hate me love death."

²⁰ He who is attentive to a matter will find goodness, and he who trusts in Yahweh, his own happiness.

¹⁶ Why is this? A price in the hand of a fool, in order to buy wisdom where* there is no _⌊sense_⌋.*

¹⁸ For it is pleasant if you guard them _⌊within you_⌋;* together they will be ready upon your lips.

²⁶ And I will give a new heart to you, and a new spirit I will give* into your inner parts, and I will remove the* heart of stone from your flesh, and I will give to you a heart of flesh.

²⁵ The one who loves his life loses it, and the one who hates his life in this world preserves it for eternal life.

²¹ The one who has my commandments and keeps them—that one is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him."

¹⁰ For
"The one who wants to love life and see good days must keep his* tongue from evil and his lips must not speak deceit.

⁵ A witness of falsehood will not go unpunished, and he who breathes lies will not escape.

¹⁵ Elders* and _⌊the respectable_⌋* are the head, and prophets* who teach lies* are the tail. ¹⁶ And the leaders of this people were misleading them, and those who were led were confused. ¹⁷ Therefore the Lord did not rejoice over its young men, and he did not have compassion on its orphans and widows, for everyone was godless and an evildoer, and every mouth was speaking folly. In all of this his anger did not turn away, and still his hand is stretched out.

²⁵ "I have heard what the prophets who prophesy lies* have said in my name, _⌊saying_⌋,* 'I have dreamed! I have dreamed!' ²⁶ _⌊How long_⌋* will this be in the hearts* of the prophets who prophesy lies,* even the prophets of the deceitfulness of their hearts,* ²⁷ who plan to make my people forget my name by their dreams that they tell each one to his neighbor, just as their ancestors* forgot my name through Baal? ²⁸ The prophet who has with him a dream, let him tell the dream. But the prophet* who has my word with him, let him speak my word faithfully. _⌊What is straw compared to wheat_⌋?"* _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh. ²⁹ "Is not my word like fire?" _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, "and like a blacksmith's hammer that breaks a rock into pieces? ³⁰ "_⌊Therefore_⌋* look, I am against the prophets," _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, "who steal my words each one from his neighbor. ³¹ Look, I am against the prophets," _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, "who take their tongues* and declare as prophets, 'Yahweh _⌊declares_⌋.'* ³² Look, I am against those who prophesy dreams of lies,"* _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, "and tell them, and they caused my people to err through their lies, and in their recklessness, when I myself have not sent them nor commanded them, so they profit not this people at all," _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh.

¹⁵ Then Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah the prophet, "Please listen, Hananiah, Yahweh has not sent you, and you have made this people trust in a lie. ¹⁶ _⌊Therefore_⌋* thus says Yahweh, 'Look, I am going to send you from the face of the earth. This year you will die because you have spoken rebellion against Yahweh.'" ¹⁷ And Hananiah the prophet died in that same year in the seventh month.

³¹ "Send to all the exiles,* _⌊saying_⌋,* 'Thus says Yahweh concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: "Because Shemaiah prophesied to you, though I have not sent him, and he has made you trust in a lie," ³² _⌊therefore_⌋* thus says Yahweh, "Look, I am going to punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his offspring. There will not be for him a man who lives in the midst of this people, and he will not see the good that I am going to do to my people," _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, "For he has spoken rebellion against Yahweh." '"

²² Because you disheartened the heart of the righteous by deception, and I have not* caused him pain, and strengthened the hands of the wicked so that he did not turn* from his wicked way to save his life.

⁸ and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of his mouth, and wipe out by the appearance of his coming, ⁹ whose coming is in accordance with the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders, ¹⁰ and with every unrighteous deception against those who are perishing, in place of which they did not accept the love of the truth, so that they would be saved.

¹ Now the Spirit explicitly says that in the last times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, ² by the hypocrisy of liars, who are seared in their own conscience,

¹ But there were also false prophets among the people, as there will be false teachers among you also, who will bring in _⌊destructive heresies_⌋*, even denying the Master who bought them, thus* bringing on themselves swift destruction. ² And many will follow their licentious ways, because of whom the way of truth will be reviled. ³ And in greediness they will exploit you with false words, whose condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

²⁰ And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs before him, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who had worshiped his image. The two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulphur.

⁸ But as for the cowards and unbelievers and detestable persons and murderers and sexually immoral people and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their share is in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.

¹⁵ Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the sexually immoral people and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and who practices falsehood.

³⁶ Then Abigail went to Nabal, and look, _⌊he was holding a feast_⌋* in his house like the feast of the king. _⌊Nabal was enjoying himself_⌋,* and he was very drunk, so she did not tell him a thing, _⌊nothing at all_⌋,* until the light of morning.

²⁴ Then Joab came to the king and said, "What have you done? Abner came here to you? Why have you dismissed him that he _⌊actually went away_⌋?* ²⁵ You know that Abner the son of Ner came to deceive you. He came to learn about your going out and coming in and to know all which you are doing."

³⁹ I am weak today even though anointed king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are crueler than I am. May Yahweh pay them back for doing wickedness according to their own wickedness."

¹⁵ The couriers went out quickly by order of the king, and the law was issued in the citadel of Susa. The king and Haman sat down to drink; and the city of Susa was bewildered.*

⁷ _⌊Fine speech_⌋* is not becoming a fool, _⌊still less_⌋* is _⌊false speech_⌋* for a ruler.

¹ Like snow in the summer and like rain at the harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.

²¹ Under three things the earth* trembles, and under four, it is not able to bear up: ²² under a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is satisfied with food;

⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun— it is an error that proceeds from a ruler! ⁶ The fool is set in many high places, but the rich sit in lowly places. ⁷ I have even seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the earth!

⁵ And the people will be oppressed _⌊by each other_⌋* and a man by his neighbor. The boy will act arrogantly toward the elder, and the dishonorable toward the honorable.

¹¹ Ah! Those who rise early in the morning, they pursue strong drink. Those who linger in the evening, wine inflames them. ¹² And there will be lyre and harp, tambourine and flute, and wine at their feasts, but they do not look at the deeds* of Yahweh, and they do not see the work of his hands.

¹² And the Lord, Yahweh of hosts, called on that day
for weeping and mourning, and for baldness and girding _⌊with_⌋* sackcloth. ¹³ But look! Joy and gladness, the killing of oxen* and the slaughtering of sheep, the eating of meat and the drinking of wine! "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!" ¹⁴ And it was revealed in my ears by Yahweh of hosts:
"Surely this sin will not be atoned for you until you die!" says the Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

³ By their wickedness they make the king glad, and the officials by their treacheries. ⁴ All of them commit adultery, like a burning oven whose baker has stopped from stirring the fire, and from kneading the dough until it is leavened. ⁵ On the day of our king, the princes became sick with the heat of wine;* he stretched out his hand with mockers.

¹ Do not rejoice, O Israel, do not exult like the nations! For you played the whore, departing from your God; you loved a harlot's wage on all the threshing floors of grain.

³ You that put off the day of disaster and bring near a reign of violence! ⁴ Alas for those who lie on beds of ivory and lounge on their couches, and those eating young rams from the sheep and goats, and bull-calves from the middle of the animal stall. ⁵ Alas for those who sing to the tune of the harp; like David they improvise on instruments of music. ⁶ Alas for those who drink from sprinkling bowls of wine and anoint themselves with the best of olive oils and are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.

¹⁹ "Now a certain man was rich, and dressed in purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day.

²³ And in Hades he lifted up his eyes as he* was in torment and* saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus _⌊at his side_⌋.*

⁹ Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your* joy to gloominess.

¹⁵ And when the brothers of Joseph saw that their father was dead, they said, "It may be that Joseph will hold a grudge against us and pay us back dearly for all the evil that we did to him." ¹⁶ So they sent word to Joseph saying, "Your father commanded us before his death, saying, ¹⁷ "Thus you must say to Joseph, 'O, please now forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they did evil to you.' So now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. ¹⁸ Then his brothers went also and fell before him and said, "Behold, we are your servants." ¹⁹ Then Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? ²⁰ As for you, you planned evil against me, but God planned it for good, in order to do this—to keep many people alive—as it is today. ²¹ So then, do not be afraid. I myself will provide for you and your little ones. And he consoled them and _⌊spoke kindly_⌋* to them.

¹⁶ As for a fool, _⌊on that very day_⌋* he makes his anger known, but he who ignores an insult is prudent.

¹⁸ A man who is hot-tempered will stir up strife, but he who is slow to _⌊anger_⌋,* he will calm contention.

³² He who is slow to anger* is better than him who is mighty, and he who controls his spirit than him who captures a city.

¹⁴ Like the release of water is the beginning of strife; before it breaks out, stop the quarrel.

³ It is honorable for the man to refrain from strife, but every fool will be quick to quarrel.

²¹ If your enemy is hungry, feed him bread, and if thirsty, let him drink water.

⁴⁴ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven, because he causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust.

²¹ Then Peter came up to him and* said,* "Lord, how many times will my brother sin against me and I will forgive him? Up to seven times?" ²² Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven!*

¹⁸ If it is possible on your part, be at peace with all people. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God's wrath, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay,"* says the Lord. ²⁰ But "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by* doing this, you will heap up coals of fire upon his head."* ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

³² Become* kind toward one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as also God in Christ has forgiven you.

¹² Therefore, as the chosen of God, holy and dearly loved, put on affection, compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, ¹³ putting up with one another and forgiving one another. If anyone should have a complaint against anyone, just as also the Lord forgave you, thus also you do the same.

¹⁹ Understand this, my dear brothers: every person must be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,

⁴ Like the light of the morning when the sun rises, shining with no clouds, bringing vegetation from the earth apart from rain.'*

⁸ And the king returned from the palace garden to the _⌊banquet hall_⌋,* where Haman was lying prostrate on the couch that Esther was on, and the king said, "Will he also molest the queen with me in the house?" As the words* went from the king's mouth they covered Haman's face.

⁶ May he descend like rain on mown grass, like showers watering the earth.

³ It is like the dew of Hermon that runs down upon the mountains of Zion, because there Yahweh commanded the blessing— life forever.

¹⁴ The wrath of a king is a messenger of death, but one who is wise will appease* it. ¹⁵ In the light of the face of the king there is life, and his favor is like a cloud of spring rain.

² Roaring like the lion is the dreaded anger of a king; he who provokes him forfeits his life.*

¹⁵ Like a roaring lion and a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

⁴ Since the word of the king is supreme, no one can say to him, "What are you doing?"

¹² Because of this the king became angry, and he became very much enraged, and he said that all the wise men of Babylon are to be destroyed. ¹³ And the decree was issued, and the wise men _⌊were on the verge of being executed_⌋,* and they searched for Daniel and his companions to be executed.

¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with anger and the image of his face was changed _⌊toward_⌋* Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, so he _⌊ordered and said_⌋* to heat up the one furnace seven times what was usual to heat it up. ²⁰ And he commanded _⌊the strongest men of the guards_⌋* who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. ²¹ Then these men were bound with their garments, their trousers and their turbans and their other clothing, and they were thrown into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. ²² _⌊Therefore_⌋* _⌊because_⌋* the word of the king was severe and the furnace was exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed these men who lifted up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. ²³ But these men, the three of them, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, fell down into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire, and they were bound.

¹⁹ And because of the greatness that he gave to him, all the peoples, the nations and languages trembled and feared before him; whomever he wanted he killed, and whomever he wanted he let live, and whomever he wanted he honored, and whomever he wanted he humbled.

⁵ I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily plant, and he will strike his roots like the trees of Lebanon.

⁷ And the remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many nations, like dew from Yahweh, like showers upon the grass which does not wait for a man, nor delays for the children of humankind.

⁴ "And I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after these things do not have anything more to do. ⁵ But I will show you whom you should fear: fear the one who has authority, after the killing, to throw you* into hell! Yes, I tell you, fear this one!

¹ It happened afterwards that Absalom the son of David had a beautiful sister whose name was Tamar, and Amnon the son of David fell in love with her. ² And Amnon _⌊was so frustrated that he felt ill_⌋* because of Tamar his sister, because she was a virgin, and it was too difficult in Amnon's eyes to do anything with her. ³ Now Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab the son of Shimeah, the brother of David. (Now Jonadab was a very crafty man.) ⁴ And he said to him, "Why are you so sullen _⌊every morning_⌋,* O son of the king? Will you not tell me?" And Amnon said to him, "I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom." ⁵ Then Jonadab said to him, "Lie down on your bed and appear ill. If your father comes to see you, you shall say to him, 'Please let Tamar my sister come and give me food to eat, and let her prepare the food before my eyes, in order that I may see it and eat from her hand.'" ⁶ So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill, and the king came to see him. Amnon said to the king, "Please let Tamar my sister come, and let her bake two cakes before my eyes that I may eat from her hand." ⁷ So David sent to the house for Tamar, saying, "Please go to the house of Amnon your brother and prepare food for him." ⁸ Tamar went to the house of Amnon her brother. Now he was lying down, and she took the dough and kneaded it and made cakes before his eyes, and she baked the cakes. ⁹ Then she took the pan and poured it out before him, but he refused to eat. Then Amnon said, "Let all the men go out from me." So all the men went out from him. ¹⁰ Then Amnon said to Tamar, "Bring the food to the private room that I may eat from your hand." So Tamar took the cakes which she had made and brought them to Amnon her brother in* the private room. ¹¹ When she brought them near to him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, "Come, lie with me, my sister!" ¹² Then Tamar said to him, "No, my brother! Do not force me, for such a thing has not been done in Israel. Do not do this disgraceful thing! ¹³ As for me, where should I take my disgrace? You will be as one of the fools in Israel. So please, speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you." ¹⁴ But he was not willing to listen to her voice. He was stronger than she, and he forced her and lay with her. ¹⁵ Then Amnon hated her _⌊very deeply_⌋,* for the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. So Amnon said to her, "Get up and go." ¹⁶ She said to him, "No, because this evil in sending me away is greater than the other you have done to me." But he was not willing to listen to her. ¹⁷ Then he called his young man who was serving him and said, "Please send this woman from me to the outside, and bolt the door behind her!" ¹⁸ Now there was a long-sleeved robe on her, for so they clothed the daughters of the king who were virgins, in robes. His servant put her outside, and he bolted the door behind her.

¹⁹ Water wears away stones; its torrents wash away the soil of the earth; so* you destroy the hope of human beings.

¹ The proverbs of Solomon: A wise child makes a father glad, but a foolish child grieves his mother.

²⁰ A child of wisdom will make a father glad, but a _⌊foolish person_⌋,* he despises his mother.

²¹ He who begets a fool, there is trouble for him; the father of a fool will not rejoice.

²⁵ A grief to his father is the child of a fool, and bitterness to her who bore him.

⁹ Better to dwell on the corner of a roof than to share a house with a woman* of contention.

¹⁹ Better to live in a land of wilderness than with a wife of quarrels and provocation.

²⁴ Better to live upon the corner of a roof than with a woman* of contention and in a shared house.

¹⁵ Dripping constantly on a day of heavy rain and a woman* of contention are alike.

¹⁸ So I hated all my toil with which I have toiled under the sun, for I must leave it behind to someone who will be after me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be wise or foolish? Yet he will exercise control of all the fruit of my toil with which I toiled wisely under the sun. This also is vanity!

⁷ Yahweh, the God of heaven who took me from the house of my father and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, 'to your offspring I will give this land,' he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.

¹ Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him. And he instructed him and said to him, "You must not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. ² Arise, go to Paddan-Aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother's father, and take for yourself a wife from there, from the daughters of Laban your mother's brother. ³ Now, may El-Shaddai* bless you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, so that you become an assembly of peoples. ⁴ And may he give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your descendants with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojourning, which God gave to Abraham."

¹⁶ nevertheless _⌊it will be the case that_⌋* on the day of bestowing his inheritance upon his sons, he will not be allowed to treat as the firstborn son the son of the beloved wife _⌊in preference to_⌋* the son of the disliked wife, who is the firstborn son.

²³ Joshua took all the land according to all that Yahweh had spoken to Moses; and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel, according to their tribal divisions, and the land rested from war.

⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will straighten your paths.

²² He who is good will leave an inheritance to _⌊his grandchildren_⌋,* and stored up for the righteous is the wealth of a sinner.

²² He who finds a wife* finds good, and he will obtain favor from Yahweh.

¹⁰ A woman* of excellence,* who will find? For her worth is far more than precious jewels. ¹¹ The heart of her husband* trusts in her, and gain he will not lack. ¹² She does him good, but not harm all the days of her life. ¹³ She seeks wool and flax, and she works with the diligence of _⌊her hands_⌋.* ¹⁴ She is like the ships of a merchant; from far off she brings her food;* ¹⁵ And she arises while it is still night, and gives food to her household, and tasks to her servant girls. ¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it, from the fruit of _⌊her hand_⌋* she plants a vineyard. ¹⁷ She girds her waist in strength, and makes her arms strong. ¹⁸ She perceives that her merchandise is good; her lamp does not go out in the night. ¹⁹ Her hands she puts onto the distaff,* and her palms hold a spindle. ²⁰ Her palm she opens to the poor, and her hand she reaches out to the needy. ²¹ She does not fear for her house when it snows, for _⌊her entire household_⌋* is clothed in crimson. ²² She makes for herself coverings; her clothing is fine linen and purple. ²³ Her husband* is known at the gates, in his seat among the elders of the land. ²⁴ Linen garments she makes and sells, and she supplies sashes for the merchants. ²⁵ Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs _⌊at the future_⌋.* ²⁶ She opens her mouth with wisdom, and instruction of kindness is upon her tongue. ²⁷ She looks after the ways of her household, and the bread of idleness she will not eat. ²⁸ Her children rise and consider her happy, her husband* also, and he praises her; ²⁹ "Many daughters have done excellence,* but _⌊you surpass_⌋* all of them." ³⁰ Charm* is deceit and beauty* is vain;* but a woman who fears Yahweh shall be praised. ³¹ Give to her from the fruit of her hand, and may they praise her works in the city gates.

¹⁴ Behold, this third time I am ready to come to you, and I will not be a burden to you. For I am not seeking your possessions, but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.

¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of change.

⁹ How long will you lie down, lazy? When will you rise up from your sleep? ¹⁰ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands for rest—

⁴ A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent enriches. ⁵ He who gathers in the summer is a child who is prudent; he who sleeps at the harvest is a child who brings shame.

²⁴ A lazy person buries his hand in the dish, and even to his mouth he will not bring it back.

¹³ Do not love sleep, lest you become poor; open your eyes and have plenty bread.

²¹ For the drunkard and gluttonous, they will become poor, and with rags, drowsiness will clothe them.

³³ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands for rest,

¹⁰ His watchmen are blind, none of them know. They are all dumb dogs; they are unable to bark, panting, lying down, loving to slumber.

¹¹ And do this because you* know the time, that it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we believed. ¹² The night is far gone, and the day has drawn near. Therefore let us throw off* the deeds of darkness and put on the weapons of light.

¹⁴ for everything made visible is light. Therefore it says,
Wake up, sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.*

¹⁰ For even when we were with you, we used to command this to you: that if anyone does not want to work, neither should he eat.

¹⁸ to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his precepts.

¹ My child, do not forget my instruction, and may your heart guard my commands.

¹³ He who despises a word will bring destruction on himself, but he who respects a commandment will be rewarded.

³² He who ignores instruction despises himself,* but he who hears admonition gains heart.*

¹⁷ The highway of the upright, it turns from evil, he who guards himself* keeps his way.

²³ He who guards his mouth and his tongue, he guards his life* from danger.

⁵ Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse; he who guards himself* will keep away from them.

¹⁸ When there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint, but as for he who guards instruction, happiness is his.

⁵ Whoever obeys his command will not suffer disaster. The wise mind knows the proper time and the right procedure.

¹³ Now that all has been heard, here is the final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

²³ But I only commanded them this word, _⌊saying_⌋,* 'Obey my voice, and I will be to you God, and you will be to me people, and you must walk in all of the way that I command you, so that it goes well with you.'

⁵ For he heard the sound of the horn and he did not take warning; his blood will be on him. But if he took warning, he saved his life.

²⁸ And he said to him, "You have answered correctly. Do this and you will live."

²⁸ But he said, "On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and follow it!"*

¹⁵ "If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

²¹ The one who has my commandments and keeps them—that one is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him." ²² Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, "Lord, why* is it that you are going to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?" ²³ Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves me he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and _⌊will take up residence with him_⌋.*

¹⁰ If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have spoken these things to you in order that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be made complete. ¹² This is my commandment: that you love one another just as I have loved you. ¹³ No one has greater love than this: that someone lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command you.

¹⁹ Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.

³ And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. ⁴ The one who says "I have come to know him," and does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in this person.

²² and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what is pleasing _⌊in his sight_⌋*.

³ For this is the love of God: that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome,

¹⁴ Blessed are the ones who wash their robes, so that their authority will be over the tree of life and they may enter into the city through the gates.

⁷ If there is a poor person among you from among one of your brothers in one of your _⌊towns_⌋* that Yahweh your God is giving to you, you shall not harden your heart, and you shall not shut your hand toward _⌊your brother who is poor_⌋.* ⁸ But you shall certainly open your hand for him, and _⌊you shall willingly lend_⌋* to him enough to meet his need, _⌊whatever it is_⌋.* ⁹ _⌊Take care_⌋* so that there* will not be _⌊a thought of wickedness_⌋* in your heart, _⌊saying_⌋,* 'The seventh year, the year of the remission of debt is near,' _⌊and you view your needy neighbor with hostility_⌋,* and so you do not give to him, and he might cry out against you to Yahweh, and _⌊you would incur guilt against yourself_⌋.* ¹⁰ By all means you must give to him, and _⌊you must not be discontented_⌋* at your giving to him, because on account of this very thing, Yahweh your God will bless you in all your work and _⌊in all that you undertake_⌋.* ¹¹ For the poor* will not cease to be _⌊among you_⌋* in the land; therefore I am commanding you, _⌊saying_⌋,* 'You shall willingly open your hand to your brother, to your needy and to your poor that are in your land.' ¹² If your relative* who is a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman is sold to you, and he or she has served you six years, then in the seventh year you shall send that person out _⌊free_⌋.* ¹³ And when you send him out free from you, you shall not send him away empty-handed. ¹⁴ You shall generously supply him from among your flocks and from your threshing floor and from your press; according to that with which Yahweh your God has blessed you, you shall give to him.

⁶ He shall restore the ewe lamb fourfold because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity."

²⁴ There is one who gives yet _⌊grows richer_⌋,* but he who withholds _⌊what is right_⌋* only finds need. ²⁵ A person of blessing will be enriched, and he who gives water also will be refreshed.

¹⁴ From the fruit of the mouth of a man, he is filled with good, and the reward of _⌊a man's labor_⌋* will return to him.

²¹ He who despises his neighbor is a sinner, but he who has mercy on the poor blesses him.

³¹ He who oppresses the poor insults him who made him, but he who has mercy on the poor honors him.

⁸ He who augments his wealth with interest and with usury gathers it for him who is kind to the poor.

²⁷ For he who gives to the poor, there is no lacking, but for he* who turns his eyes, there are many curses.

¹ Send out your bread on the water, for in many days you will find it.

⁷ Is it not to break your bread for the hungry? You must bring _⌊home_⌋* the poor, the homeless. When you see the naked, you must cover him, and you must not hide yourself from your _⌊relatives_⌋.* ⁸ Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall grow quickly. And your salvation shall go before you; the glory of Yahweh will be your rear guard. ⁹ Then you shall call, and Yahweh himself will answer. You shall cry for help, and he will say, 'Here I am!' If you remove from among you the yoke, the _⌊finger-pointing_⌋* and _⌊evil speech_⌋,* ¹⁰ if* you offer your soul to the hungry, and you satisfy the appetite of the afflicted, then* your light shall rise in the darkness, and your darkness will be like noon. ¹¹ And Yahweh will lead you continually, and satisfy your soul in a barren land, and he will strengthen your bones, and you shall be like a well-watered garden, and like a spring of water whose water does not fail.

⁴¹ The one who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and the one who receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward. ⁴² And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water to drink in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he will never lose his reward."

⁴⁰ And the king will answer and* say to them, 'Truly I say to you, in as much as you did it* to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it* to me.'

³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you, a good measure—pressed down, shaken, overflowing—they will pour out into your lap. For with the measure by which you measure out, it will be measured out to you in return."

⁶ Now the point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. ⁷ Each one should give as he has decided in his heart, not _⌊reluctantly_⌋* or from compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to cause all grace to abound to you, so that in everything at all times, because you* have enough of everything, you may overflow in every good work.

¹⁷ Not that I seek the gift, but I seek for the profit that increases to your account.

¹⁰ For God is not unjust, so as to forget your work and the love which you demonstrated for his name by* having served the saints, and continuing to serve them.

²⁴ He who withholds his rod hates his child, but he who loves him _⌊gives him_⌋* discipline.

¹⁵ Folly is bound up in the heart* of a boy;* the rod of discipline will drive it* from him.

¹³ Do not withhold discipline from a child, if you will beat him with the rod, he will not die. ¹⁴ As for you, with the rod you shall beat him, and his life* you will save from Sheol.*

¹⁵ As for a rod and reproof, they* will give wisdom, but a neglected child is disgraced by his mother.

¹⁷ Discipline your children, and they will give you rest, and they will give delight to your soul.*

⁷ Endure it for discipline. God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there whom a father does not discipline? ⁸ But if you are without discipline, in which all legitimate sons* have become participants, then you are illegitimate and not sons. ⁹ Furthermore, we have had _⌊our earthly fathers_⌋* who disciplined us, and we respected them. Will we not much rather subject ourselves to the Father of spirits and live? ¹⁰ For they disciplined us for a few days according to what seemed appropriate to them, but he does so for our benefit, in order that we can have a share in his holiness.

³⁰ Then _⌊Saul became angry_⌋* at Jonathan and said to him, "You son of a perverse, rebellious woman!* Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your shame and to the shame of your mother's nakedness? ³¹ For _⌊as long as_⌋* the son of Jesse is alive on the earth, you and your kingdom will not be established! So then, send and bring him to me, for _⌊he will surely die_⌋!"*

⁷ Then Saul said to the servants who were standing around him, "Please listen, _⌊Benjaminites_⌋!* Will the son of Jesse give you all fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? ⁸ For all of you have conspired against me, and _⌊no one discloses to me_⌋* the _⌊making_⌋* of an agreement between my son and the son of Jesse! None of you have had sympathy for me or _⌊disclosed to me_⌋* that _⌊my son commissioned my servant against me to ambush me_⌋* as has been done this day!" ⁹ But Doeg the Edomite, who was stationed among the servants of Saul, answered and said, "I saw the son of Jesse going to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. ¹⁰ And he inquired of Yahweh for him and gave him provisions and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine." ¹¹ So the king sent to summon Ahimelech the son of Ahitub the priest, and all his father's household, the priests who were at Nob. So all of them came to the king. ¹² Saul said, "Listen please, son of Ahitub." He said, "Here I am, my lord."

¹⁷ Then he said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me the good, but I have repaid you the evil. ¹⁸ You have explained to me today that you have dealt well with me, how* Yahweh delivered me into your hand but you did not kill me. ¹⁹ For a man has found his enemy but sent him on his way safely. Now may Yahweh reward you with good in return for this day, for what you have done for me. ²⁰ So now then, look, I know that you will certainly be king and the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hand. ²¹ So then, swear to me by Yahweh that you will not cut off my _⌊descendants_⌋* after me and that you will not wipe out my name from my father's house." ²² So David swore this on oath to Saul, and Saul went to his house, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

²¹ Then Saul said, "I have sinned! Come back, David my son, for I will not harm you again, because my life was precious in your eyes this day. Look, I have acted like a fool and _⌊have made a terrible mistake_⌋."* ²² David answered and said, "Here is the king's spear; let one of the young men* come over and take it. ²³ Yahweh repays to each one his righteousness and his faithfulness, for Yahweh gave you into my hand today, but I was not willing to stretch out my hand against Yahweh's anointed. ²⁴ Look, as your life was precious in my eyes this day, may my life be great in the eyes of Yahweh, and may he rescue me from all trouble." ²⁵ Then Saul said to David, "Blessed are you, my son David; _⌊you will not only do many things, but also will always succeed_⌋!"* Then David went on his way and Saul returned to his place.

⁵ King David came up to Bahurim and suddenly a man from there was coming out from the family of the house of Saul, and his name was Shimei the son of Gera. _⌊He was cursing as he came out_⌋.* ⁶ And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David and at all the people and at all the mighty warriors on his right and on his left.

²⁴ Do not befriend an owner* of _⌊anger_⌋,* and with a man of wrath you shall not associate; ²⁵ lest you learn his way and become entangled in a snare to yourself.*

²⁸ A breached city where there is no wall is like a man who _⌊has no_⌋* self-control for his spirit.

²² A man of anger will stir strife, and the owner of anger, much transgression.

¹⁰ Who can count the dust of Jacob, or as a number the fourth part of Israel? Let my life die the death of an upright person, and let my end be like his!"

¹⁶ the one _⌊feeding you_⌋* manna in the desert, food that your ancestors* did not know, in order to humble you and in order to test you so that he could do good to you _⌊in the future_⌋.*

²⁹ If only they were wise, they would understand this; they would discern _⌊for themselves their end_⌋.*

³⁷ Observe the blameless and look at the upright, for there is a future for a man of peace.

¹² So teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

¹⁴ Satisfy us in the morning with your loyal love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

⁸ My child, may you keep* your father's instruction, and do not reject your mother's teachings,

¹ Children, listen to the instruction of a father, and be attentive in order to know insight.

³⁴ Happy is the person who listens to me, in order to keep watch at my doors day by day, in order to guard the frames of my entrances. ³⁵ For he who finds me is he who finds* life, and he obtains favor from Yahweh.

¹⁵ The way of a fool is upright in his own eyes, but he who listens to advice is wise.

¹⁹ "Now a certain man was rich, and dressed in purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. ²⁰ And a certain poor man _⌊named_⌋* Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, ²¹ and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came and* licked his sores. ²² Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to _⌊Abraham's side_⌋.* And the rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And in Hades he lifted up his eyes as he* was in torment and* saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus _⌊at his side_⌋.*

¹⁹ And each said to his brothers, "Look, this master of dreams is coming. ²⁰ Now then, come, let us kill him and throw him in one of the pits. Then we will say a wild animal devoured him. Then we will see what his dreams become."

⁴ So Joseph said to his brothers, "Come near to me, please." And they drew near. And he said, "I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. ⁵ So now, do not be distressed and do not be angry _⌊with yourselves_⌋* that you sold me here, for God sent me as deliverance before you. ⁶ For these two years the famine has been in the midst of the land, but there will be five more years where there is no plowing or harvest. ⁷ And God sent me before you all to preserve for you a remnant in the land and to keep alive among you many survivors. ⁸ So now, you yourselves did not send me here, but God put me here as father to Pharaoh and as master of all his household, and a ruler over all the land of Egypt.

²⁰ As for you, you planned evil against me, but God planned it for good, in order to do this—to keep many people alive—as it is today.

²⁵ But when it came* _⌊to the attention of_⌋* the king, he _⌊gave orders in writing_⌋* that his evil plot that he had devised against the Jews should return on his head, and they hung him and his sons on the gallows.

¹³ "But* he is _⌊alone_⌋,* and who can dissuade him? And _⌊whatever he desires_⌋,* _⌊indeed_⌋,* he does it.

¹¹ Though they have _⌊plotted_⌋* evil against you, though they have planned a scheme, they will not prevail.

¹⁰ Yahweh brings to nothing* the plan of nations; he frustrates* the intents of peoples. ¹¹ The plan of Yahweh stands firm forever, the intents of his heart _⌊from one generation to the next_⌋.*

⁴ They say, "Come, let us annihilate them from being a nation, so that the name of Israel will be remembered no more."

² The good obtains favor from Yahweh, but anyone who schemes, he condemns.

¹ To mortals belong the plans of the heart, but from Yahweh comes the answer of the tongue.

⁹ The _⌊mind_⌋* of a person will plan his ways, and Yahweh will direct his steps.

¹ Streams of water are the heart* of a king in the hand of Yahweh; _⌊wherever_⌋* he will desire, he will turn.

³⁰ There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel to oppose Yahweh.

²⁹ Look! This alone I found: God made mankind upright, but they have devised many schemes."

⁶ "Let us go up against Judah and let us tear her apart, _⌊and let us lay it open and so bring it unto ourselves_⌋,* and let us install the son of Tabeel as king in her midst." ⁷ Thus says the Lord Yahweh, "It shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass.

²⁴ Yahweh of hosts has sworn, saying,
"_⌊Surely_⌋* just as I have intended, so it shall be. And just as I have planned, it shall stand:

²⁶ This is the plan that is planned concerning all of the earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out over all of the nations. ²⁷ For Yahweh of hosts has planned, and who will frustrate it? And his hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?

¹⁰ who from the beginning declares the end, and from before, things that have not been done, who says, 'My plan shall stand,' and, 'I will accomplish* all my wishes,'*

³⁵ And all the dwellers of the earth are regarded as nothing, and he does _⌊according to_⌋* his desire in the host of heaven and among the dwellers of earth, and there is not one who can hold back his hand, or _⌊ask him_⌋,* 'What are you doing?'

²⁴ In a time of ease and in the rich parts of the province, he will come and he will do what _⌊his predecessors_⌋* did not do; he will distribute plunder and spoil and possessions to them, and he will devise his plans against fortifications, but only _⌊for a time_⌋.* ²⁵ And he will stir up his power and his heart against the king of the south and _⌊with a much greater and stronger army_⌋;* but he will not succeed, for they will devise plans against him.

⁴ and plotted in order that they could arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.* ⁵ But they were saying, "Not during the feast, so that there will not be an uproar among the people."

⁶³ saying, "Sir, we remember that while* that deceiver was still alive he said, 'After three days I will rise.' ⁶⁴ Therefore give orders that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come and* steal him and tell the people, 'He has been raised from the dead,' and the last deception will be worse than the first."

²⁷ For in truth both Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, assembled together in this city against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed, ²⁸ to do all that your hand and plan* had predestined to take place.

³⁸ And now I tell you, keep away from these men, and leave them alone, because if this plan or this matter is from people, it will be overthrown.* ³⁹ But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them, lest you even be found fighting against God." So they were persuaded by him.

¹¹ in whom also we were chosen, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One who works all things according to the counsel of his will,

¹⁷ In the same way God, because he* wanted to show even more to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of his resolve, guaranteed it with an oath, ¹⁸ in order that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge may have powerful encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us,

⁸ and
"A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense,"*
who stumble because they* disobey the word to which also they were consigned.

⁴ For certain men* have slipped in stealthily, who were designated long ago for this condemnation, ungodly ones, who change the grace of our God into licentiousness and who deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ.

² So I have provided for the house of my God according to all my strength, the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and the wood for the things of wood, along with an abundance of onyx stones, stones for settings, stones of turquoise, and variegated stones, and all kinds of precious stones and alabaster stones. ³ And moreover, with respect to my provisions for the house of my God I have a treasure of gold and silver that I have given to the house of my God above all that I have provided for the holy house:

¹⁷ And I know, my God, that you yourself test the heart and are pleased with uprightness. I, in the uprightness of my heart, have willingly offered all these things, and now I have seen your people who are found here willingly offer to you.

⁸ But Yahweh said to David my father, 'Because it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart,

¹⁵ My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed; like a streambed of wadis* they flow away,

⁵ He denounces friends for reward, so* his children's eyes will fail.

⁹ Only a vapor* are men of low degree, a deception are men of high degree. _⌊Weighed_⌋* in a balance, together they are lighter than a vapor.

¹ Better a poor person walking in integrity than one who is perverse _⌊in his speech_⌋* and is a fool.

⁴¹ And he sat down opposite the contribution box and* was observing how the crowd was putting coins into the contribution box. And many rich people were putting in many coins.* ⁴² And one poor widow came and* put in two small copper coins* (that is, a penny).* ⁴³ And summoning his disciples, he said to them, "Truly I say to you that this poor widow put in more than all those who put offerings* into the contribution box. ⁴⁴ For they all _⌊contributed_⌋* out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in everything she had, her whole means of subsistence."

⁶ But Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Why do you cause trouble for her? She has done a good deed to me. ⁷ For the poor you always have with you, and you can do good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. ⁸ She has done what she could; _⌊she has anointed my body beforehand_⌋* for burial.

² that with a great ordeal of affliction, the abundance of their joy and the extreme depth of their poverty have overflowed to the wealth of their generosity. ³ I testify that they gave* according to their ability, and beyond their ability, by their own choice,

¹² For if the eagerness is present _⌊according to what one has_⌋*, it is acceptable not _⌊according to what one does not have_⌋*.

² in the hope of eternal life which God, who does not lie, promised before eternal ages,

⁹ The fear of Yahweh is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of Yahweh are true; they are righteous altogether,

¹³ His soul will lodge in prosperity, and his offspring will possess the land.

¹⁸ Behold, the eye of Yahweh is on those who fear him, on those who hope* for his loyal love ¹⁹ to deliver their soul from death and to keep them alive in famine.

⁹ Fear Yahweh, you his saints,* for there is no lack for those who fear him. ¹⁰ The young lions are in want and suffer hunger, but those who seek Yahweh will not lack for any good thing. ¹¹ Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of Yahweh.

⁹ Surely his salvation is near for those who fear him, that glory may abide in our land.

¹⁶ With _⌊long life_⌋* I will satisfy him, and show him my salvation.

¹⁷ But the loyal love of Yahweh is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to their children's children,

¹⁸ Yahweh is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. ¹⁹ He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry for help, and saves them. ²⁰ Yahweh protects all those who love him, but all the wicked he will exterminate.

²⁷ The fear of Yahweh adds life, but the years of the wicked are shortened.

²¹ _⌊No evil will happen_⌋* to the righteous, but the wicked are filled with trouble.

²⁶ In the fear of Yahweh, there is confidence of strength, and for his children, there will be refuge. ²⁷ The fear of Yahweh is a fountain of life, in order to turn from the snares of death.

¹⁶ Then those who revered* Yahweh spoke _⌊with one another_⌋.* And Yahweh listened attentively* and heard, and a scroll of remembrance was written _⌊before him_⌋* of those who revere* Yahweh and ponder his name. ¹⁷ "They will be mine," says Yahweh of hosts, "on the day that I am acting, my treasured possession. I will have compassion on them as a man has compassion on his son who serves him.

² But for you who revere* my name, the sun of righteousness will rise, with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like _⌊fattened calves_⌋.*

⁶ Blessed are the ones who hunger and thirst for righteousness, because they will be satisfied.

³¹ Then the church throughout all of Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace, being strengthened. And living in the fear of the Lord and the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it was increasing in numbers.*

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose,

¹¹ Not that I speak from need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. ¹² I know how both _⌊to make do with little_⌋* and I know how _⌊to have an abundance_⌋*. In everything and in all things I have learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both _⌊to have an abundance_⌋* and to go without.

⁸ For the training of the body is _⌊somewhat_⌋* profitable, but godliness is profitable for everything, because it* holds promise for the present life and for the life to come.

⁶ But godliness with contentment is a great means of gain. ⁷ For we have brought nothing into the world, so that neither can we bring anything out. ⁸ But if we* have food and clothing, with these things we will be content. ⁹ But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and a trap and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge those people into ruin and destruction.

¹⁸ The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will save me for his heavenly kingdom, to whom be the glory _⌊forever and ever_⌋*. Amen.

⁵ Your lifestyle must be free from the love of money, being content with what you have. For he himself has said, "I will never desert you, and I will never abandon you."* ⁶ So then, we can say with confidence,
"The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.* What will man do to me?"*

¹¹ Why do you draw back your hand, even your right hand? Take it from your bosom;* destroy them!

²⁷ The lazy will not roast his game, but diligence is the precious wealth of a man.

¹⁹ The way of the lazy is like a hedge of thorns,* but the path of the upright is a highway.

¹⁵ Laziness will bring on a deep sleep, and a person* of idleness will suffer hunger.

³⁰ I passed by the field of a lazy person, and over the vineyard of a person lacking _⌊sense_⌋;* ³¹ and behold, it was overgrown—all of it was covered with thorns, its surface with nettles, and _⌊its stone wall_⌋* was broken down. ³² Then I myself saw and my heart* considered; I looked, and I took hold of instruction: ³³ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands for rest, ³⁴ and your poverty will come running, and your lack like an armed warrior.

¹³ A lazy person says "A lion is in the road! A lion among the streets!" ¹⁴ The door turns on its hinge, and a lazy person on his bed. ¹⁵ A lazy person buries his hands in the dish; he is too tired to return it to his mouth. ¹⁶ A lazy person is wiser in his eyes than seven who answer discreetly.

²³ And he answered and* said, "The one who dips his* hand in the bowl with me—this one will betray me.

²⁰ But he said to them, "It is one of the twelve—the one who is dipping bread* into the bowl with me.

¹¹ And all of Israel shall hear, and they shall fear, and _⌊they shall not continue to act_⌋* according to this evil thing in your midst.

²¹ Then all the men of his city shall stone him with stones and let him die; and so you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all of Israel will hear, and they will fear.

⁸ Do not rebuke a scoffer, lest he hate you; rebuke the wise and he will love you. ⁹ Give to a wise one and he will become more wise; _⌊teach_⌋* a righteous one and he will increase learning. ¹⁰ The start of wisdom is fear of Yahweh, and knowledge of the Holy One,* insight.

⁵ A fool will despise the instruction of his father, but he who guards reproof is prudent.

¹⁰ A rebuke strikes him who understands deeper than one hundred blows to a fool.

¹¹ With the punishment of a scoffer, the simple will become wise, and with the instruction of the wise, he will obtain knowledge.

¹⁹ As many as I love, I reprove and discipline. Be zealous, therefore, and repent!

¹⁸ "_⌊If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son_⌋* who _⌊does not listen to_⌋* the voice of his father and to the voice of his mother, and they discipline him, and he does not obey* them, ¹⁹ then his father and his mother shall take hold of him, and they shall bring him out to the elders of his city and to the gate of his _⌊town_⌋,* ²⁰ and they shall say to the elders of his city, 'This our son is stubborn and rebellious; _⌊he does not obey us_⌋,* and he is a glutton and a drunkard.' ²¹ Then all the men of his city shall stone him with stones and let him die; and so you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all of Israel will hear, and they will fear.

⁵ He who gathers in the summer is a child who is prudent; he who sleeps at the harvest is a child who brings shame.

² A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully, and in the midst of brothers he will share his inheritance.

²² Listen to your father—he who _⌊gave you life_⌋,* and do not despise your mother when* she is old. ²³ Buy truth and do not sell it, wisdom and instruction and understanding. ²⁴ The father of the righteous will surely rejoice; he who bears a wise person will be happy with him. ²⁵ May your father and your mother be glad, and may she who bore you rejoice.

⁷ He who keeps instruction is a child of understanding, but the companion of gluttons will shame his father.

¹⁴ Happy is the person who fears continuously, but he who is stubborn of heart,* will fall into calamity.

²⁴ He who robs his father and his mother and says, "There is no crime," is partner to a man who corrupts.

¹¹ There is a generation that will curse its father, and its mother it will not bless.

¹⁷ The eye that mocks a father and scorns the obedience of a mother— the ravens of the valley will peck it out, and the offspring of vultures will eat it.

¹² And the younger of them said to his* father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that is coming to me.' So he divided his* assets between them. ¹³ And after not many days, the younger son gathered everything and* went on a journey to a distant country, and there he squandered his wealth by* living wastefully. ¹⁴ And after* he had spent everything, there was a severe famine throughout that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ And he went and* hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to tend pigs. ¹⁶ And he was longing to fill his stomach with* the carob pods that the pigs were eating, and no one was giving anything* to him.

³⁰ But when this son of yours returned—who has consumed your assets with prostitutes—you killed the fattened calf for him!'

¹ "If a prophet stands up in your midst or a dreamer of dreams* and he gives to you a sign or wonder, ² and the sign or* the wonder comes about that he spoke* to you, _⌊saying_⌋,* 'Let us go after other gods (those whom you have not known), and let us serve them,' ³ you must not listen to the words of that prophet or to that dreamer, for Yahweh your God _⌊is testing you to know whether you love_⌋* Yahweh your God with all of your heart and with all of your inner self.* ⁴ You shall go after Yahweh your God, and him you shall revere, and his commandment you shall keep, and to his voice you shall listen, and him you shall serve, and to him you shall hold fast.

²² He said, 'I will go out and I will be a false spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And he* said, 'You shall entice and succeed, go out and do so.' ²³ So then, see that Yahweh has placed a false spirit in the mouth of all of these your prophets, and Yahweh has spoken disaster concerning you." ²⁴ Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah came near and slapped Micaiah on the cheek and said, "When did the Spirit of Yahweh pass from me to speak with you?" ²⁵ Then Micaiah said, "Behold, you are about to see on that day when you go _⌊from room to room_⌋* to hide." ²⁶ The king of Israel said, "Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the commander of the city and to Jehoash the son of the king; ²⁷ and say, 'Thus says the king: "Put this fellow in the house of imprisonment and feed him reduced rations of food and water until I come in peace." '" ²⁸ Then Micaiah said, "If you indeed return in peace, then Yahweh has not spoken with me." Then he said, "Let all the peoples hear!"

⁷ Leave _⌊the presence of a foolish man_⌋,* for you will not come to know _⌊words of knowledge_⌋.*

¹⁵ "Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inside are ravenous wolves.

⁶ And Jesus said to them, "Watch out for and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees!"

¹² Then they understood that he did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

²⁴ And he said to them, "Take care what you hear! With the measure by which you measure out, it will be measured out to you, and will be added to you.

⁶ So he said to them, "Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
'This people honors me with their* lips, but their heart is far, far away from me. ⁷ And they worship me in vain, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'* ⁸ Abandoning the commandment of God, you hold fast to the tradition of men." ⁹ And he said to them, "You splendidly ignore the commandment of God so that you can keep* your tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,'* and, 'The one who speaks evil of father or mother _⌊must certainly die_⌋*.'* ¹¹ But you say, 'If a man says to his* father or to his* mother, "Whatever _⌊benefit you would have received_⌋* from me is corban"* (that is, a gift to God), ¹² you no longer permit him to do anything for his* father or his* mother, ¹³ thus* making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down, and you do many similar things such as this." ¹⁴ And summoning the crowd again, he said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand:

⁵ And they will never follow a stranger, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers."

¹³ For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ And no wonder, for Satan himself disguises himself as an angel of light. ¹⁵ Therefore it is not a great thing if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.

¹⁴ so that we may no longer be infants, tossed about by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching, by the trickery of people, by craftiness with reference to the scheming of deceit.

⁷ But reject those _⌊worthless myths told by elderly women_⌋*, and train yourself for godliness.

³ If anyone teaches other doctrine and does not devote himself to the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that is in accordance with godliness, ⁴ he is conceited, understanding nothing, but having a morbid interest concerning controversies and disputes about words, from which come envy, strife, slanders, evil suspicions, ⁵ constant wrangling by people of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who consider godliness to be a means of gain.

¹ But there were also false prophets among the people, as there will be false teachers among you also, who will bring in _⌊destructive heresies_⌋*, even denying the Master who bought them, thus* bringing on themselves swift destruction. ² And many will follow their licentious ways, because of whom the way of truth will be reviled.

¹ Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

¹⁰ If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house and do not speak a greeting to him,

² 'I know your works, and your labor and patient endurance, and that you are not able to tolerate evil, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles and are not, and you found them to be false.

¹⁰ Seat two men, _⌊scoundrels_⌋,* opposite him. Let them witness against him saying, 'You cursed God and the king.' Then you shall bring him out and stone him so that he dies."

¹³ Then the two men, _⌊scoundrels_⌋,* came, sat opposite him, and the _⌊scoundrels_⌋* witnessed against Naboth before the people, saying, "Naboth cursed God and the king," so they brought him outside of the city and stoned him with stones, and he died.

¹⁶ _⌊How much less_⌋* he who is abominable and corrupt,* a man drinking wickedness like water.

¹² "Though wickedness tastes sweet in his mouth, and he hides it under his tongue, ¹³ though he spares it and does not let it go and holds it back in the midst of his palate,

⁷ What man is like Job, who drinks scorn like water?

⁵ His ways* endure at all times.* Your judgments are aloof from him. As for all his enemies, he scoffs at them.

¹¹ He says in his heart, "God has forgotten. He has hidden his face. He never sees."

¹⁴ The heart of him who understands will seek knowledge, but the faces of fools, they* will feed on folly.

¹⁴ Therefore hear the word of Yahweh, men of mockery, rulers of these people in Jerusalem: ¹⁵ Because you have said,
"We have _⌊made_⌋* a covenant with death, and we have made an agreement with Sheol.
The overwhelming flood, when it passes through, will not come to us,
for we have made lies* our refuge, and we have hidden ourselves in falsehood." ¹⁶ Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this:
"Look! I am laying a stone in Zion, a _⌊tested_⌋* stone, a precious cornerstone, a founded foundation:
'The one who trusts will not _⌊panic_⌋.'* ¹⁷ And I will make justice the measuring line, and righteousness the plumb line; and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,* and waters will flood over the hiding place. ¹⁸ And your covenant with death will be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand; you will become a trampling place for the overwhelming flood when it passes through.

⁸ _⌊They feed on the sin of my people_⌋,* _⌊they are greedy_⌋* for their iniquity.

² saying, "There was a certain judge in a certain town who did not fear God and did not respect people. ³ And there was a widow in that town, and she kept coming to him, saying, 'Grant me justice against my adversary!' ⁴ And he was not willing for a time, but after these things he said to himself, 'Even if I do not fear God or respect people,

¹¹ Then they secretly instigated men who said, "We have heard him speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God!" ¹² And they incited the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came up and* seized him and brought him* to the Sanhedrin.* ¹³ And they put forward false witnesses who said, "This man does not stop speaking words against the holy place* and the law!

³⁴ With those who scorn, he is scornful, but to those who are humble, he gives favor.

²² He goes after her suddenly; like an ox to the slaughter he goes, and like a stag to the instruction of a fool,

¹² If you are wise, you are wise for yourself, and if you scoff, alone you shall bear it.

¹³ On the lips of one who has understanding, wisdom is found, but a rod is for the back of one who lacks _⌊sense_⌋.*

⁶ The lips of a fool will bring strife, and his mouth calls out for a flogging.

³ A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools.

²² And now you must not scoff, or your bonds will be strong,
for I have heard from the Lord, Yahweh of hosts:
complete destruction decreed upon all the land.

²⁰ For the tyrant shall be no more, and the scoffer shall come to an end. And all those lying in wait for evil shall be cut off;

⁴⁰ Watch out, therefore, lest what is stated by the prophets come upon you:* ⁴¹ 'Look, you scoffers, and be astonished and perish! For I am doing a work in your days, a work that you would never believe even if someone were to tell it* to you.'"*

⁶ For the Lord disciplines the one whom he loves, and punishes every son whom he accepts."*

³ above all knowing this, that in the last days scoffers will come with scoffing, following according to their own desires ⁴ and saying, "Where is the promise of his coming? For _⌊ever since_⌋* the fathers fell asleep, all things have continued just as they have been from the beginning of creation." ⁵ For when* they maintain this, it escapes their notice that the heavens existed long ago and the earth held together out of water and through water by the word of God, ⁶ by means of which things the world that existed at that time was destroyed by* being inundated with water. ⁷ But by the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly people.