Proverbs 20 Cross References - MSB

¹ Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by them is not wise. ² The terror of a king is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him forfeits his own life. ³ It is honorable for a man to resolve a dispute, but any fool will quarrel. ⁴ The slacker does not plow in season; at harvest time he looks, but nothing is there. ⁵ The intentions of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out. ⁶ Many a man proclaims his loving devotion, but who can find a trustworthy man? ⁷ The righteous man walks with integrity; blessed are his children after him. ⁸ A king who sits on a throne to judge sifts out all evil with his eyes. ⁹ Who can say, “I have kept my heart pure; I am cleansed from my sin”? ¹⁰ Differing weights and unequal measures—both are detestable to the LORD. ¹¹ Even a young man is known by his actions—whether his conduct is pure and upright. ¹² Ears that hear and eyes that see—the LORD has made them both. ¹³ Do not love sleep, or you will grow poor; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of food. ¹⁴ “Worthless, worthless!” says the buyer, but on the way out, he gloats. ¹⁵ There is an abundance of gold and rubies, but lips of knowledge are a rare treasure. ¹⁶ Take the garment of the one who posts security for a stranger; get collateral if it is for a foreigner. ¹⁷ Food gained by fraud is sweet to a man, but later his mouth is full of gravel. ¹⁸ Set plans by consultation, and wage war under sound guidance. ¹⁹ He who reveals secrets is a constant gossip; avoid the one who babbles with his lips. ²⁰ Whoever curses his father or mother, his lamp will be extinguished in deepest darkness. ²¹ An inheritance gained quickly will not be blessed in the end. ²² Do not say, “I will avenge this evil!” Wait on the LORD, and He will save you. ²³ Unequal weights are detestable to the LORD, and dishonest scales are no good. ²⁴ A man’s steps are from the LORD, so how can anyone understand his own way? ²⁵ It is a trap for a man to dedicate something rashly, only later to reconsider his vows. ²⁶ A wise king separates out the wicked and drives the threshing wheel over them. ²⁷ The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching out his inmost being. ²⁸ Loving devotion and faithfulness preserve a king; by these he maintains his throne. ²⁹ The glory of young men is their strength, and gray hair is the splendor of the old. ³⁰ Lashes and wounds scour evil, and beatings cleanse the inmost parts.

²¹ But when he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and uncovered himself inside his tent. ²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. ²³ Then Shem and Japheth took a garment and placed it across their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.

³¹ One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man in the land to sleep with us, as is the custom over all the earth. ³² Come, let us get our father drunk with wine so we can sleep with him and preserve his line.” ³³ So that night they got their father drunk with wine, and the firstborn went in and slept with her father; he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up. ³⁴ The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Look, I slept with my father last night. Let us get him drunk with wine again tonight so you can go in and sleep with him and we can preserve our father’s line.” ³⁵ So again that night they got their father drunk with wine, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him; he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up. ³⁶ Thus both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father.

³⁶ When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light. ³⁷ In the morning when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these events, and his heart failed within him and he became like a stone. ³⁸ About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal dead.

¹³ Then David invited Uriah to eat and drink with him, and he got Uriah drunk. And in the evening Uriah went out to lie down on his cot with his master’s servants, but he did not go home.

²⁸ Now Absalom had ordered his young men, “Watch Amnon until his heart is merry with wine, and when I order you to strike Amnon down, you are to kill him. Do not be afraid. Have I not commanded you? Be courageous and valiant!”

¹⁶ They marched out at noon while Ben-hadad and the 32 kings allied with him were in their tents getting drunk. ¹⁷ And the young officers of the district governors marched out first. Now Ben-hadad had sent out scouts, who reported to him, “Men are marching out of Samaria.” ¹⁸ “If they have marched out in peace,” he said, “take them alive. Even if they have marched out for war, take them alive.” ¹⁹ Meanwhile, these young officers of the district governors marched out of the city, with the army behind them, ²⁰ and each one struck down his opponent. So the Arameans fled, with the Israelites in pursuit. But Ben-hadad king of Aram escaped on horseback with the cavalry. ²¹ Then the king of Israel marched out and attacked the horses and chariots, inflicting a great slaughter on the Arameans.

²⁹ Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has needless wounds? Who has bloodshot eyes? ³⁰ Those who linger over wine, who go to taste mixed drinks. ³¹ Do not gaze at wine while it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly. ³² In the end it bites like a snake and stings like a viper. ³³ Your eyes will see strange things, and your mind will utter perversities. ³⁴ You will be like one sleeping on the high seas or lying on the top of a mast: ³⁵ “They struck me, but I feel no pain! They beat me, but I did not know it! When can I wake up to search for another drink?”

⁴ It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink,

²² Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine and champions in mixing strong drink,

⁷ These also stagger from wine and stumble from strong drink: Priests and prophets reel from strong drink and are befuddled by wine. They stumble because of strong drink, muddled in their visions and stumbling in their judgments.

¹² “Come, let me get the wine, let us imbibe the strong drink, and tomorrow will be like today, only far better!”

¹¹ Promiscuity, wine, and new wine take away understanding.

⁵ The princes are inflamed with wine on the day of our king; so he joins hands with those who mock him.

¹⁵ Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! ¹⁶ You will be filled with shame instead of glory. You too must drink and expose your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will cover your glory.

¹⁰ nor the covetous, nor thieves, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

²¹ envy, and murder; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

¹⁸ Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

³⁸ As for the censers of those who sinned at the cost of their own lives, hammer them into sheets to overlay the altar, for these were presented before the LORD, and so have become holy. They will serve as a sign to the Israelites.”

²³ Then King Solomon swore by the LORD: “May God punish me, and ever so severely, if Adonijah has not made this request at the expense of his life.

³⁶ But he who fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death.”

¹⁴ The wrath of a king is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it. ¹⁵ When a king’s face brightens, there is life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.

¹² A king’s rage is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.

⁴ If the ruler’s temper flares against you, do not abandon your post, for calmness lays great offenses to rest.

¹⁰ They will walk after the LORD; He will roar like a lion. When He roars, His children will come trembling from the west.

⁸ The lion has roared—who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken—who will not prophesy?

¹⁰ You have plotted shame for your house by cutting off many peoples and forfeiting your life.

⁹ But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.

¹⁷ A quick-tempered man acts foolishly, and a devious man is hated.

²⁹ A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man promotes folly.

³² He who is slow to anger is better than a warrior, and he who controls his temper is greater than one who captures a city.

¹⁴ To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

⁶ A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.

¹¹ A man’s insight gives him patience, and his virtue is to overlook an offense.

²⁴ Mocker is the name of the proud and arrogant man—of him who acts with excessive pride.

⁸ do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame? ⁹ Argue your case with your neighbor without betraying another’s confidence, ¹⁰ lest the one who hears may disgrace you, and your infamy never go away.

⁶ to the praise of His glorious grace, by which he has bestowed favor upon us in the Beloved One. ⁷ In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace ⁸ that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

³² Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave us.

¹⁴ But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth.

¹ What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you?

¹⁰ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, ¹¹ and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

⁴ Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.

⁴ The slacker craves yet has nothing, but the soul of the diligent is fully satisfied.

¹⁵ Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger.

²⁴ The slacker buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth.

³⁴ and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

¹³ The slacker says, “A lion is in the road! A fierce lion roams the public square!” ¹⁴ As a door turns on its hinges, so the slacker turns on his bed. ¹⁵ The slacker buries his hand in the dish; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. ¹⁶ The slacker is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer discreetly.

³ The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take along any extra oil. ⁴ But the wise ones took oil in flasks along with their lamps. ⁵ When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. ⁶ At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!’ ⁷ Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ ‘No,’ said the wise ones, ‘or there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ But while they were on their way to buy it, the bridegroom arrived. Those who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was shut.

²⁴ Finally, the servant who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Master, I knew that you are a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what belongs to you.’ ²⁶ ‘You wicked, lazy servant!’ replied his master. ‘You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed. ²⁷ Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received it back with interest. ²⁸ Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents.

⁵ For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; ⁶ and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷ and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. ⁸ For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ But whoever lacks these traits is nearsighted to the point of blindness, having forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. ¹⁰ Therefore, brothers, strive to make your calling and election sure. For if you practice these things you will never stumble, ¹¹ and you will receive a lavish reception into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

⁶ They devise injustice and say, “We have perfected a secret plan.” For the inner man and the heart are mysterious.

⁴ The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.

¹¹ For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

¹ For the choirmaster. According to Sheminith. A Psalm of David. Help, O LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.

¹⁴ Like clouds and wind without rain is the man who boasts of gifts never given.

² Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—a stranger, and not your own lips.

²⁸ While my soul was still searching but not finding, among a thousand I have found one upright man, but among all these I have not found one such woman.

¹ “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem. Look now and take note; search her squares. If you can find a single person, anyone who acts justly, anyone who seeks the truth, then I will forgive the city.

² The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.

² So when you give to the needy, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward.

⁸ I tell you, He will promptly carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”

¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like the other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.

²⁸ “Look,” said Peter, “we have left all we had to follow You.”

³³ “Lord,” said Peter, “I am ready to go with You even to prison and to death.”

⁴⁷ When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, He said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is no deceit.”

¹¹ I have become a fool in my boasting, but you drove me to it. In fact, you should have commended me, since I am in no way inferior to those “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing.

⁷ I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.

² He who walks with integrity and practices righteousness, who speaks the truth from his heart,

¹ Of David. Vindicate me, O LORD! For I have walked with integrity; I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

¹¹ But I will walk with integrity; redeem me and be merciful to me.

²⁶ They are ever generous and quick to lend, and their children are a blessing.

² His descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.

²² A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.

² He who walks in uprightness fears the LORD, but the one who is devious in his ways despises Him.

¹ Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a fool whose lips are perverse.

¹⁵ He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity, who refuses gain from extortion, whose hand never takes a bribe, who stops his ears against murderous plots and shuts his eyes tightly against evil—

³⁹ I will give them one heart and one way, so that they will always fear Me for their own good and for the good of their children after them.

⁶ Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and decrees of the Lord.

³⁹ This promise belongs to you and your children and to all who are far off—to all whom the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

¹² And this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in relation to you, in the integrity and sincerity that are from God—not in worldly wisdom, but in the grace of God.

¹¹ For the saving grace of God has appeared to everyone. ¹² It instructs us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live sensible, upright, and godly lives in the present age,

³ For I was overjoyed when the brothers came and testified about your devotion to the truth, in which you continue to walk. ⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in truth.

³ But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah; how much more if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” ⁴ Once again, David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him: “Go at once to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”

⁴ is like the light of the morning at sunrise of a cloudless dawn, the glistening after the rain on the sprouting grass of the earth.’

⁴ May he vindicate the afflicted among the people; may he save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.

⁹ For surely Your enemies, O LORD, surely Your enemies will perish; all evildoers will be scattered.

⁴ The mighty King loves justice. You have established equity; You have exercised justice and righteousness in Jacob.

⁶ My eyes favor the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in the way of integrity shall minister to me. ⁷ No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who tells lies shall stand in my presence. ⁸ Every morning I will remove all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off every evildoer from the city of the LORD.

¹² Wicked behavior is detestable to kings, for a throne is established through righteousness.

²⁶ A wise king separates out the wicked and drives the threshing wheel over them.

⁵ Remove the wicked from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established in righteousness.

¹⁴ A king who judges the poor with fairness—his throne will be established forever.

¹ Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice.

⁴⁶ When they sin against You—for there is no one who does not sin—and You become angry with them and deliver them to an enemy who takes them as captives to his own land, whether far or near,

³⁶ When they sin against You—for there is no one who does not sin—and You become angry with them and deliver them to an enemy who takes them as captives to a land far or near,

⁴ Who can bring out clean from unclean? No one!

¹⁴ What is man, that he should be pure, or one born of woman, that he should be righteous?

⁴ How then can a man be just before God? How can one born of woman be pure?

⁵ Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me.

²⁰ Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

⁴ My conscience is clear, but that does not vindicate me. It is the Lord who judges me.

² We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.

⁸ If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰ If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.

³⁵ You must not use dishonest measures of length, weight, or volume.

²⁵ You must burn up the images of their gods; do not covet the silver and gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it; for it is detestable to the LORD your God. ²⁶ And you must not bring any detestable thing into your house, or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. You are to utterly detest and abhor it, because it is set apart for destruction.

¹³ You shall not have two differing weights in your bag, one heavy and one light. ¹⁴ You shall not have two differing measures in your house, one large and one small. ¹⁵ You must maintain accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

¹ Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but an accurate weight is His delight.

¹¹ Honest scales and balances are from the LORD; all the weights in the bag are His concern.

²³ Unequal weights are detestable to the LORD, and dishonest scales are no good.

⁴ Hear this, you who trample the needy, who do away with the poor of the land, ⁵ asking, “When will the New Moon be over, that we may sell grain? When will the Sabbath end, that we may market wheat? Let us reduce the ephah and increase the shekel; let us cheat with dishonest scales. ⁶ Let us buy the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the chaff with the wheat!” ⁷ The LORD has sworn by the Pride of Jacob: “I will never forget any of their deeds.

¹⁰ Can I forget any longer, O house of the wicked, the treasures of wickedness and the short ephah, which is accursed? ¹¹ Can I excuse dishonest scales or bags of false weights?

⁸ But to the cowardly and unbelieving and sinful and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

³ The wicked are estranged from the womb; the liars go astray from birth.

⁸ The way of a guilty man is crooked, but the conduct of the innocent is upright.

¹⁵ Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him.

¹⁶ By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?

¹⁵ for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He shall never take wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb.

⁶⁶ And all who heard this wondered in their hearts and asked, “What then will this child become?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.

⁴⁶ Finally, after three days they found Him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ And all who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers.

⁴³ No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴ For each tree is known by its own fruit. Indeed, figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor grapes from brambles.

¹¹ And the LORD said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Or who makes the mute or the deaf, the sighted or the blind? Is it not I, the LORD?

⁹ He who affixed the ear, can He not hear? He who formed the eye, can He not see?

¹⁸ Open my eyes that I may see wondrous things from Your law.

¹³ This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.’ ¹⁴ In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. ¹⁵ For this people’s heart has grown callous; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them.’ ¹⁶ But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.

¹⁸ to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those sanctified by faith in Me.’

¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in your knowledge of Him. ¹⁸ I ask that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope of His calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints,

⁹ How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?

¹¹ The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies lacks judgment.

³⁰ I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment. ³¹ Thorns had grown up everywhere, thistles had covered the ground, and the stone wall was broken down. ³² I observed and took it to heart; I looked and received instruction: ³³ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, ³⁴ and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

⁶ The captain approached him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call upon your God. Perhaps this God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”

¹¹ Do not let your zeal subside; keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

¹¹ And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for us to wake up from our slumber, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

³⁴ Sober up as you ought, and stop sinning; for some of you are ignorant of God. I say this to your shame.

¹⁴ So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

¹⁰ For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”

¹⁰ Is there a case where one can say, “Look, this is new”? It has already existed in the ages before us.

⁷ A merchant loves to defraud with dishonest scales in his hands. ⁸ And Ephraim boasts: “How rich I have become! I have found wealth for myself. In all my labors, they can find in me no iniquity that is sinful.”

⁶ and no one should ever violate or exploit his brother in this regard, because the Lord will avenge all such acts, as we have already told you and solemnly warned you.

¹² But where can wisdom be found, and where does understanding dwell? ¹³ No man can know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living. ¹⁴ The ocean depths say, ‘It is not in me,’ while the sea declares, ‘It is not with me.’ ¹⁵ It cannot be bought with gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver. ¹⁶ It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. ¹⁷ Neither gold nor crystal can compare to it, nor jewels of fine gold be exchanged for it. ¹⁸ Coral and quartz are unworthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies. ¹⁹ Topaz from Cush cannot compare to it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

¹⁵ She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire compares with her.

¹¹ For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire compares with her.

²⁰ The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked has little worth. ²¹ The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of judgment.

⁷ The lips of the wise spread knowledge, but not so the hearts of fools.

²³ A man takes joy in a fitting reply—and how good is a timely word!

¹⁶ How much better to acquire wisdom than gold! To gain understanding is more desirable than silver.

²¹ The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant speech promotes instruction.

²⁴ Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

¹² Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold is a wise man’s rebuke to a listening ear.

⁹ Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs. ¹⁰ The Teacher searched to find delightful sayings and to record accurate words of truth. ¹¹ The words of the wise are like goads, and the anthologies of the masters are like firmly embedded nails driven by a single Shepherd.

¹⁴ How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? ¹⁵ And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of peace, who bring good news of good things!”

²⁹ Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.

²⁶ If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset, ²⁷ because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

¹⁶ It will rescue you from the forbidden woman, from the stranger with seductive words

³ Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil,

⁵ that they may keep you from the adulteress, from the stranger with seductive words.

¹⁰ Then a woman came out to meet him, with the attire of a harlot and cunning of heart.

¹⁵ He who puts up security for a stranger will surely suffer, but the one who hates indebtedness is secure.

²⁶ Do not be one who gives pledges, who puts up security for debts. ²⁷ If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bed be taken from under you?

²⁷ For a prostitute is a deep pit, and an adulteress is a narrow well.

¹³ Take the garment of him who posts security for a stranger; get collateral if it is for a foreigner.

⁶ When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; so they sewed together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves.

¹² Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue, ¹³ though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth, ¹⁴ yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him. ¹⁵ He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach. ¹⁶ He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him. ¹⁷ He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream. ¹⁸ He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading. ¹⁹ For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build. ²⁰ Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.

¹⁷ For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.

¹⁷ “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is tasty!” ¹⁸ But they do not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

⁹ Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.

¹⁵ He has filled me with bitterness; He has intoxicated me with wormwood. ¹⁶ He has ground my teeth with gravel and trampled me in the dust.

²⁵ He chose to suffer oppression with God’s people rather than to experience the fleeting enjoyment of sin.

¹ After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the LORD, “Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?” ² “Judah shall go up,” answered the LORD. “Indeed, I have delivered the land into their hands.”

²⁹ If only this people were under my authority, I would remove Abimelech; I would say to him, ‘Muster your army and come out!’”

⁷ Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”

¹⁸ The Israelites set out, went up to Bethel, and inquired of God, “Who of us shall go up first to fight against the Benjamites?” “Judah will be first,” the LORD replied.

²³ They went up and wept before the LORD until evening, inquiring of Him, “Should we again draw near for battle against our brothers the Benjamites?” And the LORD answered, “Go up against them.”

²⁶ Then the Israelites, all the people, went up to Bethel, where they sat weeping before the LORD. That day they fasted until evening and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings to the LORD. ²⁷ And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there, ²⁸ and Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, served before it.) The Israelites asked, “Should we again go out to battle against our brothers the Benjamites, or should we stop?” The LORD answered, “Fight, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”

²⁶ Then Abner called out to Joab: “Must the sword devour forever? Do you not realize that this will only end in bitterness? How long before you tell the troops to stop pursuing their brothers?” ²⁷ “As surely as God lives,” Joab replied, “if you had not spoken up, the troops would have continued pursuing their brothers until morning.”

¹⁷ Then Amaziah king of Judah took counsel and sent word to the king of Israel Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu. “Come, let us meet face to face,” he said. ¹⁸ But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle. ¹⁹ You have said, ‘Look, I have defeated Edom,’ and your heart has become proud and boastful. Now stay at home. Why should you stir up trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?” ²⁰ But Amaziah would not listen, for this had come from God in order to deliver them into the hand of Jehoash, because they had sought the gods of Edom. ²¹ So Jehoash king of Israel advanced, and he and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth-shemesh in Judah. ²² And Judah was routed before Israel, and every man fled to his own home. ²³ There at Beth-shemesh, Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz. Then Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate—a section of four hundred cubits.

¹⁴ For lack of guidance, a nation falls, but with many counselors comes deliverance.

²² Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

⁶ Only with sound guidance should you wage war, and victory lies in a multitude of counselors.

⁸ do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame?

³¹ Or what king on his way to war with another king will not first sit down and consider whether he can engage with ten thousand men the one coming against him with twenty thousand?

¹⁶ You must not go about spreading slander among your people. You must not endanger the life of your neighbor. I am the LORD.

¹³ A gossip reveals a secret, but a trustworthy person keeps a confidence.

³ He who guards his mouth protects his life, but the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin.

²⁹ A violent man entices his neighbor and leads him down a path that is not good.

⁸ The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.

²¹ My son, fear the LORD and the king, and do not associate with the rebellious.

²⁰ Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, a conflict ceases. ²¹ Like charcoal for embers and wood for fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife. ²² The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.

¹⁸ For such people are not serving our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

¹² Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

¹⁷ Anyone who curses his father or mother must surely be put to death.

⁹ If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.

¹⁶ ‘Cursed is he who dishonors his father or mother.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

⁵ Indeed, the lamp of the wicked is extinguished; the flame of his fire does not glow. ⁶ The light in his tent grows dark, and the lamp beside him goes out.

¹⁸ He is driven from light into darkness and is chased from the inhabited world.

⁹ The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is extinguished.

²⁰ For the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.

¹¹ There is a generation of those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers.

¹⁷ As for the eye that mocks a father and scorns obedience to a mother, may the ravens of the valley pluck it out and young vultures devour it.

⁴ For God commanded, saying, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’

¹³ Then the king told the servants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, take him away, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

⁸ The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’

¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), ¹² he is no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ Thus you nullify the word of God by the tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such matters.”

¹³ They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.

¹⁶ Though he heaps up silver like dust and piles up a wardrobe like clay, ¹⁷ what he lays up, the righteous will wear, and his silver will be divided by the innocent.

⁴ Do not wear yourself out to get rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself.

⁸ He who increases his wealth by interest and usury lays it up for one who is kind to the poor.

²⁰ A faithful man will abound with blessings, but one eager to be rich will not go unpunished.

²² A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty awaits him.

⁶ Will not all of these take up a taunt against him, speaking with mockery and derision: ‘Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’

⁴ I will send it out, declares the LORD of Hosts, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of him who swears falsely by My name. It will remain inside his house and destroy it, down to its timbers and stones.”

² If you do not listen, and if you do not take it to heart to honor My name,” says the LORD of Hosts, “I will send a curse among you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have already begun to curse them, because you are not taking it to heart.

⁹ Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.

³⁵ Vengeance is Mine; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly.”

¹² Perhaps the LORD will see my affliction and repay me with good for the cursing I receive today.”

¹⁴ Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the LORD!

³⁴ Wait for the LORD and keep His way, and He will raise you up to inherit the land. When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

¹³ If anyone returns evil for good, evil will never leave his house.

²⁹ Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will repay the man according to his work.”

³¹ But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.

²⁵ The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. ²⁶ It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

³⁹ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also;

¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody. ¹⁸ If it is possible on your part, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”

¹⁵ Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people.

²³ When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.

⁹ Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, knowing that to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

¹⁹ So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their souls to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

¹⁰ Differing weights and unequal measures—both are detestable to the LORD.

¹⁰ You must use honest scales, a just ephah, and a just bath.

⁷ A merchant loves to defraud with dishonest scales in his hands.

⁵ asking, “When will the New Moon be over, that we may sell grain? When will the Sabbath end, that we may market wheat? Let us reduce the ephah and increase the shekel; let us cheat with dishonest scales.

⁴ Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths.

¹² Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the path chosen for him.

²³ The steps of a man are ordered by the LORD who takes delight in his journey.

⁸ The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way, but the folly of fools deceives them.

⁹ A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

⁶ I will send him against a godless nation; I will dispatch him against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils and seize plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets. ⁷ But this is not his intention; this is not his plan. For it is in his heart to destroy and cut off many nations.

²³ I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not his own; no one who walks directs his own steps.

²³ Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised your gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you have failed to glorify the God who holds in His hand your very breath and all your ways.

²⁸ ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’

¹⁵ “If someone acts unfaithfully and sins unintentionally against any of the LORD’s holy things, he must bring his guilt offering to the LORD: an unblemished ram from the flock, of proper value in silver shekels according to the sanctuary shekel; it is a guilt offering.

¹⁰ No one outside a priest’s family may eat the sacred offering, nor may the guest of a priest or his hired hand eat it. ¹¹ But if a priest buys a slave with his own money, or if a slave is born in his household, that slave may eat his food. ¹² If the priest’s daughter is married to a man other than a priest, she is not to eat of the sacred contributions. ¹³ But if a priest’s daughter with no children becomes widowed or divorced and returns to her father’s house, she may share her father’s food as in her youth. But no outsider may share it. ¹⁴ If anyone eats a sacred offering in error, he must add a fifth to its value and give the sacred offering to the priest. ¹⁵ The priests must not profane the sacred offerings that the Israelites present to the LORD

⁹ If he vows an animal that may be brought as an offering to the LORD, any such animal given to the LORD shall be holy. ¹⁰ He must not replace it or exchange it, either good for bad or bad for good. But if he does substitute one animal for another, both that animal and its substitute will be holy.

³⁰ Thus any tithe from the land, whether from the seed of the land or the fruit of the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD. ³¹ If a man wishes to redeem part of his tithe, he must add a fifth to its value.

² If a man makes a vow to the LORD or swears an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word; he must do everything he has promised. ³ And if a woman in her father’s house during her youth makes a vow to the LORD or obligates herself by a pledge, ⁴ and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. ⁵ But if her father prohibits her on the day he hears about it, then none of the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. The LORD will absolve her because her father has prohibited her. ⁶ If a woman marries while under a vow or rash promise by which she has bound herself, ⁷ and her husband hears of it but says nothing to her on that day, then the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. ⁸ But if her husband prohibits her when he hears of it, he nullifies the vow that binds her or the rash promise she has made, and the LORD will absolve her. ⁹ Every vow a widow or divorced woman pledges to fulfill is binding on her. ¹⁰ If a woman in her husband’s house has made a vow or put herself under an obligation with an oath, ¹¹ and her husband hears of it but says nothing to her and does not prohibit her, then all the vows or pledges by which she has bound herself shall stand. ¹² But if her husband nullifies them on the day he hears of them, then nothing that came from her lips, whether her vows or pledges, shall stand. Her husband has nullified them, and the LORD will absolve her. ¹³ Her husband may confirm or nullify any vow or any sworn pledge to deny herself. ¹⁴ But if her husband says nothing to her from day to day, then he confirms all the vows and pledges that bind her. He has confirmed them, because he said nothing to her on the day he heard about them. ¹⁵ But if he nullifies them after he hears of them, then he will bear her iniquity.” ¹⁶ These are the statutes that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the relationship between a man and his wife, and between a father and a young daughter still in his home.

⁷ A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.

⁴ When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow. ⁵ It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. ⁶ Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, and do not tell the messenger that your vow was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands?

⁸ Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you ask, ‘How do we rob You?’ In tithes and offerings. ⁹ You are cursed with a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me. ¹⁰ Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure.

³³ Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’

⁹ But David answered Rechab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from all distress, ¹⁰ when someone told me, ‘Look, Saul is dead,’ and thought he was a bearer of good news, I seized him and put him to death at Ziklag. That was his reward for his news! ¹¹ How much more, when wicked men kill a righteous man in his own house and on his own bed, shall I not now require his blood from your hands and remove you from the earth!” ¹² So David commanded his young men, and they killed Rechab and Baanah. They cut off their hands and feet and hung their bodies by the pool in Hebron, but they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in Abner’s tomb in Hebron.

³¹ David brought out the people who were there and put them to work with saws, iron picks, and axes, and he made them work at the brick kilns. He did the same to all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all his troops returned to Jerusalem.

⁵ Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret, I will put to silence; the one with haughty eyes and a proud heart, I will not endure.

⁸ A king who sits on a throne to judge sifts out all evil with his eyes.

²⁷ Surely caraway is not threshed with a sledge, and the wheel of a cart is not rolled over the cumin. But caraway is beaten out with a stick, and cumin with a rod. ²⁸ Grain for bread must be ground, but it is not endlessly threshed. Though the wheels of the cart roll over it, the horses do not crush it.

⁷ Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.

⁸ But there is a spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding.

³⁰ Lashes and wounds scour evil, and beatings cleanse the inmost parts.

¹⁵ So they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts either accusing or defending them

² Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. ³ And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. ⁴ The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. ⁵ For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶ For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

¹² For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ¹³ Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

¹⁹ And by this we will know that we belong to the truth, and will assure our hearts in His presence: ²⁰ Even if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and He knows all things. ²¹ Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God,

⁷ For the king trusts in the LORD; through the loving devotion of the Most High, he will not be shaken.

⁷ May he sit enthroned in God’s presence forever; appoint Your loving devotion and Your faithfulness to guard him.

¹ A Psalm of David. I will sing of Your loving devotion and justice; to You, O LORD, I will sing praises.

⁶ By loving devotion and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the LORD one turns aside from evil.

⁵ in loving devotion a throne will be established in the tent of David. A judge seeking justice and hastening righteousness will sit on it in faithfulness.

³² You are to rise in the presence of the elderly, honor the aged, and fear your God. I am the LORD.

³¹ Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is attained along the path of righteousness.

²³ This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches. ²⁴ But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises loving devotion, justice and righteousness on the earth—for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.

¹⁴ I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

²⁵ Strike a mocker, and the simple will beware; rebuke the discerning man, and he will gain knowledge.

⁹ Therefore Jacob’s guilt will be atoned for, and the full fruit of the removal of his sin will be this: When he makes all the altar stones like crushed bits of chalk, no Asherah poles or incense altars will remain standing.

⁵ But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

¹⁰ Our fathers disciplined us for a short time as they thought best, but God disciplines us for our good, so that we may share in His holiness.