The Value of a Good Name
1A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
Loving favor rather than silver and gold.
2The rich and the poor have this in common,
The Lord is the maker of them all.
3A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself,
But the simple pass on and are punished.
4By humility and the fear of the Lord
Are riches and honor and life.
5Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;
He who guards his soul will be far from them.
6Train up a child in the way he should go,
[a]And when he is old he will not depart from it.
7The rich rules over the poor,
And the borrower is servant to the lender.
8He who sows iniquity will reap sorrow,[b]
And the rod of his anger will fail.
9He who has a [c]generous eye will be blessed,
For he gives of his bread to the poor.
10Cast out the scoffer, and contention will leave;
Yes, strife and reproach will cease.
11He who loves purity of heart
And has grace on his lips,
The king will be his friend.
12The eyes of the Lord preserve knowledge,
But He overthrows the words of the faithless.
13The lazy man says, “There is a lion outside!
I shall be slain in the streets!”
14The mouth of an immoral woman is a deep pit;
He who is abhorred by the Lord will fall there.
15Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child;
The rod of correction will drive it far from him.
16He who oppresses the poor to increase his riches,
And he who gives to the rich, will surely come to poverty.
Sayings of the Wise
17Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise,
And apply your heart to my knowledge;
18For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you;
Let them all be fixed upon your lips,
19So that your trust may be in the Lord;
I have instructed you today, even you.
20Have I not written to you excellent things
Of counsels and knowledge,
21That I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth,
That you may answer words of truth
To those who [d]send to you?
22Do not rob the poor because he is poor,
Nor oppress the afflicted at the gate;
23For the Lord will plead their cause,
And plunder the soul of those who plunder them.
24Make no friendship with an angry man,
And with a furious man do not go,
25Lest you learn his ways
And set a snare for your soul.
26Do not be one of those who [e]shakes hands in a pledge,
One of those who is [f]surety for debts;
27If you have nothing with which to pay,
Why should he take away your bed from under you?
28Do not remove the ancient [g]landmark
Which your fathers have set.
29Do you see a man who [h]excels in his work?
He will stand before kings;
He will not stand before [i]unknown men.
