Proverbs 25
International Children’s Bible
More Wise Sayings of Solomon
25 These are more wise sayings of Solomon. They were copied by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah.
2 God is honored for what he keeps secret.
Kings are honored for what they can discover.
3 No one can measure the height of the skies or the depth of the earth.
So also no one can understand the mind of a king.
4 Remove the scum from the silver.
Then the silver can be used by the silversmith.
5 Remove wicked people from the king’s presence.
Then his government will be honest and last a long time.
6 Don’t brag to the king.
Don’t act as if you are a great man.
7 It is better for him to promote you to a higher job
than to give you a less important position.
Because of something you have seen,
8 do not quickly take someone to court.
What will you do later
when your neighbor proves you are wrong?
9 If you have an argument with your neighbor,
don’t tell other people what was said.
10 Whoever hears it might say bad things about you.
And you might not ever be respected again.
11 The right word spoken at the right time
is as beautiful as gold apples in a silver bowl.
12 The warning of a wise person is valuable to someone who will listen.
It is worth as much as gold earrings or fine gold jewelry.
13 A trustworthy messenger refreshes those who send him.
He is like the coolness of snow in the summertime.
14 People who brag about gifts they never give
are like clouds and wind that give no rain.
15 With patience you can convince a ruler.
And a gentle word can get through to the hard-headed.
16 If you find honey, don’t eat too much.
Too much of it will make you sick.
17 Don’t go to your neighbor’s house too often.
Too much of you will make him hate you.
18 Anyone who lies about his neighbor
hurts him as a club, a sword or a sharp arrow would.
19 Don’t trust unfaithful people when you are in trouble.
It’s like eating with a broken tooth or walking with a crippled foot.
20 Don’t sing songs to someone who is sad.
It’s like taking off a coat on a cold day
or pouring vinegar on soda.
21 If your enemy is hungry, feed him.
If he is thirsty, give him a drink.
22 Doing this will be like pouring burning coals on his head.
And the Lord will reward you.
23 The north wind brings rain.
In the same way, telling gossip brings angry looks.
24 It is better to live in a corner on the roof[a]
than inside the house with a quarreling wife.
25 Hearing good news from a faraway place
is like having a cool drink when you are tired.
26 A good person who gives in to evil
is like a muddy spring or a dirty well.
27 It is not good to eat too much honey.
In the same way, it is not good to brag about yourself.
28 A person who does not control himself
is like a city whose walls have been broken down.
Footnotes
- 25:24 roof In Bible times houses were built with flat roofs. The roof was used for drying things such as flax and fruit. And it was used as an extra room, as a place for worship and as a place to sleep in the summer.
Proverbs 25
Wycliffe Bible
25 Also these be the Parables of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, translated.
2 The glory of God is to cover a word; and the glory of kings is to seek out a word. (The glory of God be those things which he hath hidden; and the glory of kings is to search them out.)
3 Heaven above, and the earth beneath, and the heart of kings is unsearchable. (The heavens be above, and the earth is beneath, and a king’s heart is unsearchable.)
4 Do thou away rust from silver, and a full clean vessel shall go out.
5 Do thou away unpiety from the cheer of the king (Take thou away wicked persons from before the king), and his throne shall be made steadfast by rightfulness.
6 Appear thou not glorious before the king, and stand thou not in the place of great men.
7 For it is better, that it be said to thee, Ascend thou hither (Come thou up here), than that thou be made low before the prince.
8 Bring thou not forth soon those things in strife, which thine eyes saw; lest afterward thou mayest not amend, when thou hast made thy friend unhonest. (Bring thou not soon forth those things in strife, or an argument, which thine eyes saw; lest afterward thou cannot correct it, when thou hast dishonoured thy friend.)
9 Treat thy cause with thy friend, and show thou not (a) private (matter) to a strange man;
10 lest peradventure he have joy of thy fall (lest perhaps he have joy over thy fall), when he hath heard (of it), and cease not to do shame to thee.
11 (As) A golden pommel in beds of silver is he, that speaketh a word in his time. (Like a golden apple in beds of silver, is a word spoken at its proper time.)
12 (As) A golden earring, and a shining pearl is he, that reproveth a wise man, and an ear obeying. (Like a golden earring, and a shining pearl, is a wise person who rebuketh someone with an obedient ear.)
13 As the cold of snow in the day of harvest, so a faithful messenger to him that sent him, maketh his soul to have rest. (Like the cold of snow on the day of harvest, is a faithful messenger to him who sent him, for he maketh his soul to have rest.)
14 (As) A cloud and wind, and (then) rain not following, is a glorious man, and not [ful]filling promises. (Like a cloud and wind, but then rain not following, is a honourable person who fulfilleth not his promises.)
15 A prince shall be made soft by patience; and a soft tongue shall break hardness.
16 Thou hast found honey, eat thou (only) that that sufficeth to thee; lest peradventure thou be (over-)filled, and spew it out.
17 Withdraw thy foot from the house of thy neighbour; lest sometime he be filled (of thee), that is, annoyed (by thee), and hate thee.
18 (Like) A dart, and a sword, and a sharp arrow, (is) a man that speaketh false witnessing against his neighbour.
19 (As) A rotten tooth, and a faint foot is he, that hopeth on an unfaithful man in the day of anguish, (Like a rotten tooth, and a faint foot, is he, who hopeth on, or trusteth in, an unfaithful person on his day of anguish.)
20 and loseth his mantle in the day of cold. Vinegar in a vessel of salt is he, that singeth songs to the worst heart. As a moth harmeth a cloth, and a worm harmeth a tree, so the sorrow of a man harmeth the heart. (Like him who taketh away a mantle on a cold day, and like vinegar in a vessel of salt, is he who singeth songs to an aggrieved heart. Like a moth harmeth a cloak, and a worm harmeth a tree, so a person’s sorrow harmeth his heart.)
21 If thine enemy hungereth, feed thou him; if he thirsteth, give thou him water to drink;
22 for thou shalt gather together coals on his head; and the Lord shall yield to thee. (for thou shalt gather together coals upon his head; and the Lord shall reward thee.)
23 The north wind scattereth abroad rains; and a sorrowful face destroyeth a tongue backbiting. (Like the north wind scattereth rains abroad; so an angry look destroyeth a backbiting tongue.)
24 It is better to sit in the corner of an house without [a] roof, than with a woman full of chiding, and in a common house. (It is better to sit in the corner of a house without a roof, than to be with a woman full of arguments, or of bickering, in a house together.)
25 Cold water to a thirsty man; and a good messenger from a far land. (Like cold water to a thirsty man, is good news from a far land.)
26 (As) A well disturbed with foot, and a vein broken, (is) a just man falling before a wicked man. (Like a well disturbed with a foot, and a broken fountain, is the righteous falling before the wicked.)
27 As it is not good to him that eateth much honey; so he that is a searcher of majesty, shall be put down from glory. (Like it is not good for him who eateth too much honey; so he who seeketh his own glory, shall be brought down from his place of honour.)
28 As a city open, and without compass of walls; so is a man that may not refrain his spirit in speaking. (Like a city that is open, and without any walls surrounding it, is a man who cannot refrain his own spirit from speaking.)
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
2001 by Terence P. Noble