³ Honesty guides good people;
    dishonesty destroys treacherous people.

⁵ The godly are directed by honesty;
    the wicked fall beneath their load of sin.

⁶ The godliness of good people rescues them;
    the ambition of treacherous people traps them.

⁷ When the wicked die, their hopes die with them,
    for they rely on their own feeble strength.

⁸ The godly are rescued from trouble,
    and it falls on the wicked instead.

¹⁰ The whole city celebrates when the godly succeed;
    they shout for joy when the wicked die.

¹¹ Upright citizens are good for a city and make it prosper,
    but the talk of the wicked tears it apart.

¹⁸ Evil people get rich for the moment,
    but the reward of the godly will last.

¹⁹ Godly people find life;
    evil people find death.

²³ The godly can look forward to a reward,
    while the wicked can expect only judgment.

³⁰ The seeds of good deeds become a tree of life;
    a wise person wins friends.^[a]

³¹ If the righteous are rewarded here on earth,
    what will happen to wicked sinners?^[b]