Proverbs 11
Good News Translation
11 The Lord hates people who use dishonest scales. He is happy with honest weights.
2 People who are proud will soon be disgraced. It is wiser to be modest.
3 If you are good, you are guided by honesty. People who can't be trusted are destroyed by their own dishonesty.
4 Riches will do you no good on the day you face death, but honesty can save your life.
5 Honesty makes a good person's life easier, but the wicked will cause their own downfall.
6 Righteousness rescues those who are honest, but those who can't be trusted are trapped by their own greed.
7 When the wicked die, their hope dies with them. Confidence placed in riches comes to nothing.
8 The righteous are protected from trouble; it comes to the wicked instead.
9 You can be ruined by the talk of godless people, but the wisdom of the righteous can save you.
10 A city is happy when honest people have good fortune, and there are joyful shouts when the wicked die.
11 A city becomes great when the righteous give it their blessing; but a city is brought to ruin by the words of the wicked.
12 It is foolish to speak scornfully of others. If you are smart, you will keep quiet.
13 No one who gossips can be trusted with a secret, but you can put confidence in someone who is trustworthy.
14 (A)A nation will fall if it has no guidance. Many advisers mean security.
15 If you promise to pay a stranger's debt, you will regret it. You are better off if you don't get involved.
16 A gracious woman is respected, but a woman without virtue is a disgrace.
Lazy people will never have money,[a] but aggressive people will get rich.
17 You do yourself a favor when you are kind. If you are cruel, you only hurt yourself.
18 Wicked people do not really gain anything, but if you do what is right, you are certain to be rewarded.
19 Anyone who is determined to do right will live, but anyone who insists on doing wrong will die.
20 The Lord hates evil-minded people, but loves those who do right.
21 You can be sure that evil people will be punished, but the righteous will escape.
22 Beauty in a woman without good judgment is like a gold ring in a pig's snout.
23 What good people want always results in good; when the wicked get what they want, everyone is angry.[b]
24 Some people spend their money freely and still grow richer. Others are cautious, and yet grow poorer.
25 Be generous, and you will be prosperous. Help others, and you will be helped.
26 People curse someone who hoards grain, waiting for a higher price, but they praise the one who puts it up for sale.
27 If your goals are good, you will be respected, but if you are looking for trouble, that is what you will get.
28 Those who depend on their wealth will fall like the leaves of autumn, but the righteous will prosper like the leaves of summer.
29 Those who bring trouble on their families will have nothing at the end.
Foolish people will always be servants to the wise.
30 Righteousness[c] gives life, but violence[d] takes it away.
31 (B)Those who are good are rewarded here on earth, so you can be sure that wicked and sinful people will be punished.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 11:16 One ancient translation but a woman … money; Hebrew does not have these words.
- Proverbs 11:23 everyone is angry; or God punishes them.
- Proverbs 11:30 One ancient translation Righteousness; Hebrew A righteous person.
- Proverbs 11:30 Probable text violence; Hebrew a wise person.
Proverbs 11
Complete Jewish Bible
11 False scales are an abomination to Adonai,
but accurate weights please him.
2 First comes pride, then disgrace;
but with the humble is wisdom.
3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the duplicity of the treacherous destroys them.
4 On the day of wrath, wealth doesn’t help;
but righteousness rescues from death.
5 The righteousness of the innocent levels their way,
but wickedness of the wicked makes them fall.
6 The righteousness of the upright rescues them,
but the treacherous are trapped by their own intrigues.
7 When a wicked man dies, his hope perishes;
what he hopes for from evil comes to nothing.
8 The righteous is delivered from trouble,
and the wicked comes to take his place.
9 With his mouth the hypocrite can ruin his neighbor,
but by knowledge the righteous are delivered.
10 When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices;
and when the wicked perish, there is joy.
11 By the blessing of the upright, a city is raised up;
but the words of the wicked tear it down.
12 He who belittles another lacks good sense,
whereas a person of discernment stays silent.
13 A gossip goes around revealing secrets,
but a trustworthy person keeps a confidence.
14 Without clever tactics an army is defeated,
and victory comes from much planning.
15 He who guarantees a loan for a stranger will suffer,
but refusing to underwrite is safe.
16 A gracious woman obtains honor;
aggressive men obtain wealth.
17 A man who is kind does himself good,
but the cruel does harm to himself.
18 The profits of the wicked are illusory;
but those who sow righteousness gain a true reward.
19 Genuine righteousness leads to life,
but the pursuer of evil goes to his own death.
20 The crooked-hearted are an abomination to Adonai,
but those sincere in their ways are his delight.
21 Depend on it: the evil will not go unpunished;
but the offspring of the righteous will escape.
22 Like a gold ring in the snout of a pig
is a beautiful woman who lacks good sense.
23 The righteous desire only good,
but what the wicked hope for brings wrath.
24 Some give freely and still get richer,
while others are stingy but grow still poorer.
25 The person who blesses others will prosper;
he who satisfies others will be satisfied himself.
26 The people will curse him who withholds grain;
but if he sells it, blessings will be on his head.
27 He who strives for good obtains favor,
but he who searches for evil — it comes to him!
28 He who trusts in his riches will fall,
but the righteous will flourish like sprouting leaves.
29 Those who trouble their families inherit the wind,
and the fool becomes slave to the wise.
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
and he who is wise wins souls.
31 If the righteous are paid what they deserve here on earth,
how much more the wicked and the sinner!
Proverbs 11
The Message
Without Good Direction, People Lose Their Way
11 God hates cheating in the marketplace;
he loves it when business is aboveboard.
2 The stuck-up fall flat on their faces,
but down-to-earth people stand firm.
3 The integrity of the honest keeps them on track;
the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin.
4 A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart,
but a principled life can stand up to the worst.
5 Moral character makes for smooth traveling;
an evil life is a hard life.
6 Good character is the best insurance;
crooks get trapped in their sinful lust.
7 When the wicked die, that’s it—
the story’s over, end of hope.
8 A good person is saved from much trouble;
a bad person runs straight into it.
9 The loose tongue of the godless spreads destruction;
the common sense of the godly preserves them.
10 When it goes well for good people, the whole town cheers;
when it goes badly for bad people, the town celebrates.
11 When right-living people bless the city, it flourishes;
evil talk turns it into a ghost town in no time.
12 Mean-spirited slander is heartless;
quiet discretion accompanies good sense.
13 A gadabout gossip can’t be trusted with a secret,
but someone of integrity won’t violate a confidence.
14 Without good direction, people lose their way;
the more wise counsel you follow, the better your chances.
15 Whoever makes deals with strangers is sure to get burned;
if you keep a cool head, you’ll avoid rash bargains.
16 A woman of gentle grace gets respect,
but men of rough violence grab for loot.
A God-Shaped Life
17 When you’re kind to others, you help yourself;
when you’re cruel to others, you hurt yourself.
18 Bad work gets paid with a bad check;
good work gets solid pay.
19 Take your stand with God’s loyal community and live,
or chase after phantoms of evil and die.
20 God can’t stand deceivers,
but oh how he relishes integrity.
21 Count on this: The wicked won’t get off scot-free,
and God’s loyal people will triumph.
22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout
is a beautiful face on an empty head.
23 The desires of good people lead straight to the best,
but wicked ambition ends in angry frustration.
24 The world of the generous gets larger and larger;
the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.
25 The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed;
those who help others are helped.
26 Curses on those who drive a hard bargain!
Blessings on all who play fair and square!
27 The one who seeks good finds delight;
the student of evil becomes evil.
28 A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump;
a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.
29 Exploit or abuse your family, and end up with a fistful of air;
common sense tells you it’s a stupid way to live.
30 A good life is a fruit-bearing tree;
a violent life destroys souls.
31 If good people barely make it,
what’s in store for the bad!
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson