Proverbs 13
New King James Version
Wisdom Loves Righteousness
13 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction,
(A)But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2 (B)A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth,
But the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence.
3 (C)He who guards his mouth preserves his life,
But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.
4 (D)The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing;
But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
5 A righteous man hates lying,
But a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
6 (E)Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless,
But wickedness overthrows the sinner.
7 (F)There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing;
And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
8 The ransom of a man’s life is his riches,
But the poor does not hear rebuke.
9 The light of the righteous rejoices,
(G)But the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
10 By pride comes nothing but (H)strife,
But with the well-advised is wisdom.
11 (I)Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished,
But he who gathers by labor will increase.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But (J)when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
13 He who (K)despises the word will be destroyed,
But he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.
14 (L)The law of the wise is a fountain of life,
To turn one away from (M)the snares of death.
15 Good understanding [a]gains (N)favor,
But the way of the unfaithful is hard.
16 (O)Every prudent man acts with knowledge,
But a fool lays open his folly.
17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble,
But (P)a faithful ambassador brings health.
18 Poverty and shame will come to him who [b]disdains correction,
But (Q)he who regards a rebuke will be honored.
19 A desire accomplished is sweet to the soul,
But it is an abomination to fools to depart from evil.
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise,
But the companion of fools will be destroyed.
21 (R)Evil pursues sinners,
But to the righteous, good shall be repaid.
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
But (S)the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
25 (V)The righteous eats to the satisfying of his soul,
But the stomach of the wicked shall be in want.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 13:15 gives
- Proverbs 13:18 Lit. ignores
- Proverbs 13:23 uncultivated
- Proverbs 13:23 Lit. what is swept away
- Proverbs 13:24 early
Proverbs 13
Amplified Bible
Contrast the Upright and the Wicked
13 A wise son heeds and accepts [and is the result of] his father’s discipline and instruction,
But a scoffer does not listen to reprimand and does not learn from his errors.
2
From the fruit of his mouth a [wise] man enjoys good,
But the desire of the treacherous is for violence.
3
The one who guards his mouth [thinking before he speaks] protects his life;
The one who opens his lips wide [and chatters without thinking] comes to ruin.
4
The soul (appetite) of the lazy person craves and gets nothing [for lethargy overcomes ambition],
But the soul (appetite) of the diligent [who works willingly] is rich and abundantly supplied.(A)
5
A righteous man hates lies,
But a wicked man is loathsome, and he acts shamefully.
6
Righteousness (being in right standing with God) guards the one whose way is blameless,
But wickedness undermines and overthrows the sinner.
7
There is one who pretends to be rich, yet has nothing at all;
Another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.(B)
8
The ransom for a man’s life is his wealth,
But the poor man does not even have to listen to a rebuke or threats [from the envious].
9
The light of the righteous [within him—grows brighter and] rejoices,
But the lamp of the wicked [is a temporary light and] goes out.
10
Through pride and presumption come nothing but strife,
But [skillful and godly] wisdom is with those who welcome [well-advised] counsel.
11
Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles,
But he who gathers gradually by [honest] labor will increase [his riches].
12
Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But when desire is fulfilled, it is a tree of life.
13
Whoever despises the word and counsel [of God] brings destruction upon himself,
But he who [reverently] fears and respects the commandment [of God] will be rewarded.
14
The teaching of the wise is a fountain and source of life,
So that one may avoid the snares of death.
15
Good understanding wins favor [from others],
But the way of the unfaithful is hard [like barren, dry soil].
16
Every prudent and self-disciplined man acts with knowledge,
But a [closed-minded] fool [who refuses to learn] displays his foolishness [for all to see].
17
A wicked messenger falls into hardship,
But a faithful ambassador brings healing.
18
Poverty and shame will come to him who refuses instruction and discipline,
But he who accepts and learns from reproof or censure is honored.
19
Desire realized is sweet to the soul;
But it is detestable to fools to turn away from evil [which they have planned].
20
He who walks [as a companion] with wise men will be wise,
But the companions of [conceited, dull-witted] fools [are fools themselves and] will experience harm.(C)
21
Adversity pursues sinners,
But the [consistently] upright will be rewarded with prosperity.
22
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
And the wealth of the sinner is stored up for [the hands of] the righteous.
23
Abundant food is in the fallow (uncultivated) ground of the poor,
But [without protection] it is swept away by injustice.
24
He who withholds the rod [of discipline] hates his son,
But he who loves him disciplines and trains him diligently and appropriately [with wisdom and love].(D)
25
The [consistently] righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,
But the stomach of the wicked is in need [of bread].
Proverbs 13
Tree of Life Version
Guard the Way of Integrity
13 A wise son heeds his father’s discipline,
but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2 From the fruit of a man’s mouth he enjoys good things,
but the treacherous crave violence.
3 He who watches his mouth protects his life,
but whoever opens wide his lips comes to ruin.
4 The slacker’s soul craves, yet has nothing,
but the diligent soul will be satisfied.
5 A righteous person hates lying,
but the wicked acts in shameful disgrace.
6 Righteousness guards one who walks in integrity,
but wickedness overthrows the sinner.
7 One pretends to be rich, yet has nothing;
another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.[a]
8 A man’s riches may ransom his life,
but a poor person hears no threat.
9 The light of the righteous shines brightly.
The lamp of the wicked is snuffed out.
10 Arrogance yields nothing but strife.
Wisdom belongs to those who take advice.
11 Wealth gained by fraud dwindles,
but he who gathers by labor increases it.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
13 Whoever despises instruction will pay a penalty,
but whoever respects a mitzvah will be rewarded.
14 Wise instruction is a fountain of life,
turning one away from snares of death.
15 Good understanding wins favor,
but the way of the unfaithful is hard.
16 Everyone shrewd acts with knowledge,
but a fool flaunts folly.
The Wise and the Foolish
17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble,
but a faithful envoy brings healing.
18 He who spurns discipline comes to poverty and shame,
but whoever accepts correction will be honored.
19 A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul,
but fools detest turning away from evil.
20 He who walks with wise men is wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm.
21 Misfortune pursues sinners,
but prosperity rewards the righteous.
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.
23 The fallow field of the poor yields much food,
but it is swept away by injustice.
24 He who spares the rod hates his son,
but he who loves him is diligent with discipline.[b]
25 The righteous eats to his heart’s content,
but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 13:7 cf. 2 Cor. 6:10.
- Proverbs 13:24 cf. Heb. 12:7.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.