Proverbs 14:9-27

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁹ God scorns the wicked,^[a]
    but the upright enjoy his favor.
¹⁰ The heart knows its own bitterness,
    and no stranger shares its joy.
¹¹ The house of the wicked will be destroyed,
    but the tent of the upright will flourish.
¹² There is a way which seems right to a man,
    but its end is the way to death.^[b]
13 Even in laughter the heart is sad,
    and the end of joy is grief.
¹⁴ A perverse man will be filled with the fruit of his ways,
    and a good man with the fruit of his deeds.^[c]
15 The simple believes everything,
    but the prudent looks where he is going.
¹⁶ A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil,
    but a fool throws off restraint and is careless.
¹⁷ A man of quick temper acts foolishly,
    but a man of discretion is patient.^[d]
18 The simple acquire folly,
    but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
¹⁹ The evil bow down before the good,
    the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
²⁰ The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,
    but the rich has many friends.
²¹ He who despises his neighbor is a sinner,
    but happy is he who is kind to the poor.
²² Do they not err that devise evil?
    Those who devise good meet loyalty and faithfulness.
²³ In all toil there is profit,
    but mere talk tends only to want.
²⁴ The crown of the wise is their wisdom,^[e]
    but folly is the garland^[f] of fools.
²⁵ A truthful witness saves lives,
    but one who utters lies is a betrayer.
²⁶ In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,
    and his children will have a refuge.
²⁷ The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
    that one may avoid the snares of death.