Proverbs 17:11-16

New International Version

¹¹Evildoers foster rebellion against God;
the messenger of death will be sent against them.

¹²Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than a fool bent on folly.^(A)

¹³Evil will never leave the house
of one who pays back evil^(B) for good.^(C)

¹⁴Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;
so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.^(D)

¹⁵Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent^(E)—
the Lord detests them both.^(F)

¹⁶Why should fools have money in hand to buy wisdom,
when they are not able to understand it?^(G)

Proverbs 17:11-16

King James Version

¹¹An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him.

¹²Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.

¹³Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.

¹⁴The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.

¹⁵He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the Lord.

¹⁶Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?

New International Version (NIV)