Proverbs 27
Expanded Bible
27 Don’t brag about tomorrow;
you don’t know what ·may happen then [L the day may bear/ bring forth].
2 Don’t praise yourself. Let ·someone else [another; a stranger] do it.
Let the praise come from a ·stranger [outsider] and not from your own mouth [Jer. 9:23–24; 1 Cor. 1:31; 2 Cor. 10:17].
3 Stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
but ·a complaining fool [or the irritation/frustration caused by a fool] is ·heavier [worse] than either.
4 Anger is cruel and destroys like a flood,
but no one can ·put up with [L stand in the face of] jealousy!
5 It is better to correct someone ·openly [publicly]
than to have love and ·not show [hide] it.
6 The ·slap [bruises] of a friend can be trusted to help you,
but the kisses of an enemy are ·nothing but lies [or dangerous; Matt. 26:48–50].
7 When you are ·full [sated], not even honey tastes good,
but when you are hungry, even something bitter tastes sweet.
8 A person who ·leaves [L wanders from] his home
is like a bird that ·leaves [L wanders from] its nest.
9 The sweet smell of perfume and oils is pleasant,
and so is good advice from a friend.
10 Don’t ·forget [abandon] your friend or your parent’s friend.
Don’t always go to your ·family for help [brother] when trouble comes.
A neighbor close by is better than a ·family [brother] far away.
11 Be wise, my child, and make ·me [L my heart] happy.
Then I can respond to any insult.
12 The ·wise [prudent] see ·danger [evil; trouble] ahead and avoid it,
but fools ·keep going [go straight to it] and ·get into trouble [or are punished].
13 Take the coat of someone who promises to pay a stranger’s loan,
and keep it until he pays what the ·stranger [L foreigner] owes.
14 If you loudly ·greet [bless] your neighbor early in the morning,
he will think of it as a curse.
15 A ·quarreling [contentious] wife is as bothersome
as a continual dripping on a rainy day.
16 ·Stopping [Controlling; Restraining] her is like ·stopping [controlling; restraining] the wind
or trying to grab oil in your hand.
17 As iron sharpens iron,
so people ·can improve each other [sharpen their friends].
18 Whoever ·tends [protects] a fig tree gets to eat its fruit,
and whoever ·takes care of [guards] his master will receive honor.
19 As water reflects your face,
so ·your mind shows what kind of person you are [the heart reflects a person].
20 ·People will never stop dying and being destroyed [L Sheol/The grave and Abaddon/Destruction are never satisfied; Job 26:6],
and ·they will never stop wanting more than they have [L the eyes of people will never be satisfied].
21 A ·hot furnace tests silver and gold [crucible for silver and a furnace for gold],
and people ·are tested by the praise they receive [L in the presence of those who praise them].
22 Even if you ground up a foolish person like grain in a bowl,
you couldn’t remove the foolishness.
23 Be sure you know how your sheep are doing,
and ·pay attention to the condition of [L set your heart on] your cattle.
24 ·Riches [Treasure] will not go on forever,
nor ·do governments go on [a crown/diadem] forever.
25 When the grass is gone and the new grass appears,
gather the ·grass [vegetation] from the hills.
26 Make clothes from the lambs’ wool,
and sell some goats ·to buy [L for the price of] a field.
27 There will be plenty of goat’s milk
to feed you and your ·family [L house]
and to make your ·servant [or young] girls healthy.
Proverbs 27
Amplified Bible
Warnings and Instructions
27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
For you do not know what a day may bring.(A)
2
Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
A stranger, and not your own lips.
3
Stone is heavy and the sand weighty,
But a fool’s [unreasonable] wrath is heavier and more burdensome than both of them.
4
Wrath is cruel and anger is an overwhelming flood,
But who is able to endure and stand before [the sin of] jealousy?
5
Better is an open reprimand [of loving correction]
Than love that is hidden.(B)
6
Faithful are the wounds of a friend [who corrects out of love and concern],
But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful [because they serve his hidden agenda].
7
He who is satisfied loathes honey,
But to the hungry soul any bitter thing is sweet.
8
Like a bird that wanders from her nest [with its comfort and safety],
So is a man who wanders from his home.
9
Oil and perfume make the heart glad;
So does the sweetness of a friend’s counsel that comes from the heart.
10
Do not abandon your own friend and your father’s friend,
And do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your disaster.
Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far away.
11
My son, be wise, and make my heart glad,
That I may reply to him who reproaches (reprimands, criticizes) me.(C)
12
A prudent man sees evil and hides himself and avoids it,
But the naive [who are easily misled] continue on and are punished [by suffering the consequences of sin].(D)
13
[The judge tells the creditor,] “Take the garment of one who is surety (guarantees a loan) for a stranger;
And hold him in pledge when he is surety for an immoral woman [for it is unlikely the debt will be repaid].”(E)
14
He who blesses his neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning,
It will be counted as a curse to him [for it will either be annoying or his purpose will be suspect].
15
A constant dripping on a day of steady rain
And a contentious (quarrelsome) woman are alike;(F)
16
Whoever attempts to restrain her [criticism] might as well try to stop the wind,
And grasps oil with his right hand.
17
As iron sharpens iron,
So one man sharpens [and influences] another [through discussion].
18
He who tends the fig tree will eat its fruit,
And he who faithfully protects and cares for his master will be honored.(G)
19
As in water face reflects face,
So the heart of man reflects man.
20
Sheol (the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the underworld) are never satisfied;
Nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied.(H)
21
The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold [to separate the impurities of the metal],
And each is tested by the praise given to him [and his response to it, whether humble or proud].
22
Even though you pound a [hardened, arrogant] fool [who rejects wisdom] in a mortar with a pestle like grain,
Yet his foolishness will not leave him.
23
Be diligent to know the condition of your flocks,
And pay attention to your herds;
24
For riches are not forever,
Nor does a crown endure to all generations.
25
When the grass is gone, the new growth is seen,
And herbs of the mountain are gathered in,
26
The lambs will supply wool for your clothing,
And the goats will bring the price of a field.
27
And there will be enough goats’ milk for your food,
For the food of your household,
And for the maintenance of your maids.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
