Wealth(A) is worthless in the day of wrath,(B)
    but righteousness delivers from death.(C)

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Riches don’t help in the day of wrath,
    but righteousness rescues from death.

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16 A kindhearted woman gains honor,(A)
    but ruthless men gain only wealth.

17 Those who are kind benefit themselves,
    but the cruel bring ruin on themselves.

18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
    but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.(B)

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16 A gracious woman gains honor;
    violent men gain only wealth.
17 Kind persons benefit themselves,
    but cruel people harm themselves.
18 The wicked earn false wages,
    but those who sow righteousness receive a true reward.

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28 Those who trust in their riches will fall,(A)
    but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.(B)

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28 Those who trust in their wealth will wither,
    but the righteous will thrive like leafy trees.

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11 Dishonest money dwindles away,(A)
    but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.

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11 Riches gotten quickly[a] will dwindle,
    but those who acquire them gradually become wealthy.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 13:11 LXX; MT from meaninglessness

16 Better a little with the fear of the Lord
    than great wealth with turmoil.(A)

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16 Better a little with fear of the Lord
    than a great treasure with turmoil.

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27 The greedy bring ruin to their households,
    but the one who hates bribes will live.(A)

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27 Those who acquire things unjustly gain trouble for their house,
    but those who hate bribes will live.

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A bribe is seen as a charm by the one who gives it;
    they think success will come at every turn.(A)

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A bribe seems magical in the eyes of those who give it,
    granting success to all who use it.

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17 Food gained by fraud tastes sweet,(A)
    but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.(B)

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17 Stolen bread is sweet,
    but afterward the mouth is full of gravel.

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21 An inheritance claimed too soon
    will not be blessed at the end.

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21 Inheritance gained quickly at first
    won’t bless later on.

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The plans of the diligent lead to profit(A)
    as surely as haste leads to poverty.

A fortune made by a lying tongue
    is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare.[a](B)

The violence of the wicked will drag them away,(C)
    for they refuse to do what is right.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 21:6 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts vapor for those who seek death

The plans of the diligent end up in profit,
    but those who hurry end up with loss.
Those who gain treasure with lies
    are like a drifting fog, leading to death.
The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,
    for they refuse to act with justice.

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14 A gift given in secret soothes anger,
    and a bribe concealed in the cloak pacifies great wrath.(A)

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14 A secret gift calms anger,
    and a hidden bribe removes[a] furious wrath.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 21:14 Heb lacks removes.

Better the poor whose walk is blameless
    than the rich whose ways are perverse.(A)

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Better to be poor and walk in innocence
    than to be on crooked paths and wealthy.

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