Proverbs 16
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 16
1 Plans are made in human hearts,
but from the Lord comes the tongue’s response.[a]
2 All one’s ways are pure[b] in one’s own eyes,
but the measurer of motives is the Lord.(A)
3 Entrust your works to the Lord,
and your plans will succeed.
4 The Lord has made everything for a purpose,
even the wicked for the evil day.[c]
5 Every proud heart[d] is an abomination to the Lord;(B)
be assured that none will go unpunished.
6 By steadfast loyalty guilt is expiated,
and by the fear of the Lord evil is avoided.[e]
7 When the Lord is pleased with someone’s ways,
he makes even enemies be at peace with them.
8 Better a little with justice,
than a large income with injustice.
9 The human heart plans the way,
but the Lord directs the steps.[f](C)
10 An oracle is upon the king’s lips,
no judgment of his mouth is false.[g]
11 Balance and scales belong to the Lord;
every weight in the sack is his concern.(D)
12 Wrongdoing is an abomination to kings,
for by justice the throne endures.(E)
13 The king takes delight in honest lips,
and whoever speaks what is right he loves.(F)
14 The king’s wrath is a messenger of death,(G)
but a wise person can pacify it.
15 A king’s smile means life,
and his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.[h]
16 How much better to get wisdom than gold!
To get understanding is preferable to silver.[i](H)
17 The path of the upright leads away from misfortune;
those who attend to their way guard their lives.[j]
18 Pride goes before disaster,
and a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 It is better to be humble with the poor
than to share plunder with the proud.(I)
20 Whoever ponders a matter will be successful;
happy the one who trusts in the Lord!
21 The wise of heart is esteemed for discernment,
and pleasing speech gains a reputation for learning.
22 Good sense is a fountain of life to those who have it,
but folly is the training of fools.
23 The heart of the wise makes for eloquent speech,
and increases the learning on their lips.
24 Pleasing words are a honeycomb,
sweet to the taste and invigorating to the bones.
25 Sometimes a way seems right,
but the end of it leads to death!(J)
26 The appetite of workers works for them,
for their mouths urge them on.[k](K)
27 Scoundrels are a furnace of evil,
and their lips are like a scorching fire.
28 Perverse speech sows discord,
and talebearing separates bosom friends.(L)
29 The violent deceive their neighbors,
and lead them into a way that is not good.
30 Whoever winks an eye plans perversity;
whoever purses the lips does evil.[l]
31 Gray hair is a crown of glory;(M)
it is gained by a life that is just.
32 The patient are better than warriors,
and those who rule their temper, better than the conqueror of a city.(N)
33 Into the bag the lot is cast,
but from the Lord comes every decision.[m]
Footnotes
- 16:1 Words, like actions, often produce results different from those which were planned, and this comes under the agency of God.
- 16:2 “Pure” in a moral sense for human action is found only in Job and Proverbs. As in v. 1, the contrast is between human intent and divine assessment.
- 16:4 Even the wicked do not lie outside God’s plan.
- 16:5 Proud heart: lit., “high of heart.” To forget one is a fallible human being is so basic an error that one cannot escape exposure and punishment.
- 16:6 As v. 5 used the language of worship to express what is acceptable or not to God, so this saying uses similar language to declare that lovingly loyal conduct undoes the effects of sin.
- 16:9 As in vv. 1–3, the antithesis is between human plans and divine disposal. The saying uses the familiar metaphor of path for the course of life.
- 16:10 Six sayings on the king and his divine authority begin here, following the series of sayings about the Lord’s governance in 15:33–16:9, in which “Lord” was mentioned nine times.
- 16:15 The last of six sayings about the king. In the previous verse, royal wrath means death; in this verse royal favor means life. It is significant that royal favor is compared to something not under human control—the clouds preceding the spring rains.
- 16:16 The point of comparison is the superiority of the pursuit of wisdom and gold, not the relative merits of wealth and wisdom.
- 16:17 In the metaphor of the two ways, the way of the righteous is protected and the way of the wicked is unprotected. Since the path of the righteous leads therefore away from trouble, one’s task is to stay on it, to “attend to” it.
- 16:26 The adage puzzled ancient and modern commentators. The meaning seems to state the paradox that a person does not toil to feed the gullet but that the gullet itself “toils” in the sense that it forces the person to work. As often in Proverbs, the sense organ stands for the faculty by metonymy. Cf. Eccl 6:7.
- 16:30 A restless or twitching eye or lip betrays the condition of the heart (cf. 6:13).
- 16:33 Dice were given meanings of “yes” or “no” and then cast for their answer. What came out was the decision. Here the saying interprets the sequence of actions: a human being puts the dice in the bag but what emerges from the bag is the Lord’s decision.
Proverbs 16
American Standard Version
16 The plans of the heart belong to man;
But the answer of the tongue is from Jehovah.
2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes;
But Jehovah weigheth the spirits.
3 [a]Commit thy works unto Jehovah,
And thy purposes shall be established.
4 Jehovah hath made everything for [b]its own end;
Yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to Jehovah:
Though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
6 By mercy and truth iniquity is atoned for;
And by the fear of Jehovah men depart from evil.
7 When a man’s ways please Jehovah,
He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
8 Better is a little, with righteousness,
Than great revenues with injustice.
9 A man’s heart deviseth his way;
But Jehovah directeth his steps.
10 [c]A divine sentence is in the lips of the king;
His mouth shall not transgress in judgment.
11 A just balance and scales are Jehovah’s;
All the weights of the bag are his work.
12 It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness;
For the throne is established by righteousness.
13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings;
And they love him that speaketh right.
14 The wrath of a king is as messengers of death;
But a wise man will pacify it.
15 In the light of the king’s countenance is life;
And his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain.
16 How much better is it to get wisdom than gold!
Yea, to get understanding is rather to be chosen than silver.
17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil:
He that keepeth his way preserveth his soul.
18 Pride goeth before destruction,
And a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 Better it is to be of a lowly spirit with the [d]poor,
Than to divide the spoil with the proud.
20 He that [e]giveth heed unto the word shall find good;
And whoso trusteth in Jehovah, happy is he.
21 The wise in heart shall be called prudent;
And the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning.
22 Understanding is a well-spring of life unto him that hath it;
But the correction of fools is their folly.
23 The heart of the wise instructeth his mouth,
And addeth learning to his lips.
24 Pleasant words are as a honeycomb,
Sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
25 There is a way which [f]seemeth right unto a man,
But the end thereof are the ways of death.
26 The appetite of the laboring man laboreth for him;
For his mouth urgeth him thereto.
27 A worthless man [g]deviseth mischief;
And in his lips there is as a scorching fire.
28 A perverse man scattereth abroad strife;
And a whisperer [h]separateth chief friends.
29 A man of violence enticeth his neighbor,
And leadeth him in a way that is not good.
30 [i]He that shutteth his eyes, it is to devise perverse things:
He that compresseth his lips bringeth evil to pass.
31 The hoary head is a crown of [j]glory;
[k]It shall be found in the way of righteousness.
32 He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty;
And he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city.
33 The lot is cast into the lap;
But the whole disposing thereof is of Jehovah.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 16:3 Hebrew Roll.
- Proverbs 16:4 Or, his own purpose
- Proverbs 16:10 Hebrew Divination.
- Proverbs 16:19 Or, meek
- Proverbs 16:20 Or, handleth a matter wisely
- Proverbs 16:25 Or, is straight before
- Proverbs 16:27 Hebrew diggeth.
- Proverbs 16:28 Or, alienateth his friend
- Proverbs 16:30 Or, He that shutteth his eyes to devise perverse things, That compresseth his lips, bringeth etc.
- Proverbs 16:31 Or, beauty
- Proverbs 16:31 Or, If it be found
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