Proverbs 16-18
Complete Jewish Bible
16 A person is responsible to prepare his heart,
but how the tongue speaks is from Adonai.
2 All a man’s ways are pure in his own view,
but Adonai weighs the spirit.
3 If you entrust all you do to Adonai,
your plans will achieve success.
4 Adonai made everything for its purpose,
even the wicked for the day of disaster.
5 Adonai detests all those with proud hearts;
be assured that they will not go unpunished.
6 Grace and truth atone for iniquity,
and people turn from evil through fear of Adonai.
7 When a man’s ways please Adonai,
he makes even the man’s enemies be at peace with him.
8 Better a little with righteousness
than a huge income with injustice.
9 A person may plan his path,
but Adonai directs his steps.
10 Divine inspiration is on the lips of the king,
so his mouth must be faithful when he judges.
11 The balance and scales of justice have their origin in Adonai;
all the weights in the bag are his doing.
12 It is an abomination for a king to do evil,
for the throne is made secure by righteousness.
13 The king should delight in righteous lips,
and he should love someone who speaks what is right.
14 The king’s anger is a herald of death,
and one who is wise will appease it.
15 When the king’s face brightens, it means life;
his favor is like the clouds that bring spring rain.
16 How much better than gold it is to gain wisdom!
Yes, rather than money, choose to gain understanding.
17 Avoiding evil is the highway of the upright;
he who watches his step preserves his life.
18 Pride goes before destruction,
and arrogance before failure.
19 Better to be humble among the poor
than share the spoil with the proud.
20 He who has skill in a matter will succeed;
he who trusts in Adonai will be happy.
21 A wise-hearted person is said to have discernment,
and sweetness of speech adds to learning.
22 Common sense is a fountain of life to one who has it,
whereas fools are punished by their own folly.
23 The wise man’s heart teaches his mouth,
and to his lips it adds learning.
24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
sweet to the taste and healing for the body.
25 There can be a way which seems right to a person,
but at its end are the ways of death.
26 A working man’s appetite acts on his behalf,
because his hunger presses him on.
27 A worthless person digs up evil [gossip] —
it is like scorching fire on his lips.
28 A deceitful person stirs up strife,
and a slanderer can separate even close friends.
29 A violent man lures his neighbor astray
and leads him into evil ways.
30 One who winks knowingly is planning deceit;
one who pinches his lips together has already done wrong.
31 White hair is a crown of honor
obtained by righteous living.
32 He who controls his temper is better than a war hero,
he who rules his spirit better than he who captures a city.
33 One can cast lots into one’s lap,
but the decision comes from Adonai.
17 Better a dry piece of bread with calm
than a house full of food but also full of strife.
2 An intelligent slave will rule a shameful son
and share the inheritance with the brothers.
3 The crucible [tests] silver, and the furnace [tests] gold,
but the one who tests hearts is Adonai.
4 An evildoer heeds wicked lips;
a liar listens to destructive talk.
5 He who mocks the poor insults his maker;
he who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished.
6 Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
while the glory of children is their ancestors.
7 Fine speech is unbecoming to a boor,
and even less lying lips to a leader.
8 A bribe works like a charm, in the view of him who gives it —
wherever it turns, it succeeds.
9 He who conceals an offense promotes love,
but he who harps on it can separate even close friends.
10 A rebuke makes more impression on a person of understanding
than a hundred blows on a fool.
11 An evil person seeks only rebellion,
but a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
12 Rather meet a bear robbed of its cubs
than encounter a fool in his folly.
13 Evil will not depart from the house
of him who returns evil for good.
14 Starting a fight is like letting water through [a dike] —
better stop the quarrel before it gets worse.
15 He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous —
both alike are an abomination to Adonai.
16 Why would a fool wish to pay for wisdom
when he has no desire to learn?
17 A friend shows his friendship at all times —
it is for adversity that [such] a brother is born.
18 He who gives his hand to guarantee a loan
for his neighbor lacks good sense.
19 Those who love quarreling love giving offense;
those who make their gates tall are courting disaster.
20 A crooked-hearted person will find nothing good,
and the perverse of speech will end in calamity.
21 He who fathers a fool does so to his sorrow,
and the father of a boor has no joy.
22 A happy heart is good medicine,
but low spirits sap one’s strength.
23 From under a cloak a bad man takes a bribe
to pervert the course of justice.
24 The discerning person focuses on wisdom there before him,
but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth.
25 A son who is a fool means anger for his father
and bitterness for the mother who gave him birth.
26 To punish the innocent is not right,
likewise to flog noble people for their uprightness.
27 A knowledgeable person controls his tongue;
a discerning person controls his temper.
28 Even a fool, if he stays silent, is thought wise;
he who keeps his mouth shut can pass for smart.
18 He who separates himself indulges his desires
and shows contempt for sound advice of any kind.
2 A fool takes no pleasure in trying to understand;
he only wants to express his own opinion.
3 When a wicked person comes, contempt comes too,
and with disdain, provocation.
4 The words of a man’s mouth are deep water,
a gushing torrent, a fountain of wisdom.
5 It is not good to be partial to the guilty
and thus deprive the innocent of justice.
6 A fool’s words get him into fights;
yes, his mouth calls out for a beating.
7 A fool’s mouth is his ruin;
his words are a trap for him.
8 A slanderer’s words are tasty morsels;
they slide right down into the belly.
9 Whoever is lazy in doing his work
is brother to the destroyer.
10 The name of Adonai is a strong tower;
a righteous person runs to it and is raised high [above danger].
11 The wealth of the rich is his fortified city,
like a high wall, in his own imagination.
12 Before being ruined, a person’s heart is proud;
before being honored, a person must be humble.
13 To answer someone before hearing him out
is both stupid and embarrassing.
14 A person’s spirit can sustain him when ill,
but a crushed spirit — who can bear it?
15 The mind of a person with discernment gets knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
16 A person’s gift clears his way
and gives him access to the great.
17 The first to state his case seems right,
till the other one comes and cross-examines.
18 Casting lots puts an end to strife
and separates powerful disputants.
19 It is harder to win an offended brother than a strong city;
their fights are like the bars of a fortress.
20 A person’s belly will be filled with the fruit of his mouth;
with what his lips produce he will be filled.
21 The tongue has power over life and death;
those who indulge it must eat its fruit.
22 He who finds a wife finds a great good;
he has won the favor of Adonai.
23 The poor man speaks beseechingly,
the rich man’s answer is blunt.
24 Some “friends” pretend to be friends,
but a true friend sticks closer than a brother.
Acts 2:22-47
Complete Jewish Bible
22 “Men of Isra’el! Listen to this! Yeshua from Natzeret was a man demonstrated to you to have been from God by the powerful works, miracles and signs that God performed through him in your presence. You yourselves know this. 23 This man was arrested in accordance with God’s predetermined plan and foreknowledge; and, through the agency of persons not bound by the Torah, you nailed him up on a stake and killed him!
24 “But God has raised him up and freed him from the suffering of death; it was impossible that death could keep its hold on him. 25 For David says this about him:
‘I saw Adonai always before me,
for he is at my right hand,
so that I will not be shaken.
26 For this reason, my heart was glad;
and my tongue rejoiced;
and now my body too will live on in the certain hope
27 that you will not abandon me to Sh’ol
or let your Holy One see decay.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
you will fill me with joy by your presence.’[a]
29 “Brothers, I know I can say to you frankly that the patriarch David died and was buried — his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Therefore, since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him that one of his descendants would sit on his throne, 31 he was speaking in advance about the resurrection of the Messiah, that it was he who was not abandoned in Sh’ol and whose flesh did not see decay. 32 God raised up this Yeshua! And we are all witnesses of it!
33 “Moreover, he has been exalted to the right hand of God; has received from the Father what he promised, namely, the Ruach HaKodesh; and has poured out this gift, which you are both seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into heaven. But he says,
35 ‘Adonai said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’[b]
36 Therefore, let the whole house of Isra’el know beyond doubt that God has made him both Lord and Messiah — this Yeshua, whom you executed on a stake!”
37 On hearing this, they were stung in their hearts; and they said to Kefa and the other emissaries, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Kefa answered them, “Turn from sin, return to God, and each of you be immersed on the authority of Yeshua the Messiah into forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach HaKodesh! 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for those far away — as many as Adonai our God may call!”
40 He pressed his case with many other arguments and kept pleading with them, “Save yourselves from this perverse generation!”
41 So those who accepted what he said were immersed, and there were added to the group that day about three thousand people.
42 They continued faithfully in the teaching of the emissaries, in fellowship, in breaking bread and in the prayers. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many miracles and signs took place through the emissaries. 44 All those trusting in Yeshua stayed together and had everything in common; 45 in fact, they sold their property and possessions and distributed the proceeds to all who were in need. 46 Continuing faithfully and with singleness of purpose to meet in the Temple courts daily, and breaking bread in their several homes, they shared their food in joy and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having the respect of all the people. And day after day the Lord kept adding to them those who were being saved.
Read full chapterCopyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
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