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28 Loyalty and faithfulness preserve the king,
    and his throne is upheld by righteousness.[a](A)

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Footnotes

  1. 20.28 Gk: Heb loyalty

28 Loyalty and faithfulness will preserve a king,
    and he is upheld with the righteousness of his throne.

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The way of the guilty is crooked,
    but the conduct of the pure is right.

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Crooked is the way of a man and a foreigner,
    but the pure is upright in his conduct.

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29 The wicked put on a bold face,
    but the upright give thought to[a] their ways.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 21.29 Or establish

29 A wicked man is strong in his countenance,[a]
    but the upright will appoint his paths.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 21:29 Literally “his face”

10 Drive out a scoffer, and strife goes out;
    quarreling and abuse will cease.(A)
11 Those who love a pure heart and are gracious in speech
    will have the king as a friend.(B)

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10 Drive out a scoffer and strife will go out;
    quarrel and abuse will cease.
11 He who loves purity of heart
    and hasgracious speech,[a] his friend is the king.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 22:11 Literally “grace of his lips”

23 When you sit down to eat with an official,
    observe carefully what[a] is before you,
and put a knife to your throat
    if you have a big appetite.
Do not desire an official’s[b] delicacies,
    for they are deceptive food.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 23.1 Or who
  2. 23.3 Heb his

23 When you sit to eat with a ruler,
    you shall surely observe what is before you,
and you shall put a knife to your throat
    if you have a big appetite.[a]
Do not desire his delicacies,
    for[b] it is food of deception.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 23:2 Literally “lord/master of life”
  2. Proverbs 23:3 Hebrew “and”

Do not eat the bread of the stingy;
    do not desire their delicacies,(A)
for like a hair in the throat, so are they.[a]
    “Eat and drink!” they say to you,
    but they do not mean it.(B)
You will vomit up the little you have eaten,
    and you will waste your pleasant words.

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Footnotes

  1. 23.7 Meaning of Heb uncertain

Do not eat the bread of the stingy,[a]
    and do not desire his delicacies.
For, like hair in his throat,[b] so it is.[c]
    “Eat and drink!” he will say to you,
    but his heart will not be with you.
Your morsel you have eaten, you will vomit it up,
    and you will waste your pleasant words.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 23:6 Literally “stingy of eye”
  2. Proverbs 23:7 Literally “soul,” or “inner self”
  3. Proverbs 23:7 Or “is he”

take away the wicked from the presence of the king,
    and his throne will be established in righteousness.(A)

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Remove the wicked before a king,
    and his throne will be established in righteousness.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 25:5 Hebrew “in the righteousness”

It is like cutting off one’s foot and drinking down violence,
    to send a message by a fool.

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Like cutting off feet or drinking violence,
    so is he who sends messages in the hand of a fool.

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10 Like an archer who wounds everybody
    is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 26.10 Meaning of Heb uncertain

10 Like an archer who wounds everyone,
    so is he who hires a fool or he who hires passersby.

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24 An enemy dissembles in speaking
    while harboring deceit within;(A)
25 when an enemy speaks graciously, do not believe it,
    for there are seven abominations concealed within;(B)
26 though hatred is covered with guile,
    the enemy’s wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.(C)
27 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
    and a stone will come back on the one who starts it rolling.(D)
28 A lying tongue hates its victims,
    and a flattering mouth works ruin.(E)

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24 On his lips, an enemy will pretend,
    but inside[a] he will harbor deceit.
25 When he makes his voice gracious, do not believe him,
    for seven abominations are in his heart.
26 Though hatred is covered with guile,
    its evil will be exposed in the assembly.
27 He who digs a pit, in it he will fall,
    and he who rolls a stone, on him it will come back.
28 A tongue of deceit hates its victim,
    and a flattering mouth makes ruin.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 26:24 Literally “in his midst”

21 To show partiality is not good,
    yet for a piece of bread a person may do wrong.

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21 Showing partiality[a] is not good,
    and over a morsel of bread, a strong man will do wrong.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 28:21 Literally “Recognizing faces”

Whoever flatters a neighbor
    is spreading a net for the neighbor’s feet.

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A strong man who flatters his neighbor
    is spreading a net for his feet.

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