Proverbs 29-31
Christian Standard Bible
29 One who becomes stiff-necked,
after many reprimands
will be shattered instantly—
beyond recovery.(A)
2 When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice,
but when the wicked rule, people groan.(B)
3 A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father,(C)
but one who consorts with prostitutes destroys his wealth.(D)
4 By justice a king brings stability to a land,(E)
but a person who demands “contributions”[a]
demolishes it.(F)
5 A person who flatters his neighbor
spreads a net for his feet.(G)
7 The righteous person knows the rights[b] of the poor,(J)
but the wicked one does not understand these concerns.
8 Mockers inflame a city,(K)
but the wise turn away anger.
9 If a wise person goes to court with a fool,
there will be ranting and raving but no resolution.[c](L)
12 If a ruler listens to lies,(P)
all his officials will be wicked.
14 A king who judges the poor with fairness—
his throne will be established forever.(R)
15 A rod of correction imparts wisdom,(S)
but a youth left to himself[g]
is a disgrace to his mother.(T)
16 When the wicked increase, rebellion increases,
but the righteous will see their downfall.(U)
17 Discipline your child,(V) and it will bring you peace of mind
and give you delight.
18 Without revelation[h](W) people run wild,(X)
but one who follows divine instruction will be happy.(Y)
19 A servant cannot be disciplined by words;
though he understands, he doesn’t respond.(Z)
21 A servant pampered from his youth
will become arrogant[i] later on.
24 To be a thief’s partner is to hate oneself;
he hears the curse but will not testify.(AF)
27 An unjust person is detestable to the righteous,
and one whose way is upright
is detestable to the wicked.(AK)
The Words of Agur
30 The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The pronouncement.[l](AL)
The man’s oration to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:[m]
2 I am more stupid than any other person,[n]
and I lack a human’s ability to understand.(AM)
3 I have not gained wisdom,
and I have no knowledge of the Holy One.(AN)
4 Who has gone up to heaven and come down?(AO)
Who has gathered the wind in his hands?
Who has bound up the waters in a cloak?(AP)
Who has established all the ends of the earth?(AQ)
What is his name,
and what is the name of his son—
if you know?(AR)
5 Every word of God is pure;[o](AS)
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.(AT)
6 Don’t add to his words,(AU)
or he will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.(AV)
7 Two things I ask of you;
don’t deny them to me before I die:
8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me.
Give me neither poverty nor wealth;
feed me with the food I need.(AW)
9 Otherwise, I might have too much(AX)
and deny you,(AY) saying, “Who is the Lord?” (AZ)
or I might have nothing and steal,(BA)
profaning[p] the name of my God.(BB)
10 Don’t slander a servant to his master
or he will curse you,(BC) and you will become guilty.
11 There is a generation that curses its father
and does not bless its mother.(BD)
12 There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes,(BE)
yet is not washed from its filth.
13 There is a generation—how haughty its eyes
and pretentious its looks.[q]
14 There is a generation whose teeth are swords,(BF)
whose fangs are knives,(BG)
devouring the oppressed from the land(BH)
and the needy from among mankind.
15 The leech has two daughters: “Give, Give!”
Three things(BI) are never satisfied;
four never say, “Enough!”:
16 Sheol;(BJ) a childless womb;(BK)
earth, which is never satisfied with water;
and fire, which never says, “Enough!”
17 As for the eye that ridicules a father(BL)
and despises obedience to a mother,
may ravens of the valley pluck it out
and young vultures eat it.(BM)
18 Three things are too wondrous for me;(BN)
four I can’t understand:
19 the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship at sea,
and the way of a man with a young woman.
20 This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I’ve done nothing wrong.”(BO)
21 The earth trembles under three things;
it cannot bear up under four:
22 a servant when he becomes king,(BP)
a fool when he is stuffed with food,
23 an unloved woman when she marries,(BQ)
and a servant girl when she ousts her queen.
24 Four things on earth are small,
yet they are extremely wise:
25 ants are not a strong people,
yet they store up their food in the summer;(BR)
26 hyraxes are not a mighty people,
yet they make their homes in the cliffs;(BS)
27 locusts have no king,
yet all of them march in ranks;(BT)
28 a lizard[r] can be caught in your hands,
yet it lives in kings’ palaces.
29 Three things are stately in their stride;
four are stately in their walk:
30 a lion, which is mightiest among beasts
and doesn’t retreat before anything;
31 a strutting rooster;[s] a goat;
and a king at the head of his army.[t]
32 If you have been foolish by exalting yourself
or if you’ve been scheming,
put your hand over your mouth.(BU)
33 For the churning of milk produces butter,
and twisting a nose draws blood,
and stirring up anger produces strife.(BV)
The Words of Lemuel
2 What should I say, my son?
What, son of my womb?(BX)
What, son of my vows?
3 Don’t spend your energy(BY) on women
or your efforts on those who destroy kings.(BZ)
4 It is not for kings, Lemuel,
it is not for kings(CA) to drink wine(CB)
or for rulers to desire beer.
5 Otherwise, he will drink,
forget what is decreed,(CC)
and pervert justice for all the oppressed.[v](CD)
6 Give beer to one who is dying
and wine to one whose life is bitter.(CE)
7 Let him drink so that he can forget his poverty
and remember his trouble no more.(CF)
8 Speak up[w] for those who have no voice,[x](CG)
for the justice of all who are dispossessed.[y]
9 Speak up, judge righteously,(CH)
and defend the cause of the oppressed and needy.(CI)
In Praise of a Wife of Noble Character
10 Who can find a wife of noble character?[z](CJ)
She is far more precious than jewels.[aa]
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will not lack anything good.
12 She rewards him with good, not evil,
all the days of her life.
13 She selects wool and flax
and works with willing hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from far away.(CK)
15 She rises while it is still night(CL)
and provides food for her household
and portions[ab] for her female servants.(CM)
16 She evaluates a field and buys it;
she plants a vineyard with her earnings.[ac](CN)
17 She draws on her strength[ad]
and reveals that her arms are strong.(CO)
18 She sees that her profits are good,
and her lamp never goes out at night.(CP)
19 She extends her hands to the spinning staff,
and her hands hold the spindle.(CQ)
20 Her hands reach[ae] out to the poor,
and she extends her hands to the needy.(CR)
21 She is not afraid for her household when it snows,
for all in her household are doubly clothed.[af]
22 She makes her own bed coverings;(CS)
her clothing is fine linen(CT) and purple.(CU)
23 Her husband is known at the city gates,
where he sits among the elders of the land.(CV)
24 She makes and sells linen garments;
she delivers belts[ag] to the merchants.
25 Strength(CW) and honor are her clothing,(CX)
and she can laugh at the time to come.(CY)
26 Her mouth speaks wisdom,
and loving instruction[ah] is on her tongue.
27 She watches over the activities of her household(CZ)
and is never idle.[ai]
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also praises her:
29 “Many women[aj] have done noble deeds,
but you surpass them all!” (DA)
30 Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting,(DB)
but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.
31 Give her the reward of her labor,[ak]
and let her works praise her at the city gates.
Footnotes
- 29:4 The Hb word for contributions usually refers to offerings in worship.
- 29:7 Lit justice
- 29:9 Lit rest
- 29:10 Or person, and seek the life of the upright
- 29:11 Lit spirit
- 29:13 Lit oppressor meet
- 29:15 Lit youth sent away
- 29:18 Lit vision
- 29:21 Hb obscure
- 29:22 Lit a master of rage
- 29:25 Lit raised high
- 30:1 Or son of Jakeh from Massa; Pr 31:1
- 30:1 Hb uncertain. Sometimes read with different word division as oration: I am weary, God, I am weary, God, and I am exhausted, or oration: I am not God, I am not God, that I should prevail. LXX reads My son, fear my words and when you have received them repent. The man says these things to the believers in God, and I pause.
- 30:2 Lit I am more stupid than a man
- 30:5 Lit refined
- 30:9 Lit grabbing
- 30:13 Lit and its eyelids lifted up
- 30:28 Or spider
- 30:31 Or a greyhound
- 30:31 LXX reads king addressing his people
- 31:1 Or of Lemuel, king of Massa, or of King Lemuel, a burden
- 31:5 Lit sons of affliction
- 31:8 Lit Open your mouth, also in v. 9
- 31:8 Lit who are mute
- 31:8 Lit all the sons of passing away
- 31:10 Or a wife of quality, or a capable wife
- 31:10 Vv. 10–31 form an acrostic.
- 31:15 Or tasks
- 31:16 Or vineyard by her own labors
- 31:17 Lit She wraps strength around her like a belt
- 31:20 Lit Her hand reaches
- 31:21 LXX, Vg; MT reads are dressed in scarlet
- 31:24 Or sashes
- 31:26 Or and the teaching of kindness
- 31:27 Lit and does not eat the bread of idleness
- 31:29 Lit daughters
- 31:31 Lit the fruit of her hands
1 Thessalonians 4
Christian Standard Bible
The Call to Sanctification
4 Additionally then, brothers and sisters, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus, that as you have received instruction from us on how you should live and please God—as you are doing[a]—do this even more. 2 For you know what commands we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
3 For this is God’s will,(A) your sanctification:(B) that you keep away(C) from sexual immorality, 4 that each of you knows how to control his own body[b] in holiness and honor, 5 not with lustful passions,(D) like the Gentiles, who don’t know God. 6 This means one must not transgress against and take advantage(E) of a brother or sister in this manner, because the Lord is an avenger of all these offenses, as we also previously told and warned you. 7 For God has not called us to impurity(F) but to live in holiness. 8 Consequently, anyone who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.(G)
Loving and Working
9 About brotherly love: You don’t need me to write you because you yourselves are taught by God(H) to love one another.(I) 10 In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers and sisters in the entire region of Macedonia.(J) But we encourage you, brothers and sisters, to do this even more, 11 to seek to lead a quiet life,(K) to mind your own business,[c] and to work(L) with your own hands, as we commanded you, 12 so that you may behave properly(M) in the presence of outsiders and not be dependent on anyone.[d](N)
The Comfort of Christ’s Coming
13 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope.(O) 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose(P) again,(Q) in the same way, through Jesus,(R) God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For we say this to you by a word from the Lord:(S) We who are still alive at the Lord’s coming(T) will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.(U) 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout,[e](V) with the archangel’s(W) voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ(X) will rise first. 17 Then(Y) we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds(Z) to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage[f] one another with these words.
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