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10 For (A)wisdom will enter your heart
And (B)knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 Discretion will (C)keep you,
Discernment will guard you,

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10 For wisdom will enter your heart,
    and knowledge will fill you with joy.
11 Wise choices will watch over you.
    Understanding will keep you safe.

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20 So that you will (A)walk in the way of good men
And keep to the (B)paths of the righteous.

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20 So follow the steps of the good,
    and stay on the paths of the righteous.

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14 (A)Do not enter the path of wicked men
And do not step into the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, do not pass by it;
(B)Stray from it and pass on.
16 For they (C)do not sleep unless they do evil;
And [a]they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.
17 For they (D)eat the bread of wickedness
And drink the wine of violence.
18 But the (E)path of the righteous is like the (F)light of dawn,
That (G)shines brighter and brighter until the (H)fullness of day.
19 The (I)way of the wicked is like thick darkness;
They do not know over what they [b](J)stumble.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 4:16 Lit their sleep is robbed
  2. Proverbs 4:19 Or may stumble

14 Don’t do as the wicked do,
    and don’t follow the path of evildoers.
15 Don’t even think about it; don’t go that way.
    Turn away and keep moving.
16 For evil people can’t sleep until they’ve done their evil deed for the day.
    They can’t rest until they’ve caused someone to stumble.
17 They eat the food of wickedness
    and drink the wine of violence!

18 The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn,
    which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.
19 But the way of the wicked is like total darkness.
    They have no idea what they are stumbling over.

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20 (A)He who walks with the wise will be wise,
But the friend of fools will suffer harm.

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20 Walk with the wise and become wise;
    associate with fools and get in trouble.

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28 A perverse man spreads strife,
And a whisperer separates close companions.

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28 A troublemaker plants seeds of strife;
    gossip separates the best of friends.

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12 Let a (A)man meet a (B)bear robbed of her cubs,
Rather than a fool in his folly.

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12 It is safer to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
    than to confront a fool caught in foolishness.

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17 A (A)friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.

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17 A friend is always loyal,
    and a brother is born to help in time of need.

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24 A man of too many friends comes to [a]ruin,
But there is (A)a [b]friend who sticks closer than a brother.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 18:24 Lit be broken in pieces
  2. Proverbs 18:24 Or lover

24 There are “friends” who destroy each other,
    but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.

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(A)Wealth adds many friends,
But a poor man is separated from his friend.

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Wealth makes many “friends”;
    poverty drives them all away.

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(A)Many will seek the favor of a noble man,
And everyone is a friend to a man who (B)gives gifts.
All the brothers of a poor man hate him;
How much more do his (C)friends distance themselves from him!
He (D)pursues them with words, but they are no more.

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Many seek favors from a ruler;
    everyone is the friend of a person who gives gifts!

The relatives of the poor despise them;
    how much more will their friends avoid them!
Though the poor plead with them,
    their friends are gone.

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19 He who (A)goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets,
Therefore do not associate with [a](B)one of loose lips.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 20:19 Lit one who opens his lips

19 A gossip goes around telling secrets,
    so don’t hang around with chatterers.

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24 Do not befriend a man of anger;
And do not come along with a man of (A)great wrath,
25 Lest you (B)learn his ways
And take on a snare against your soul.

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24 Don’t befriend angry people
    or associate with hot-tempered people,
25 or you will learn to be like them
    and endanger your soul.

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