Proverbs 16:12-17:5

New International Version

¹² Kings detest wrongdoing,
    for a throne is established through righteousness.^(A)

¹³ Kings take pleasure in honest lips;
    they value the one who speaks what is right.^(B)

¹⁴ A king’s wrath is a messenger of death,^(C)
    but the wise will appease it.^(D)

¹⁵ When a king’s face brightens, it means life;^(E)
    his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.^(F)

¹⁶ How much better to get wisdom than gold,
    to get insight^(G) rather than silver!^(H)

¹⁷ The highway of the upright avoids evil;
    those who guard their ways preserve their lives.^(I)

¹⁸ Pride^(J) goes before destruction,
    a haughty spirit^(K) before a fall.^(L)

¹⁹ Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed
    than to share plunder with the proud.

²⁰ Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers,^[a](M)
    and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.^(N)

²¹ The wise in heart are called discerning,
    and gracious words promote instruction.^[b](O)

²² Prudence is a fountain of life to the prudent,^(P)
    but folly brings punishment to fools.

²³ The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent,^(Q)
    and their lips promote instruction.^[c](R)

²⁴ Gracious words are a honeycomb,^(S)
    sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.^(T)

²⁵ There is a way that appears to be right,^(U)
    but in the end it leads to death.^(V)

²⁶ The appetite of laborers works for them;
    their hunger drives them on.

²⁷ A scoundrel^(W) plots evil,
    and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.^(X)

²⁸ A perverse person stirs up conflict,^(Y)
    and a gossip separates close friends.^(Z)

²⁹ A violent person entices their neighbor
    and leads them down a path that is not good.^(AA)

³⁰ Whoever winks^(AB) with their eye is plotting perversity;
    whoever purses their lips is bent on evil.

³¹ Gray hair is a crown of splendor;^(AC)
    it is attained in the way of righteousness.

³² Better a patient person than a warrior,
    one with self-control than one who takes a city.

³³ The lot is cast^(AD) into the lap,
    but its every decision^(AE) is from the Lord.^(AF)

17 Better a dry crust with peace and quiet
    than a house full of feasting, with strife.^(AG)

² A prudent servant will rule over a disgraceful son
    and will share the inheritance as one of the family.

³ The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,^(AH)
    but the Lord tests the heart.^(AI)

⁴ A wicked person listens to deceitful lips;
    a liar pays attention to a destructive tongue.

⁵ Whoever mocks the poor^(AJ) shows contempt for their Maker;^(AK)
    whoever gloats over disaster^(AL) will not go unpunished.^(AM)