The Malicious Man

12 A worthless person,(A) a wicked man
goes around speaking dishonestly,(B)
13 winking(C) his eyes, signaling with his feet,
and gesturing with his fingers.
14 He always plots evil(D) with perversity in his heart—
he stirs up trouble.(E)
15 Therefore calamity will strike him suddenly;
he will be shattered instantly—beyond recovery.(F)

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12 What are worthless and wicked people like?
    They are constant liars,
13 signaling their deceit with a wink of the eye,
    a nudge of the foot, or the wiggle of fingers.
14 Their perverted hearts plot evil,
    and they constantly stir up trouble.
15 But they will be destroyed suddenly,
    broken in an instant beyond all hope of healing.

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10 A sly wink of the eye(A) causes grief,
and foolish lips will be destroyed.

11 The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,(B)
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.(C)

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10 People who wink at wrong cause trouble,
    but a bold reproof promotes peace.[a]

11 The words of the godly are a life-giving fountain;
    the words of the wicked conceal violent intentions.

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Footnotes

  1. 10:10 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads but babbling fools fall flat on their faces.

The integrity of the upright guides them,(A)
but the perversity of the treacherous destroys them.(B)

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Honesty guides good people;
    dishonesty destroys treacherous people.

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30 The one who narrows his eyes is planning deceptions;
the one who compresses his lips brings about evil.(A)

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30 With narrowed eyes, people plot evil;
    with a smirk, they plan their mischief.

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14 “It’s worthless, it’s worthless!” the buyer says,
but after he is on his way, he gloats.

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14 The buyer haggles over the price, saying, “It’s worthless,”
    then brags about getting a bargain!

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Don’t eat a stingy person’s bread,[a](A)
and don’t desire his choice food,(B)
for it’s like someone calculating inwardly.[b](C)
“Eat and drink,” he says to you,
but his heart is not with you.(D)
You will vomit the little you’ve eaten
and waste your pleasant words.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 23:6 Lit eat bread of an evil eye
  2. Proverbs 23:7 LXX reads it is like someone swallowing a hair in the throat

Don’t eat with people who are stingy;
    don’t desire their delicacies.
They are always thinking about how much it costs.[a]
    “Eat and drink,” they say, but they don’t mean it.
You will throw up what little you’ve eaten,
    and your compliments will be wasted.

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Footnotes

  1. 23:7 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.

23 Smooth[a] lips with an evil heart
are like glaze on an earthen vessel.(A)
24 A hateful person disguises himself with his speech
and harbors deceit within.
25 When he speaks graciously, don’t believe him,
for there are seven abominations in his heart.(B)
26 Though his hatred is concealed by deception,
his evil will be revealed in the assembly.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 26:23 LXX; MT reads Burning

23 Smooth[a] words may hide a wicked heart,
    just as a pretty glaze covers a clay pot.

24 People may cover their hatred with pleasant words,
    but they’re deceiving you.
25 They pretend to be kind, but don’t believe them.
    Their hearts are full of many evils.[b]
26 While their hatred may be concealed by trickery,
    their wrongdoing will be exposed in public.

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Footnotes

  1. 26:23 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads Burning.
  2. 26:25 Hebrew seven evils.