Chronological
19 It is better to be poor and honest,
than to be a fool who speaks lies.
2 If you want to do something but you do not know how to do it,
that is dangerous!
If you hurry to do it, you will get into trouble.
3 Some people do silly things and so they destroy themselves.
Then they get angry with the Lord.
4 Rich people can easily find new friends.
But poor people will easily lose their friends.
5 If you tell lies in court, the judge will certainly punish you.
You will not go free!
6 Many people want an important person to like them.
Everyone wants to be the friend of someone who gives lots of gifts.
7 If someone is poor, all his family hate him.
His friends stay away from him.
Even if he goes to ask them for help,
he cannot find them anywhere.
8 If you learn to be wise,
it shows that you love yourself.
If you understand what is right,
you will do well.
9 If you tell lies in court, the judge will certainly punish you.
That will be the end of you!
10 Fools should not live like rich people.
Even worse, slaves should never have authority over rulers.
11 If someone is wise, he controls his anger.
When anyone hurts him, he is careful to forget it.
12 When the king is angry, he makes people afraid,
like a lion that roars.
But when he is pleased with you,
that is like dew on fresh grass.
13 A foolish child will destroy his father.
A woman who quarrels with her husband is like rain that never stops.
14 Your parents may give you riches and a house to live in.
But only the Lord can give you a wise wife.
15 A lazy person cannot wake up from sleep.
If he does no work, he will always be hungry.
16 If you obey God's commands, you will keep your life safe.
If you do not respect his teaching, you will die.
17 If you are kind to poor people, you are lending money to the Lord.
He will pay back the debt to you.
18 When your children do wrong things,
warn them while you still have the chance.
If you do not punish them,
you are helping them to go to an early death.
19 Anyone who cannot control his anger is always getting into trouble.
If you try to help him once, you will have to do it every time.
20 Accept advice and good teaching.
Then you will become wise one day.
21 You may have lots of ideas about what you want to do.
But it is the Lord's plans that are important.
22 We all want other people to show faithful love.
It is better to be poor than to deceive other people.
23 If you respect and obey the Lord,
you will enjoy life.
You will have peace in your mind
and no trouble will destroy you.
24 A lazy person pushes his hand into his bowl of food.
But then he is too lazy to lift his hand up to his mouth.
25 If you beat a proud fool,
a silly person may learn to be careful.
If you warn a wise person,
he himself will learn a lesson.
26 Anyone who robs his father or chases away his mother
is a bad son who brings shame to his family.
27 My child, never stop learning about what is right.
If you stop learning, you will soon forget what you already know.
28 If someone tells lies in court, he is laughing at justice.
Evil things are food that wicked people love to eat.
29 People who laugh at what is right will receive their punishment.
Fools will be beaten, as they deserve.
20 If you drink too much wine or strong drink,
you do stupid things and you fight.
It is not wise to become drunk.
2 When the king is angry, he is as dangerous as a lion that roars.
If you make him angry, you will lose your life.
3 If you keep away from arguments, you will receive honour.
Only fools love to quarrel.
4 A lazy farmer does not plough his fields in winter.
As a result, he has nothing to eat when harvest time arrives.
5 A person's thoughts are like deep waters.
But a wise person can bring them into the open.
6 Many people say that you can trust them.
But it is difficult to find a truly faithful person.
7 Righteous people live in an honest way.
Their children will also be happy.
8 When a king sits on his throne as judge,
he sees what is evil and he removes it.
9 Nobody can say, ‘My thoughts are completely pure.
There is no sin in me.’
10 If people use false weights and measures,
the Lord hates anything like that.
11 Even children show what they are like by the things that they do.
You can see if they are honest and good.
12 The Lord has made us with ears to hear with and eyes to see with.
They are both his gift to us.
13 If you love to sleep too much, you will become poor.
Keep awake so that you have food on the table!
14 When somebody is buying something, he says, ‘It is worth nothing!’
But later he boasts about the cheap price!
15 Words that help you to learn things are very valuable.
They are more valuable than gold or jewels.
16 If someone promises to pay the debts of a stranger,
take his coat as a guarantee that he will pay.
17 If you cheat someone to get food to eat,
it may seem good when you taste it.
But soon it will be like sand in your mouth.
18 Things will go well if you receive good advice.
If you want to fight a war, ask wise people to be your advisors.
19 Keep away from people who talk too much.
They will tell everybody about your secrets.
20 If you insult your parents, your life will quickly finish,
like a lamp that suddenly goes out
and leaves you in complete darkness.
21 If you receive riches too early in life,
it will do you no good in the end.
22 Do not say, ‘I will pay you back for the evil thing you did to me.’
Trust the Lord to make it right for you.
23 The Lord hates traders who use false weights.
He hates scales that do not weigh things properly.
24 The Lord chooses the way that we take through life.
We cannot understand what will happen to us.
25 Do not be too quick to promise to give something to God.
If you want to change your mind, you have made a trap for yourself.
26 A wise king can pick out wicked people,
and he will punish them as they deserve.
27 The Lord makes our human spirit like his lamp inside us.
It shows us what we are really like.
28 A king should rule with faithful love and truth.
If he is honest and fair, he will continue to rule.
29 Young men boast about their strength.
Old men are proud of their beautiful grey hair.
30 Painful punishment stops you from doing evil things.
It makes you change to a better way of life.
21 The Lord controls the things that a king decides to do.
He can change the king's thoughts, like the direction of a stream.
2 People think that everything they do is right,
but the Lord knows exactly why they are doing it.
3 If you do what is right and fair,
it pleases the Lord more than sacrifices.
4 Wicked people are proud and they boast.
Sin is their guide through life.
5 A careful person makes good plans
and he has everything that he needs.
But anyone who works in a hurry will soon become poor.
6 If you deceive people to become rich,
it will soon all disappear.
It will lead you to an early death.
7 When wicked people do violent things, it destroys them.
They refuse to do what is right.
8 Guilty people are always going the wrong way.
Good people keep on the right way.
9 It is better to live on the roof of your house
than to live with a wife who always argues.
10 Evil things are the food that wicked people eat to live.
They are not kind to anyone, even their friends.
11 When a proud person receives punishment,
silly people become wise.
When you teach a wise person,
he learns more knowledge.
12 The Righteous One knows what happens in the homes of wicked people.[a]
He punishes them as they deserve.
13 If you refuse to listen when poor people ask for help,
you too will receive no help when you need it.
14 If someone is angry with you, give him a gift secretly.
A secret bribe will make him quiet, even if he is very angry.
15 When there is justice, righteous people are happy,
but wicked people are afraid.
16 If someone decides to turn away from wisdom,
he will soon be in his grave.
17 Anyone who loves only pleasure will become poor.
People who love wine and big feasts will never become rich.
18 When trouble comes,
wicked people receive the pain instead of righteous people.
19 It is better to live alone in a desert
than to live with a wife who quarrels and complains.
20 Wise people store valuable things and good food in their houses.
But foolish people waste everything immediately.
21 If you are kind and faithful, you will live a long life!
Other people will respect you and they will be kind to you.
22 A wise person can win against a city that is full of strong men.
He can destroy the strong place that they trust to keep them safe.
23 If you want to keep away from trouble,
always be careful about what you say.
24 If you are proud, people will call you ‘Boaster’,
because you think that you are better than all other people.
25 Lazy people want many things but they refuse to work,
so they are killing themselves.
26 They think only about more things that they want for themselves.
But righteous people are happy to give their things to other people.
27 The Lord hates it
when wicked people offer sacrifices to him.
He hates it even more
when they do it with an evil purpose.
28 Anyone who tells lies in court will come to nothing.
But if someone listens to the truth, his report will remain for ever.
29 Wicked people do not show what they are really thinking.
But righteous people think carefully about what they are doing.
30 There is no wisdom, no knowledge and no advice
that can win against the Lord.
31 You can prepare your horses to fight in a battle,
but only the Lord can help you to win.
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