Pearls of Wisdom-Proverbs 4-29-24 to 5-1-24

Pearls of Wisdom-Proverbs 4-29-24 to 5-1-24

Proverbs 29-31

New American Standard Bible

Warnings and Instructions

29 A person [a]often rebuked who [b]becomes obstinate

Will suddenly be broken [c]beyond remedy.

2 When the righteous [d]increase, the people rejoice,

But when a wicked person rules, people groan.

3 A man who loves wisdom makes his father glad,

But he who involves himself with prostitutes wastes his wealth.

4 The king gives stability to the land by justice,

But a person who takes bribes ruins it.

5 A man who flatters his neighbor

Is spreading a net for his steps.

6 By wrongdoing an evil person is ensnared,

But the righteous sings and rejoices.

7 The righteous [e]is concerned for the rights of the poor;

The wicked does not understand such [f]concern.

8 Arrogant people inflame a city,

But wise people turn away anger.

9 When a wise person has a controversy with a foolish person,

[g]The foolish person either rages or laughs, and there is no rest.

10 People of bloodshed hate the blameless person,

But the upright [h]are concerned for his life.

11 A fool [i]always loses his temper,

But a wise person holds it back.

12 If a ruler pays attention to falsehood,

All his ministers become wicked.

13 The poor person and the oppressor [j]have this in common:

The Lord gives light to the eyes of both.

14 If a king judges the poor with truth,

His throne will be established forever.

15 The rod and a rebuke give wisdom,

But a child [k]who gets his own way brings shame to his mother.

16 When the wicked [l]increase, wrongdoing increases;

But the righteous will see their downfall.

17 Correct your son, and he will give you comfort;

He will also [m]delight your soul.

18 Where there is no [n]vision, the people are unrestrained,

But happy is one who keeps the Law.

19 A slave will not be instructed by words alone;

For though he understands, there will be no response.

20 Do you see a person who is hasty with his words?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

21 One who pampers his slave from childhood

Will in the end find him to be rebellious.

22 An angry person stirs up strife,

And a hot-tempered person abounds in wrongdoing.

23 A person’s pride will bring him low,

But a humble spirit will obtain honor.

24 One who is a partner with a thief hates his own life;

He hears the oath but tells nothing.

25 The fear of man [o]brings a snare,

But one who trusts in the Lord will be protected.

26 Many seek the ruler’s [p]favor,

But justice for mankind comes from the Lord.

27 An unjust person is an abomination to the righteous,

And one who is upright in the way is an abomination to the wicked.

The Words of Agur

30 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the pronouncement.

The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:

2 I am certainly more stupid than any man,

And I do not have the understanding of a man;

3 Nor have I learned wisdom,

Nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One.

4 Who has ascended into heaven and descended?

Who has gathered the wind in His fists?

Who has wrapped the waters in [q]His garment?

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is His name or His [r]Son’s name?

Surely you know!

5 Every word of God is [s]pure;

He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

6 Do not add to His words

Or He will rebuke you, and you will be proved a liar.

7 Two things I have asked of You;

Do not refuse me before I die:

8 Keep deception and [t]lies far from me,

Give me neither poverty nor riches;

Feed me with the food that is my portion,

9 So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?”

And that I will not become impoverished and steal,

And profane the name of my God.

10 Do not slander a slave to his master,

Or he will curse you and you will be found guilty.

11 There is a [u]kind of person who curses his father

And does not bless his mother.

12 There is a [v]kind who is pure in his own eyes,

Yet is not washed from his filthiness.

13 There is a [w]kind—oh how lofty are his eyes!

And his eyelids are raised in arrogance.

14 There is a [x]kind of person whose teeth are like swords

And his jaw teeth like knives,

To devour the poor from the earth

And the needy from among mankind.

15 The leech has two daughters:

“Give” and “Give.”

There are three things that will not be satisfied,

Four that will not say, “Enough”:

16 [y]Sheol, the infertile womb,

Earth that is never satisfied with water,

And fire that never says, “Enough.”

17 The eye that mocks a father

And [z]scorns a mother,

The ravens of the valley will pick it out,

And the young eagles will eat it.

18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me,

Four which I do not understand:

19 The way of the eagle in the sky,

The way of a snake on a rock,

The way of a ship in the middle of the sea,

And the way of a man with a [aa]virgin.

20 This is the way of an adulterous woman:

She eats and wipes her mouth,

And says, “I have done no wrong.”

21 Under three things the earth quakes,

And under four, it cannot endure:

22 Under a slave when he becomes king,

And a fool when he is satisfied with food,

23 Under an unloved woman when she gets a husband,

And a female servant when she dispossesses her mistress.

24 Four things are small on the earth,

But they are exceedingly wise:

25 The ants are not a strong people,

But they prepare their food in the summer;

26 The rock hyraxes are not a mighty people,

Yet they make their houses in the rocks;

27 The locusts have no king,

Yet all of them go out in ranks;

28 The lizard you may grasp with the hands,

Yet it is in kings’ palaces.

29 There are three things which are stately in their march,

Even four which are stately when they walk:

30 The lion, which is mighty among animals

And does not [ab]retreat from anything,

31 The [ac]strutting rooster or the male goat,

And a king when his army is with him.

32 If you have been foolish in exalting yourself,

Or if you have plotted evil, put your hand on your mouth.

33 For the [ad]churning of milk produces butter,

And pressing the nose produces blood;

So the [ae]churning of anger produces strife.

The Words of Lemuel

31 The words of King Lemuel, the pronouncement which his mother taught him:

2 What, my son?

And what, son of my womb?

And what, son of my vows?

3 Do not give your strength to women,

Or your ways to that which destroys kings.

4 It is not for kings, Lemuel,

It is not for kings to drink wine,

Or for rulers to desire intoxicating drink,

5 Otherwise they will drink and forget what is decreed,

And pervert the [af]rights of all the [ag]needy.

6 Give intoxicating drink to one who is perishing,

And wine to one [ah]whose life is bitter.

7 Let him drink and forget his poverty,

And remember his trouble no more.

8 Open your mouth for the people who cannot speak,

For the [ai]rights of all the [aj]unfortunate.

9 Open your mouth, judge righteously,

And [ak]defend the rights of the poor and needy.

Description of a Worthy Woman

10 An excellent wife, who can find her?

For her worth is far above jewels.

11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,

And he will have no lack of gain.

12 She does him good and not evil

All the days of her life.

13 She looks for wool and linen,

And works with her [al]hands [am]in delight.

14 She is like merchant ships;

She brings her food from afar.

15 And she rises while it is still night

And gives food to her household,

And [an]portions to her attendants.

16 She considers a field and buys it;

From [ao]her earnings she plants a vineyard.

17 She surrounds her waist with strength

And makes her arms strong.

18 She senses that her profit is good;

Her lamp does not go out at night.

19 She stretches out her hands to the [ap]distaff,

And her [aq]hands grasp the spindle.

20 She [ar]extends her hand to the poor,

And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household,

For all her household are clothed with scarlet.

22 She makes coverings for herself;

Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

23 Her husband is known in the gates,

When he sits among the elders of the land.

24 She makes linen garments and sells them,

And [as]supplies belts to the [at]tradesmen.

25 Strength and dignity are her clothing,

And she smiles at the [au]future.

26 She opens her mouth in wisdom,

And the [av]teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

27 She watches over the activities of her household,

And does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children rise up and bless her;

Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

29 “Many daughters have done nobly,

But you excel them all.”

30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,

But a woman who [aw]fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

31 Give her the [ax]product of her hands,

And let her works praise her in the gates.

Proverbs 1

New American Standard Bible

The Usefulness of Proverbs

1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:

2 To know wisdom and instruction,

To discern the sayings of understanding,

3 To receive instruction in wise behavior,

Righteousness, justice, and integrity;

4 To give prudence to the naive,

To the youth knowledge and discretion,

5 A wise person will hear and increase in learning,

And a person of understanding will acquire wise counsel,

6 To understand a proverb and a saying,

The words of the wise and their riddles.

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;

Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

The Enticement of Sinners

8 Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction,

And do not ignore your mother’s teaching;

9 For they are a graceful wreath for your head

And necklaces for your neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice you,

Do not consent.

11 If they say, “Come with us,

Let’s lie in wait for blood,

Let’s ambush the innocent without cause;

12 Let’s swallow them alive like Sheol,

Even whole, like those who go down to the pit;

13 We will find all kinds of precious wealth,

We will fill our houses with plunder;

14 Throw in your lot [a]with us;

We will all have one money bag,”

15 My son, do not walk on the way with them.

Keep your feet from their path,

16 For their feet run to evil,

And they are quick to shed blood.

17 Indeed, it is [b]useless to spread the baited net

In the sight of any [c]bird;

18 But they lie in wait for their own blood;

They ambush their own lives.

19 Such are the ways of everyone who makes unjust gain;

It takes away the life of its possessors.

Wisdom Warns

20 Wisdom shouts in the street,

She [d]raises her voice in the public square;

21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;

At the entrance of the gates in the city she declares her sayings:

22 “How long, you naive ones, will you love simplistic thinking?

And how long will scoffers delight themselves in scoffing

And fools hate knowledge?

23 Turn to my rebuke,

Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you;

I will make my words known to you.

24 Because I called and you refused,

I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;

25 And you neglected all my advice

And did not want my rebuke;

26 I will also laugh at your disaster;

I will mock when your dread comes,

27 When your dread comes like a storm

And your disaster comes like a whirlwind,

When distress and anguish come upon you.

28 Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;

They will seek me diligently but will not find me,

29 Because they hated knowledge

And did not choose the fear of the Lord.

30 They did not accept my advice,

They disdainfully rejected every rebuke from me.

31 So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way,

And be filled with their own schemes.

32 For the faithlessness of the naive will kill them,

And the complacency of fools will destroy them.

33 But whoever listens to me will live securely

And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”