Proverbs 17

English Standard Version

17 ^(A)Better is a dry morsel with quiet
    than a house full of feasting^[a] with strife.
² A servant who deals wisely will rule over ^(B)a son who acts shamefully
    and ^(C)will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
^3 (D)The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
    ^(E)and the Lord tests hearts.
⁴ An evildoer listens to wicked lips,
    and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.
⁵ Whoever mocks the poor ^(F)insults his Maker;
    he who is ^(G)glad at calamity will not go ^(H)unpunished.
^6 (I)Grandchildren are ^(J)the crown of the aged,
    and the glory of children is their fathers.
⁷ Fine speech is not ^(K)becoming to a fool;
    still less is ^(L)false speech to a prince.
^8 (M)A bribe is like a magic^[b] stone in the eyes of the one who gives it;
    wherever he turns he prospers.
⁹ Whoever ^(N)covers an offense seeks love,
    but he who repeats a matter ^(O)separates close friends.
¹⁰ A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding
    than a hundred blows into a fool.
¹¹ An evil man seeks only rebellion,
    and ^(P)a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
¹² Let a man meet ^(Q)a she-bear robbed of her cubs
    ^(R)rather than a fool in his folly.
¹³ If anyone ^(S)returns evil for good,
    ^(T)evil will not depart from his house.
¹⁴ The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
    so ^(U)quit before the quarrel breaks out.
¹⁵ He who ^(V)justifies the wicked and he who ^(W)condemns the righteous
    are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
¹⁶ Why should a fool have money in his hand ^(X)to buy wisdom
    when he has no sense?
^17 (Y)A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for adversity.
¹⁸ One who lacks sense gives a pledge
    and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor.
¹⁹ Whoever loves transgression loves strife;
    he who ^(Z)makes his door high seeks destruction.
^20 (AA)A man of crooked heart does not discover good,
    and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity.
²¹ He who ^(AB)sires a fool gets himself sorrow,
    and the father of a fool has no joy.
^22 (AC)A joyful heart is good medicine,
    but a crushed spirit ^(AD)dries up the bones.
²³ The wicked accepts ^(AE)a bribe in secret^[c]
    to ^(AF)pervert the ways of justice.
^24 (AG)The discerning sets his face toward wisdom,
    but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
^25 (AH)A foolish son is a grief to his father
    ^(AI)and bitterness to ^(AJ)her who bore him.
^26 (AK)To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good,
    nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
²⁷ Whoever ^(AL)restrains his words has knowledge,
    and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
²⁸ Even a fool ^(AM)who keeps silent is considered wise;
    when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.