Proverbs 24

New International Version

Saying 20

24 Do not envy^(A) the wicked,
do not desire their company;
²for their hearts plot violence,^(B)
and their lips talk about making trouble.^(C)

Saying 21

³By wisdom a house is built,^(D)
and through understanding it is established;
⁴through knowledge its rooms are filled
with rare and beautiful treasures.^(E)

Saying 22

⁵The wise prevail through great power,
and those who have knowledge muster their strength.
⁶Surely you need guidance to wage war,
and victory is won through many advisers.^(F)

Saying 23

⁷Wisdom is too high for fools;
in the assembly at the gate they must not open their mouths.

Saying 24

⁸Whoever plots evil
will be known as a schemer.
⁹The schemes of folly are sin,
and people detest a mocker.

Saying 25

¹⁰If you falter in a time of trouble,
    how small is your strength!^(G)
¹¹Rescue those being led away to death;
    hold back those staggering toward slaughter.^(H)
¹²If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,”
    does not he who weighs^(I) the heart perceive it?
Does not he who guards your life know it?
    Will he not repay^(J) everyone according to what they have done?^(K)

Saying 26

¹³Eat honey, my son, for it is good;
    honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.
¹⁴Know also that wisdom is like honey for you:
    If you find it, there is a future hope for you,
    and your hope will not be cut off.^(L)

Saying 27

¹⁵Do not lurk like a thief near the house of the righteous,
do not plunder their dwelling place;
¹⁶for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again,
but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.^(M)

Saying 28

¹⁷Do not gloat^(N) when your enemy falls;
when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice,^(O)
¹⁸or the Lord will see and disapprove
and turn his wrath away from them.^(P)

Saying 29

¹⁹Do not fret^(Q) because of evildoers
or be envious of the wicked,
²⁰for the evildoer has no future hope,
and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.^(R)

Saying 30

²¹Fear the Lord and the king,^(S) my son,
and do not join with rebellious officials,
²²for those two will send sudden destruction^(T) on them,
and who knows what calamities they can bring?

Further Sayings of the Wise

²³These also are sayings of the wise:^(U)

To show partiality^(V) in judging is not good:^(W)
²⁴Whoever says to the guilty, “You are innocent,”^(X)
will be cursed by peoples and denounced by nations.
²⁵But it will go well with those who convict the guilty,
and rich blessing will come on them.

²⁶An honest answer
is like a kiss on the lips.

²⁷Put your outdoor work in order
and get your fields ready;
after that, build your house.

²⁸Do not testify against your neighbor without cause^(Y)—
would you use your lips to mislead?
²⁹Do not say, “I’ll do to them as they have done to me;
I’ll pay them back for what they did.”^(Z)

³⁰I went past the field of a sluggard,^(AA)
    past the vineyard of someone who has no sense;
³¹thorns had come up everywhere,
    the ground was covered with weeds,
    and the stone wall was in ruins.
³²I applied my heart to what I observed
    and learned a lesson from what I saw:
³³A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest^(AB)—
³⁴and poverty will come on you like a thief
    and scarcity like an armed man.^(AC)