Tag Archives: Bill Cloud

1 Honor is no more associated with fools
    than snow with summer or rain with harvest.

² Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow,
    an undeserved curse will not land on its intended victim.

³ Guide a horse with a whip, a donkey with a bridle,
    and a fool with a rod to his back!

⁴ Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools,
    or you will become as foolish as they are.

⁵ Be sure to answer the foolish arguments of fools,
    or they will become wise in their own estimation.

⁶ Trusting a fool to convey a message
    is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison!

⁷ A proverb in the mouth of a fool
    is as useless as a paralyzed leg.

⁸ Honoring a fool
    is as foolish as tying a stone to a slingshot.

⁹ A proverb in the mouth of a fool
    is like a thorny branch brandished by a drunk.

¹⁰ An employer who hires a fool or a bystander
    is like an archer who shoots at random.

¹¹ As a dog returns to its vomit,
    so a fool repeats his foolishness.

¹² There is more hope for fools
    than for people who think they are wise.

¹³ The lazy person claims, “There’s a lion on the road!
    Yes, I’m sure there’s a lion out there!”

¹⁴ As a door swings back and forth on its hinges,
    so the lazy person turns over in bed.

¹⁵ Lazy people take food in their hand
    but don’t even lift it to their mouth.

¹⁶ Lazy people consider themselves smarter
    than seven wise counselors.

¹⁷ Interfering in someone else’s argument
    is as foolish as yanking a dog’s ears.

¹⁸ Just as damaging
    as a madman shooting a deadly weapon
¹⁹ is someone who lies to a friend
    and then says, “I was only joking.”

²⁰ Fire goes out without wood,
    and quarrels disappear when gossip stops.

²¹ A quarrelsome person starts fights
    as easily as hot embers light charcoal or fire lights wood.

²² Rumors are dainty morsels
    that sink deep into one’s heart.

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.

²⁷ If you set a trap for others,
    you will get caught in it yourself.
If you roll a boulder down on others,
    it will crush you instead.

²⁸ A lying tongue hates its victims,
    and flattering words cause ruin.

1 Don’t envy evil people
    or desire their company.
² For their hearts plot violence,
    and their words always stir up trouble.

³ A house is built by wisdom
    and becomes strong through good sense.
⁴ Through knowledge its rooms are filled
    with all sorts of precious riches and valuables.

⁵ The wise are mightier than the strong,^[a]
    and those with knowledge grow stronger and stronger.
⁶ So don’t go to war without wise guidance;
    victory depends on having many advisers.

⁷ Wisdom is too lofty for fools.
    Among leaders at the city gate, they have nothing to say.

⁸ A person who plans evil
    will get a reputation as a troublemaker.
⁹ The schemes of a fool are sinful;
    everyone detests a mocker.

¹⁰ If you fail under pressure,
    your strength is too small.

¹¹ Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to die;
    save them as they stagger to their death.
¹² Don’t excuse yourself by saying, “Look, we didn’t know.”
    For God understands all hearts, and he sees you.
He who guards your soul knows you knew.
    He will repay all people as their actions deserve.

¹³ My child,^[b] eat honey, for it is good,
    and the honeycomb is sweet to the taste.
¹⁴ In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul.
    If you find it, you will have a bright future,
    and your hopes will not be cut short.

¹⁵ Don’t wait in ambush at the home of the godly,
    and don’t raid the house where the godly live.
¹⁶ The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.
    But one disaster is enough to overthrow the wicked.

¹⁷ Don’t rejoice when your enemies fall;
    don’t be happy when they stumble.
¹⁸ For the Lord will be displeased with you
    and will turn his anger away from them.

¹⁹ Don’t fret because of evildoers;
    don’t envy the wicked.
²⁰ For evil people have no future;
    the light of the wicked will be snuffed out.

²¹ My child, fear the Lord and the king.
Don’t associate with rebels,
²²     for disaster will hit them suddenly.
Who knows what punishment will come
    from the Lord and the king?

It is wrong to show favoritism when passing judgment.
²⁴ A judge who says to the wicked, “You are innocent,”
    will be cursed by many people and denounced by the nations.
²⁵ But it will go well for those who convict the guilty;
    rich blessings will be showered on them.

²⁶ An honest answer
    is like a kiss of friendship.

²⁷ Do your planning and prepare your fields
    before building your house.

²⁸ Don’t testify against your neighbors without cause;
    don’t lie about them.
²⁹ And don’t say, “Now I can pay them back for what they’ve done to me!
    I’ll get even with them!”

³⁰ I walked by the field of a lazy person,
    the vineyard of one with no common sense.
³¹ I saw that it was overgrown with nettles.
    It was covered with weeds,
    and its walls were broken down.
³² Then, as I looked and thought about it,
    I learned this lesson:
³³ A little extra sleep, a little more slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest—
³⁴ then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit;
    scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.

1 Choose a good reputation over great riches;
    being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.

² The rich and poor have this in common:
    The Lord made them both.

³ A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions.
    The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.

⁴ True humility and fear of the Lord
    lead to riches, honor, and long life.

⁵ Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road;
    whoever values life will avoid it.

⁶ Direct your children onto the right path,
    and when they are older, they will not leave it.

⁷ Just as the rich rule the poor,
    so the borrower is servant to the lender.

⁸ Those who plant injustice will harvest disaster,
    and their reign of terror will come to an end.^[a]

⁹ Blessed are those who are generous,
    because they feed the poor.

¹⁰ Throw out the mocker, and fighting goes, too.
    Quarrels and insults will disappear.

¹¹ Whoever loves a pure heart and gracious speech
    will have the king as a friend.

¹² The Lord preserves those with knowledge,
    but he ruins the plans of the treacherous.

¹³ The lazy person claims, “There’s a lion out there!
    If I go outside, I might be killed!”

¹⁴ The mouth of an immoral woman is a dangerous trap;
    those who make the Lord angry will fall into it.

¹⁵ A youngster’s heart is filled with foolishness,
    but physical discipline will drive it far away.

¹⁶ A person who gets ahead by oppressing the poor
    or by showering gifts on the rich will end in poverty.

²² Don’t rob the poor just because you can,
    or exploit the needy in court.
²³ For the Lord is their defender.
    He will ruin anyone who ruins them.

²⁴ Don’t befriend angry people
    or associate with hot-tempered people,
²⁵ or you will learn to be like them
    and endanger your soul.

²⁶ Don’t agree to guarantee another person’s debt
    or put up security for someone else.
²⁷ If you can’t pay it,
    even your bed will be snatched from under you.

²⁸ Don’t cheat your neighbor by moving the ancient boundary markers
    set up by previous generations.

²⁹ Do you see any truly competent workers?
    They will serve kings
    rather than working for ordinary people.

Proverbs are the art of skillful living. This can only be accomplished in ones life if they fully submit to Yahweh’s spirit for discernment. Another word for proverbs is wisdom, as in the wisdom of our Creator Yahweh.

1 Wine produces mockers; alcohol leads to brawls.
    Those led astray by drink cannot be wise.

² The king’s fury is like a lion’s roar;
    to rouse his anger is to risk your life.

³ Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor;
    only fools insist on quarreling.

⁴ Those too lazy to plow in the right season
    will have no food at the harvest.

⁵ Though good advice lies deep within the heart,
    a person with understanding will draw it out.

⁶ Many will say they are loyal friends,
    but who can find one who is truly reliable?

⁷ The godly walk with integrity;
    blessed are their children who follow them.

⁸ When a king sits in judgment, he weighs all the evidence,
    distinguishing the bad from the good.

⁹ Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart;
    I am pure and free from sin”?

¹⁰ False weights and unequal measures^[a]—
    the Lord detests double standards of every kind.

¹¹ Even children are known by the way they act,
    whether their conduct is pure, and whether it is right.

¹² Ears to hear and eyes to see—
    both are gifts from the Lord.

¹³ If you love sleep, you will end in poverty.
    Keep your eyes open, and there will be plenty to eat!

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

¹⁵ Wise words are more valuable
    than much gold and many rubies.

¹⁶ Get security from someone who guarantees a stranger’s debt.
    Get a deposit if he does it for foreigners.^[b]

¹⁷ Stolen bread tastes sweet,
    but it turns to gravel in the mouth.

¹⁸ Plans succeed through good counsel;
    don’t go to war without wise advice.

¹⁹ A gossip goes around telling secrets,
    so don’t hang around with chatterers.

²⁰ If you insult your father or mother,
    your light will be snuffed out in total darkness.

²¹ An inheritance obtained too early in life
    is not a blessing in the end.

²² Don’t say, “I will get even for this wrong.”
    Wait for the Lord to handle the matter.

²³ The Lord detests double standards;
    he is not pleased by dishonest scales.

²⁴ The Lord directs our steps,
    so why try to understand everything along the way?

²⁵ Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God
    and only later counting the cost.

²⁶ A wise king scatters the wicked like wheat,
    then runs his threshing wheel over them.

²⁷ The Lord’s light penetrates the human spirit,^[c]
    exposing every hidden motive.

²⁸ Unfailing love and faithfulness protect the king;
    his throne is made secure through love.

²⁹ The glory of the young is their strength;
    the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old.

³⁰ Physical punishment cleanses away evil;^[d]
    such discipline purifies the heart.

1 Better to be poor and honest
    than to be dishonest and a fool.

² Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good;
    haste makes mistakes.

³ People ruin their lives by their own foolishness
    and then are angry at the Lord.

⁴ Wealth makes many “friends”;
    poverty drives them all away.

⁵ A false witness will not go unpunished,
    nor will a liar escape.

⁶ Many seek favors from a ruler;
    everyone is the friend of a person who gives gifts!

⁷ The relatives of the poor despise them;
    how much more will their friends avoid them!
Though the poor plead with them,
    their friends are gone.

⁸ To acquire wisdom is to love yourself;
    people who cherish understanding will prosper.

⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished,
    and a liar will be destroyed.

¹⁰ It isn’t right for a fool to live in luxury
    or for a slave to rule over princes!

¹¹ Sensible people control their temper;
    they earn respect by overlooking wrongs.

¹² The king’s anger is like a lion’s roar,
    but his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹³ A foolish child^[a] is a calamity to a father;
    a quarrelsome wife is as annoying as constant dripping.

¹⁴ Fathers can give their sons an inheritance of houses and wealth,
    but only the Lord can give an understanding wife.

¹⁵ Lazy people sleep soundly,
    but idleness leaves them hungry.

¹⁶ Keep the commandments and keep your life;
    despising them leads to death.

¹⁷ If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord—
    and he will repay you!

¹⁸ Discipline your children while there is hope.
    Otherwise you will ruin their lives.

¹⁹ Hot-tempered people must pay the penalty.
    If you rescue them once, you will have to do it again.

²⁰ Get all the advice and instruction you can,
    so you will be wise the rest of your life.

²¹ You can make many plans,
    but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.

²² Loyalty makes a person attractive.
    It is better to be poor than dishonest.

²³ Fear of the Lord leads to life,
    bringing security and protection from harm.

²⁴ Lazy people take food in their hand
    but don’t even lift it to their mouth.

²⁵ If you punish a mocker, the simpleminded will learn a lesson;
    if you correct the wise, they will be all the wiser.

²⁶ Children who mistreat their father or chase away their mother
    are an embarrassment and a public disgrace.

²⁷ If you stop listening to instruction, my child,
    you will turn your back on knowledge.

²⁸ A corrupt witness makes a mockery of justice;
    the mouth of the wicked gulps down evil.

²⁹ Punishment is made for mockers,
    and the backs of fools are made to be beaten.